The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Monday strengthened warnings about the dangerous pancreas inflammation linked to the type 2 diabetes drug Byetta after receiving reports of deaths and hospitalizations in Byetta users.
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An experimental drug blocks euphoric feelings prompted by drinking and could potentially prevent alcoholics from relapsing, after being tested on mice. The next step will be to test the drug, CP 154,526, to see if it is safe for humans. If it clears that hurdle, researchers will start human trials to determine if the drug can prevent alcoholic relapse.

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Trials of the drug, known as Rember, in 321 patients showed an 81% difference in rate of mental decline compared with those not taking the treatment. The Aberdeen University researchers said the drug targeted the build-up of a specific protein in the brain. Alzheimer's experts were optimistic about the results, but said larger trials were now needed.

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Old age is not just welcomes body aches and pains, it also brings along an increased risk of falling. Now, a group of researchers have come with a solution that may help cut the chances of serious falls among elderly.
Researchers at Tel Aviv University suggest that Ritalin, which is used for managing Attention Deficit Disorder in hyperactive children, may provide therapeutic benefits for seniors.

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Individuals bent on beating drug tests need only turn to the Internet to find dozens of products that claim to help them do so, scientists have found. Researchers at the University of Texas at Houston Medical School plan to present a detailed list of drug-test cheating options, along with sophisticated counter-measure tests that can be done by laboratory scientists, at the American Association for Clinical Chemistry's annual meeting, Monday, in Washington, D.C.

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A new study challenges the long-held belief that the hepatitis C virus (HCV) impairs the immune system's ability to restore itself after HIV patients are treated with highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART).From 50 percent to 90 percent of HIV-infected drug users are also infected with HCV. Intravenous drug use is the main cause of both types of infection.

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Pfizer Inc.'s profit more than doubled in the second quarter, reflecting growth in international pharmaceutical sales, the drug giant said Wednesday.
Profit increased to $2.8 billion, up 119 percent from $1.3 billion a year earlier, the company said.
Earnings were 55 cents a share, surpassing Thomson Financial analysts' predictions by 1 cent.

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Eating meals together as a family can reduce a teen girl's risk of turning to alcohol or drugs, a new study suggests. In families who ate at least five meals a week together, the teen girls were much less likely to drink alcohol, or smoke marijuana or cigarettes five years later, said study author Marla Eisenberg, an assistant professor of pediatrics at the University of Minnesota Medical School.

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The study, published in the journal Human Reproduction, found 41 million fewer sperm per millilitre of semen after just one portion every two days. The authors said plant oestrogens in foods such as tofu, soy mince or milk may interfere with hormonal signals. However, a UK expert stressed that most men in Asia eat more soy-based products with no fertility problems.

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Since June, at least 1,200 Americans have been diagnosed with salmonella poisoning. Early on, the Food and Drug Administration believed that the culprit was tainted tomatoes. It spent weeks trying to locate the source and failed to turn up any definitive evidence. Officials announced last week that tomatoes are safe to eat.

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Abiraterone could potentially treat up to 80% of patients with a deadly form of the disease resistant to currently available chemotherapy, they say. The drug works by blocking the hormones which fuel the cancer.
The Institute of Cancer Research hopes a simple pill form will be available in two to three years.

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The World Health Organization (WHO)on Monday said Asian nations had failed to rein in the rapid growth of highly lethal, drug-resistant strains of tuberculosis (TB) and warned that the disease could soon become a serious threat to the region as a whole.
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The BBC has seen indications that labs are classing positive tests for the blood-boosting drug EPO as negatives. Some samples have been described as suspicious - giving rise to fears that no action will be taken against cheats. One sport drug expert told the BBC that many of the finalists in Olympic endurance events would be using EPO. "Copycat" versions of the drug are available on the internet for as little as $50 - and according to experts are often undetectable.

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Washington, July 18 : Drugs that can help treat rheumatoid arthritis may hold the key to many more medical conditions, including atherosclerosis, say a group of researchers. Atherosclerosis is a disease affecting arterial blood vessels that leads to heart disease. Professor Marc Feldmann will tell scientists attending the 2008 Congress of European Pharmacological Societies (EPHAR).

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In the early stages of rheumatoid arthritis, taking the drugs Enbrel and methotrexate may make remission more likely than taking methotrexate alone, a new study shows.
The study, published in The Lancet, included 542 rheumatoid arthritis patients in Europe, Latin America, Asia, and Australia. For two years, all of the patients took methotrexate pills.

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