Health News Summary: AstraZeneca's combo drug for lung cancer succeeds in late-stage trial

Following is a summary of current health news briefs. AstraZeneca's combo drug for lung cancer succeeds in a late-stage trial

AstraZeneca Plc said on Monday a combination of its cancer drug, Imfinzi, along with chemotherapy helped curb the progression of lung cancer in a late-stage study, sending its shares up as much as 2%. The combination, when added to the drugmaker's tremelimumab therapy, also met the secondary goal of improving progression-free survival, the British drugmaker said. Missouri, Planned Parenthood debate 'safety concerns' at abortion clinic hearing

The fate of Missouri's only abortion clinic was at stake on Monday, as a state arbiter heard arguments from Planned Parenthood and state officials who have threatened to close it and make Missouri the sole U.S. state without legal abortion services. Planned Parenthood, the women's healthcare and abortion provider that operates the facility, sued the state health department in June for its refusal to renew the St. Louis clinic's license. The state court judge presiding over the case referred the matter to the Administrative Hearing Commission, an independent arbiter. New tuberculosis treatment for developing countries to cost $1,040

A newly approved three-drug treatment for tuberculosis will be available in 150 countries including India and South Africa, priced at $1,040 for a complete regimen, more than twice the cost proposed in the past by advocacy groups for other treatments. The United Nations-backed Stop TB Partnership said on Monday that BPaL would be obtainable in eligible countries through the Global Drug Facility (GDF), a global provider of TB medicines created in 2001 to negotiate lower prices for treatments. Allergan settles Alzheimer's therapy lawsuit for $750 million

Allergan Plc would pay $750 million to settle a class action lawsuit from a group of direct purchasers of Alzheimer's disease therapy Namenda, the drugmaker said, in a resolution to the litigation that was set to face trial on Monday. The settlement makes no admission of wrongdoing on its part and will be recorded as a charge to its third-quarter earnings, the company said. Mirati drug shrinks tumors in some cancer patients in early-stage trial

An experimental drug from Mirati Therapeutics Inc that targets a specific genetic mutation significantly reduced tumor size in 40% of patients with advanced lung and colorectal cancer so far evaluated in a small, early-stage trial, researchers said on Monday. Investors have been keen to see how Mirati's data stacks up against results for a similar drug, AMG510, under development by Amgen Inc. Both target a mutated form of a gene known as KRAS that occurs in around 13% of non-small cell lung cancer cases, 3-5% of colorectal cancers and up to 2% of other solid tumor cancers. Morphosys shares fall after dermatitis treatment flops

German biotech company Morphosys halted development of an experimental atopic dermatitis treatment that analysts had pinned hopes of blockbuster sales potential on, sending its shares down as much as 6.8% on Tuesday. A mid-stage clinical study for its MOR106 antibody, jointly developed with Switzerland's Novartis and Belgo-Dutch biotech Galapagos NV, was stopped part-way into the trial as it did not reduce eczema and skin irritation as hoped, Morphosys said late on Monday. Kenyan team aim to stop fatal snake bites

Kenyan mother Beth Mwende heard her sleeping three-year-old cry out, but did not worry further after the child quickly settled - until the next morning when she found her daughter, Mercy, semi-conscious with two fang marks in the neck. "I did not know that it was a snake," Mwende said, as she recounted going out early to fetch water from a nearby river. China's New Hope breaks into Southeast Asia pig farming amid disease woes

In a cluster of blue and white buildings nestled deep inside one of southern Vietnam's rubber plantations, China's New Hope Liuhe is busy stocking its first overseas pig farm with young sows. New Hope's efforts in Vietnam illustrate a significant acceleration in its global expansion to increase its overseas revenue to 30% of its total in a few years, said Bai Xubo, securities representative with the company. Medicinal cannabis not proven in mental health, study finds

Evidence is weak for whether medicinal cannabis treatments can relieve mental illnesses such as anxiety, depression, and psychosis, and doctors should prescribe them with great caution, researchers said on Monday. In a review of scientific studies that analyzed the impact of medicinal cannabinoids on six mental health disorders, the researchers found "a lack of evidence for their effectiveness." Justice Department issues grand jury subpoenas in J&J opioid probe: filing

Johnson & Johnson received grand jury subpoenas in August from the U.S. attorney's office for the Eastern District of New York related to its opioid medication policies, the company said in a regulatory filing on Monday. J&J said the subpoenas were related to anti-diversion policies and procedures and the distribution of its opioid medications developed by its Janssen pharmaceuticals unit.

Also Read: UPDATE 2-Missouri, Planned Parenthood debate 'safety concerns' at abortion clinic hearing

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