Tuesday 14 July 2009
Source - The Guardian
GlaxoSmithKline has granted South Africa's Aspen the right to make its HIV drug abacavir in a royalty-free licensing deal, on the day that a group of MPs called on manufacturers to put their HIV medicines in a "patent pool" to reduce prices.
Aspen will manufacture a cheaper, generic version of abacavir, also known as Ziagen. The deal was announced by GSK chief executive Andrew Witty on a visit to Kenya today and forms part of the company's efforts to cut the cost of anti-retroviral medicines for HIV in poorer countries.
The world's second-largest drugmaker also announced a new £50m fund to support non-governmental organisations working with pregnant women to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV. A further £10m will go to support public-private partnership work in developing Aids medicines for children.
The Bad News:
Monday, 12 May 2008
Source - The Independent
The multinational drugs company GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) downplayed an early warning about the rising number of people who have suffered potentially fatal heart attacks following the use of its £600m anti-Aids drug, which is taken daily by tens of thousands of people around the world.
GSK was officially told of the possible risk in May 2005, three years before it issued a statement to its investors saying that the findings of an even stronger potential link between heart attacks and its antiviral drug abacavir are both “unexpected” and “unconfirmed”.
Alastair Benbow, European medical director for GSK, said that the company takes any new information about the safety of its drugs seriously but it did not want to highlight what may be “spurious observations” relating to abacavir.
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ORDER THE PAPERBACK
'THE EVIDENCE, HOWEVER, IS CLEAR...THE SEROXAT SCANDAL' By Bob Fiddaman
SIGNED COPIES HERE OR UNSIGNED FROM CHIPMUNKA PUBLISHING
Aspen will manufacture a cheaper, generic version of abacavir, also known as Ziagen. The deal was announced by GSK chief executive Andrew Witty on a visit to Kenya today and forms part of the company's efforts to cut the cost of anti-retroviral medicines for HIV in poorer countries.
The world's second-largest drugmaker also announced a new £50m fund to support non-governmental organisations working with pregnant women to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV. A further £10m will go to support public-private partnership work in developing Aids medicines for children.
The Bad News:
Monday, 12 May 2008
Source - The Independent
The multinational drugs company GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) downplayed an early warning about the rising number of people who have suffered potentially fatal heart attacks following the use of its £600m anti-Aids drug, which is taken daily by tens of thousands of people around the world.
GSK was officially told of the possible risk in May 2005, three years before it issued a statement to its investors saying that the findings of an even stronger potential link between heart attacks and its antiviral drug abacavir are both “unexpected” and “unconfirmed”.
Alastair Benbow, European medical director for GSK, said that the company takes any new information about the safety of its drugs seriously but it did not want to highlight what may be “spurious observations” relating to abacavir.
----
Fid
ORDER THE PAPERBACK
'THE EVIDENCE, HOWEVER, IS CLEAR...THE SEROXAT SCANDAL' By Bob Fiddaman
SIGNED COPIES HERE OR UNSIGNED FROM CHIPMUNKA PUBLISHING
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