Health News Roundup: Sanofi working on coronavirus initiative; French face mask factory ramps up output and more

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

French drugmaker Sanofi working on coronavirus initiative

French drugmaker Sanofi will announce a new coronavirus initiative within the next two weeks, its chief executive said on Thursday, adding that it wants to present something concrete and not add to "fantasies". At least a dozen drugmakers are working on vaccines or antivirals to help those infected with the fast-spreading virus that has killed more than 500 people in China, but several have warned that the development of treatments will take time.

Women with defective French breast implants may claim damages only in France: EU court adviser

Victims of defective breast implants made by French company Poly Implant Prothese (PIP) may only get compensation if they had the procedure in France, an adviser at Europe's top court said on Thursday, in a potential blow to thousands of women worldwide. The opinion by Advocate General Michal Bobek at the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) came after a German patient sought compensation from PIP's French insurer Allianz IARD in a German court for faulty breast implants.

From cruise liners to supply chains, China virus hurts

China's fast-moving coronavirus spread among passengers of a quarantined Japanese cruise liner on Thursday and dragged down production at more global businesses, as scientists across the world searched for a vaccine. The death toll from the virus in mainland China jumped by 73 to 563, with more than 28,000 confirmed infections inside the workshop of the world and its second-largest economy.

As virus boosts demand, French face mask factory ramps up output

For one face mask factory outside Anger, western France, business is booming. It already makes about 100 million masks per year, but soaring demand due to the coronavirus outbreak means it is adding a third more staff and ramping up production to seven days a week.

Drugmakers see the long road ahead in coronavirus vaccine race

Drugmakers racing to find a vaccine or effective treatment for the deadly new coronavirus in China cautioned that they have a long way to go. That runs counter to reports of a supposed "breakthrough" that on Wednesday boosted financial markets and spurred optimism not necessarily backed by reality.

Ten U.S. refineries emitted excessive cancer-causing benzene in 2019: report

Ten U.S. oil refineries, including six in Texas, released the cancer-causing chemical benzene in concentrations that exceeded federal limits last year, according to government data published by the green group Environmental Integrity Project on Thursday. The study is based on the first full year of data reported by U.S. refineries since a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rule was implemented in 2018. The rule requires continuous monitoring of air pollutants around plants to protect nearby communities, many of which are disproportionately poor, black and Hispanic.

Desperate for coronavirus solutions, the Chinese turn to HIV drugs, gray market and traditional cures

The rapidly spreading virus in China and a shortage of medical resources are prompting people to resort to unorthodox ways to obtain treatment, with some appealing to HIV patients and unauthorized importers for medicine. Chinese health authorities have said there is not yet any effective cure for the virus, which has killed more than 500 people in China. Although there is no evidence from clinical trials, China's National Health Commision said the HIV drug lopinavir/ritonavir can be used for coronavirus patients, without specifying how they might help.

WHO probes Singapore meet linked to spread of the virus

The World Health Organization (WHO) has begun an investigation into three virus infections linked to an international business meeting in Singapore last month, heightening concerns about the spread of the disease outside China. The cases linked to the meeting provide more evidence that the coronavirus is spreading through human-to-human contact outside China, which the WHO has said is deeply concerning and could signal a much larger outbreak.

Greece reports the first case of African swine fever

Greece detected one case of African swine fever at a domestic breeding farm in the north of the country this week, agriculture ministry officials said on Thursday. African swine fever is harmless to humans but it is highly contagious and deadly in pigs. It has spread from Africa to Europe and Asia and has already killed hundreds of millions of pigs, affecting global meat markets.

Chinese city accused of stealing virus masks from hard-hit neighbor

A Chinese city with only eight confirmed cases of a new coronavirus has been accused of intercepting a shipment of surgical masks bound for a municipality with 400 cases, prompting outrage on social media. Hospitals, towns, and cities across China are scrambling for supplies of equipment, in particular, protective masks, as the number of cases of the coronavirus, which emerged in the central city of Wuhan in December, approaches 30,000.