Health Summary: 'Man's best friend' is robot dog; Yoghurt lowers colon cancer risk

Karyopharm Therapeutics prices blood cancer treatment after FDA approval

Karyopharm Therapeutics Inc on Wednesday set a list-price for its blood cancer treatment Xpovio at $22,000 per month, following accelerated approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Karyopharm said it expects Xpovio to become commercially available in the United States by July 10.

China says African swine fever outbreaks slowing

The number of fresh outbreaks of African swine fever in China has dropped significantly this year and pig production is gradually returning to normal, its vice agriculture minister said, amid recent reports underscoring the threat of the disease. African swine fever is deadly to pigs and there is no cure or vaccine for the disease, which has swept through China, the world's top pork producer, since August last year.

Men who eat yoghurt may have a lower colon cancer risk

Men who eat at least two servings a week of yoghurt may be lowering their risk for colorectal cancer, a recent study suggests. Researchers examined data on 32,606 male and 55,743 female health professionals who had a colonoscopy between 1986 and 2012. Study participants provided detailed information about their health, lifestyle, eating and exercise habits every four years.

The experimental wristband may give wearer feedback on moods

A wristband made of smart fabric may someday provide real-time insight into wearers' emotions, researchers say. The wristbands are designed to change color, pressure or temperature in response to changes in arousal levels. In a small preliminary trial, they alerted people to possible fluctuations in mood, researchers reported at the annual meeting of the Association for Computing Machinery in San Diego.

U.S. judge blocks Ohio 'heartbeat' law to end most abortions

A federal judge on Wednesday blocked Ohio from enforcing a new law that critics said would effectively ban most abortions in the state, starting as early as six weeks into pregnancy. U.S. District Judge Michael Barrett in Cincinnati issued a preliminary injunction against enforcing the "Heartbeat Protection Act," saying it imposed an unconstitutional "undue burden" on a woman's right to obtain a pre-viability abortion.

Risk of dementia rises with prostate cancer hormone-blocking therapy

Prostate cancer patients who received hormone-lowering therapy were at higher risk of developing dementia and Alzheimer's disease later on than men who didn't get this treatment, a large U.S. study finds. Researchers who followed nearly 155,000 men with prostate cancer found that overall, those given so-called androgen-deprivation therapy were at a 20% higher risk of being diagnosed with dementia and at 14% higher risk of an Alzheimer's diagnosis in the next 10 years. The risk continued to rise with increasing doses of androgen-deprivation drugs.

High blood pressure during pregnancy tied to heart problems decades later

Women who develop high blood pressure during pregnancy may be more likely than those who don't to have heart attacks or strokes decades later, a Norwegian study suggests. Compared to women with normal blood pressure during every pregnancy, women who developed hypertensive disorders, or high blood pressure, during one or more pregnancies were 57% more likely to have a heart attack or stroke at some point between ages 40 and 70. GSK's HIV drug receives EU marketing nod

GlaxoSmithKline said its specialist HIV company had received marketing authorization from the European Commission for its drug to treat advanced stage HIV infections in adults and adolescents above the age of 12 and weighing at least 40 kg. ViiV Healthcare, which is majority owned by GSK and with Pfizer Inc and Shionogi Ltd as shareholders, got the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval for the treatment Dovato in April.

Roche says one-dose Xofluza flu drug as good as older Tamiflu in kids

Swiss drugmaker Roche said its new one-dose flu medicine Xofluza was comparable to its 20-year-old drug Tamiflu in reducing the duration of symptoms of the viral disease, citing a study of the drug in children aged one to 12 years old. Xofluza, an oral treatment, was well tolerated in children, said Roche, whose medicine is already approved broadly in Japan and for people older than 12 in the United States. The company is seeking to establish Xofluza as a more-convenient alternative to its older Tamiflu, which must be taken twice daily for five days and which is off patent, allowing cheap copies to the crowd in.

'Man's best friend' is a robot dog to some with dementia

A robot dog under development in California is vying to be a best friend to people with Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia, offering comfort by responding to human touch with life-like motions. Entrepreneur Tom Stevens recently presented a test version of the robotic yellow Labrador puppy to residents of a nursing home in Thousand Oaks, California.

(With inputs from agencies.)