Reuters Health News Summary

Following is a summary of current health news briefs. Sustained weight loss in middle-age may lower breast cancer risk

In women over age 50, losing just four pounds and keeping the weight off can lower breast cancer risk, a new study suggests. Researchers who reviewed data from 180,000 women found the more weight a woman lost - and kept off - the lower her risk of breast cancer, according to the report published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Adamas shares plunge 45% after drug to help MS patients walk disappoints

Adamas Pharmaceuticals Inc said on Tuesday its drug to treat walking impairment in patients with multiple sclerosis did not show the clinical benefit the drugmaker was hoping for in a late-stage trial, sending shares of the company down 45%. The company said it would assess the potential for the treatment, Gocovri, in MS patients before determining its continued investment in the program. Clinic waiting room in Harlem becomes experiment in humanizing medicine

Brightly-colored artwork by patients adorns the walls of the waiting room at a small community healthcare center in New York City, the result of a project by two young doctors on a mission to humanize medicine. The two, who met in medical school, felt the decor of the waiting room at the Charles B. Rangel Community Health Center in Harlem did not reflect the identities and experiences of the patients it serves, who are mainly low-income African-American and Hispanic families dependent on Medicaid for healthcare costs. Alnylam gene-silencing therapy to treat kidney disorder succeeds in late-stage study

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc's gene-silencing therapy for a rare kidney disorder met the main goal of a late-stage study on Tuesday, bringing the company a step closer to marketing the first approved treatment for the condition. The study tested Alnylam's experimental drug, lumasiran, against placebo in patients aged six and above with primary hyperoxyluria type 1 (PH1), a life-threatening condition that is estimated to affect one in 58,000 people globally. U.S. sues CVS for fraudulently billing Medicare, Medicaid for invalid prescriptions

CVS Health Corp and its Omnicare unit were sued on Tuesday by the U.S. government, which accused them of fraudulently billing Medicare and other programs for drugs for older and disabled people without valid prescriptions. The Department of Justice joined whistleblower litigation accusing Omnicare of violating the federal False Claims Act for illegally dispensing drugs to tens of thousands of patients in assisted living facilities, group homes for people with special needs, and other long-term care facilities. Biohaven Pharma says treatment for acute migraine succeeds in study

Biohaven Pharmaceutical Holding Company Ltd said on Tuesday two doses of its experimental treatment for acute migraine were effective in reducing headaches in a pivotal study. The drug, vazegepant, belongs to a new class of treatments for migraine called CGRP inhibitors. Patients face difficulty talking about weight with doctors

Doctors rarely talk about weight concerns with patients who are overweight or obese, and when they do, patients' experiences tend to be negative, according to a new review of research based on interviews. Most often, doctors avoid the topic, leaving patients feeling stigmatized and neglected, the study team reports in the journal Clinical Obesity. When doctors do talk about weight issues, they often seem to assume patients simply aren't trying to address their weight, and offer "banal" advice. Human exposure to BPA may be greater than previously thought

Humans may be exposed to higher than expected levels of bispehnol A (BPA), a toxic chemical thought to interfere with hormones involved in normal growth and development, according to a study using a new method for measuring the chemical in people. Longstanding tests for human BPA exposure have relied on an enzyme solution made from snails to transform BPA metabolites - breakdown products formed as the chemical passes through the body - back into whole BPA that can then be measured, researchers note in the The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology. Amylyx drug helps slow ALS progression in mid-stage study

Privately held drug developer Amylyx Pharmaceuticals Inc said on Tuesday its experimental therapy to treat amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) helped slow the progression of the fatal neurological disorder in a mid-stage study. ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, is a rare disorder that attacks nerve cells responsible for controlling voluntary muscles, and over 6,000 Americans are diagnosed with the disease every year, according to the ALS Association. Addictive nicotine in Juul nearly identical to a Marlboro: study

The nicotine formula used by controversial e-cigarette maker Juul Labs Inc is nearly identical to the flavor and addictive profile of Altria Group Inc's highly successful Marlboro cigarette brand, new research suggests. A study https://bit.ly/35yos2b released on Tuesday from researchers at Portland State University in Oregon helps to explain why a growing number of young people who never smoked cigarettes have become regular users of Juul vaping devices.