Health News Roundup: Pfizer RSV shot meets goals in trial of high-risk adults under age 60; Novartis to cut 680 jobs in product development and more

The vaccine, designed to train the immune system of patients to recognize and attack specific mutations in cancer cells, earlier showed promise in treating melanoma in a mid-stage study. Nigeria recalls J&J children's cough syrup over toxic substance Nigeria's health regulator is recalling a batch of Johnson & Johnson children's cough syrup after finding an unacceptably high level of a potentially fatal toxic substance, it said on Wednesday.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Novartis to cut 680 jobs in product development

Novartis is to cut up to 680 jobs in its development organisation, which helps bring its drugs to market, the Swiss pharmaceuticals company said on Tuesday. Around 440 jobs will go in Switzerland and up to 240 in the United States over the next two to three years, the Basel-based company said.

Pfizer RSV shot meets goals in trial of high-risk adults under age 60

Pfizer said on Tuesday its respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine Abrysvo was well tolerated and generated an immune response in higher risk adults under the age of 60 similar to that in older adults, for whom the shot is already approved. Pfizer said it plans to submit its findings from the trial to seek expanded approval of the vaccine in adults ages 18 to 59, but did not give a time frame for when it expects the data to be considered by regulators.

Cuba says drug use on the rise, especially among youth

Cuba said on Wednesday illegal drug use is rising on the Caribbean island, a blow to the communist-run nation that has for decades prided itself on controlling the illicit traffic and use of narcotics. A health official said the island was moving to "control and contain" the growing use of drugs, especially among young people, but acknowledging shortfalls amid an increasingly severe economic crisis.

Evidence around youth gender care 'remarkably weak', says major English review

Medical evidence underlying gender care for adolescents is “remarkably weak” and provides little clarity on long-term outcomes, according to an in-depth review of care commissioned by England’s state-funded National Health Service. Gender care can include anything from counselling to medications related to gender issues, including drugs that can pause puberty.

Vertex Pharma boosts immunotherapy business in $4.9 billion Alpine Immune deal

Vertex Pharmaceuticals will buy Alpine Immune Sciences for about $4.9 billion in cash, gaining access to the biotech firm's protein-based immunotherapies to treat autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, the companies said on Wednesday. The deal values each share of Alpine at $65, which represents a premium of about 67% to the stock's close on Tuesday, a day before Bloomberg News reported that the company was considering options, including a potential sale, after attracting takeover interest.

Arizona ruling puts abortion at center of 2024 presidential election

Democrats wasted little time capitalizing on Tuesday's ruling from Arizona's high court upholding a 160-year-old abortion ban, organizing press conferences in swing states across the country and blaming former Republican President Donald Trump for eliminating a nationwide right to abortion. The decision from the conservative Arizona Supreme Court sent a shockwave through the battleground state, which is poised to play a pivotal role in November's presidential election while also hosting one of the country's most high-profile Senate races.

Moderna jumps as vaccine shows benefit in head and neck cancer in early study

Moderna shares rose 8% to a three-month high on Tuesday after the company's individualized cancer vaccine developed with Merck showed positive response in an early-stage trial in patients with a type of head and neck cancer. The vaccine, designed to train the immune system of patients to recognize and attack specific mutations in cancer cells, earlier showed promise in treating melanoma in a mid-stage study.

Nigeria recalls J&J children's cough syrup over toxic substance

Nigeria's health regulator is recalling a batch of Johnson & Johnson children's cough syrup after finding an unacceptably high level of a potentially fatal toxic substance, it said on Wednesday. Laboratory tests on Benylin Paediatric showed a high level of diethylene glycol, which has been linked to the deaths of dozens of children in Gambia, Uzbekistan and Cameroon since 2022 in one of the world's worst waves of poisoning from oral medication.

More produce, less dairy for low-income families under US nutrition program changes

Nearly 7 million low-income women and children will be able to purchase more fruits and vegetables but less dairy after the U.S. Department of Agriculture finalized changes to a key federal nutrition program on Tuesday. The updates to the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), the first since 2014, were made to better align the program's food packages with the best dietary science, USDA said.

Philips shares rise on final US deal on sleep apnea machines

Philips announced the main terms of an agreement it reached in January with the U.S. government on its new sleep apnea machines, which has already cost the company over 360 million euros in the fourth quarter of 2023, sending its shares up almost 3% on Wednesday. Philips said it had reached what is known as a consent decree that spells out the improvements it needs to make at its Respironics plants in the United States.

(With inputs from agencies.)