EU Regulator Approves GSK's RSV Shot for Older Adults, Amid Controversial Pharma Headlines

The EU health regulator recommended the expanded use of GSK's RSV vaccine for adults aged 50-59. The EU's regulator rejected an Alzheimer's drug by Eisai and Biogen due to risks of brain swelling. WHO sends over one million polio vaccines to Gaza. Indivior reaches $86 million opioid settlement with 16 U.S. states.

The European Union health regulator on Friday recommended the expanded use of GSK's respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine in adults aged between 50 and 59. This approval follows the European Medicines Agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use's favorable decision, pending formal approval by the European Commission.

In another significant health decision, the EU's drugs regulator has rejected Eisai and Biogen's Leqembi treatment for early Alzheimer's disease. The decision centered on concerns that the risk of serious brain swelling outweighed the drug's small efficacy in slowing cognitive decline, signaling a setback for the companies amid slow uptake in the U.S.

Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) is proactively sending over a million polio vaccines to Gaza. Detected in sewage samples, the polio virus poses a significant threat to children, prompting swift preventative measures from WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, as discussed in The Guardian.