My Clinical Trials Diary

FDA Decides Not to Ban Avandia, but Puts Restrictions on How It’s Used. By Daniel J. DeNoon WebMD Health News Sept. 23, 2010 -- The FDA will not ban Avandia -- but stringent restrictions will make it far harder for doctors to prescribe the safety-troubled diabetes drug. The European Medicines Agency took harsher action. European sales of Avandia-containing drugs will be suspended over the next few months, although the agency did not formally withdraw approval. The 600,000 U.S. patients currently taking Avandia can continue to take the drug only if their doctors officially attest that their patients understand the risks, that the drug is helping them, and that no other diabetes drug can keep their blood sugar under control. New Avandia prescriptions can only be written for patients who, for medical reasons, cannot take Actos . Actos, a diabetes medication in the same class as Avandia, does not cause the heart problems linked to Avandia. "Avandia will be ava...

Once-Daily Capsules Cut MS Relapses, Delay Progression   By Daniel J. DeNoon WebMD Health News   Sept. 22, 2010 -- The FDA today approved Novartis' Gilenya, the first oral drug for multiple sclerosis (MS). Gilenya (formerly spelled Gilenia, generic name fingolimod) last June received the overwhelming approval of an FDA expert advisory panel. Gilenya treats the relapsing form of MS. The drug significantly reduces MS attacks. However, it has serious side effects, with possible heart, lung, and eye toxicity and increased risk of infection. Patients must be closely monitored, and regular eye exams are advised. In MS, white blood cells attack the myelin sheaths that protect nerve cells. Gilenya, the first drug in its class, keeps white blood cells penned up in lymph nodes by taking away the chemical key they need to unlock the lymph node door. Fewer white blood cells mean fewer MS attacks. But it also means less protection against infections. Novartis will set ...