On Wednesday, May 12, 2010, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) plans to hold a meeting of the Arthritis Drugs Advisory Committee and the Drug Safety and Risk Management Advisory Committee to discuss the New Drug Application (NDA) for naproxcinod.
NicOx submitted an NDA for naproxcinod to the FDA in September 2009, seeking approval for an indication for the relief of the signs and symptoms of osteoarthritis (OA). Based on the Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA), the FDA aims to complete its review 10 months after submission and has set an action date of July 24, 2010.
Link:http://www.nicox.com/upload/PR_NaproxcinodAdCom_GB_8March.pdf
Source:NicOx

AstraZeneca's cancer drug Recentin known generically as cediranib failed in a head to head late stage trial with Roche's Avastin in colorectal cancer patients, hurting the Anglo-Swedish drugmaker's shares on Monday.
Link:http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6272NO20100308?type=globalMarketsNews
Source:Reuters

Top-line results from a zalutumumab Phase III study in patients with recurrent or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN) who failed standard platinum-based chemotherapy were announced.
Zalutumumab is a novel, investigational, high-affinity, human antibody that targets the Epidermal Growth Factor receptor (EGFr), a molecule overexpressed on the surface of many cancer cells and that is a well validated target.
Link:http://www.genmab.com/en/Press%20Center/RecentNewsReleases/07GenmabAnnouncesResultsfromZalutumumabPhaseIIIStudyofRefractoryHeadandNeckCancerPatients.aspx?gm_lang=en
Source:Genmab

The collection of symptoms that is the metabolic syndrome—insulin resistance, high cholesterol, fatty liver, and a greater risk for diabetes, heart disease, and stroke—are all related to obesity, but, according to a review in the March 9th issue of the Cell Press publication Trends in Endocrinology and Metabolism, not in the way you probably think they are.
Link:http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-03/cp-oap030110.php
Source:EurekAlert

For example, the TLR7 stimulant imiquimod is used for the treatment of skin cancer and metastatic melanoma. However, new research suggests that such approaches should be developed with caution because stimulation of human lung cancer cells with TLR7 or TLR8 agonists increased tumor cell survival and resistance to chemotherapeutics.
It is published in Journal of Clinical Investigation.
Link:http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-03/joci-wsf030310.php
Source:EurekAlert

Using mouse models of cancer, researchers have now identified the soluble factor IFN-beta as a natural inhibitor of tumor blood vessel growth that limits tumor growth and works by repressing in tumor-infiltrating immune cells known as neutrophils the expression of genes responsible for promoting new blood vessel growth.
It is published in Journal of Clinical Investigation.
Link:http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-03/joci-tsf030310.php
Source:EurekAlert

Patients already taking warfarin who develop an acute stroke appear more likely to experience a brain hemorrhage following treatment with an intravenous clot-dissolving medication, even if their blood clotting function appears normal, according to a report posted online today that will appear in the May print issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Link:http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-03/jaaj-wua030410.php
Source:EurekAlert

Early treatment of ocular hypertension appears to reduce the risk of developing glaucoma, especially in individuals at the highest risk, according to a report in the March issue of Archives of Ophthalmology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. However, this strategy may not offer an absolute benefit in individuals at low risk.
Link:http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-03/jaaj-see030410.php
Source:EurekAlert

Some anti-depressant drugs called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are associated with an increased chance of developing cataracts
It is published online in the journal Ophthalmology.
Link:http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-03/uobc-abh030810.php
Source:EurekAlert

People with Parkinson's disease face an increased risk of the most deadly type of skin cancer, melanoma new research confirms.
It is published in Archives of Neurology, March 2010.
Link:http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6275Y020100308
Source:Reuters