Medtech News

Getting Drugs to the Marketplace Faster

Sun, 20 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Science is progressing at a rapid pace. The human genome sequence has been completed and evidence on how diseases occur at the molecular level is growing by the day. Researchers and clinicians have been steadily working to use this data to make personalized medicine become a reality. However, with all of this new information, these prospective breakthroughs aren't yet reaching patients as quickly as needed. In the coming year alone, cancer will claim the lives of over 550,000...

B&L hires global president for surgical division

Tue, 15 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Bausch & Lomb Inc. has named a medical device and biotech veteran to head its California-based surgical division, company officials said Monday.

Rochester Business Journal

MHRA Criticizes EU Drug Verification Plan as Costly

Mon, 14 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

The UK's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is taking issue with an EU plan to scan all drugs at the point of dispensing, saying the cost of providing scanners at all healthcare outlets is too burdensome. The point-of-sale scans are part of a proposed drug authentication system outlined by the European Commission in a 2011 concept paper. The system would require prescription medicines to bear safety features — including a serial number — that...

UB to Hire Professors for New Materials Science and Engineering Graduate Program

Mon, 07 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Whether developing more efficient solar panels or sophisticated composite materials, University at Buffalo professors and students have long worked in the field of materials science and engineering.

But UB never offered a degree to formalize the experience. That will soon change.

UB NewsCenter

New Acquisition, New Direction for AngioDynamics under DeVivo's Leadership

Tue, 01 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

From pricing pressures to federal taxes, the medical device industry is facing a number of challenges, and AngioDynamics President and CEO Joseph DeVivo is no stranger to them. Five months into his role, DeVivo is building an organization better suited to weather these challenges by acquiring Navilyst Medical in a $357 million deal that will add $149 million to the company’s top line.

“The acquisition of Navilyst brings AngioDynamics scale, technology and...

Litron Laboratories CEO Appointed to Department of Commerce Export Council

Tue, 01 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Carol R. Tometsko, CEO of MedTech member Litron Laboratories, has been appointed by the Department of Commerce to the Upstate New York District Export Council. District Export Councils are organizations of leaders from the local business community, appointed by successive Secretaries of Commerce, whose knowledge of international business provides a source of professional advice for local firms.

Rochester-based Litron manufactures genetic toxicology kits...

Medtronic, Inc. (MDT) Device to Lower Blood Pressure Shows Promising Results

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Medtronic, Inc., (NYSE: MDT - News), announced today six month pooled outcomes from randomized and crossover patients in the Symplicity HTN-2 clinical trial following renal denervation with the Symplicity™ renal denervation system showing significant, sustained blood pressure reduction in patients with treatment-resistant hypertension. These data presented today at the European Society of Hypertension annual meeting showed patients (n=84) who received renal denervation...

Corning Inc. developing killer glass

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Corning Inc. is developing a glass that kills drug-resistant bacteria and viruses, and the company believes the innovation has applications in hospitals and beyond.

Corning Inc. CEO Wendell Weeks revealed the project Thursday during the company’s annual shareholders meeting at the Corning Museum of Glass.

The-Leader

URMC research team wins $1.9 million grant

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

A University of Rochester Medical Center hypertension research team has won a $1.9 million National Heart and Lung Institute grant.

The grant funds a study of the effects of an established blood pressure medication on patients with mild hypertension.

The URMC team plans to conduct a clinical trial to see whether patients given reduced amounts of the drug can achieve the same benefits as patients getting higher doses of the drug carvedilol, a...

Bristol subpoenaed over foreign sales practices

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

U.S. drugmaker Bristol-Myers Squibb Co said on Thursday that it received a subpoena from securities regulators regarding its sales and marketing practices in various foreign countries.

Bristol-Myers, in a filing, said it received the subpoena from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) last month in connection with an investigation under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).

Reuters

Thermo Fisher's Q1 Revenues Rise 14 Percent; 2012 Revenue, EPS Guidance Raised

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Thermo Fisher Scientific today reported 14 percent growth in revenues year over year for the first quarter as the Analytical Technologies and Specialty Diagnostics segments each grew more than 20 percent.

For the period ended March 31, total revenues rose to $3.10 billion from $2.72 billion, besting Wall Street estimates of $2.98 billion.

GenomeWeb

FDA Plans ID-Tag System to Detect Faulty Devices

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

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The Food and Drug Administration is devising a new system for detecting malfunctions in medical devices that will tap medical and billing records from hospitals and insurance companies.

The system is designed to catch malfunctioning devices like the St. Jude Medical Inc. heart defibrillator wires recently linked to at least 20 deaths. The agency wants to assign a new bar-code-like identification number to medical...

Legislation to establish medical device regulatory framework advances in Malaysia

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

New laws setting up a formal regulatory system for medical devices have been approved by the Malaysian government, according to Med/Cert.

The two new laws will replace the current voluntary registration scheme for medical devices in Malaysia. Medical device manufacturers, importers as well as distributors will have to comply with the new requirements following their full implementation.

MassDevice

How the FDA Stifles New Cures, Part II: 90% of Clinical Trial Costs are Incurred in Phase III

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Yesterday, the Manhattan Institute released a study I authored, entitled “Stifling New Cures: The True Cost of Lengthy Clinical Drug Trials.” (You can read the full report here.) The paper discusses how outdated FDA policies are making drug development too expensive and too risky. In this excerpt, I detail why late-stage Phase III trials account for 90 percent of the cost of clinical trials in drug development.

Phase III Trials Are the Biggest...

Scientists identify 'critical' gene for development and spread of lung cancer

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Scientists from the Mayo Clinic have identified a single gene that appears to be a major driving force in the development and spread of the most common form of lung cancer. The study also suggested the gene may play a role in a number of other different types of cancer.

Matrix metalloproteinase-10 (MMP-10) is a growth factor gene used by cancer stem-like cells to keep themselves healthy, as well as migrate into the bloodstream or lymph nodes. Thanks in part to...