Top Ten most popular articles on Pharmafile.com this week
pharmafile | August 21, 2020 | News story | Medical Communications | COVID-19, coronavirus
The top 10 news stories this week again focus on coronavirus vaccines and treatments, as professor Alexander Chuchalin has quit the Russian Health Ministry’s ethics council due to the quick approval process for the country’s coronavirus vaccine, while President Donald Trump reportedly wants to approve Phoenix Biotechnology’s oleandrin as a coronavirus treatment, despite a lack of evidence for its effectiveness.
In non-COVID-19 news, Amazon has entered the pharmaceutical market by launching ‘Amazon Pharmacy’ in India, while Johnson & Johnson is set to buy the Cambridge-based Momenta Pharmaceuticals for $6.5 billion, making it the largest pharmaceutical industry deal this year so far.
1. Top Russian doctor quits over questionable ethics that rushed through coronavirus vaccine approval
Professor Alexander Chuchalin has quit the Russian Health Ministry’s ethics council due to the quick approval process for the country’s coronavirus vaccine.
2. Trump allegedly “enthusiastic” for oleandrin to be approved as a COVID-19 treatment
President Donald Trump reportedly wants to approve Phoenix Biotechnology’s oleandrin as a coronavirus treatment, despite a lack of evidence for its effectiveness.
3. Amazon Pharmacy launches in India
Amazon has entered the pharmaceutical market by launching ‘Amazon Pharmacy’ in India.
4. Novavax and Janssen commit 90 million COVID-19 vaccine doses to UK Government with two new deals
The UK Government has signed a new deal with Johnson & Johnson and Novavax to secure 90 million orders of their vaccine candidates to protect against COVID-19 infection.
Johnson & Johnson is set to buy the Cambridge based Momenta Pharmaceuticals for $6.5 billion, making it the largest pharmaceutical industry deal this year.
6. Poseida suspends CAR T therapy trial in prostate cancer due to patient death
Poseida’s Phase 1 trial that used an investigational CAR T therapy for treating prostate cancer has been suspended due to a patient death.
7. China approves its first biosimilar of Roche’s Herceptin in HER2+ cancers
China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) has given the green light to Shanghai’s Henlius for its biosimilar version of Roche’s Herceptin (trastuzumab) known as HLX02 for the treatment of HER2-mutated cancers.
8. Philippines expected to approve Russia’s ‘Sputnik’ COVID-19 vaccine
The Philippines is expected to begin large scale human testing of Russia’s controversial ‘Sputnik’ coronavirus vaccine.
9. Public Health England set to be replaced by a new agency to specifically deal with pandemics
Public Health England is set to be replaced with a new agency to prepare the country to deal with future pandemics, according to a Sunday Telegraph report.
Multiple Attorney Generals from across the US are seeking billions of dollars in damages to settle opioid cases against major pharmaceutical manufacturers and distributors.
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