Protecting our health now and in future! The EIWH has drawn up an initial position paper on the current Coronavirus – COVID-19 pandemic. We have reviewed the immediate impacts of the pandemic, particularly to hghlight the needs and benefits of ensuring that everything that can be learned from our current experiences is used practically to…
Vaccination reduces illness in children!
Vaccination reduces illness in children A recent study shows that the UK’s vaccination programme against group B meningococcal disease (MenB) has reduced cases of meningitis and septicaemia in young children by almost two-thirds. The UK was the first country to offer this new vaccine against MenB in 2015 and since then approximately 90% of infants…
Guide on biosimilars for healthcare professionals
EMA published the information guide on biosimilars for healthcare professionals in 15 additional EU languages. It now includes Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, Greek, Estonian, Finnish, Croatian, Hungarian, Lithuanian, Latvian, Maltese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovenian and Swedish. These educational materials on biosimilar, and link to the Q&A for patients, can be found on EMA’s webpage on biosimilar medicines…
ConcePTION – use of medication in pregnancy
ConcePTION – use of medication during pregnancy and lactation ConcePTION is a large Horizon 2020 programme, bringing partners from all over Europe together to focus on the uses of medication during pregnancy and lactation. The European Institute of Women’s Health (EIWH) are a partner in this project. ConcePTION aims to reduce uncertainty around the safety…
Use in pregnancy and women of childbearing age of valproate
Review of valproate use in pregnancy and women of childbearing age EMA to consider risks of these medicines require further restrictions of use The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has started a review looking at the use of valproate containing medicines in the treatment of women and girls who are pregnant or of childbearing age. These…
Final guidance for treating neuroendocrine tumours (NETs)
Guidance issued by NICE (England) for treating neuroendocrine tumours (NETs) Final guidance recommending everolimus (Infinitor, Novartis) and sunitinib (Sutent, Pfizer) to treat neuroendocrine tumours (NETs). The drugs are recommended as an option for pancreatic NETs that cannot be operated on and have progressed. Everolimus is also recommended as an option for those with NETs of…
Draft guidance for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease – copd
NICE published draft guidance recommending roflumilast (Daxas, AstraZeneca) for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). In 2012, NICE issued guidance that recommended roflumilast only if patients were taking it as part of a research study. New evidence since that guidance was published led to a positive recommendation for routine use. The company estimates that around 122,000…
The female factor in clinical trials
The female factor in clinical trials The European Parliament will discuss a non-binding report that calls for medicine labels to state whether the drugs were specifically tested in women and whether men and women may face different side effects. The report, drafted by the Spanish MEP Beatriz Becerra Basterrechea, asks the European Commission and EU…
Alzheimer’s: Study in mice show new drugs could restore memory loss
Alzheimer’s advance: Early stage study in mice show new drugs could restore memory loss and prolong life An international team has announced a new advance in the fight against Alzheimer’s disease by identifying a new drug target that not only improves symptoms of brain degeneration it also extends the life-span of terminally ill mice. The…
Draft guidance recommends pomalidomide (Imnovid, Celgene)
NICE has published draft guidance recommending pomalidomide (Imnovid, Celgene) for treating some people with multiple myeloma. New data, including updated comparisons of pomalidomide with other treatments, was presented as part of this review. The committee concluded that pomalidomide could be recommended as a clinically and cost effective use of NHS resources in people whose disease…
