Thursday, August 31, 2006

 

A Patient's Guide To Surviving Mesothelioma and Other Cancers

 
Mesothelioma Survival

Paul Kraus delivered another inspiring presentation on how he healed his mesothelioma. Every two months, Paul Kraus describes his experience with mesothelioma and answers questions from newly diagnosed mesothelioma patients. If you are a mesothelioma patient or a loved one of a mesothelioma patient and wish to attend a free teleconference with mesothelioma survivor Paul Kraus, the schedule is available at: http://www.survivingmesothelioma.com/speak-to-paul-kraus.cfm or call 619-261-7922 to register.

(PRWEB) August 31, 2006 -- In 1997, Paul Kraus was diagnosed with mesothelioma. The cancer was so widespread that doctors told him there was little hope and he should go home and get his affairs in order. Rather than giving up, Paul created his own path to healing. Today, over nine years later, he continues to enjoy a good quality of life.

Paul wrote an acclaimed book about his diagnosis and healing called: “Surviving Mesothelioma and Other Cancers – A Patient’s Guide.” This book is available on Amazon.com and is the best-selling mesothelioma book in the world. Wanting to inspire more patients, Paul took the unusual step of hosting free bi-monthly teleconferences so that newly diagnosed mesothelioma patients would be able to speak directly to him.

During the most recent conference on August 22nd, Paul described the steps he took to heal his mesothelioma and answered questions from patients and their loved ones. Topics included: new chemotherapy drugs, holistic approaches, vitamins and other supplements, new clinical trials, anti-angiogenesis therapies, mind-body medicine, doctor-patient relationships, and more. While Paul is quick to point out that he is not a doctor and he does not provide medical advice, he inspires patients with his own story of success and survival.

At the end of the teleconference, participants thanked Paul for his words of hope and inspiration and for setting the example that mesothelioma does not have to mean a death sentence.

If you are a mesothelioma patient or a loved one of a mesothelioma patient and wish to attend a free teleconference with mesothelioma survivor Paul Kraus, the schedule is available at: http://www.survivingmesothelioma.com/speak-to-paul-kraus.cfm or call 619-261-7922 to register.

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Press Contact: Michael Horwin
Company Name: CANCER MONTHLY
Email: email protected from spam bots
Phone: 919-570-8595
Website: http://www.survivingmesothelioma.com/


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Wednesday, August 30, 2006

 

FW: BenefitPackages.com Makes Selecting Essential Health Plans Easy

 
BenefitPackages.com Makes Selecting Essential Health Plans Easy

One of the most popular sites for access to health plans, Benefit Packages, provides enhanced services including the offering of new Blue Shield of California Essential Plans for individuals.

(PRWEB) September 1, 2006 -- Benefit Packages a full-service insurance agency, today announced enhancements to their Web site to better able visitors in selecting a health plan that meets their individual or family needs. Benefitpackages.com has been serving Californians for over 15 years and is known as one of the most prominent agencies in the state.

“We want to be able to offer a variety of plans that fit the lifestyle needs and budgets of Californians,” said Larry Hurwitz, Benefit Consultant/Owner of Benefit Packages.com Insurance Agency. “Recently we introduced Blue Shield of California Essential Plans which are popular among young individuals for their affordable premiums and access to valuable and useful benefits.”

Benefitpackages.com offers the most up-to-date plan designs and the ability to pick a plan that meets the varying budget and lifestyle needs of Californians. Enhancements to the Web site include the following functions:
•    Access to the most trusted health insurance carriers in the state
•    Ability to select among the most popular health plans in the market
•    Answers regarding health insurance questions
•    Ability to find a doctor
•    Receive an instant quote
•    Access to excellent, caring customer service (virtual, phone or in person)

For more information on benefitpackages.com or the new individual Essential Plans, underwritten by Blue Shield of California Life & Health Insurance Company, please visit: http://www.benefitpackages.com/essential/index.html or call 1-800-356-3615.

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Press Contact: Larry Hurwitz
Company Name: Benefitpackages.com
Email: email protected from spam bots
Phone: 1-800-356-3615
Website: http://www.benefitpackages.com/essential/index.html


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Saturday, August 19, 2006

 

US Painkiller Sales Hit By Safety Concerns, Some Say Old Aspirin Best

 
Safety Concerns Hit Sales of US Painkillers

Tylenol benefits from safety scares.

(PRWEB) August 19, 2006 -- Sales of products containing acetaminophen have increased in the US after safety concerns hit sales of certain competing analgesics, says the report “Analgesics in United States”, available from Piribo, the online destination for business intelligence for the biotech and pharmaceutical industry.

The 79 page report, written by analysts Euromonitor International, forecasts that acetaminophen will see average growth of nearly 2% a year until 2011, ahead of the rest of the adult analgesics sector which is expected to achieve growth of only 0.8% a year between 2005-2010.

American consumers’ interest in acetaminophen came after questions were raised about the safety of some analgesics. Studies in 2004 linked the use of Vioxx, an anti-inflammatory prescription drug, with an increased risk of heart disease, which led to the product being recalled. Then in April 2005, the US Food and Drug Administration asked Pfizer to recall Bextra, a similar prescription drug, and also warned that OTC non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as Aleve, would need to carry stronger warnings in the future about the risks of heart attacks, strokes, ulcers, internal bleeding and skin reactions.

As acetaminophen is in a separate drug class from anti-inflammatories, such as ibuprofen and naproxen, it mostly escaped public concern over safety and achieved growth of 4.3% between 2004-2005.

The report finds that Tylenol is the most popular brand of acetaminophen with a 14.2% share of the analgesics market. Its manufacturer, McNeil Consumer Healthcare, used the public’s safety concerns as an opportunity to boost the performance of the Tylenol brand by increasing its promotional activity which saw sales of the product increase by almost 18% in 2005.

Despite poor performance for most analgesics, there is also an optimistic outlook for Aspirin, which is forecast to grow by 1.4% per year over 2005-2010. This is due to the widespread use of aspirin for heart attack prevention and consumer trust in the product, as it, too, does not belong to the OTC class of NSAID’s.

“Analgesics in United States” is available in PDF format from Piribo
http://www.piribo.com/search/results.html?k=eur052&x=0&y=0

About Piribo.
Piribo (http://www.piribo.com) is a UK-based independent online store supplying business information on the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. The website now carries over 3,800 English language titles including, market reports, studies and books and is the UK’s largest online biopharma information store. Subscribers receive a free monthly newsletter and email alerts on new titles in their areas of interest. The company was established in 2004.

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Press Contact: Fiona Brown
Company Name: PIRIBO LTD
Email: email protected from spam bots
Phone: 02070607474
Website: http://www.piribo.com/publications/   country/usa_canada/usa/analgesics_united_states.html


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Tuesday, August 08, 2006

 

Previously Untreated Cancer Patients targeted By Drug Study

Study targets previously untreated patients
 
SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Aug. 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Exelixis, Inc. today announced the initiation of a Phase II trial of XL647, an orally bioavailable small molecule inhibitor of the HER2, EGF, VEGF and EphB4 receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs). Although these individual RTKs are targets for currently approved therapies, XL647 was designed to potently inhibit all three targets simultaneously. The trial will be conducted in patients with advanced (stage IIIB or IV) non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who have not previously been treated with chemotherapy. In this proof-of-concept trial, participants must meet at least two of the following criteria: asian, female, non-smoker or adenocarcinoma.
 
"We designed XL647 to potently inhibit EGFR and VEGFR, as well as HER2 and EphB4. We believe that simultaneously inhibiting this spectrum of targets may provide greater efficacy than has been achieved to date by inhibiting these targets individually," said George A. Scangos, Ph.D., president and chief executive officer of Exelixis. "As a single compound optimized for potency, activity, safety and tolerability, we believe the safety and tolerability profile of XL647 may be better than those from combinations of drugs designed to inhibit individual targets."
 
The multi-center, open-label Phase II study will be conducted in up to 15 clinical sites and will follow a two-stage enrollment strategy. The primary objectives of the Phase II study are to determine the response rate of subjects with NSCLC treated with XL647 and to evaluate the safety and tolerability of XL647. Secondary objectives include assessment of progression-free survival, duration of response, and overall survival, and characterization of pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic parameters of XL647.
 
As reported in June 2006 at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) annual meeting, XL647 has exhibited favorable safety and tolerability profiles in a Phase I trial in patients with advanced solid tumors. The investigators reported that of 40 evaluable patients, one patient (non-small cell lung cancer [NSCLC]) has had a partial response and 12 others (NSCLC [3], chordoma [2], adenoid cystic carcinoma [2], adrenocortical carcinoma, colorectal, ovarian, mesothelioma and head and neck cancer) have had prolonged stable disease (>3.5 months). The first two patients treated at the 7.0 mg/kg dose experienced dose-limiting toxicities (DLTs) of grade 3 diarrhea, which resolved upon a reduction in dose to 4.68 mg/kg. One serious adverse event of grade 4 pulmonary embolism was considered potentially related to study treatment in a patient treated at the 0.28 mg/kg dose. One patient at the 3.12 mg/kg dose had an asymptomatic QTc prolongation on electrocardiogram. Expansion of the 4.68 mg/kg cohort to six patients occurred without further DLTs, and this is considered the maximum tolerated dose.
 
About XL647
 
XL647 is a potent inhibitor of multiple RTKs implicated in driving tumor cell proliferation and tumor vascularization (blood vessel formation). XL647 inhibits the EGF, HER2, and VEGF RTKs, each of which is a target of currently approved cancer therapies. In addition, XL647 inhibits EphB4, an RTK that is highly expressed in many human tumors and plays a role in promoting angiogenesis. In a broad array of preclinical tumor models including breast, lung, colon and prostate cancer, XL647 demonstrated potent inhibition of tumor growth and caused tumor regression. In cell culture models, XL647 retained significant potency against mutant EGFRs that cause resistance to current EGFR inhibitors.
 
About Exelixis
 
Exelixis, Inc. is a biotechnology company dedicated to the discovery and development of novel therapeutics that will potentially enhance the care and lives of patients with cancer and other serious diseases. The company is leveraging its fully integrated gene-to-drug platform to fuel the growth of its proprietary drug pipeline. Exelixis' development pipeline covers cancer and metabolism and is comprised of the following compounds: XL119 (becatecarin), for which a multinational Phase III clinical trial in bile duct tumor is ongoing and which has been exclusively licensed to Helsinn Healthcare S.A.; XL784, which is being advanced in a Phase II trial as a treatment for renal disease; XL999, an anticancer compound currently in Phase II clinical trials for a variety of solid tumors and hematologic malignancies; XL647 an anticancer compound currently in Phase II clinical trials for advanced non-small cell lung cancer; XL820, XL844 and XL184, anticancer compounds currently in Phase I clinical trials; and multiple compounds in preclinical development for diseases including cancer and various metabolic and cardiovascular disorders. Exelixis has established broad corporate alliances with major pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies including GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and Bristol-Myers Squibb Company. Pursuant to a product development and commercialization agreement between Exelixis and GSK, GSK has the option, after completion of clinical proof-of-concept by Exelixis, to elect to develop a certain number of compounds in Exelixis' product pipeline, which may include XL784 and the cancer compounds identified in this press release (other than XL119), thus potentially triggering milestone payments and royalties from GSK and co-promotion rights by Exelixis. For more information, please visit the company's web site at www.exelixis.com .
 
This press release contains forward-looking statements, including without limitation statements related to Exelixis' clinical development program for XL647 and the therapeutic potential of XL647. Words such as "believes," "anticipates," "plans," "expects," "intends," "will," "slated," "goal" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based upon Exelixis' current expectations. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties. Exelixis' actual results and the timing of events could differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements as a result of these risks and uncertainties, which include, without limitation, the potential failure of product candidates to demonstrate safety and efficacy in clinical testing; the ability of Helsinn Healthcare S.A. to conduct the Phase III clinical trial of XL119 sufficient to achieve FDA approval; the ability to complete and initiate trials at the referenced times; the ability to conduct clinical trials sufficient to achieve a positive completion; the ability to file INDs at the referenced times; the ability of Exelixis to advance additional preclinical compounds into clinical development; the uncertainty of the FDA approval process; and the therapeutic and commercial value of the company's compounds. These and other risk factors are discussed under "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in our quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2006 and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in the company's expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statements are based.
 
CONTACT: investors, Charles Butler, Director, Corporate Communications, +1-650-837-7277, or cbutler@exelixis.com, or media, Soleil Maxwell Harrison, Senior Manager, Corporate Communications, +1-650-837-7012, or sharrison@exelixis.com, both of Exelixis, Inc.
 
Web site: http://www.exelixis.com/

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