New Merck Med...

 

Merck has a new drug med coming this May.  IDVYNSO is a combination of doravirine & islatravir.  It is not recommended for people currently on some meds, such as lamivudine.   It could lower the med's effectiveness & cause possible toxicity.  It's unclear how long a person would have to off lamivudine before they could start this.  This is the only non-INSTI 2 drug med without tenofovir given orally currently available.  

This could be a great new option for people.  These are newer meds comprising a new combo.  Islatravir is the only med in a new category of NRTTIs.  This a significant step.  

Give this piece a read.

Take care.

Cya...

Can Sue...

 

Drugmaker Can Be Sued for Delaying Release of Better Med, Court Rules

The above is a ruling from a California justice cited in this article.  The ruling affects Gilead's decision to keep marketing TDF (Tenofovir)  While pushing back the the development of TAF to insure the prior's financial success.  The case states Gilead knew of adverse affects the original could have such as bone & kidney damage.  The company continued to market TDF, even though they had knowledge of a safer version, TAF, which they shelved for years.  All of this was done to insure profitability.

The plaintiffs are suing for compensation.  They are not suing to claim the original drug was defective.  Only that it was sold when a knowingly safer version was available.  They believe it was the company's responsibility to promote the safest version.   The suit is over negligence & fraudulent concealment. 

The court announced this can move forward unless Gilead can prove it withheld the newer med for some other viable reason besides profit.  Gilead intends to take this to the state's Supreme Court.  Of course the company is crying fowl.

This is an important development.  Give it a read.  This won't be the last of this & could happen to other companies.  Take care.

Cya...

Litigation....

This article gives insight into legal action against Gilead.  The company is accused of making deals to block the development of generic versions of their medications.  Especially anything with tenofovir, the base for many of the company's medications, notably Truvada (PrEP).   These same deals would also mostly eliminate any competition over cost.  Gilead would face no competition in the market.

There are many articles covering this development.  This was the most user friendly & easily available.  Give it & maybe them a read.   Take care.

Cya...

Gilead Again...

This article details how Gilead allowed a toxic version of an HIV medication to stay on the market for over a decade just to prolong sales & protect patents.  This drug Tenofovir or better know as half of Truvada.   The company researched the toxicity of the medication & an acceptable replacement in 2004.  Partway through the research,, the company shut the project down.   In 2010 they restarted it & came up with the recently announced medication, Genvoya, or Truvada 2.0.

The reason for this was simple, profits.   The original, overly toxic medicine was already approved & the patent on that would expire in 2018.   Thus allowing generics to made.   Gilead had already finished enough research a decade ago to know the new med was viable.  All they had to was set back & wait.   Then before the original med's patent expired, they'd introduce the new drug.  Who'd want to make a generic version of a toxic medication?

It isn't like this is the 1st pharmaceutical company to pull this exact stunt.  It won't be the last time they put their profits above the health of the people on them or needing them.  These monsters justify anything & everything for profits.  They're evil.

Read the article.

Cya...

Hello Goodbye...

To start with, these 2 articles "A" & "B",  both go into further, scary detail about Tenofovir  resistant HIV or TenoRes.  Some numbers have the rates in some areas up to 60%.  The 2nd article is the scholarly work on the matter.  It's a bit more jargony, but a good read.  You need to watch this development.

The 1st month of 2016 is gone.  So long January, you were pleasant enough, even though you had really weird weather.  So far, my 2016 resolution to make no resolutions this year is holding.

Hello, February.  Like I always ask, can you hold off on the drama.  I have a dental appointment this month for a cleaning.  That's it out of the ordinary for now.

I hope this month brings you whatever you need.

Cya...

Resistance...

This article details how in some parts of the world people are dealing with uncontrolled HIV even while on a drug regimen.  This is  often due to a resistance to the drug, Tenofovir.   There are 2 ways in which this can happen.  People on a drug regimen with Tenofovir fail to follow the regimen as directed or they're infected by someone with HIV already resistant to the medication.  

Tenofovir is a widely used antiviral medication for both HIV & hepatitis.  If this drug is compromised, the ramifications could be huge.  There are other medications, but they're often more costly & their regimens more complex.   This medication is used alone & in combination with other drugs.  

This could  jeopardize the efficacy of some of the most common HIV drugs.  Among them, Truvada, the medication being pushed for PrEP.  Truvada is made up of Tenofovir & Emtricitabine.   This medication would be far less effective in preventing HIV or fighting it,  if the virus was already resistant to Tenofovir. 

This article makes 3 points for me.  You must always implement safer sex practices.  You need to stay on top  of your drug regimen.  Finally, a lot of people's fears concerning PrEP are being legitimized.   I was never sold on the idea Truvada was going to save us all.   With a Tenofovir resistant strain of  HIV out there, there's no way this medication can be the panacea or silver bullet it's been touted to be. 

Cya...