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Abraxis BioScience, Inc., has announced the launch of doxorubicin HCl injection, USP 2 mg/mL, the generic equivalent of Adriamycin PFS (Bedford Labs/Boehringer Ingelheim). The productis preservative-free and latex-free.
Wyeth’s new oral contraceptive, consisting of levonorgestrel drags 90 mcg/ethinylestradiol 20 mcg (Lybrel), is now avail able by prescription in pharmacies. This is the first low-dose combination tablet that can be taken 365 days a year, with out a placebo phase or a pill-free interval.
Zoledronic acid injection (Reclast, Novartis) has been approved as the first therapy to prevent postmenopausal osteoporosis for two years with a single dose.
In a study involving more than 500 postmenopausal women with osteopenia, a single infusion significantly increased bone mineral density at two years compared with placebo.
Regardless of their personal opinions or religious beliefs about the morning-after contraceptive, pharmacists are now required to dispense the Plan B, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday.
The case could affect policy across the U.S. A supermarket pharmacy in Olympia, Washington, failed in its challenge of changes made to the 2007 regulations requiring all Washington pharmacies to have and dispense the product. Ralph’s Thriftway and two pharmacists employed elsewhere had sued Washington state officials over the regulation.
Eli Lilly’s teriparatide (rDNA origin) injection (Forteo) has been approved to treat osteoporosis associated with sustained, systemic glucocorticoid therapy in men and women at high risk of fractures. Glucocorticoid therapy, often prescribed for inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, is the most common cause of secondary osteoporosis.
A new technique for reducing the burden of ovarian tumors in mice might be available for testing in humans within 18 to 24 months.
Although early-stage ovarian cancer sometimes responds to surgery followed by chemotherapy, there are no effective treatments for advanced ovarian cancer that has recurred after surgery and primary chemotherapy. Therefore, most treated early-stage cancers recur.
Merck’s Gardasil vaccine is now indicated for the prevention of genital warts (condyloma acuminata) caused by human papillomavirus (HPV) types 6 and 11 in boys and men 9 through 26 years of age. Gardasil is currently approved for use in girls and women 9 through 26 years of age for preventing cervical, vulvar, and vaginal cancer caused by HPV types 16 and 18; precancerous lesions caused by types 6, 11, 16, and 18; and genital warts caused by types and 11.
