Health Roundup: Gene-editing stops bird flu; USFDA nod to Merck; drugs for tumour

Scientists in Britain have used gene-editing techniques to stop bird flu spreading in chicken cells grown in a lab - a key step towards making genetically-altered chickens that could halt a human flu pandemic.

Merck wins U.S. FDA approval for expanded use of antibiotic

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Monday it approved expanded use of Merck & Co Inc's antibiotic to treat hospital-acquired pneumonia in patients 18 years and older. The approval is based on the treatment's late-stage trial results, which showed that Merck's drug, Zerbaxa, was as effective as another antibacterial drug.

In states with most overdose deaths, poor patients struggle to find treatment

Poor people with opioid use disorders may struggle to find doctors to prescribe the anti-addiction drug buprenorphine in U.S. states with the highest overdose death rates, a new study suggests. In 2018, researchers posing as patients called to schedule appointments for a buprenorphine prescription at 1,092 clinics with 546 clinicians who could offer the drug. The clinics were located in the places with high rates of opioid overdose deaths in 2016: Massachusetts; Maryland; New Hampshire; Ohio; West Virginia; and Washington, D.C.

Seattle Genetics, Astellas drug rapidly shrinks tumours in bladder cancer study

An experimental drug developed by Seattle Genetics Inc and Astellas Pharma Inc led to significant, rapid tumour shrinkage in patients with advanced bladder cancer who had been previously treated with immunotherapy and chemotherapy in a midstage trial, according to data presented on Monday. Seattle Genetics shares rose 4.3% to $67.84.

Therapy in the office: banks take mental health fight in-house

In 'Billions', a U.S. television show set in the world of hedge funds, traders at the fictional Axe Capital regularly attend sessions with an in-house psychiatrist. In real life, finance professionals are rarely so open about seeking psychological help.