Clinical Immunology

FDA looking into death of patient on Novartis' Gilenya

2011-12-20T11:00:34Z

(Reuters) - U.S. health regulators said on Tuesday they received a report of a multiple sclerosis patient who died within 24 hours of taking the first dose of Novartis AG's Gilenya.

The U.S. Food and Drug...

Ailing Williams out of N.Zealand tennis tournament

2011-12-19T18:30:45Z

Seven-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams has pulled out of an Australian Open warm-up tournament in New Zealand as she continues to battle a debilitating illness.

Williams is suffering from Sjogren's syndrome, an autoimmune disease, and after playing a number of recent exhibition matche...

Gilenya trial could ease safety worries

2011-12-14T23:30:13Z

ZURICH (Reuters) - A third late-stage trial of Novartis' multiple sclerosis drug Gilenya did not throw up any new safety issues with the pill, going some way to alleviating concerns about possible risks linked to the potential blockbuster.

The study results come just days after No...

Early trials of new lupus therapy show promise

2011-11-08T16:30:51Z

A new vaccine-like therapy that summons a host of antibodies to fight lupus has shown promise in early European trials, researchers said at a US conference on Tuesday.

There are very few options for treating the potentially fatal disease in which the body's immune system is overactive and attacks healthy tissue, causing fatigue, swelling, ulcers, chest pain, organ and clotting problems.

The new treatment, developed by ...

Novartis drug helps with psoriasis symptoms: data

2011-10-23T23:30:14Z

ZURICH (Reuters) - Novartis said its drug AIN457 helped alleviate the symptoms of people suffering from moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis, the Swiss firm said on Monday based on the results of a mid-stage study.

Plaque psoriasis is a common hereditary, immune-mediated systemic disorder characterized by skin lesions, called plaques, whic...

Sanofi says Lemtrada helps MS patients in study

2011-10-22T00:30:05Z

PARIS (Reuters) - French drugmaker Sanofi said on Saturday that its experimental multiple sclerosis drug Lemtrada worked better than an older drug sold by competitor Merck KGaA at keeping patients free from relapses.

<...

Biogen MS trial data robust; shares jump

2011-10-21T09:30:18Z

(Reuters) - Full data from a late-stage clinical trial of Biogen Idec Inc's experimental multiple sclerosis drug, BG-12, showed robust results across multiple measures and revealed no new safety concerns.

The news sent the biotech company's shares soaring as much as 6.7 percent on Friday.

Earlier this year the company released initial ...

FDA extends review of Tysabri JC virus label

2011-10-20T07:30:24Z

(Reuters) - U.S. regulators have extended their review of Biogen Idec Inc's application to update the prescribing information for its multiple sclerosis drug Tysabri, the company said on Thursday.

Biogen, which sells the drug with Irish drugmaker Reuters) - Swiss drugmaker Roche Holding said a mid-phase study found its ocrelizumab drug maintained significant reduction in disease activity for multiple sclerosis patients for almost two years, boosting its chances of success in late-stage trials.

"The study showed that the significant re...

Medicine making strides in Las Vegas

2011-10-20T02:32:36Z

The New York Times beat us at our own story.

It is big news in Las Vegas when 2,000 to 3,000 residents who suffer from multiple sclerosis don't have a doctor or the ability to be treated in one of the largest metropolitan areas of the country. They haven't had a doctor who is an expert in MS for quite awhile - not since the only one in ...

Teens who work nights have 'double risk of MS'

2011-10-18T12:30:11Z

Working night shifts as a teenager is not only exhausting; it also significantly increases the chance of developing multiple sclerosis later in life, a Swedish study published Tuesday showed.

"Our analysis revealed a significant association between working (night) shifts at a young age and occurrence of MS," Anna Hedstroem, who headed the team of Karolinska Institute researchers, said ...

Immune system: In-house sentinels against disease

2011-10-03T16:30:10Z

For centuries physicians believed that diseases were caused by an imbalance in the "four humours" -- blood, phlegm, yellow bile and black bile.

These notions were swept away in the 19th century by the advent of modern medicine.

Bit by bit it laid bare a realm of microscopic warfare where the body's complex -- but also sometimes flawed -- defence fought in close-quarter combat against germs and viruses.

The 2011 Reuters Health) - A new analysis of past studies concludes that there seems to be some link between multiple sclerosis and narrowed head and neck veins -- but more research is needed to be sure.

The report, funded by Canadian Institutes of Health Research, is the...

Analysis: Biogen investors place bets ahead of MS drug trial

2011-09-16T07:00:33Z

BOSTON (Reuters) - Over the past year, Biogen Idec Inc has given investors little to complain about. The biotechnology company, operating under new management, has restructured its operations, reported promising clinical trial data and seen its shares rise 72 percent.

The question is: can it hang onto its gains?

Much depen...

Venus out of U.S. Open with autoimmune disease

2011-08-31T19:00:12Z

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Former U.S. Open champion Venus Williams withdrew from the last grand slam of the year on Wednesday, revealing she is suffering from an autoimmune disease.

The former world number one quit the tournament before her second-round matc...

Migraines are not a lupus symptom: study

2011-08-31T11:30:11Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Despite a commonly-held belief among many doctors who treat lupus patients, headaches -- particularly migraines -- are not a manifestation of that disease and should be treated as a separate problem, report researchers in Greece.

Previous studies that found migraines to be more common in patients with system...

No link between MS, narrow blood vessels: study

2011-08-08T14:30:26Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A new study provides more evidence that multiple sclerosis (MS) is not caused by a blood vessel condition, as some research has suggested.

The new findings follow a study last month in which Dr. Ellen Marder from the Dallas Veterans Affairs Medical Center and her colleagues reviewed the current ...

UK cost watchdog says no to Novartis MS pill

2011-08-05T11:30:19Z

LONDON (Reuters) - Novartis's multiple sclerosis pill Gilenya, one of its biggest new drug hopes, has been rejected by Britain's healthcare cost-effectiveness watchdo...

Drug cuts brain lesions in MS patients: Actelion study

2011-08-01T23:00:06Z

ZURICH (Reuters) - Swiss biotech company Actelion Ltd said on Tuesday a mid-stage study showed one of its drugs under development helped reduce new inflammatory brain lesions in a targeted group of multiple sclerosis patients.

The study found Actelion's Ponesimod drug, a selective S1P1 receptor agonist, achieved its primary trial goal...

Benefit of MS drugs comes at steep price: study

2011-07-21T12:30:15Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Drugs used in the hope of slowing multiple sclerosis progression may help some patients, but at a very high cost, according to a study out Wednesday.

The medications in question are the so-called disease-modifying drugs (DMDs) that have been available since the 1990s to treat multiple sclerosis.

The drugs include beta interferons (brand-names like Reuters Health) - Despite a few well-publicized studies and many hopeful patients waiting for treatment, there is no good evidence that multiple sclerosis, or MS, is caused by a blood vessel condition, a fresh look at the medical literature finds.

That means patients with MS shouldn't have surgery to open veins that connect the brain and spinal cord to the heart, researchers say.

Landmark lupus drug Benlysta approved in Europe

2011-07-15T09:01:45Z

LONDON (Reuters) - Benlysta, the first new treatment for lupus in half a century, was approved for use in Europe, the drug's discoverer Human Genome Sciences and partner

Pandemic flu vaccine not linked to rare nerve disorder

2011-07-12T20:30:14Z

Vaccines used in the 2009 "swine flu" pandemic caused no perceptible rise in a neurological disorder called Guillain-Barre syndrome, a study published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) said on Wednesday.

The investigation is part of a safety probe into booster-aided flu vaccines that dates back 35 years.

In 1976, immunisation against a "swine flu" virus in the

Stress doesn't raise risk of MS: study

2011-05-30T13:30:28Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Having a stressful home or work environment doesn't make a person more likely to develop multiple sclerosis, hints a large new study.

Previous research has suggested that in people who already have the chronic disease -- which affects the brain and spinal cord -- stressful events make flare-ups more likely. In the new study, the authors looked at whether stress ra...

GSK, HGS lupus drug wins green light in Europe

2011-05-20T07:00:53Z

LONDON (Reuters) - The first new treatment for lupus in a half-century was recommended for approval in Europe on Friday, offering a new option for patients and underpinning multibillion-dollar" class="inform">dollar sales expecta...

GSK and HGS lupus drug wins green light in Europe

2011-05-20T07:00:46Z

Cell therapy aims to prevent transplant rejection

2011-05-18T11:30:40Z

LONDON (Reuters) - A cell treatment to prevent new organs being rejected without the need for lifelong courses of immune drugs is showing promise in mice and may one day make human transplants easier, scientists said.

The process, if developed for humans, would see transplant patients being injected with their own immune cells after they have first been removed and "taught" in a lab not to r...

Not all warning signs point to kids' immune diseases

2011-04-10T23:00:05Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - TV, radio and print advertisements that warn parents about the signs of rare but dangerous immune diseases in children may be misdirected, researchers say.

Their analysis, published today in Pediatrics, found that only a few of the ten "warning signs" for so-called primary immunodeficiency diseases that are promoted by patient advocacy groups, such as the Je...

More evidence pregnancy is safe with MS

2011-04-07T13:30:18Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A new research review strengthens the evidence that women with multiple sclerosis are about as likely as other women to have a healthy pregnancy -- without putting their own health at risk.

The findings, reported in the obstetrics journal BJOG, support the advice generally given to women with multiple sclerosis: If the condition is under control, you can safely be...

Marijuana may hasten mental decline in MS: study

2011-03-28T14:00:07Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Although medical marijuana has been legalized in many U.S. states, people with multiple sclerosis should think twice before they start using the drug routinely, researchers say.

In a small study published Monday, they found people with the nerve-damaging autoimmune disease did worse on a number of psychological tests if they were heavy marijuana smoke...

US approves first new lupus drug in 56 years

2011-03-10T14:30:26Z

US health officials Wednesday announced approval of the first new drug in 56 years to treat lupus, a potentially fatal autoimmune disease affecting millions worldwide.

The US Food and Drug Administration said it approved belimumab, marketed under the trade name Benlysta, an inhibitor that may reduce the number of abnormal cells believed to be linked to the disease.

The disease...

New lupus drug may end treatment nightmare for some

2011-03-10T11:00:16Z

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Aiden Gallagher started developing symptoms of lupus at age 11 after a spider bite that left her hand swollen for weeks.

Gallagher, now 18, took strong doses of the steroid prednisone to help control the disease, in which the immune system attacks the body's own tissue and organs.

"Prednisone has completely ...

Factbox: Autoimmune disease lupus wins new treatment

2011-03-10T07:30:08Z

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The first new treatment in a half-century for the autoimmune disease lupus won U.S. approval on Wednesday. The drug, Benlysta from Human Genome Sciences Inc, is given once a month by intravenous infusion.

Below are some facts about lupus, current treatments and...

Big Human Genome lupus drug nears market

2011-03-07T11:30:16Z

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Human Genome Sciences Inc's lupus drug is poised to win clearance this week, offering patients the first approved treatment option in a half-century and setting the company up for blockbuster sales.

Industry analysts widely expect Benlysta, one the most ...

Big Human Genome lupus drug nears U.S. market

2011-03-07T11:00:12Z

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Human Genome Sciences Inc's lupus drug is poised to win U.S. clearance this week, offering patients the first approved treatment option in a half-century and setting the company up for blockbuster sales...

Scientists find inflammation immune cell switch

2011-01-17T08:30:07Z

LONDON (Reuters) - Scientists have found a protein that acts as a "master switch" to determine whether certain white blood cells will boost or dampen inflammation, a finding that may help the search for new drugs for rheumatoid arthritis.

Many patients with rheumatoid arthritis are treated with a class of drugs known as tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitors. But around 30 percent of patient...

Biogen reports four more Tysabri cases, one death

2010-12-17T12:00:39Z

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Four more patients taking Biogen Idec's multiple sclerosis drug Tysabri have developed the serious brain infection known as PML and one of them died, according to the biotechnology company's monthly update.

The four new confirmed cases of potentially fatal progre...

Scientists find key to repairing MS damage

2010-12-06T12:31:01Z

Researchers said they may have found a way to reverse damage in the central nervous system caused by multiple sclerosis, in a study hailed by campaigners as a major breakthrough.

The study by scientists at the universities of Cambridge and Edinburgh has raised hopes of a new treatment within 15 years for the disabling neurological condition, which affects millions of people worldwide.

The team identif...

British scientists find key to repairing MS damage

2010-12-06T10:30:46Z

British researchers said on Monday they may have found a way to reverse damage in the central nervous system caused by multiple sclerosis, in a study hailed by campaigners as a major breakthrough.

<...

9 Surprising Heart Attack Risks

2010-11-30T12:38:55Z

...

Boost Your Immune System

2010-11-30T12:37:17Z

...

Being Too Clean May Be Bad for Your Health

2010-11-29T14:46:07Z

...

Merck KGaA Announces Extension of FDA Priority Review Period for Cladribine Tablets for the Treatment of Relapsing Forms of MS

2010-11-29T14:35:14Z

...

Intestinal Pseudo-Obstruction and Lupus: Is There a Connection?

2010-11-29T14:33:32Z

...

Researchers Find Possible MS Cause and New Treatment

2010-11-29T14:54:05Z

...

Neuropathic Itch Caused by Lupus

2010-11-29T14:33:26Z

...

Environmental Media Awards

2010-10-01T06:30:31Z

FILE - In this May 12, 2010 file image originally released by Lupus Foundation of America, Ted Turner, Chairman of Turner Enterprises, Inc. is shown at the NEW YORK - DECEMBER 07: Julia Koch attends the 2009 Annual Food Allergy Ball at The Waldorf Astoria on December 7, 2009 in New York City. (Photo by Jason Kempin/Getty Images)

University of Colorado shows visible microbial growth on a showerhead, with the colored growth seen on the white inner surfaces. In the scariest shower news since Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho," a new study says showerheads can harbor tiny bacteria that come spraying into your face when you wash. People with normal im...

Earns Abbott Laboratories

2010-09-01T12:14:19Z

FILE - In this July 13, 2005 file photo provided by Abbott Laboratories, the North Chicago-based company's rheumatoid arthritis therapy Humira, is shown. Abbott Laboratories said Wednesday, July 15, 2009, second-quarter profit fell 3 percent, but the drug and medical-device company met Louise Haines (centre) makes gluten-free bread with her twin daughters Frances (right) and Verity (left), 12, at their home in Pimlico, London, as Verity has celiac disease and cannot eat wheat. To accompany article on gluten-free food for children, by Rose Prince. Saturday N...