Reuters Health News Summary
Following is a summary of current health news briefs.
EU regulator recommends Eli Lilly's Mounjaro for weight management
Europe's medicines regulator said on Friday its human medicines committee had recommended Eli Lilly's diabetes drug Mounjaro also be approved as a weight-loss treatment. The drug, tirzepatide, has been sold under the brand name Mounjaro to treat type-2 diabetes since 2022.
Eli Lilly is still seeking UK approval on pen for weight-loss drug
Eli Lilly on Thursday said it has not yet gained approval in Britain for the injection pen it plans to use for its Mounjaro drug against obesity and diabetes, adding to uncertainty over timing of the product's launch. The drug itself was cleared for weight loss by the British regulator on Wednesday, when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration also gave its go-ahead for the wider use.
FDA clears Acon's OTC home antigen test for COVID
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Thursday cleared an over-the-counter at-home COVID-19 antigen test made by Acon Laboratories. Acon's test is the second coronavirus test to get marketing authorization using the agency's traditional premarket review pathway and the first indicated for use in children under 18, the health regulator said.
FDA approves Valneva's Chikungunya vaccine for adults
French drugmaker Valneva said on Friday the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved its Chikungunya single-dose vaccine in individuals aged 18 and above. The company said it plans to start selling the IXCHIQ vaccine in the U.S. early next year.
Weight loss drugs transforming healthcare, may help with addiction -Reuters Events
A new class of weight loss drugs is transforming the U.S. healthcare system in ways that could extend to equally hard-to-treat areas like substance abuse, according to speakers at the Reuters Events Total Health conference in Chicago this week. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday said Eli Lilly could begin selling its drug tirzepatide for weight loss, making it the second obesity drug in a class known as GLP-1s. The drug, Zepbound, is already sold under the brand name Mounjaro as a treatment for type 2 diabetes.
Drugmaker Novo Nordisk seeks obesity, diabetes 'bolt-on' deals
Novo Nordisk wants to buy more companies with drugs in early- to mid-stages of development through "bolt-on" deals of up to a few billion dollars, CEO Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen told Reuters on Friday. As the company's fortunes soar on demand for its popular weight-loss medicine Wegovy, Jorgensen said Novo sought to acquire companies working on medicines in the areas where it is already focused.
Takeda Pharma gets US FDA approval for rare blood disorder therapy
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved Takeda Pharmaceutical's therapy to treat a rare genetic blood disorder in adult and pediatric patients. Takeda's Adzynma becomes the first treatment available to patients with congenital thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP).
Surgeons in New York announce world's first eye transplant
Surgeons in New York have performed the first-ever whole-eye transplant in a human, they announced on Thursday, an accomplishment being hailed as a breakthrough even though the patient has not regained sight in the eye. In the six months since the surgery, performed during a partial face transplant, the grafted eye has shown important signs of health, including well-functioning blood vessels and a promising-looking retina, according to the surgical team at NYU Langone Health.
Unpublished study finds elevated cancer rates at US military base
Cancer and mortality studies conducted by a U.S. health agency have found elevated cancer rates in military and civilian personnel who lived and worked at Camp Lejeune, a major American military base, an epidemiologist familiar with the research says. A report on the findings was submitted in April, but the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry has yet to release it, angering people who say they got sick drinking tainted water at the Marine base near Jacksonville, N.C., from 1953 through 1987.
Novo Nordisk invests $6 billion in Wegovy production, still far below demand -CEO
Obesity drug maker Novo Nordisk said on Friday it will spend $6 billion to boost production in Denmark, although its chief executive warned the industry was far from being able to produce enough weight-loss drugs to meet global demand. Novo Nordisk has had phenomenal success with its anti-obesity drug, Wegovy, but has scrambled to address shortages that have forced it to limit the number of patients.
