The Pill Pitch
Prescription drugs help many people and even save lives. But use of prescription drugs as prescribed is also a leading cause of death in the U.S. Are some pharmaceutical companies skirting TV ad rules so that they don’t have to disclose side effects of some vaccines and other prescription medicine? Some critics say “yes.” And […]
Novartis Manipulated Data in FDA Biologics License Application
On Aug. 6, 2019, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a statement saying that Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis AG submitted a biologics license application (BLA) for the spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) gene therapy Zolgensma (onasemnogene abeparvovec-xioi) with manipulated data and failed to inform regulators until June 28, 2019—more than a month after the […]
Vaccines Are a Choice Not a Mandate
This year has brought a great deal of attention to mandated vaccines. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) spend billions in taxpayer money trying to convince consumers that vaccines are safe and effective—yet they are neither safe nor effective for all. The continued […]
Vaccine for Inflammation in the Works
Story Highlights Scientists are working on a vaccine for autoimmune, inflammation-induced mental health issues using soil-derived bacteria. Vaccines have been implicated in increasing the risk for neuropsychiatric issues in children. Vaccines and all other immune-system activators act by provoking an inflammatory response. Christopher Lowry, PhD and a team of researchers from the University of Colorado […]
Merck Plans to Up Production of Experimental Ebola Vaccine
In response to the current outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) which began in August 2018, the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). There have been about 2,500 confirmed cases of Ebola in the DRC and at least 1,737 people have […]
Lyme Disease Vaccines: Past and Future
Story Highlights A new Lyme disease vaccine candidate approved by the FDA using the fast track process is currently in its second phase of clinical trials. In 1998, the FDA granted licensure for a Lyme disease vaccine called LYMErix. Following reports of severe adverse reactions to LYMErix, GlaxoSmithKline (formerly SmithKline Beecham) withdrew the vaccine from […]