Analysis of:
Drug Makers’ Push Leads to Cancer Vaccines’ Fast Rise (www.nytimes.com)
Cervical cancer vaccines manufactured by Merck and Glaxo have been hyped, pushed and if the companies have their way, mandated by various states and organizations. (Who is benefiting? Patients or the politicians?) There are many unanswered questions but marketing and mandates press on!
Analysis of:
Economic Evaluation of Sunitinib Malate for the First-Line Treatment of Metastatic Renal Cell Carcinoma (jco.ascopubs.org)
When using a model (of whose desin?) Pfizer's Sunitinib (Sutent) was found to be cost effective by Pfizer people? Surprise!!!
Analysis of:
Randomized Phase II Trial of a Toll-Like Receptor 9 Agonist Oligodeoxynucleotide, PF-3512676, in Combination With First-Line Taxane Plus Platinum Chemotherapy for Advanced-Stage Non–Small-Cell Lung Cancer (jco.ascopubs.org)
"The investigator-assessed objective response rate (complete and partial response), including both confirmed and unconfirmed responses, was 38% in the PF-3512676 plus chemotherapy arm and 19% in the chemotherapy-alone arm (P = .043)." In other words. IT MAY WORK!
Analysis of:
Insurers Expect Health-Care Costs To Rise More Than 10% Next Year (online.wsj.com)
10% increase in medical spending when the overall cost of living is 1/2 of medical costs and we are happy??
Analysis of:
UK Says Kidney Cancer Drugs Are Too Pricey (www.pharmalot.com)
Pfizer’s Sutent, Wyeth’s Torisel, Bayer’s Nexavar and Avastin, sold by Roche and Genentech have been deemed too expensive to be paid for by UK agencies
Analysis of:
Salmonella Is Tested To Fight Cancer Cells (online.wsj.com)
Salmonella targeting cancer cells? In humans???
Analysis of:
Panel Urges End to Prostate Screening at Age 75 (www.nytimes.com)
Since treatment may be worse than the disease it is being recommended that routine prostate cancer screening be stopped after the age of 75.
Analysis of:
Recent Popular New Reports About Senator Ted Kennedy's Brain Tumor (www.cnn.com)
Nothing fascinates the public interest and imagination more than news about prominent and famous media stars who suffer illness or disaster. This is the way things are, but perhaps, at least in the case of healthcare issues, it could be beneficial to society to discuss these cases in detail, from both...
Analysis of:
Amgen Told to Reword Drug Label (www.nytimes.com)
Amgens Aranesp sales fell 26% and J & J's Procrit sales fell 23%."Yaron Werber, a biotechnology analyst at Citi Investment Research, estimated that the new label could reduce the use of Aranesp for cancer patients in this country — the drug is also used by people with kidney disease — by an additional...
Analysis of:
Corrections Weaken Cancer Study (online.wsj.com)
Lung cancer screening does not appear to prevent death at least in this study.