Health News Roundup-Flavored tobacco popular among US kids, J&J talc litigation and much more

AstraZeneca picks Baselga to lead oncology R&D in growth plan

AstraZeneca said on Monday it had hired José Baselga to head research and development in oncology, an area where the British pharmaceuticals firm is seeking to grow its business. The 59-year-old Spaniard resigned as chief medical officer of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in September after the New York Times and Pro Publica revealed that he had not disclosed millions of dollars in payments from healthcare firms.

China authorities arrest 18 at TCM firm after cancer case sparks outcry

Chinese authorities have arrested the founder and more than a dozen others at a local traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) firm after the death of a young girl with cancer was linked to the company and sparked anger online. Authorities in the Chinese port city of Tianjin had said in December that they were investigating TCM firm Quanjian Group over allegations including false marketing.

U.S. Supreme Court could side with Merck over Fosamax lawsuits

U.S. Supreme Court justices on Monday appeared sympathetic to Merck & Co in its bid to fend off hundreds of lawsuits accusing the company of failing to adequately warn patients of the risks of thigh bone fractures associated with its osteoporosis drug Fosamax. The justices heard arguments in Merck's appeal of a lower court ruling that revived the lawsuits filed in federal court by patients who said they suffered debilitating bone breaks after taking the drug.

Latest trial in J&J talc litigations gets underway in California

A California jury on Monday heard opening statements in the latest trial over allegations that Johnson & Johnson's talc-based products, including the company's baby powder, were contaminated with asbestos and cause cancer. The lawsuit brought by Terry Leavitt in Alameda Superior Court in Oakland is the first of over a dozen J&J talc cases scheduled for trial in 2019. The company is facing some 11,700 lawsuits over the safety of talc in its products.

Chinese scientist criticized for risking 'gene-edited' babies' lives

A leading geneticist who ran the conference where a Chinese scientist said he had made the world's first "gene-edited" babies condemned him on Monday for potentially jeopardizing lives and having no biology training. Robin Lovell-Badge, organizer of the November 2018 event where China's He Jiankui made his controversial presentation, described him as a rich man with a "huge ego" who "wanted to do something he thinks will change the world".

Flavored tobacco use rising in U.S. kids as vaping takes off

The growing popularity of e-cigarettes among U.S. youth may be associated with increased use of potentially dangerous flavored tobacco products, a new study suggests. Tobacco use overall appears to be waning among American middle and high school students. The proportion of students using any tobacco products declined from 17.3 percent in 2014 to 13.6 percent in 2017.

Merck loses bid to revive $200 million Gilead verdict at U.S. high court

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday handed a defeat to Merck & Co by refusing to hear its appeal of a ruling that it had dishonestly obtained patent rights and could not collect a $200 million verdict against rival drugmaker Gilead Sciences Inc in a dispute involving blockbuster hepatitis C drugs. A jury awarded Merck $200 million in 2016 after finding Gilead's Hepatitis C drugs Sovaldi and Harvoni infringed two of its patents, but a judge later ruled the patents unenforceable because of a pattern of misconduct by Merck including lying under oath by one of its in-house lawyers.

Sanofi to pay Regeneron $462 million in revised immuno-oncology deal

Sanofi will pay Regeneron some $462 million in a revision of their deal in immuno-oncology, a growing sector in healthcare research which aims to help the body's own immune system fight cancer. The two companies said the new arrangement would give France's Sanofi increased flexibility to advance its early-stage immuno-oncology pipeline, while U.S. healthcare group Regeneron retains all rights to its other immuno-oncology discovery and development programmes.

U.S. top court rejects Amgen over cholesterol medication patent fight

Amgen Inc on Monday lost its bid at the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn a ruling that kept the Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc and Sanofi SA cholesterol-lowering drug Praluent on the market, but the patent dispute among the rival drugmakers will continue in another trial. The justices declined to hear Amgen's appeal seeking reinstatement of a jury verdict it won against Regeneron and Sanofi in the dispute in which Amgen accused its rivals of infringing its patents relating to its competing drug Repatha and sought to block sales of Praluent.

New California governor tackles drug prices in the first act

Hours into his new job, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed an executive order on Monday that could dramatically reshape the way prescription drugs are paid for and acquired in the most populous U.S. state. The order, along with another naming the state's first-ever surgeon general, marks a fast start for a governor who has vowed to combat inequity and position California as a counterweight to the conservative Trump administration in Washington.

(With inputs from agencies.)