martes, 31 de julio de 2018
lunes, 30 de julio de 2018
domingo, 29 de julio de 2018
SANDOZ "solo" frente con el cannabis:
.
Sandoz Canada announced on June 19th the finalization of its collaboration with Tilray and is now able to enter the medical cannabis field. The company has worked with Tilray to distribute their eight Sandoz and Tilray co-branded products.
Ver:
SANDOZ con Tilray (pioneros) y la marijuana "no cumbustible"
Sandoz utilizes Tilray’s Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulations (ACMPR) license to create cannabis capsules and edible oils.
The company will not venture into the recreational markets of Canada and does not have intentions to expand into the combustible cannabis market.
The Sandoz medical cannabis products will be available to over 270,000 Canadian patients.(Ver)
Sandoz Canada announced on June 19th the finalization of its collaboration with Tilray and is now able to enter the medical cannabis field. The company has worked with Tilray to distribute their eight Sandoz and Tilray co-branded products.
Ver:
SANDOZ con Tilray (pioneros) y la marijuana "no cumbustible"
Sandoz utilizes Tilray’s Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulations (ACMPR) license to create cannabis capsules and edible oils.
The company will not venture into the recreational markets of Canada and does not have intentions to expand into the combustible cannabis market.
The Sandoz medical cannabis products will be available to over 270,000 Canadian patients.(Ver)
sábado, 28 de julio de 2018
Nexcite / Niagra Get Nexcited...
.
If yohimbe is the king of aphrodisiacs for men, damiana is undoubtedly
the queen of aphrodisiacs for women.
Damiana, the shrub of Turnera diffusa, is the key ingredient in a Swedish blue drink called “Niagra,” a play on the notoriety of Viagra.
Studies showed that damiana contains β -sitosterol and aromatic oils, which may be stimulating and provide beneficial effects on sexual debility and nervous tension. (Más)
TWO Swedes are to market a controversial herbal drink in Scotland dubbed "Viagra for women" after winning the British rights.
Niagra, which it is claimed stimulates the libido, has already become a cult drink in the United States.
But after a legal wrangle with the producers of Viagra the makers have changed the name - to Nexcite - in an out-of-court settlement with Pfizer, which claimed Niagra infringed its trademark.
Although the drink has been on the market since 1993 the legal battle only developed after an Arkansas coffee shop owner began importing the drink.
Such is the success of the fizzy blue drink in the US that Julia Roberts has been tipped to take the lead role of the coffee shop owner in a film about Niagra.
Odonna, the Glasgow-based company of Tina Dyer, 25, and Anna Ljung, 28, has won the rights to supply the drink in Britain.
Miss Ljung, who has lived in Scotland for 18 months, said: "We believe Niagra will prove a big hit with people wanting to put a sparkle back into their relationships.
"Scots, like the people in the rest of Britain, are a bit shy about their relationships and we believe the drink will bring a touch of Scandinavia into their lives."
It is claimed that Niagra's success lies in its subtle blend of "love herbs".
Other ingredients include a South American substance called mate, ginseng and caffeine. (Ver)
 |
| Damiana / Turnera diffusa o Turnera aphrodisiaca |
Damiana, the shrub of Turnera diffusa, is the key ingredient in a Swedish blue drink called “Niagra,” a play on the notoriety of Viagra.
Studies showed that damiana contains β -sitosterol and aromatic oils, which may be stimulating and provide beneficial effects on sexual debility and nervous tension. (Más)
Bottles of Niagara were flying off the shelf and were presumably being consumed by Arkansans
but the state had a collective gasp of disapproval
when a single girl wrote about her experience
with the popular drink.
Everybody does it, but nobody talks about it.
In Arkansas, I can't think of a male reporter
with the balls to write what I wrote,
even if he drank a case of the blue potion.
TWO Swedes are to market a controversial herbal drink in Scotland dubbed "Viagra for women" after winning the British rights.
Niagra, which it is claimed stimulates the libido, has already become a cult drink in the United States.
Although the drink has been on the market since 1993 the legal battle only developed after an Arkansas coffee shop owner began importing the drink.
Odonna, the Glasgow-based company of Tina Dyer, 25, and Anna Ljung, 28, has won the rights to supply the drink in Britain.
Miss Ljung, who has lived in Scotland for 18 months, said: "We believe Niagra will prove a big hit with people wanting to put a sparkle back into their relationships.
"Scots, like the people in the rest of Britain, are a bit shy about their relationships and we believe the drink will bring a touch of Scandinavia into their lives."
It is claimed that Niagra's success lies in its subtle blend of "love herbs".
Other ingredients include a South American substance called mate, ginseng and caffeine. (Ver)
viernes, 27 de julio de 2018
Ratón de biblioteca: Historias de Amor y Viagra / Francisco Umbral
.
Quizá soy el primer escritor del mundo
que hace literatura sobre Viagra,
y pienso que aquí está la ventaja
y peligro de este tomo narrativo que,
en todo caso, se beneficia en su calidad,
mucha o poca, del incentivo
de un tema nuevo que ya revoluciona
—positivamente— las relaciones humanas.
Jonás, un periodista de mediana edad, recibe de una revista el encargo de experimentar con Viagra, la nueva terapia sexual, para luego contárselo a los lectores, o sea, el reportaje desde el interior de sí mismo.
Esta experiencia le crea cierta adicción, aunque Viagra no sea una droga, en el sentido de que su vida sexual mejora y se multiplica notablemente.
A partir de ahí, escribe una novela. Una original y explosiva novela. El protagonista de esta novela descubre que el pene o falo es una llave social y también personal. La multiplicada capacidad sexual de una medicina de última actualidad científica se convierte en multiplicación de su propio ser, descubrimiento de todos los secretos y dominios de su cuerpo, del que al fin es dueño y señor. Vuelto esto hacia fuera, produce una proyección social que ensancha prodigiosamente los ámbitos del personaje y le da acceso a mujeres imposibles: por jóvenes, por ilustres, por poderosas, por famosas, por enfermas incluso. Jonás descubre, en fin, que el falo es la llave secreta de la vida, el acceso a hombres y mujeres, la religión prohibida a la que todos rinden culto, el obelisco final de nuestra cultura. (Ver)
"Viagra, admirable invento de la ciencia, no es sino una reconducción de la propia sangre hacia zonas amortecidas o mal regadas, con lo que se ha conseguido que las cavernas profundas de la masculinidad rujan otra vez como un mar entre rejas."
"Viagra le cambia a uno hacia adentro: reconquista del yo. Y también le cambia hacia afuera: reconquista del mundo mediante la agresión sexual."
Ver también:
que hace literatura sobre Viagra,
y pienso que aquí está la ventaja
y peligro de este tomo narrativo que,
en todo caso, se beneficia en su calidad,
mucha o poca, del incentivo
de un tema nuevo que ya revoluciona
—positivamente— las relaciones humanas.
Jonás, un periodista de mediana edad, recibe de una revista el encargo de experimentar con Viagra, la nueva terapia sexual, para luego contárselo a los lectores, o sea, el reportaje desde el interior de sí mismo. Esta experiencia le crea cierta adicción, aunque Viagra no sea una droga, en el sentido de que su vida sexual mejora y se multiplica notablemente.
A partir de ahí, escribe una novela. Una original y explosiva novela. El protagonista de esta novela descubre que el pene o falo es una llave social y también personal. La multiplicada capacidad sexual de una medicina de última actualidad científica se convierte en multiplicación de su propio ser, descubrimiento de todos los secretos y dominios de su cuerpo, del que al fin es dueño y señor. Vuelto esto hacia fuera, produce una proyección social que ensancha prodigiosamente los ámbitos del personaje y le da acceso a mujeres imposibles: por jóvenes, por ilustres, por poderosas, por famosas, por enfermas incluso. Jonás descubre, en fin, que el falo es la llave secreta de la vida, el acceso a hombres y mujeres, la religión prohibida a la que todos rinden culto, el obelisco final de nuestra cultura. (Ver)
"Viagra le cambia a uno hacia adentro: reconquista del yo. Y también le cambia hacia afuera: reconquista del mundo mediante la agresión sexual."
Ver también:
Ratón de biblioteca: Los Diarios del Viagra / Barbara Rose Brooker
jueves, 26 de julio de 2018
Es seguro...BAYER dejará de vender ESSURE
.
The device has been problematic for years, prompting lawsuits alleging the metal implant caused severe injuries, including perforation of the uterus and the fallopian tubes.
By Sheila Kaplan July 20, 2018
Bayer announced on Friday that it would discontinue sales of its Essure birth control implant by the end of the year, bowing to a lengthy campaign by health advocates and thousands of women to get the device off the market.
Ver:
The implant has had a troubled history. It has been the subject of an estimated 16,000 lawsuits or claims filed by women who reported severe injuries, including perforation of the uterus and the fallopian tubes. Several deaths, including of a few infants, have also been attributed to the device or to complications from it.
Bayer said its decision to halt sales of the device was not related to the litigation or safety issues, but to a decline in use as women chose other options. Bayer has repeatedly denied that the implant is dangerous or caused injuries.
Women who had filed injury claims and advocacy groups, including one called Essure Problems that had 36,000 members on Facebook, had repeatedly demanded that the Food and Drug Administration ban the device. But the agency declined. (Más)
Ver también:
La Audiencia Nacional (España) abre la vía penal contra Bayer por un anticonceptivo que dejó a 30 mujeres estériles
The device has been problematic for years, prompting lawsuits alleging the metal implant caused severe injuries, including perforation of the uterus and the fallopian tubes.
By Sheila Kaplan July 20, 2018
Bayer announced on Friday that it would discontinue sales of its Essure birth control implant by the end of the year, bowing to a lengthy campaign by health advocates and thousands of women to get the device off the market.
Ver:
Bayer: Essure no es seguro...
The implant has had a troubled history. It has been the subject of an estimated 16,000 lawsuits or claims filed by women who reported severe injuries, including perforation of the uterus and the fallopian tubes. Several deaths, including of a few infants, have also been attributed to the device or to complications from it.
Bayer said its decision to halt sales of the device was not related to the litigation or safety issues, but to a decline in use as women chose other options. Bayer has repeatedly denied that the implant is dangerous or caused injuries.
Women who had filed injury claims and advocacy groups, including one called Essure Problems that had 36,000 members on Facebook, had repeatedly demanded that the Food and Drug Administration ban the device. But the agency declined. (Más)
Ver también:
La Audiencia Nacional (España) abre la vía penal contra Bayer por un anticonceptivo que dejó a 30 mujeres estériles
miércoles, 25 de julio de 2018
Time to Mergers...(M&A)
.
Mergers and acquisitions have been a core
feature of the pharmaceutical industry for
many years. While the 1990s and early 2000s
were characterized by giant megadeals, heavyweight
acquisitions in recent years – such as
Teva’s purchase of Allergan’s generics division
in 2015, Shire’s acquisition of Baxalta
in 2016 and Johnson & Johnson’s USD 30
million takeover of Actelion in 2017 – prove
that pharma has an enduring enthusiasm
for M&A.
Ver todo sobre Mergers en PHARMACOSERÍAS.
Excluding the J&J-Actelion deal, 2017 was a comparatively quiet year for pharma M&A. However, conditions remain ripe for companies to engage in more deal making in 2018 as this special report shows.
Big Pharma is divesting its non-core assets and doubling down on core business lines, with consumer healthcare portfolios, among others, obvious casualties. Furthermore, generics portfolios are increasingly being seen as underperforming assets that distract from the bread and butter of developing high-margin innovative drugs – making them ripe for divestment and consolidation. Pure generics companies too are also merging with each other to combat their industry’s razor-fine margins.
Other emerging trends covered in this report include major asset swaps between Big Pharma, the changing nature of deals, the success of companies which have indulged in serial M&A such as Allergan and Valeant and the future of ‘Growth Pharma’, how pharma companies are increasingly looking to acquire digital assets, and how contract manufacturing organizations (CMOs) are fast catching up with contract research organizations (CROs) in terms of both volume and value of consolidation deals. (Descargar)
Ver todo sobre Mergers en PHARMACOSERÍAS.
Excluding the J&J-Actelion deal, 2017 was a comparatively quiet year for pharma M&A. However, conditions remain ripe for companies to engage in more deal making in 2018 as this special report shows.
Big Pharma is divesting its non-core assets and doubling down on core business lines, with consumer healthcare portfolios, among others, obvious casualties. Furthermore, generics portfolios are increasingly being seen as underperforming assets that distract from the bread and butter of developing high-margin innovative drugs – making them ripe for divestment and consolidation. Pure generics companies too are also merging with each other to combat their industry’s razor-fine margins.
Other emerging trends covered in this report include major asset swaps between Big Pharma, the changing nature of deals, the success of companies which have indulged in serial M&A such as Allergan and Valeant and the future of ‘Growth Pharma’, how pharma companies are increasingly looking to acquire digital assets, and how contract manufacturing organizations (CMOs) are fast catching up with contract research organizations (CROs) in terms of both volume and value of consolidation deals. (Descargar)
martes, 24 de julio de 2018
No hay "bula"* para bulos: Pseudoterapias duplican riesgo a morir de cáncer
.
JAVIER SALAS, Madrid El País 20 julio 2018
Sustituir con pseudoterapias el tratamiento médico, aquel que ha probado su eficacia clínicamente, es una temeridad. Más allá de lo que dicta el sentido común, contamos con estudios que lo muestran. Uno de los más completos, realizado el pasado año por investigadores de la Universidad de Yale (EE UU), aseguraba que cambiar el tratamiento de cáncer por pseudoterapias multiplicaba por tres, cuatro y hasta casi cinco el riesgo de morir, dependiendo del tipo de tumor. Sin embargo, un argumento habitual entre los defensores de las pseudoterapias es que pueden ayudar a los pacientes cuando se complementan con el tratamiento médico, es decir, cuando se usan junto a la medicina y no en su lugar. Ahora un nuevo estudio del mismo equipo desmiente esto y lanza una seria advertencia: complementar el tratamiento de cáncer con técnicas y productos no avalados por la medicina duplica el riesgo de morir de los pacientes.
Preocupados por extendido uso de estas pseudoterapias entre los enfermos de cáncer, los científicos quisieron analizar el verdadero efecto de estos tratamientos complementarios. Acudieron a la base de datos estadounidense de casos de cáncer y se fijaron en los pacientes que se habían sometido al menos a un tratamiento convencional de tumores (quimioterapia, radioterapia, cirugía y/o terapia hormonal). Y de ese grupo, seleccionaron a quienes también usaban “otros tratamientos no validados administrados por personal no médico”. Es decir, que cumplieron con lo prescrito por los oncólogos, al menos en parte, y con pseudoterapias ajenas a las recomendaciones médicas.
Al comparar cómo les había ido a esos 258 pacientes con un grupo de control de más de mil enfermos en similares circunstancias, descubrieron la verdad sobre las terapias complementarias. “Muchos pacientes creen que la medicina complementaria les ayudará a vivir más tiempo o a curar su enfermedad. Queríamos investigarlo y ver si era cierto: no lo es”, resume James Yu, uno de los autores del trabajo.
Aproximadamente dos tercios de los pacientes con cáncer creen que estas pseudoterapias prolongarán su vida y un tercio espera que cure su enfermedad.
Lo cierto es que duplica su riesgo de morir, como publican en la prestigiosa revista médica JAMA.
Results
The entire cohort comprised 1 901 815 patients with cancer (258 patients in the CM group and 1 901 557 patients in the control group).
In the main analyses following matching, 258 patients (199 women and 59 men; mean age, 56 years [interquartile range, 48-64 years]) were in the CM group, and 1032 patients (798 women and 234 men; mean age, 56 years [interquartile range, 48-64 years]) were in the control group.
Patients who chose CM did not have a longer delay to initiation of CCT but had higher refusal rates of surgery (7.0% [18 of 258] vs 0.1% [1 of 1031]; P < .001), chemotherapy (34.1% [88 of 258] vs 3.2% [33 of 1032]; P < .001), radiotherapy (53.0% [106 of 200] vs 2.3% [16 of 711]; P < .001), and hormone therapy (33.7% [87 of 258] vs 2.8% [29 of 1032]; P < .001).
Use of CM was associated with poorer 5-year overall survival compared with no CM (82.2% [95% CI, 76.0%-87.0%] vs 86.6% [95% CI, 84.0%-88.9%]; P = .001) and was independently associated with greater risk of death (hazard ratio, 2.08; 95% CI, 1.50-2.90) in a multivariate model that did not include treatment delay or refusal.
However, there was no significant association between CM and survival once treatment delay or refusal was included in the model (hazard ratio, 1.39; 95% CI, 0.83-2.33).
Conclusions and Relevance
In this study, patients who received CM were more likely to refuse additional CCT, and had a higher risk of death.
The results suggest that mortality risk associated with CM was mediated by the refusal of CCT.(Más)
(*)1. loc. verb. coloq. Contar con facilidades negadas a los demás para conseguir cosas u obtener dispensas difíciles o imposibles.
JAVIER SALAS, Madrid El País 20 julio 2018
Sustituir con pseudoterapias el tratamiento médico, aquel que ha probado su eficacia clínicamente, es una temeridad. Más allá de lo que dicta el sentido común, contamos con estudios que lo muestran. Uno de los más completos, realizado el pasado año por investigadores de la Universidad de Yale (EE UU), aseguraba que cambiar el tratamiento de cáncer por pseudoterapias multiplicaba por tres, cuatro y hasta casi cinco el riesgo de morir, dependiendo del tipo de tumor. Sin embargo, un argumento habitual entre los defensores de las pseudoterapias es que pueden ayudar a los pacientes cuando se complementan con el tratamiento médico, es decir, cuando se usan junto a la medicina y no en su lugar. Ahora un nuevo estudio del mismo equipo desmiente esto y lanza una seria advertencia: complementar el tratamiento de cáncer con técnicas y productos no avalados por la medicina duplica el riesgo de morir de los pacientes.
Preocupados por extendido uso de estas pseudoterapias entre los enfermos de cáncer, los científicos quisieron analizar el verdadero efecto de estos tratamientos complementarios. Acudieron a la base de datos estadounidense de casos de cáncer y se fijaron en los pacientes que se habían sometido al menos a un tratamiento convencional de tumores (quimioterapia, radioterapia, cirugía y/o terapia hormonal). Y de ese grupo, seleccionaron a quienes también usaban “otros tratamientos no validados administrados por personal no médico”. Es decir, que cumplieron con lo prescrito por los oncólogos, al menos en parte, y con pseudoterapias ajenas a las recomendaciones médicas.
Al comparar cómo les había ido a esos 258 pacientes con un grupo de control de más de mil enfermos en similares circunstancias, descubrieron la verdad sobre las terapias complementarias. “Muchos pacientes creen que la medicina complementaria les ayudará a vivir más tiempo o a curar su enfermedad. Queríamos investigarlo y ver si era cierto: no lo es”, resume James Yu, uno de los autores del trabajo.
Aproximadamente dos tercios de los pacientes con cáncer creen que estas pseudoterapias prolongarán su vida y un tercio espera que cure su enfermedad.
Lo cierto es que duplica su riesgo de morir, como publican en la prestigiosa revista médica JAMA.
 |
| Complementary therapies don't cure cancer |
The entire cohort comprised 1 901 815 patients with cancer (258 patients in the CM group and 1 901 557 patients in the control group).
In the main analyses following matching, 258 patients (199 women and 59 men; mean age, 56 years [interquartile range, 48-64 years]) were in the CM group, and 1032 patients (798 women and 234 men; mean age, 56 years [interquartile range, 48-64 years]) were in the control group.
Patients who chose CM did not have a longer delay to initiation of CCT but had higher refusal rates of surgery (7.0% [18 of 258] vs 0.1% [1 of 1031]; P < .001), chemotherapy (34.1% [88 of 258] vs 3.2% [33 of 1032]; P < .001), radiotherapy (53.0% [106 of 200] vs 2.3% [16 of 711]; P < .001), and hormone therapy (33.7% [87 of 258] vs 2.8% [29 of 1032]; P < .001).
Use of CM was associated with poorer 5-year overall survival compared with no CM (82.2% [95% CI, 76.0%-87.0%] vs 86.6% [95% CI, 84.0%-88.9%]; P = .001) and was independently associated with greater risk of death (hazard ratio, 2.08; 95% CI, 1.50-2.90) in a multivariate model that did not include treatment delay or refusal.
However, there was no significant association between CM and survival once treatment delay or refusal was included in the model (hazard ratio, 1.39; 95% CI, 0.83-2.33).
Conclusions and Relevance
In this study, patients who received CM were more likely to refuse additional CCT, and had a higher risk of death.
The results suggest that mortality risk associated with CM was mediated by the refusal of CCT.(Más)
(*)1. loc. verb. coloq. Contar con facilidades negadas a los demás para conseguir cosas u obtener dispensas difíciles o imposibles.
lunes, 23 de julio de 2018
domingo, 22 de julio de 2018
sábado, 21 de julio de 2018
SuperGlu...no "pega" como medicamento.
.
Super Glue es hoy el pegamento más famoso del mundo, disponible en las tiendas de casi un centenar de países. Sin embargo, su destino original era bien distinto: ser un arma de guerra.
Como tantos artículos de nuestra vida cotidiana, es un producto nacido de la investigación militar. Pasó de ser una mirilla de precisión de los rifles del ejército americano a un imprescindible en las cajas de herramientas de cualquier hogar, pasando por un fármaco de emergencia en Vietnam.
(...)
Los médicos y sanitarios militares descubrieron que la capacidad adherente del Super Glue también servía para pegar partes del cuerpo humano. Concretamente, para cerrar hemorragias abiertas provocadas por heridas de bala o metralla, que fueron una de las principales causas de mortalidad entre el contingente norteamericano durante este conflicto.
Gran parte de los soldados estadounidenses no morían de forma instantánea durante los combates. Otros resultaban heridos durante las refriegas y debían aguantar el tiempo suficiente hasta que un helicóptero de evacuación pudiera llevarles a un punto médico donde cerrar sus hemorragias y extraer las balas y la metralla.
Según datos del ejército norteamericano, durante este conflicto se evacuó por aire a cientos de miles de soldados heridos y las tasas de mortandad durante estos desplazamientos descendieron por debajo del 1% gracias a este remedio instantáneo.
Sin embargo, resulta especialmente llamativo que, en aquel momento –y hasta hoy–, el Super Glue no estaba ni siquiera aprobado para el consumo humano por la Agencia del Medicamento de Estados Unidos.
La razón eran los efectos secundarios perjudiciales para la salud. Sin embargo, tras su uso en la guerra de Vietnam alcanzó mucha popularidad en la sociedad civil estadounidense gracias a su bajo coste. Lo cierto es que posteriormente se han desarrollado derivados del cianoacrilao aptos para su empleo en humanos y animales.
En cualquier caso, el Super Glue fue el primer paso, el inspirador de otros medicamentos para cerrar heridas abiertas que sí han sido aprobados por las autoridades sanitarias. (Más)
Como tantos artículos de nuestra vida cotidiana, es un producto nacido de la investigación militar. Pasó de ser una mirilla de precisión de los rifles del ejército americano a un imprescindible en las cajas de herramientas de cualquier hogar, pasando por un fármaco de emergencia en Vietnam.
(...)
Los médicos y sanitarios militares descubrieron que la capacidad adherente del Super Glue también servía para pegar partes del cuerpo humano. Concretamente, para cerrar hemorragias abiertas provocadas por heridas de bala o metralla, que fueron una de las principales causas de mortalidad entre el contingente norteamericano durante este conflicto.
Según datos del ejército norteamericano, durante este conflicto se evacuó por aire a cientos de miles de soldados heridos y las tasas de mortandad durante estos desplazamientos descendieron por debajo del 1% gracias a este remedio instantáneo.
Sin embargo, resulta especialmente llamativo que, en aquel momento –y hasta hoy–, el Super Glue no estaba ni siquiera aprobado para el consumo humano por la Agencia del Medicamento de Estados Unidos.
La razón eran los efectos secundarios perjudiciales para la salud. Sin embargo, tras su uso en la guerra de Vietnam alcanzó mucha popularidad en la sociedad civil estadounidense gracias a su bajo coste. Lo cierto es que posteriormente se han desarrollado derivados del cianoacrilao aptos para su empleo en humanos y animales.
En cualquier caso, el Super Glue fue el primer paso, el inspirador de otros medicamentos para cerrar heridas abiertas que sí han sido aprobados por las autoridades sanitarias. (Más)
viernes, 20 de julio de 2018
Ratón de biblioteca: El médico perplejo / Robert S. Bobrow
.
El médico perplejo, del médico y profesor clínico Robert S. Bobrow trata de casos médicos que la ciencia, en su gran mayoría, todavía no ha sabido explicar satisfactoriamente.
...Bobrow introduce algunos casos desde un punto de vista demasiado magufo, aunque haya otros que estén presentados con más rigurosidad. El problema para el lector es, pues, separar el grano de la paja.
Ojo, no se afirma aquí que determinadas pseudociencias puedan ser veraces y que algún día se incorporen a la ciencia, lo que se afirma es que, por el momento, no hay ninguna prueba. Al menos ninguna prueba importante. Y los hechos extraordinarios, los que violan las leyes de lo que ya conocemos, deben exigir pruebas igualmente extraordinarias para ser considerados. (Ver)
...Bobrow introduce algunos casos desde un punto de vista demasiado magufo, aunque haya otros que estén presentados con más rigurosidad. El problema para el lector es, pues, separar el grano de la paja.
Ojo, no se afirma aquí que determinadas pseudociencias puedan ser veraces y que algún día se incorporen a la ciencia, lo que se afirma es que, por el momento, no hay ninguna prueba. Al menos ninguna prueba importante. Y los hechos extraordinarios, los que violan las leyes de lo que ya conocemos, deben exigir pruebas igualmente extraordinarias para ser considerados. (Ver)
jueves, 19 de julio de 2018
NOVARTIS "pierde de vista" ALCON ?
.
Basel, June 29, 2018 -
Novartis today announced its intention to spinoff Alcon, its eye care division, into a separately-traded standalone company.
The planned spinoff would enable Novartis and Alcon to focus fully on their respective growth strategies. Completion of the transaction is subject to general market conditions, tax rulings and opinions, final Board of Directors endorsement and shareholder approval at the 2019 AGM in line with Swiss corporate law.
Ver
Basel, June 29, 2018 -
Novartis today announced its intention to spinoff Alcon, its eye care division, into a separately-traded standalone company.
Ver
- Alcon strategic review concludes that 100% spinoff in best interest of shareholders and consistent with the Novartis strategy of focusing as a medicines company
- Planned spinoff would create world leading eye care devices company
- The Alcon ophthalmology pharmaceuticals portfolio will remain with Novartis, further strengthening its leading ophthalmology pharmaceuticals business
- Transaction expected to be tax neutral to Novartis and subject to general market conditions, tax rulings and opinions, final Board endorsement and shareholder approval at the AGM in February 2019; completion expected in H1 2019
- Alcon CEO Mike Ball to become Chairman-designate; COO, David Endicott promoted to Alcon CEO, both appointments effective July 1, 2018
- Alcon would be incorporated in Switzerland; with Fort Worth continuing to be a key location. Listings planned on SIX Swiss Exchange and New York Stock Exchange
- Share buyback of up to USD 5 bn planned to be executed by end 2019, in line with capital allocation priorities highlighting confidence in top line growth and margin expansion (Más)
miércoles, 18 de julio de 2018
Colombia: Pharma se hace "transparente"...
.
Para nadie es un secreto que por años la industria farmacéutica ha financiado de distintas maneras a diferentes actores del sector salud. Médicos, funcionarios administrativos y asociaciones de pacientes han recibido “ayudas” de las compañías. Invitaciones a viajes, a comidas, a congresos internacionales y pagos por conferencias son algunas de las prácticas más frecuentes. Se trata de una compleja relación que ha generado dificultades pues suele desembocar en serios conflictos de interés.
Desde hace cuatro años en el Ministerio de Salud ha estado cocinándose una norma para reglamentar ese viejo vínculo y esos mecanismos de financiación. El camino para concretarla no ha sido fácil. Se han publicado varios borradores y esa cartera ha recibido comentarios tanto de la industria como de ONG con aportes e ideas. Sin embargo, esa resolución está a punto de ver la luz. Aunque aún no ha sido publicada en su totalidad (al parecer eso sucederá a principios de la próxima semana), el Minsalud, a través de un comunicado, anunció la primera medida de ese documento: la creación de una aplicación en la que las farmacéuticas deberán reportar todos los pagos que hagan a los actores del sistema.
La idea es que las compañías hagan una declaración cuando los montos superen los $78 mil pesos (US$ 26), en el caso de que se trate de comidas o recordatorios, o cuando la cantidad sea equivalente a un salario mínimo ($781.242) en el caso de que se trate de otras transferencias. Las deberán reportar cuando se las hagan tanto a médicos, pacientes y sociedades científicas como a EPS y jefes de compras de hospitales. También cuando se las hagan a periodistas.
El motivo detrás de esta medida es sencillo: en muchas ocasiones se ha demostrado que la entrega de obsequios o viajes tiene una correlación con la prescripción de medicamentos. Algunos de ellos suelen estar entre los más costosos del sistema.
“La resolución de transferencias de valor está basada en buenas prácticas internacionales que buscan revelar estas formas legítimas, pero que deben ser de conocimiento público, sobre cómo las compañías farmacéuticas se relacionan con prescriptores, investigadores y científicos. En un sistema de salud como el colombiano, en el que el 85 por ciento de los recursos son públicos, se necesitan normas de transparencia para buscar la legitimidad, la confianza, la sostenibilidad del sistema y en últimas la salud de la gente”, asegura Alejando Gaviria en el comunicado.
Ver:
La aplicación web en la que se harán estos registros se desarrolló gracias al Proyecto Anticorrupción y Transparencia de la Unión Europea para Colombia, Actúe Colombia.
Ver:
Proyecto Anticorrupción y Transparenciade la Unión Europea para Colombia
Farmacéuticas deberán reportar pagos a actores del sistema
Pese a que aún no se sabe la fecha en la que empezará a funcionar, cuando empiece a marchar cualquier ciudadano podrá consultar la base de datos y podrá hacer filtros por laboratorio, profesional o asociación de pacientes. (Ver)
Para nadie es un secreto que por años la industria farmacéutica ha financiado de distintas maneras a diferentes actores del sector salud. Médicos, funcionarios administrativos y asociaciones de pacientes han recibido “ayudas” de las compañías. Invitaciones a viajes, a comidas, a congresos internacionales y pagos por conferencias son algunas de las prácticas más frecuentes. Se trata de una compleja relación que ha generado dificultades pues suele desembocar en serios conflictos de interés.
Desde hace cuatro años en el Ministerio de Salud ha estado cocinándose una norma para reglamentar ese viejo vínculo y esos mecanismos de financiación. El camino para concretarla no ha sido fácil. Se han publicado varios borradores y esa cartera ha recibido comentarios tanto de la industria como de ONG con aportes e ideas. Sin embargo, esa resolución está a punto de ver la luz. Aunque aún no ha sido publicada en su totalidad (al parecer eso sucederá a principios de la próxima semana), el Minsalud, a través de un comunicado, anunció la primera medida de ese documento: la creación de una aplicación en la que las farmacéuticas deberán reportar todos los pagos que hagan a los actores del sistema.
La idea es que las compañías hagan una declaración cuando los montos superen los $78 mil pesos (US$ 26), en el caso de que se trate de comidas o recordatorios, o cuando la cantidad sea equivalente a un salario mínimo ($781.242) en el caso de que se trate de otras transferencias. Las deberán reportar cuando se las hagan tanto a médicos, pacientes y sociedades científicas como a EPS y jefes de compras de hospitales. También cuando se las hagan a periodistas.
El motivo detrás de esta medida es sencillo: en muchas ocasiones se ha demostrado que la entrega de obsequios o viajes tiene una correlación con la prescripción de medicamentos. Algunos de ellos suelen estar entre los más costosos del sistema.
“La resolución de transferencias de valor está basada en buenas prácticas internacionales que buscan revelar estas formas legítimas, pero que deben ser de conocimiento público, sobre cómo las compañías farmacéuticas se relacionan con prescriptores, investigadores y científicos. En un sistema de salud como el colombiano, en el que el 85 por ciento de los recursos son públicos, se necesitan normas de transparencia para buscar la legitimidad, la confianza, la sostenibilidad del sistema y en últimas la salud de la gente”, asegura Alejando Gaviria en el comunicado.
Ver:
FARMAINDUSTRIA: "Transferencias de valor" nuevo eufemismo por... ¿Cuánto pagan las farmacéuticas a los médicos?
La aplicación web en la que se harán estos registros se desarrolló gracias al Proyecto Anticorrupción y Transparencia de la Unión Europea para Colombia, Actúe Colombia.
Ver:
Proyecto Anticorrupción y Transparenciade la Unión Europea para Colombia
Farmacéuticas deberán reportar pagos a actores del sistema
Pese a que aún no se sabe la fecha en la que empezará a funcionar, cuando empiece a marchar cualquier ciudadano podrá consultar la base de datos y podrá hacer filtros por laboratorio, profesional o asociación de pacientes. (Ver)
martes, 17 de julio de 2018
El amigo americano de Joe Jimenez...Michael Cohen.
Democrats are accusing a major pharmaceutical company of trying to influence the Trump administration's plan to lower drug prices.
Emails obtained by Democrats and publicly released Friday show that Novartis sent Michael Cohen, a former lawyer for President Trump, a list of proposals to lower drug prices.
Several of those proposals later appeared in the administration's "blue print" to lower drug prices.
"Based on our conversation last week, I am forwarding you some ideas to lower drug costs in the US," Jimenez wrote.
Cohen responded a few hours later: "Received and I will forward to you their suggestions."
Several of the recommendations later ended up in the administration's blueprint, which was released in May. Those included proposals to speed up the approval of generic drugs and reforming the rebate system between pharmacy benefit managers and drug manufacturers.
Novartis previously acknowledged a $1.2 million agreement with Cohen last year. Cohen allegedly promised the company access to the Trump administration.Ver:
NOVARTIS Amistades peligrosas: Trump attorney Michael Cohen
Novartis said it ended the relationship with Cohen in March 2017, but Democrats say new documents show communication continued until September.
U.S. Senate Democrats
are questioning the truthfulness
of Novartis AG’s account
of its relationship
with Donald Trump’s lawyer,
saying its ties were deeper
than the Swiss drugmaker
has acknowledged.(Más)
Ver:
Novartis, Michael Cohen contacts were more extensive than previously disclosed
Senators Assail Novartis Account of Cohen Connection
The report suggests
Cohen tried to persuade Novartis
to invest in a healthcare company
connected to “sanctioned Russian oligarch”
who has also been questioned
by investigators working
on the Russian interference probe.
"These documents indicate that Mr. Cohen and Mr. Jimenez – who was still the Novartis CEO at the time – had at least four phone calls, and, between April and September 2017, exchanged multiple emails on substantive issues, including the Trump administration’s drug pricing proposals, Novartis’s potential investment in a small drug company backed by Columbus Nova, and with regard to opioid lawsuits," according to the report.
Democrats have characterized the relationship as Cohen capitalizing on his ability to offer companies access to Trump administration officials.
Cohen's attorney Lanny Davis, a contributor to The Hill, said in a statement to ABC that Cohen provided "strategic advice" and did not "sell access."
Novartis spokesman Eric Althoff said Jimenez provided Cohen with a list of "well-known ideas for lowering the cost of pharmaceuticals that had been discussed publicly in the industry."
Althoff also said the company disagrees with the report's conclusion that Novartis misled the public about the extent of its engagement with Cohen.
"As the documents we produced show, Novartis had [its] one and only meeting with Mr. Cohen on March 1, 2017, and then concluded he was not able to provide the substantive consulting advice and insight for which he was hired. We never asked Mr. Cohen to perform any services on our behalf after March 1, nor did he perform any," he said. (Ver)
Narasimhan, who rose through the company’s ranks and moved into the top job earlier this year, is taking a number of steps to try to strengthen the company’s ethics and manage risk.
Ver:
NOVARTIS: Exceso de llamadas...
Regaining trust is important for Novartis as the company seeks reimbursement for costly, cutting-edge medicines for cancer and other diseases and navigates the health-care market in the U.S., where high drug prices have come under fire. (Más)
 |
| Felix Ehrat |
Ver:
NOVARTIS: Dimitido responsable jurídico.
Le responsable juridique de Novartis démissionne
In May, he accepted responsibility for the embarrassment surrounding $1.2m in payments made by Novartis to the lawyer, exposed amid the journalist digging and legal wrangling that followed porn star Stormy Daniels’ claim that she had an affair with the President and was paid $130,000 for her silence.(Más)
lunes, 16 de julio de 2018
domingo, 15 de julio de 2018
Marijuana green grey zone...patients, Dr´s & pharmaceuticals.
.
If you live in one of the 20 states where marijuana is legal but only for medical use, access to the drug begins at the doctor's office. But unlike most other treatments, it is not granted via a prescription pad.
That's because marijuana remains a schedule 1 substance. (Physicians can only write prescriptions for schedule 2 drugs or higher.) This classification encapsulates a wider paradox: marijuana is defined as a drug with no medical value and a high potential for abuse by the federal government, but it is now legal for medical use in most states. Once dismissed as a drug for slackers, marijuana has entered the mainstream so completely it's been embraced by wellness enthusiasts. Sixty-one percent of Americans support its legalization.
But because the federal government continues to classify marijuana as a schedule 1 drug, along with heroin and LSD, it's very difficult for researchers to study its health effects. While the available evidence suggests marijuana can be an effective treatment for chronic pain, the body of studies is far from robust.
Meanwhile, doctors are barred from prescribing cannabis products. Instead, certified physicians in states where the drug is legal can provide patients with a medical marijuana card.
The disconnect likely contributes to the overall confusion and lack of information surrounding marijuana's medical benefits. Patients are increasingly curious about the drug, but doctors often don't have answers. In a recent survey of oncologists published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, around 80% said they've discussed marijuana with their patients in the past year, but only 30% felt they have enough information to advise patients on its medicinal use.
Even for providers who are informed about the drug and can talk knowledgeably about treatment options, such guidelines aren't easily integrated into a patient's health records. Because of the drug's scheduling, doctors can suggest dosages and products (most doctors likely won't recommend that a lung cancer patient smokes a joint, for example), but they can't prescribe anything specific. Instead, patients visit a dispensary, card in hand, and select what they want.
“Physicians are cut out of the loop,” said W. David Bradford, a professor of public policy at the University of Georgia. Rescheduling marijuana would allow physicians to write cannabis prescriptions, and “integrate it into a care plan.” It would open the door, albeit a crack, for pharmaceutical companies to work with dispensaries to create more uniform doses of the product, as Sandoz has done in Canada. Patients, particularly those with complex drug regimens, could benefit from an added layer of coordination and precision.
Ver:
Sandoz / Novartis y la marijuana (no "combustible")...
Dr. Andrew Epstein, an oncologist with Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, supports marijuana's use to help with pain, nausea, and fatigue after more traditional medical treatments have been tried and exhausted. But unlike Bradford, he does not feel the drug is not ready for the prescription pad treatment.
Researchers simply don't know enough about what marijuana can – and can't – do to justify having doctors prescribe the drug in specific dosages, he said. “I'm concerned it would add to the confusion.” (...)
Impact on pharma
Despite doctor's inability to prescribe the drug, medical marijuana is nonetheless having an effect on prescribing patterns.
In every state where medical cannabis has been legalized it has “this benefit of people being able to use less prescription medication,” said Jessica Gelay, a policy manager at the Drug Policy Alliance. Indeed, a recent study published in JAMA Internal Medicine by Bradford and colleagues found that after states legalized medical marijuana, opioid prescriptions under Medicare Part D declined significantly.
Ver
In those states that introduced a system of dispensary outlets, opioid prescriptions under Medicare Part D dropped by 14.5% following legalization. “People are reacting to the availability of cannabis as if cannabis was medicine,” Bradford said. “They're doing exactly what they would do if a pharma company introduced a new blockbuster drug.”
Bradford estimates that if every state were to turn on a dispensary-based cannabis program, Medicare and Medicaid spending would drop by around $4 billion to $6 billion. Legalization represents a potentially significant “reduction in the revenue flowing to prescription drugmakers.”
Which hasn't gone unnoticed by manufacturers. Some have publicly lashed out: Insys, an opioid maker, contributed $500,000 to an anti-legalization campaign in Arizona, for example.
Others (including, ironically, Insys again) have invested in harnessing elements of the drug to create FDA-approved treatments.
The FDA is expected to green light an epilepsy medication from GW derived from marijuana later this summer. If the decision goes through, it would be the first cleared drug made from the marijuana plant, although the agency has already approved a few drugs derived from synthetic cannabinoids.
The approval would open the door for other medications derived from marijuana, particularly those, like GW's epilepsy drug, that do not contain properties that make users high. For broad, lucrative categories such as pain management, however, marijuana-based medications could lack the financial windfall necessary to justify heavy R&D investment.
“You can't patent the cannabis plant,” Bradford said. Were a manufacturer to invest heavily in determining the most effective strains and dosages for treating chronic pain, “everyone could just go buy it from their local dispensary instead.” (Más)
Ver también:
USA: FDA aprueba EPIDIOLEX primer cannabinoide
SANDOZ con Tilray (pioneros) y la marijuana "no cumbustible"
If you live in one of the 20 states where marijuana is legal but only for medical use, access to the drug begins at the doctor's office. But unlike most other treatments, it is not granted via a prescription pad.
That's because marijuana remains a schedule 1 substance. (Physicians can only write prescriptions for schedule 2 drugs or higher.) This classification encapsulates a wider paradox: marijuana is defined as a drug with no medical value and a high potential for abuse by the federal government, but it is now legal for medical use in most states. Once dismissed as a drug for slackers, marijuana has entered the mainstream so completely it's been embraced by wellness enthusiasts. Sixty-one percent of Americans support its legalization.
But because the federal government continues to classify marijuana as a schedule 1 drug, along with heroin and LSD, it's very difficult for researchers to study its health effects. While the available evidence suggests marijuana can be an effective treatment for chronic pain, the body of studies is far from robust.
Meanwhile, doctors are barred from prescribing cannabis products. Instead, certified physicians in states where the drug is legal can provide patients with a medical marijuana card. The disconnect likely contributes to the overall confusion and lack of information surrounding marijuana's medical benefits. Patients are increasingly curious about the drug, but doctors often don't have answers. In a recent survey of oncologists published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, around 80% said they've discussed marijuana with their patients in the past year, but only 30% felt they have enough information to advise patients on its medicinal use.
Even for providers who are informed about the drug and can talk knowledgeably about treatment options, such guidelines aren't easily integrated into a patient's health records. Because of the drug's scheduling, doctors can suggest dosages and products (most doctors likely won't recommend that a lung cancer patient smokes a joint, for example), but they can't prescribe anything specific. Instead, patients visit a dispensary, card in hand, and select what they want.
“Physicians are cut out of the loop,” said W. David Bradford, a professor of public policy at the University of Georgia. Rescheduling marijuana would allow physicians to write cannabis prescriptions, and “integrate it into a care plan.” It would open the door, albeit a crack, for pharmaceutical companies to work with dispensaries to create more uniform doses of the product, as Sandoz has done in Canada. Patients, particularly those with complex drug regimens, could benefit from an added layer of coordination and precision.
Sandoz / Novartis y la marijuana (no "combustible")...
Dr. Andrew Epstein, an oncologist with Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, supports marijuana's use to help with pain, nausea, and fatigue after more traditional medical treatments have been tried and exhausted. But unlike Bradford, he does not feel the drug is not ready for the prescription pad treatment.
Researchers simply don't know enough about what marijuana can – and can't – do to justify having doctors prescribe the drug in specific dosages, he said. “I'm concerned it would add to the confusion.” (...)
Impact on pharma
Despite doctor's inability to prescribe the drug, medical marijuana is nonetheless having an effect on prescribing patterns.
In every state where medical cannabis has been legalized it has “this benefit of people being able to use less prescription medication,” said Jessica Gelay, a policy manager at the Drug Policy Alliance. Indeed, a recent study published in JAMA Internal Medicine by Bradford and colleagues found that after states legalized medical marijuana, opioid prescriptions under Medicare Part D declined significantly.
Ver
In those states that introduced a system of dispensary outlets, opioid prescriptions under Medicare Part D dropped by 14.5% following legalization. “People are reacting to the availability of cannabis as if cannabis was medicine,” Bradford said. “They're doing exactly what they would do if a pharma company introduced a new blockbuster drug.”
Bradford estimates that if every state were to turn on a dispensary-based cannabis program, Medicare and Medicaid spending would drop by around $4 billion to $6 billion. Legalization represents a potentially significant “reduction in the revenue flowing to prescription drugmakers.”
Which hasn't gone unnoticed by manufacturers. Some have publicly lashed out: Insys, an opioid maker, contributed $500,000 to an anti-legalization campaign in Arizona, for example.
Others (including, ironically, Insys again) have invested in harnessing elements of the drug to create FDA-approved treatments.
The FDA is expected to green light an epilepsy medication from GW derived from marijuana later this summer. If the decision goes through, it would be the first cleared drug made from the marijuana plant, although the agency has already approved a few drugs derived from synthetic cannabinoids.
The approval would open the door for other medications derived from marijuana, particularly those, like GW's epilepsy drug, that do not contain properties that make users high. For broad, lucrative categories such as pain management, however, marijuana-based medications could lack the financial windfall necessary to justify heavy R&D investment.
“You can't patent the cannabis plant,” Bradford said. Were a manufacturer to invest heavily in determining the most effective strains and dosages for treating chronic pain, “everyone could just go buy it from their local dispensary instead.” (Más)
Ver también:
USA: FDA aprueba EPIDIOLEX primer cannabinoide
SANDOZ con Tilray (pioneros) y la marijuana "no cumbustible"
sábado, 14 de julio de 2018
In vino...enim veritas
.
"Tú puedes hacer una dieta saludable y que esporádicamente exista el consumo de algún vaso de vino o de alguna cerveza. Pero, ojo, la conclusión es que puede ser saludable a pesar de que esté el vino o la cerveza. Lo que es intachable es que el vino y la cerveza 'per se' no tienen ningún beneficio en nuestra dieta a pesar de que se ha repetido hasta la saciedad." (Más)
Ver también:
"Tú puedes hacer una dieta saludable y que esporádicamente exista el consumo de algún vaso de vino o de alguna cerveza. Pero, ojo, la conclusión es que puede ser saludable a pesar de que esté el vino o la cerveza. Lo que es intachable es que el vino y la cerveza 'per se' no tienen ningún beneficio en nuestra dieta a pesar de que se ha repetido hasta la saciedad." (Más)
Ver también:
In vino...dubitas...(III) / Resveratrol y el caso del "falso" Dr.Dipak Das
Cervezas? Esto quién lo paga...?
viernes, 13 de julio de 2018
Ratón de biblioteca: La aventura de tu cerebro / María José Mas Salguero*
«Me gustaría que cada lector
recuerde su propia infancia
y que, a medida que lea,
se comprenda mejor a sí mismo».
Ya conoces el final de esta historia: el final eres tú. Un resultado único e irrepetible entre los millones de variantes posibles, una casualidad extraordinaria. Desde aquella célula inicial formada por los gametos de tus padres, son muchos los acontecimientos biológicos y biográficos que te han convertido en el adulto que eres ahora. Este largo proceso se
conoce como "neurodesarrollo", y en este libro se desgranan sus claves. Dirigido a todos los públicos, se explican los conocimientos actuales de esta ciencia, ilustrados con historias reales que nos permiten entender los procesos por los que pasa el cerebro desde que se forma durante la gestación hasta que adquiere su plena madurez.
Descubriremos cómo crece y se capacita para regular el movimiento corporal, dominar el lenguaje, aprender su entorno, y concretar con su progreso la identidad personal de cada uno de nosotros. Un libro que nos ayuda a conocer mejor el desarrollo del niño, y facilita a los padres, docentes y profesionales dela salud su acompañamiento a través de este maravilloso recorrido que lo convertirá en un adulto independiente.
(*) María José Más S.
Suscribirse a:
Entradas (Atom)
Entradas
