Mifeprex Abortion Pill Safety Controversy Continues

 

Controversy Contines Over Safety of Mifeprex, Abortion Pill

After several deaths allegedly linked to Mifeprex, federal regulators are still investigating the safety of the RU-486 abortion pill

New York, NY (PRWEB) April 26, 2006 -- Since Mifeprex’s approval in 2000, the drug has been linked to several deaths of women who died of Sepsis or severe bacterial infection. Despite these risks, the drug continues to be offered nationwide by doctors as an alternative to surgical abortions.

Mifeprex (mifepristone), “the abortion pill”, with a 92% success rate, can induce abortions up to seven weeks after fertilization. To date, there have been 637 reported cases of adverse side effects associated with Mifeprex. Many of these cases involved side effects such as hemorrhage, infection, and deadly sepsis or septic shock. There have been five reported deaths from septic shock after taking Mifeprex. All the deaths have been associated with a rare bacterial infection called Clostridium sordellii.

Federal regulators are currently investigating these deaths and the risks of Mifeprex, but the abortion drug is not the only related controversy in the news. The Pro-Life and Pro-Choice debate continues as South Dakota recently banned all forms of abortion while Massachusetts and Illinois ruled to make Plan-B emergency contraceptives available at all pharmacies.

To learn more about Mifeprex Abortion Pill side effects visit LawyersandSettlements.com: http://www,lawyersandsettlements.com/case/abortion_pill?ref=pr

About Online Legal Marketing:
LawyersandSettlements.com offers a comprehensive website with up-to-date legal news, class action lawsuits, personal injury cases, settlement details, product recalls, and more. Consumers can receive free case evaluations.

Visit us at:
www,lawyersandsettlements.com/

Contact us at:
604-608-3435

Press Contact: Scott Wurtele
Company Name: ONLINE LEGAL MARKETING LTD.
Phone: 604-608-3435
Website: http:/www.lawyersandsettlements.com/case/abortion_pill

Pharmaceutical Companies Trying To Hook THe Nation?

'The N.H.S. Wastes Money on Medication which the Pharmaceutical Companies Know Does Not Cure'

 

Drugs watchdog accuses big pharmaceutical companies of trying to hook the nation onto medical drugs - for life.

 

[ClickPress, Wed Apr 26 2006] At a Sussex drugs conference today, C.E.P.T.A. Founder Kenneth Eckersley said that whilst waste occurs in many forms, probably the greatest waste is when we buy something, or pay someone, to do a job – “and we don’t get the promised result.”

 

“This”, he said “is the underlying problem in the NHS, which is comprised of premises, equipment, staff, ‘advisors’, treatment, medication and patients, and the number of patients and the frequency of their treatments control premises and equipment, the size of staff, the millions spent on advisors, and the quantities of medication taxpayers pay for.”

 

“However, the numbers of patients and treatments increase each year. Not because of immigration or increasing life expectancy which are blamed, but mainly because prescription “cures” have been replaced by “treatment programmes” offering “support” – based on ‘treatment’ for life.”

 

Eckersley pointed out that a century ago; “treatment” was nearly synonymous with “cure”. Then the pharmaceuticals realised that curing patients was losing them customers, whilst shareholders were demanding that, like other businesses, they should seek to increasingly sell more at greater profit.

 

Medication industry strategies have, over the last half century, moved away from “cure” and concentrated upon continuous “support” programmes based on frequent prescribing of pharmaceutical drugs to more and more population. As a result, a majority of patients are not getting cured. Treatments they receive keep them “stable”, give them “support” and make them “feel cared for”. But without a cure, the numbers of patients and drug doses rise every week.

 

“Consequently,” stressed Eckersley, “billions of pounds spent to keep our nation healthy are not buying the real health expected. Instead we are buying “a feel good factor” in the form of a pair of psycho-pharmaceutical crutches for which we will go on paying, and hobble along on - for the rest of our lives.”

 

“If we had cures” claimed Eckersley, we would need fewer hospitals, equipment and staff. We don’t get cures because the psycho-pharms have chosen to avoid ‘cure medication’ which shortens their consumer list, and instead deliver ‘maintenance’, which escalates the number of patients and treatment doses.

 

It is that industry’s avoidance of cure medication delivery which is the under-lying waste factor in the NHS today, because it creates waste in all sectors.

 

“Don’t blame government, buildings or equipment, and don’t blame the over-worked staff” said Eckersley. “Instead, ban prescription of all habit-forming pharmaceutical drugs, authorise medicines which cure, and tackle real health problems like allergies, bad diet, low exercise and drug and alcohol usage.”

 

Concluding, Ken advised: “Apply these simple tests to all medication – Does it cure? Does it give genuine relief? Or is it just an excuse for selling more drugs?”

 

For more information contact:
Ken Eckersley
Campaign for the Effective Prevention & Treatment of Addiction
Arts House,
Plaw Hatch Lane,
SHARPTHORNE,
West Sussex,
RH19 4JL.

 

Tel: 01342 810151
E: mail: keneck@btopenworld.com
Web: http://www.solutionstodrugs.com

 

Company: Campaign for the Effective Prevention & Treatment of Addiction
Contact Name: Ken Eckersley
Contact Email: keneck@btopenworld.com
Contact Phone: 01342 810151

Oncologists Profit On Chemotherapy Drugs They Prescribe To Cancer Patients

 

Cancer Chemotherapy Concession

The April edition of CancerWire focuses on the “Chemotherapy Concession” which allows oncologists to make a profit on the chemotherapy drugs that they prescribe to cancer patients.

(PRWEB) April 19, 2006 -- A recent study published in the journal Health Affairs “Does Reimbursement Influence Chemotherapy Treatment for Cancer Patients” revealed that the so-called “Chemotherapy Concession” is still in effect and that financial reimbursement has a direct effect on which chemotherapy drugs are prescribed to patients.

This study by researchers from the University of Michigan and Harvard University found that oncologists who were more generously reimbursed prescribed more costly chemotherapy regimens to metastatic breast, colorectal, and lung cancer patients. The study demonstrated that the chemotherapy concession (doctors making profits from prescribing chemotherapy) that brought Congressional attention several years ago is still with us and is still controlling prescribing patterns.

The Chemotherapy Concession
Unlike other doctors, medical oncologists (doctors who prescribe chemotherapy) can profit directly from prescribing certain drugs. Oncologists can purchase chemotherapy at lower prices than the amounts that the insurance company pays them and then pocket the difference. This mark-up, which can be as high as 86%, is called the chemotherapy concession. The Health Affairs study revealed that this type of reimbursement prompts some oncologists to use more expensive drugs with better mark-ups for the doctor. For example, the study found that for breast cancer patients, a one-dollar increase in a physician’s reimbursement resulted in the use of chemo drugs that cost $23 more. The authors said, "Although reimbursement seems to have little effect on the primary decision to administer palliative chemotherapy to patients with advanced solid tumors, it appears to affect the choice of drugs used."

Why This Hurts Patients
The Chemotherapy Concession can harm patients in at least three different ways: 1) it creates a potential conflict of interest; 2) it may expose patients to more experimental drugs; 3) it may deplete a patient’s insurance benefits (i.e. drug coverage).

Potential Conflict of Interest - The Chemotherapy Concession gives oncologist other reasons to prescribe chemotherapy and select specific drugs. Patients must now ask why their doctor is prescribing more and different chemo. What is behind the decision? Oncologists insist that money has nothing to do with it. But, a New York Times article about the University of Michigan/Harvard Study (“Study links cancer doctors’ pay and their treatment”) cites Dr. Craig Earle, one of the study's authors and an associate professor of medicine at Harvard and an oncologist at the Dana- Farber Cancer Institute in Boston. According to the Times, Dr. Earle stated that despite their insistence that oncologists’ treatment decisions are based solely on what is best for the patient, these decisions are affected by payment policies and other financial influences, including gifts from drug companies.

Newer Experimental Therapies - Typically more costly chemotherapy drugs with higher reimbursement are those that are newer. Because the newer drugs have less of a track record in terms of safety and efficacy (i.e. less post approval marketing surveillance), there may be less known about their safety and efficacy. Therefore, it is possible that a patient may get a drug that is more dangerous to them or less efficacious because of a monetary incentive.

Patient’s Insurance - Someone is paying to put that extra money in the oncologists’ pockets. Because the costs of premiums are directly related to expenditures, the chemotherapy concession hurts all of us by siphoning money away from patients, employers and payers and into the hands of one class of provider.

What You Can Do
Obviously, a patient wants a clinical decision to be based only on clinical information, not on how much money the doctor gets to keep. If you are a patient, you should know if there are any financial incentives at work in determining what cancer drugs you are being prescribed. Ask your oncologist: Why are you prescribing these drugs? What is their published efficacy and toxicity in other patients with the same cancer? Do you have any research or financial interests in prescribing these drugs? Are these drugs a profit center for you in respect to reimbursement?

Obviously you do not want a confrontational relationship with your doctor. And just because a doctor makes a profit from the drugs they prescribe does not mean that the drugs are inappropriate for you. A trusting partnership between doctor and patient that facilitates informed consent is the goal for many proactive patients. Such a partnership, however, may require an understanding of all the factors that lead to a treatment recommendation.

MORE INFORMATION:

•    To read CancerWire: http://www.cancermonthly.com/cancerwire.asp
•    To subscribe to CancerWire: http://www.cancermonthly.com/newsletter.asp
•    For more information about tests that can help a patient determine which chemotherapy can actually work: http://www.cancermonthly.com/chemotherapy.asp
•    For more information about immune boosting products in cancer: http://www.cancermonthly.com/immune.asp
•    For more information about clinics that treat cancer: http://www.cancermonthly.com/clinics.asp
•    For more information about financial support for cancer patients: http://www.cancermonthly.com/financial.asp
•    For more information about legal options for mesothelioma patients: http://www.cancermonthly.com/legal_services.asp

Of course, none of this information in CancerWire is a substitute for professional medical advice, examination, diagnosis or treatment and you should always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health professional before starting any new treatment or making any changes to an existing treatment. No information contained in Cancer Monthly or CancerWire including the information above, should be used to diagnose, treat cure or prevent any disease without the supervision of a medical doctor.

Press Contact: Michael Horwin
Company Name: CANCER MONTHLY
Phone: 919-570-8595
Website: http://www.cancermonthly.com

_______________________________________________________
Free trade and professional industry magazines are available at
http://www.consultant-directory.tradepub.com
_______________________________________________________
Lung Cancer caused by asbestos exposure is known as
Mesothelioma. Learn more about this killer cancer.
Visit http://www.Mesothelioma-Search-Engine.com
_______________________________________________________
JR Roberts, a Security Expert Witness can help you prosecute
or defend your criminal or negligent liability case in court.
http://www.jrrobertssecurity.com/ 
 __________________________________________________
http://www.legal-search-engine.com
http://www.vioxx-search-engine.com
http://www.drug-store-directory.com
__________________________________________________

Shirt Contaminated With Asbestos Worn By WTC Volunteer

 

WTC Volunteer Saves Asbestos-Laden Shirt

A plain white dress shirt, worn by a volunteer who spent about 48 hours at Ground Zero immediately after the attacks, is laden with extremely high levels of asbestos.

(PRWEB) April 13, 2006 -- The New York Post recently reported that a plain white dress shirt, worn by a volunteer who spent about 48 hours at Ground Zero immediately after the attacks, is laden with extremely high levels of asbestos.

The shirt, belonging to community liaison Yehuda Kaploun, was stowed away by the volunteer in a plastic bag just a few days after the attack. Kaploun originally saved the shirt to honor those who had perished in the attacks on the World Trade Center, including his friend Father Mychal Judge. Today, he hopes the findings as to the levels of contamination on the shirt will help 9/11 volunteers get help for the diseases they are likely to develop in the future, such as asbestos-related mesothelioma, a cancer of the lining of the lungs.

Kaploun, at the time a 35-year-old liaison between the Police and Fire departments and the Orthodox Jewish community, as well as a part-time Hatzolah Ambulance volunteer, was told that the analyzed portions of his shirt collar revealed an extremely toxic concentration of chrysotile asbestos - 93,000 times higher than the average typically found in the environment in U.S. cities. That appears to be even higher than what the EPA said was found in the most contaminated building after 9/11, reports the Post.

The shirt was also found to be contaminated with zinc, mercury, antimony, barium, chromium, cobalt, copper, lead and molybdenum, which are just some of the heavy metals that burned in the fires that lasted for nearly four months after the attacks.

In early April, the Centers for Disease Control reported that 62% of the individuals caught in the dust cloud of the fallen towers were suffering respiratory problems. In addition, 46% of those who lived or worked in the area (but avoided the dust cloud) also reported consistent respiratory illnesses.

Though these numbers are staggering, they are sure to worsen as many asbestos-related diseases, such as mesothelioma, take 10-40 years to surface. That means, in the next 5 to 10 years, New York City could be facing a serious health crisis.

Visit http://www.asbestos-post.com for current asbestos and mesothelioma news as well as a dedicated asbestos RSS feed.

Press Contact: Steve Rinaldi
Company Name: IIMSNET.COM
Email: email protected from spam bots
Phone: 5857039808
Website: http://www.asbestos-post.com

 
_______________________________________________________
Free trade and professional industry magazines are available at
http://www.consultant-directory.tradepub.com
_______________________________________________________
Lung Cancer caused by asbestos exposure is known as
Mesothelioma. Learn more about this killer cancer.
Visit http://www.Mesothelioma-Search-Engine.com
_______________________________________________________
JR Roberts, a Security Expert Witness can help you prosecute 
 or defend   your criminal or negligent liability case in court.
http://www.jrrobertssecurity.com/
__________________________________________________
http://www.legal-search-engine.com
http://www.vioxx-search-engine.com
http://www.drug-store-directory.com
__________________________________________________

Synoptic Reporting Module Chosen for Canadian Cancer Initiative

 

mTuitive xPert for Pathology™ Chosen for Canadian Cancer Initiative at Lakeridge Healthcare

Lakeridge Health, as part of an initiative sponsored by Cancer Care Ontarion, selected the xPert for Pathology product developed by mTuitive, Inc. for a pilot program to standardize the reporting of malignancies across the province.

(PRWEB) April 12, 2006 -- mTuitive, Inc. of Boston, Massachusetts announced today that xPert for Pathology, an industry-leading synoptic reporting module, has been selected by Lakeridge Health for a pilot program to improve the quality and efficiency of patient care and availability of cancer information for planning, evaluation and research.

The pilot is one of several provincial quality improvement initiatives to evaluate technology and non-technology solutions that encourage and support standardized reporting and tracking of cancer cases. Lakeridge Health, in Oshawa, will implement mTuitive’s xPert for Pathology™ software to collect pathology reports and electronically deliver results to their existing lab system and to a local data repository. This project will assess the ease in meeting the pathology reporting requirements and the ability to automate the data collection process and transmit the results to the provincial data repository.

An article in the March 2006 issue of the Archives of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine emphasizes the importance of standardized structured reporting, ‘The use of standardized reporting promotes our participation in multi-disciplinary specialty care’ in a multitude of ways. Standardized reports 1) ensure uniformity of reporting, 2) promote consistency between institutions, 3) guarantee completeness of relevant data, 4) reduce ambiguity, 5) facilitate data collection for research, 6) serve as a quality assurance indicator of quality of care, 7) and save time for the clinicians and their assistants.

mTuitive’s software solution is expected to enhance the quality of cancer pathology reporting by ensuring the completeness, accuracy, and timeliness of standardized pathology reports in a cost effective manner.

“mTuitive’s structured synoptic reporting module is an automated, robust solution complete with cancer checklists that meet the provincial standard,” said Dr. Murray Treloar, Medical Director and Department Chief of Laboratory & Genetic Services at Lakeridge Health. “We expect that reports generated from their system will improve our efficiency by delivering data where it needs to be in real time, reducing the need for transcription of cancer cases and turn around times. Additionally, the engineers at mTuitive have enabled their application to accept data entry via mouse/keyboard, touch screen, handwriting and voice recognition, options which we expect can accommodate each of our pathologists’ preferred workflow. We are confident that this pilot project with xPert for Pathology will help Lakeridge Health meet our clinical quality improvement goals and, above all, have a positive impact on patient care.”

mTuitive CEO, John Murphy said, “mTuitive is honored to be selected and is looking forward to working with the Lakeridge to provide the most advanced, cost efficient model to help them achieve their goals.”

About mTuitive, Inc.:
Experts in medicine, human factors and healthcare software founded mTuitive. At mTuitive, our mission is to bring the power of computers—quality assurance, labor savings and knowledge access—to healthcare workers in a way that enhances, rather than disrupts, their ability to give quality care.

About Lakeridge Health:
Lakeridge Health is one of the largest hospital systems in Ontario, with four hospitals located east of Toronto in Bowmanville, Oshawa, Port Perry and Whitby. Our vision is to work together with health partners to promote health and deliver excellence in care to more than 500,000 people in both our rural and urban communities.

Contact:                       
Mike Valentine                       
mTuitive, Inc.   
VP, North American Sales           
Tel: 508.771.5800                   
mike.valentine @ mtuitive.com   

# # #

Press Contact: Mike Valentine
Company Name: mTuitive, Inc.
Email: email protected from spam bots
Phone: 508-771-5800
Website: www.mtuitive.com

$10 Million Discount Drug Card Donation

 

Vertrue Announces $10 Million Discount Drug Card Donation

to be administered by local United Way agencies

Norwalk, Conn. (PRWEB) April 12, 2006 -- Vertrue Incorporated (NSDQ: VTRU) today announced the donation of $10 million worth of pharmacy savings cards to uninsured and underinsured families throughout the United States. The Familywize discount prescription drug cards, issued by Vertrue’s Coverdell & Company subsidiary, are valued at $29.99 each and provide point-of-sale discounts on prescription drug purchases at major pharmacies and drugstores nationwide.

Through this partnership with Membership Services Corporation, needy families will receive the Familywize cards through participating United Way agencies. The first $5 million in cards were shipped to United Way agencies this month and the remainder will be distributed throughout 2006.

“Too many American families have insufficient or no prescription drug coverage at all,” said Debbie Flinn, Community Investment Director of the United Way agency of Danville-Pittsylvania County, Virginia. “The Familywize discount prescription drug cards will help families who otherwise could not afford much needed prescription drugs.”

“Vertrue is very excited to partner with United Way agencies and Membership Services Corporation to get the Familywize card into the hands of families who most need the help,” said Gary Johnson, President and Chief Executive Office of Vertrue. “These cards can reduce prescription drug costs by an average of 20 percent.”

“Working with reputable and established charities like local United Way agencies is the best way to reach the people who really need to save money on prescription drugs” said Dan Barnes, President of Membership Services Corporation.

About Vertrue
Headquartered in Norwalk, Conn., Vertrue Incorporated is a leading Internet marketing services company. Vertrue gives consumers access to services that offer substantial discounts and convenience for important decisions in their everyday lives. Vertrue's valued services span healthcare, personal property, security/insurance, discounts and personals and are all offered online through an array of marketing channels. Vertrue is a premier marketing partner to corporate clients, and its services enable partners to enhance market presence, strengthen customer affinity and generate additional value.

About Membership Services Corporation
Membership Services Corporation of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania has specialized for more than 15 years in affinity marketing and strategic sourcing to deliver quality benefits, reliable services and measurable savings.

###

Press Contact: Sandy
Company Name: Vertrue
Email: email protected from spam bots
Phone: 202-486-7575
Website: www.familywize.com

Scientist Says Sedation Stops Smokers From Smoking

 

New Smoking Cessation Program Resolves the Real Reason that People Smoke

New discovery addresses the real reason why 84% of smokers fail when they try to quit. According to EFT, the driver behind most addictions is the need to tranquilize or medicate emotions. EFT is an easy to learn acupressure technique that successfully addresses the emotional drivers that fuel the ongoing addiction.

San Francisco, CA (PRWEB) April 11, 2006 -- Smokers typically use nicotine replacement or they “go cold turkey” to quit smoking. They also typically fail. In fact the US FDA reports that 70% of smokers want to quit, but more than 84% of them are unsuccessful in their attempts. Gary Craig, Stanford trained scientist and founder of Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) explains that, “conventional smoking cessation systems don’t work because they do not address the real reason that people smoke which is to tranquilize emotional issues like anxiety or low self esteem.”

Craig initially developed Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) as a self-help tool for people with emotional difficulties but soon received reports from smokers who said that their craving for cigarettes subsided or disappeared while performing EFT for their emotional issues. These results didn’t surprise Craig who maintains that, “smokers are tranquilizing their emotions with tobacco and will find quitting enormously difficult until those emotional issues are resolved.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) reports that people suffering from nicotine withdrawal have increased aggression, anxiety, hostility, and anger. However, Craig doesn’t attribute these emotional responses to nicotine withdrawal. He says, “smokers become anxious and irritable when they try to quit smoking because the unresolved emotions they had been trying to suppress with cigarettes come bubbling to the surface as nicotine exits their system.”

Craig maintains that using EFT to resolve these emotions will help smokers to conquer this life threatening addiction permanently. “If emotional issues aren’t properly resolved, the smoker feels overwhelmed and eventually turns back to cigarettes to pacify the emotional pain.”

EFT is a simple technique that combines focused thought with gentle fingertip tapping on key acupressure points. Craig says, “The main cause of all negative emotions is not where psychologists have been looking. Instead, it involves the disruption of the energy pathways in the body. Once these pathways are balanced, the emotional drivers behind smoking and other addictions start to fade.”

Dr. Carol Look is a Clinical Hypnotherapist and EFT Practitioner who has helped many clients quit smoking. Dr. Look reports, “While I used hypnosis successfully for many smokers, I found that treatment using EFT gave the client more control, empowerment, and an active tool they could pull out and use whenever they wanted.”

Pat Farrell is another Clinical Hypnotherapist who prefers to use EFT for smoking cessation. One woman came to Farrell because she had quit smoking many times but had recently resumed smoking around the occasion of her wedding anniversary; a painful time since her husband had left her three years previously for a younger woman.

With EFT, Farrell helped her client collapse feelings of overwhelming sadness and betrayal as well as her immediate physical cravings for cigarettes. Farrell also addressed the woman’s habitual craving for cigarettes with her morning coffee. They worked together for about an hour and only spent three minutes on the actual cigarette craving. The rest of the time they addressed the emotional drivers fueling the woman’s need for cigarettes.

Two weeks after treatment, Farrell’s client still had no desire for a cigarette. She accomplished this without psychotherapy or nicotine replacement.

Anybody can learn to use EFT to eliminate cigarette cravings and even to quit smoking entirely. Gary Craig explains, “smokers generally expect to fail when they set out to quit. But when they use EFT, most experience an instant reduction in their cigarette craving. Their level of hope increases as their cravings decrease. If they persistently use EFT to address the emotional component of their addiction, they are likely to have a high success rate.”

If smoking cessation programs incorporated the proper use of EFT, Craig predicts that their success rate would be about between 50 and 80 percent - instead of the current 84% failure rate.

More than 225,000 people have downloaded Craig’s free training manual and another 5,000 to 10,000 download it each month. Known as The EFT Manual, it has been translated by volunteer practitioners into nine languages. The EFT website is the sixth most actively visited natural health site in the world.

The EFT Manual gives anyone all the basics so they can apply it right away. It can be freely downloaded at…

http://www.emofree.com/downloadeftmanual.asp?ref=prw-smoking

For further information contact Gary Craig at 707-785 2848

###

Press Contact: Gary Craig
Company Name: EFT
Email: email protected from spam bots
Phone: 707-785 2848
Website: http://www.emofree.com?ref=prweb-smoking  

 

GANYMED lead antibodies show excellent efficacy and safety in mouse tumor models

direct/ GANYMED Pharmaceuticals AG (DE) - GANYMED lead antibodies show excellent efficacy and safety in mouse tumor models
 
Press Release by: GANYMED Pharmaceuticals AG (DE) 

 

(openPR) - Mainz, Germany - April 5, 2006 - GANYMED Pharmaceuticals AG announced today that several monoclonal lead antibodies directed against the company´s GC182 cancer target have shown excellent efficacy against solid human tumors in mouse Xenograft models. No toxicity was observed. The results fully confirm earlier experiments, where antibodies directed against GC182 proved to be very effective against cancer cells that expressed the target.

 

The GC182 target is a cell surface protein that is involved in cell-cell interactions. It was shown to be expressed with high prevalence and unique specificity in several solid cancers with high medical need (approx. 80% stomach cancers, 30% esophagus cancers, 25% lung and pancreatic cancers). The GC182 cell surface epitope that is targeted by GANYMED´s antibodies is identical in mouse and man, and highly similar in other mammalian species. Thus, mouse Xenograft models with GANYMED´s GC182 antibodies can be considered as highly predictive pre-clinical models.

 

"This excellent animal data fully confirms our earlier analysis based on human immunohistochemistry and cell culture data." said Dr. Özlem Türeci, CSO and co-founder of GANYMED. "The experiments clearly demonstrate that our antibodies are highly effective against tumors that express GC182, without any apparent toxicity."

 

Dr. Rainer Wessel, President and CEO of GANYMED emphasized: "This proof of concept in animals clearly represents a significant value step for the company. We will now move swiftly towards the next step: Clinical Development."

 

GANYMED Pharmaceuticals AG is building a sustainable pipeline of monoclonal antibody therapeutics against solid tumors, where current therapies are poor and where there is an overriding medical need. The therapeutic efficacy of current solid cancer therapeutics is severely limited, because their molecular targets are elevated in a subset of a particular cancer but they are also found widely in normal tissues. In contrast, GANYMED´s validated proprietary pan cancer surface antigens are uniquely specific for cancer tissues and can be expected to show greater therapeutic efficacy and better safety allowing significant reduction in time to market. The Company will market its cancer therapeutics after clinical or animal proof of concept has been demonstrated to large pharmaceutical and biotech companies.

 

Contact for further information:

 

GANYMED Pharmaceuticals AG
Dirk L. Sebastian, CFO / COO
Freiligrathstrasse 12
D-55131 Mainz/Germany
T: +49 (0) 6131 1440 100
F: +49 (0) 6131 1440 111
E: info@ganymed-pharmaceuticals.com
W: www.ganymed-pharmaceuticals.com

 

The announcement distributed by directnews.
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

New Database Identifies Medical Opinion Leaders Worldwide

 

MedMeme, LLC Announces Launch of ProfileMeme(tm) - A New Database that Identifies Medical Opinion Leaders Worldwide

MedMeme, LLC announces the launch of ProfileMemeTM, a new comprehensive database of the top physicians and scientists working in health care worldwide. MedMeme, with its unique process to identify, profile, and rank established and emerging medical opinion leaders, promises to save clients time and money in their global opinion leader identification efforts.

New York, NY (PRWEB) April 5, 2006 -- MedMeme, LLC announces the launch of ProfileMemeTM, a new comprehensive database of the top physicians and scientists working in health care worldwide. MedMeme, with its unique process to identify, profile, and rank established and emerging medical opinion leaders, promises to save clients time and money in their global opinion leader identification efforts.

Company CEO, Mahesh Naithani, says “using MedMeme’s collective resources and scientific methodology gives ProfileMeme™ an objective and comprehensive advantage that pharmaceutical manufacturers, and others, can depend on as an innovative alternative to the costly, time-consuming and subjective methods currently used to identify Medical Opinion Leaders (MOLs). It is the best, quantifiable, objective method to identify and select the right MOL.”

ProfileMeme’s™ database instantly identifies MOLs using selection criteria such as: disease, indication, treatment interest, and geography, for example. ProfileMeme™ includes more than 200,000 physicians and scientists worldwide, ensuring clients can select exactly the thought leaders most relevant to their needs.

A recent study revealed that in the last seven years, the pharmaceutical industry has seen a 300% increase in physician-led promotional events versus sales rep-led events. As pharmaceutical marketers begin to move away from a strategy of escalating volumes of reps and promotion, companies are exceedingly interested in MedMeme’s more efficient and less subjective methods to identify these all-important physicians.

About MedMeme, LLC

Using independent, authoritative, forward-looking insights into the competitive marketplace, MedMeme™, LLC specializes in collection and analysis of clinical and medical marketing intelligence, an invaluable service for pharmaceutical and medical products companies, physicians, and medical societies. While it uses a broad base of data resources, it focuses on medical conferences because they have rapidly become the important place where professionals and the healthcare industry effectively meet to interact and exchange information, a trend driven by increasing cost and decreasing effectiveness in traditional forms of communication with physicians.

For further information about the Profilememe™ MOL database, please contact Ron Nick at (312) 972-0611 or e-mail at ronaldmnick -at- medmeme.com.

Media contact:
Yan Barshay
Phone: (212) 725-5992
email: yan -at- medmeme.com

# # #

Press Contact: Yan Barshay
Company Name: MEDMEME, LLC
Email: email protected from spam bots
Phone: 212-725-5992
Website: www.medmeme.com

Prescription Drugs Available Free

 

Free Prescription Drugs Available to Households with Incomes as High as $80,000

Drug companies routinely give away free prescription drugs. Free or reduced outpatient prescription drugs for Medicare beneficiaries who have not yet enrolled in Part D. But trying to access the programs can be complicated and time consuming. The Free Medicine Foundation shows consumers how to cut through the drug companies' red tape.

Doniphan, MO (PRWEB) April 4, 2006 -- For individuals needing assistance in affording prescription medication, help may only be a few minutes away.

The Johnson’s have no insurance, and can’t afford the 5 prescriptions they must take daily. However, they get all of them free-of-charge, thanks to the efforts of Free Medicine Foundation and drug-makers.

Three of the Nation’s largest drug makers send the Johnson’s their cholesterol, thyroid, heart, pain and blood pressure medication FREE because they participate in these little-known patient assistance programs that are offered by pharmaceutical companies.

The Johnson’s who found a Free Medicine Foundation brochure application in their doctor’s office said, “It’s the best-kept secret in town, we couldn’t take our medications without them…we wouldn’t be able to afford it.” they said.

Although free medicine assistance has been around for over 50 years, most people have never heard about and do not know how to apply for free medicine. The "Free Medicine Foundation" mission is to inform the media and the public of assistance that may be available to thousands of Americans who don't even realize they qualify for such help. Free Medicine Foundation works tirelessly to match patients with hundreds of free or low-cost available programs by scouring available medicine plans to find plans that match applicant needs.

Cindy Randolph, spokesman for the Free Medicine Foundation organization, said that our efforts have proven successful and have helped hundreds of thousands of Americans. Free prescription drugs are available to individuals who are uninsured or underinsured – with no outpatient prescription coverage for some or all prescription drugs you need, (have maxed their insurance out and/or reached the “gap” or “donut hole”), and who meet certain established income criteria for each medication.

"This is an effort to help people who qualify and don't even know it," said Randolph. This includes Medicare beneficiaries who elect not to enroll in a Medicare drug plan. The Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) notes that “manufacturer-sponsored Patient Assistance Programs (PAPs) need not remove all Medicare beneficiaries from their existing programs to be compliant with federal fraud and abuse laws. Because enrollment in Part D is voluntary, existing PAPs may continue to provide free or reduced outpatient prescription drugs to Medicare beneficiaries who have NOT yet enrolled in Part D.” In addition, individuals who do not meet criteria for income for prescription drug coverage –including Medicare beneficiaries who enroll in the Medicare drug plan – May still qualify for free or low-cost prescription drugs.

Drug sponsors recognize that sometimes exceptions need to be made based on a patient’s individual circumstances. Individuals who do not meet these criteria may still qualify if both they and their physician attest that the patient has special circumstances of financial and medical hardship, and their income is below an established limit. It’s not just poor people who qualify. With each medication the income criteria varies from below the poverty level up to $39,200 for individuals, $52,800 for couples, and as high as $80,000 for a family of four.

Since 1993, Free Medicine Foundation, which is a national program to help patients across the country, access prescription medicines by helping to enroll them in patient assistance programs. The Free Medicine Foundation enrollment center is helping people in need across the united States of America.

According to Randolph, there are hundreds of programs that offer free or nearly-free prescription drugs to those who qualify. Most all prescription drugs are on a free or low-cost assistance program. The biggest issue is letting people know that such programs actually exist and that the process of enrolling is not that difficult.

People interested in attempting to enroll in one of the many programs can simply call 1-573-996-3333 or log on to www.FreeMedicine.com.

The online enrollment is also easy, but will require the individual to have a list of drugs they are taking handy. Applicants can apply for as many drugs as needed, there is no limit. Include a $5 per prescription application processing fee (refundable if no assistance is received) indicating which drugs you need. And once enrolled, patients can continue to receive medication indefinitely as long as programs exist and patient continues to qualify.

For people facing tough prescription drug costs, the Free Medicine Foundation assistance program is a much needed effort. For more information and to access an application, visit www.FreeMedicine.com.


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Press Contact: Cindy Randolph
Company Name: Free Medicine Foundation
Email: email protected from spam bots
Phone: 573-996-3333
Website: http://www.FreeMedicine.com