Specialty Pharmacy

LAKE OSWEGO, Ore. — Galena Biopharma has purchased rights to a treatment for breakthrough cancer pain from a Swedish drug maker, Galena said Monday.

Galena, which specializes in cancer-related drugs, said it acquired Abstral (fentanyl) sublingual tablets for sale and distribution in the United States from Orexo AB. Breakthrough cancer pain, or BTcP, affects between 40% to 80% of cancer patients, with reported episodes of four per day and a median duration of 30 minutes, according to Galena.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A record number of people were motivated to seek colon cancer screenings for a day last week, according to an organization focused on the disease.

StopColonCancerNow.com designated March 8 as National Colon Cancer Screening Day, motivating more 2,000 new patients to seek screenings for the disease. Experts recommend that anyone older than 50 years, as well as African-Americans 45 years and older and those who have a family history of polyps or colon cancer, get a colonoscopy.

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — VoicePort today announced a finalized agreement to deploy their services with WellSpan Health, a new client located in York, Pa., offering a vast array of inpatient, outpatient, home health and physician services.

The company will install two of VoicePort's patient solutions: PharmaRemind patient notifications and Meducation prescription translation, education and written instruction service. Both innovative solutions will enter Wellspan Health's pharmacy work-flow in pursuit of delivering improved medication adherence for their pharmacy patients.

NEW YORK — The attorneys general of 46 states and two territories are calling on the Food and Drug Administration to make prescription painkillers harder to abuse.

TAMPA, Fla. — Diplomat Specialty Pharmacy CEO Phil Hagerman has joined the board of directors of the National Association of Specialty Pharmacy, the group said Tuesday.

The NASP also noted that Diplomat had joined it as a founding member. Diplomat is the largest privately-owned specialty pharmacy in the country, with revenues exceeding $1.1 billion in 2012.

SAN DIEGO — Early detection of a deadly brain infection that sometimes arises due to treatment of autoimmune disorders with immune-suppressing biotech drugs may improve survival, according to a new study.

The study, released Sunday and scheduled for presentation at the 65th annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology in San Diego, which starts next Saturday, found that early detection of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy, or PML, may improve survival and disability levels.

FLINT, Mich. — Diplomat Specialty Pharmacy has launched its new website, the company said Monday.

Diplomat said the website design had been in beta testing for the past several months, overseen by VP technology and marketing Jennifer Cretu.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — A report on CBS' "60 Minutes" Sunday explored the aftermath of the nationwide outbreak of fungal meningitis linked to the New England Compounding Center that, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, has sickened 720 people in 20 states and led to 48 deaths.