Specialty Pharmacy

RIDGEFIELD, Conn. — An investigational treatment for lung cancer made by Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals extended patients’ survival by more than four months, according to results of a late-stage clinical trial announced Thursday.

BI said the phase 2b/3 “LUX-Lung 1” trial of BIBW 2992 (afatinib) showed a fourfold increase in survival among advanced non-small cell lung cancer patients taking the drug versus those taking placebo, whose survival was extended by one month.

BURLINGTON, Mass. — Chemotherapy drugs made by Johnson & Johnson and Merck will become the standard second-line treatment for ovarian cancer within the decade, replacing a treatment made by Bristol-Myers Squibb and generic versions, according to a new report by market research firm Decision Resources.

SAN DIEGO — A Food and Drug Administration advisory committee has recommended approval for an investigational diet pill.

Orexigen Therapeutics and Takeda Pharmaceutical announced Tuesday that the FDA Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee voted 13-7 that clinical trial data demonstrated that the benefits of the drug Contrave (naltrexone and bupropion) outweighed its risk and supported approval. The committee also voted 11-8 to recommend a study to examine Contrave’s effect on risk for cardiac disease.


NEW YORK — Walgreens. Costco. CVS Caremark. Rite Aid. H-E-B. Wegmans. Kerr Drug. The list goes on. In all, it was a veritable who’s who of retailing as Drug Store News’ annual Industry 
Issues Summit, which also included a Specialty Pharmacy Roundtable and Diabetes Roundtable, attracted more than 200 attendees — a new attendance record — and featured the most diverse retail panelists to date.


ORLANDO, Fla. — A drug made by Amgen maintained blood platelet counts in patients with an autoimmune bleeding disorder, according to results of a five-year study released Sunday.

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — A biotech drug made by Roche subsidiary Genentech allowed patients with a blood cancer, who did not show symptoms, to delay starting on chemotherapy or radiotherapy, and decreased the risk of their disease worsening, according to results of a late-stage clinical trial.

PHILADELPHIA — The specialty pharmacy market is set to reach $90 billion this year, so it’s clear that managed care organizations have a lot at stake.

That was the overarching theme at a symposium organized by specialty pharmacy provider ACRO Pharmaceutical Services, in conjunction with Armada Health Care, last Thursday at the Hyatt Regency at Penn’s Landing in Philadelphia.

SARASOTA, Fla. — The Specialty Pharmacy Nursing Network has entered a partnership with ViroPharma’s CinryzeSolutions support program, a training and monitoring program for patients using ViroPharma’s Cinryze (C1 esterase inhibitor [human]) who wish to administer the drug themselves.

Cinryze is a drug administered via infusion for the treatment of hereditary angioedema, and the partnership will allow patients to receive training and follow-up support from SPNN nurses, as well as direction from their physicians.