Health News Roundup: Novo Nordisk and Valo to research cardiometabolic treatments; Novartis confirms Sandoz spin-off for October 4, 2023 and more

The development comes after a health ministry panel recommended the drug's approval in August, followed by standard approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in July. Scynexis to recall antifungal from market, pause studies Drugmaker Scynexis said on Monday it would voluntarily recall its antifungal drug Brexafemme from the market and put a temporary hold on studies of the therapy due to the potential risk of cross contamination with another compound.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Novo Nordisk and Valo to research cardiometabolic treatments

Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk said on Monday it would collaborate with U.S. tech firm Valo Health to discover and develop new treatments for cardiometabolic diseases using human data and artificial intelligence. Novo Nordisk said in a statement it will use Valo's platform and Valo will receive an upfront payment and a potential near-term milestone payment of $60 million.

Novartis confirms Sandoz spin-off for October 4, 2023

Novartis on Monday confirmed its plans for a 100% spin-off of the Sandoz business on Oct. 4 after shareholders gave their approval earlier this month. Novartis also said key regulatory approvals have been obtained, including the approval by SIX Exchange Regulation for the listing of the Sandoz shares on the SIX Swiss Exchange.

Pakistan investigates distributors of Roche cancer drug after patients go blind

Pakistan said on Monday it was investigating two local distributors of Swiss pharmaceutical company Roche's Avastin cancer drug after 12 diabetic patients injected with the drug went blind. The Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) said the health authorities in Punjab, the most populous province, had launched the investigation into local use of the drug Avastin, which is licensed for use in Pakistan.

Japan approves Alzheimer treatment Leqembi by Eisai and Biogen

Japan's Eisai said on Monday the country's health ministry had approved its Alzheimer treatment Leqembi, co-developed with U.S.-based Biogen. The development comes after a health ministry panel recommended the drug's approval in August, followed by standard approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in July.

Scynexis to recall antifungal from market, pause studies

Drugmaker Scynexis said on Monday it would voluntarily recall its antifungal drug Brexafemme from the market and put a temporary hold on studies of the therapy due to the potential risk of cross contamination with another compound. Scynexis said it became aware that substances used to make beta-lactam, which can cause allergic reactions, are manufactured using equipment common to the manufacturing process for Brexafemme.