Reuters Health News Summary

FDA staff questions value of Vertex's cystic fibrosis combo

Staff reviewers from the U.S. FDA questioned whether Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc's experimental combination therapy for cystic fibrosis had an added benefit over the company's already approved therapy, Kalydeco, in patients with the most common genetic mutation behind the deadly disease. Vertex's combination of Kalydeco and an experimental compound called lumacaftor was tested against a placebo in patients aged 12 and above with a type of genetic mutation known as F508del, carried by about half of all CF patients.

Novartis says lung cancer drug Zykadia gains EU approval

Swiss drugmaker Novartis said European health regulators have approved a drug for advanced lung cancer that is intended to treat patients with a specific genetic mutation. Zykadia, or ceritinib, is from a new class of medicines known as ALK inhibitors. It was approved in April 2014 in the United States.

CDC to help Washington state find source of E. coli outbreak at milk fest

Public health officials in Washington state said on Friday they had asked for assistance from the federal government in tracking the source of an E. coli outbreak that has sickened more than 40 people who attended a milk festival last month. So far, eight people have been hospitalized, including a teenager treated for acute kidney failure, after being sickened by E. coli bacteria during the three-day Milk Makers Fest in Lynden, Washington, state health officials said.

Liberia declared Ebola-free, but outbreak continues over border

Liberia was declared free from Ebola on Saturday after 42 days without a new case, the medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres said, but it urged vigilance until the worst-ever recorded outbreak of the virus was extinguished in neighboring Guinea and Sierra Leone. A total of 11,005 people have died from Ebola in Liberia, neighboring Guinea and Sierra Leone since the outbreak began in December 2013, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

Diabetics who quit smoking may have trouble controlling blood sugar

Although smoking increases the risk of diabetes and quitting has numerous health benefits, diabetics who quit may have temporary difficulty controlling their symptoms, a British study finds. Researchers reviewed medical records for 10,692 adult smokers with diabetes in the UK and found that smoking cessation led to an uptick in blood sugar levels that lasted three years and was not caused by weight gain.

WHO adds hepatitis C drugs to essential list, urges lower prices

The World Health Organization has added new curative treatments for hepatitis C to its essential medicines list, but the U.N. agency said prices needed to fall to make them accessible to patients in poorer countries. The treatment of hepatitis C, which affects about 150 million people globally and kills around half a million each year, has been transformed by the arrival of new drugs, such as Gilead's Sovaldi.

Osteoporosis linked to higher risk of sudden deafness

(Reuters Health) - People with osteoporosis may be almost twice as likely to develop sudden hearing loss, compared to people without the bone disease, according to researchers in Taiwan. The cause of this sudden deafness is unknown, but the rapid loss of hearing typically affects one ear, and it's estimated to strike about one in every 5,000 Americans each year.

Swine flu or monkey pox? Think again on disease names, WHO says

If you're a scientist and have just identified a dangerous new disease in Peru originating from pigs then please don't call it paralytic Peruvian pig pox. Disease names like swine flu or Rift Valley fever risk stigmatizing communities and damaging economies, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned on Friday as it called for a rethink on naming new human diseases.

Five years on, Obamacare poses quandary for U.S. Republicans: Reuters/Ipsos poll

Americans with health insurance under Obamacare, including Republicans, are generally satisfied with it, a Reuters/Ipsos opinion poll found, posing a quandary for Republican politicians who have long vowed to repeal it. President Barack Obama's signature policy, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) of 2010, was opposed by 53 percent of almost 21,000 Americans surveyed, and favored by 47 percent.

China hikes cigarette tax in anti-smoking drive

China is set to raise the wholesale tax rate for cigarettes to 11 percent from 5 percent, the Ministry of Finance said on Friday, in a move to deter smokers in the world's biggest maker and consumer of tobacco. China has accelerated a campaign against smoking over the past year, despite persistent opposition from the tobacco industry. Domestic and foreign anti-smoking activists say China's cigarette habit has come at a heavy cost to the healthcare system.