Month: January 2013

BRUSSELS (AP) — An attempt to protect Europe’s bee population has kicked up a hornets’ nest.

LONDON (Reuters) – AstraZeneca’s new boss said sales and profits would both fall sharply in 2013 as the drugmaker struggles to turn itself around by investing more in-house and on potential acquisitions. Chief Executive Pascal Soriot forecast a mid-to-high single digit percentage fall in revenue this year, as patent expiries continue to erode business, with earnings declining “significantly more” due to increased operating costs. The 2013 outlook was worse than the fall of around 3 percent in sales that analysts had been expecting, and shares in the group slumped 5.4 percent by 6:50 a.m. …

(Reuters) – Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc said it would stop developing its experimental drug for major depressive disorder after it failed to meet the main goal of improving symptoms in patients in a clinical trial, sending its shares down about 8 percent. The company said patients treated with the drug tasimelteon and those on a placebo showed about a 40 percent reduction in symptoms, based on a standard scale that measures severity of depression. The trial, named Magellan, enrolled 507 patients in 43 sites in the United States, and was comparing a 20mg dose of the drug with a placebo. …

FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Fresenius Medical Care's focus on a life-threatening illness and its buying power with suppliers mean the world's biggest kidney dialysis provider may cope better with cuts in U.S. healthcare spending than many investors think. FMC's shares have slumped about 10 percent over the past three months on expectation the United States, battling to rein in its budget deficit, will reduce funds for state-run health schemes like Medicare that account for about 30 percent of the German company's revenues. …

(Reuters) – Aetna Inc said on Thursday that fourth-quarter earnings fell sharply, as costs rose in parts of its employer-based insurance business and it took charges for settling litigation over payment practices for out-of-network care. The health insurer also said Chief Financial Officer Joseph Zubretsky would lead a new business internally. Shawn Guertin, who has been with Aetna since 2011 and was previously CFO of Coventry Health Care Inc , which Aetna is buying, will replace Zubretsky on February 25. The Hartford, Connecticut company announced plans in August for the $5. …

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – After more than a year's delay, American schools will soon see new U.S. government rules targeting the kinds of snacks sold to students, a move nutritionists say could play an important role in fighting childhood obesity. Anxious schools have waited more than a year to find out how sales of potato chips, candy bars, sodas and similar treats to students will be restricted. These rules on food sold outside traditional cafeteria meals are a key part of the first major overhaul on school food in more than three decades. …

(Reuters) – Celsion Corp said a late-stage study of its experimental liver cancer treatment ThermoDox did not meet the main goal of increasing patients’ survival without their cancer worsening. The study, named HEAT, was designed to show a 33 percent improvement in progression-free survival, Celsion said in a statement. Celsion CEO Michael Tardugno said the company is conducting additional analyses of data from the trial to assess the future strategic value of ThermoDox. (Reporting By Pallavi Ail in Bangalore; Editing by Roshni Menon)

LONDON (Reuters) – Children in Britain who were vaccinated with a GlaxoSmithKline shot against H1N1 swine flu had a significantly increased risk of developing the rare sleep disorder narcolepsy, according to results of a scientific study. The findings, which have not yet been published in full, are the first firm evidence in Britain that the flu vaccine, called Pandemrix, is linked to narcolepsy cases in children. Research in Finland, Sweden and Ireland has already found clear associations and Reuters reported last week that similar links were expected to be found in Britain. …

Baby born with part of brain outside skull gets 7-hour surgery. Emerges with thin scar.

You may trust Consumer Reports when it comes to buying your next car or fridge. But now, for the first time ever, consumers can get ratings of cancer screening tests the same way they do for their toaster.