Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Latest Trial Indicates Anti-Malarial Drug Does Not Reduce COVID Mortality
CIDRAP: Trial Data Show Hydroxychloroquine Doesn't Help Hospitalized COVID Patients
Data released today from a randomized controlled trial evaluating the use of hydroxychloroquine in hospitalized COVID-19 patients show that the antimalaria drug was not associated with reductions in 28-day mortality but was linked with increased time in the hospital and an increased risk of progressing to mechanical ventilation or death. The interim results from the RECOVERY trial, which is evaluating several treatments in hospitalized COVID-19 patients in the United Kingdom, appeared today on the preprint server medRxiv and have not yet been peer reviewed. (7/15)
Stat: AbbVie Uses Many Patents To Ward Off Competition For A Pricey Cancer Drug
The pricey Imbruvica cancer treatment that became available seven years ago could have its monopoly extended through 2036 thanks to dozens of patents and, as a result, consumers may be forced to spend an extra $41 billion for the medicine by then, according to a new analysis. Since the first patent application was filed in 2006, the drug has been the subject of a blizzard of applications that has yielded no less than 88 patents. In fact, more than half of the 165 applications were filed after Food and Drug Administration approval in 2013, and most of those cover different indications or formulations, not the active ingredient in the drug itself. (Silverman, 7/15)
In other research news —
Stat: Scientists Create A Speedy Test To Scan For Radiation Exposure In Mice
Researchers have developed a simple finger-prick test that scans a single drop of blood to rapidly determine whether the body has been exposed to toxic levels of radiation. Catastrophic radiological events — like nuclear detonations — can threaten massive populations with acute radiation syndrome, which wreaks havoc on the gastrointestinal system and destroys bone marrow, leading to infections and internal bleeding. In preparation for the possibility of such a public health disaster, scientists at Ohio State have devised a speedy and scalable method for estimating radiation exposure. (Isselbacher, 7/15)
Stat: Interest Grows In Low-Dose Radiation For Covid-19, But Experts Are Divided
Back in 2013, toxicologist Edward Calabrese and a colleague at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, were combing over a cache of century-old data on low-dose radiation therapy, hunting for evidence on the scientific idea that small doses of certain poisons might actually be beneficial. They found small amounts of radiation were surprisingly successful in combating pneumonia. Again and again, doctors reported symptoms subsided within hours of a single X-ray. (Isselbacher, 7/16)
