Weight loss and Weight Chat Blog

Many of our readers either already have or will in the future encounter the possibility of being treated with a biologic medication. This is because biologics have revolutionized the treatment of such chronic illnesses as rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, Crohn’s disease, and multiple sclerosis, and are widely used in treating a variety of cancers. To name just a few, these products include Enbrel, Humira, Remicade (infliximab), Avonex (inteferon beta-1a), Betaseron (interferon beta-1b), Tysabri, Cimzia (certolizumab pegol), Herceptin (trastuzumab), Rituxan (rituximab), Neupogen (filgrastim), Neulasta (pegfilgrastim) and Leukine (sargramostim). So just what are biologics, how do they differ from more traditional drugs, and why are they so expensive?Although some biologics have been around for a long time, I’m not talking about these first-generation products, which include things like vaccines, blood and blood components. Instead, I’m focusing on the newer, second-generation biologics that have come to market only […]

Original post by natalieb and weightlossopinions.com

Rituxan (rituximab) is a biologic medication that is already approved by the FDA for the treatment of both non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma (NHL) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). It is now being studied as a potential treatment for multiple sclerosis, and results of an early-stage clinical trial, recently published in the prestigious “New England Journal of Medicine,” show that it may have great potential in treating this chronic illness. This is not the first time that a cancer drug (Rituxan was originally approved for NHL, a type of blood cell cancer) has later been studied in MS. Novantrone (mitoxantrone) is one such cancer drug, originally approved for the treatment of certain leukemias and then later for advanced prostate cancer, which also was eventually approved by the FDA for the treatment of MS.
In the current Phase 2 research, patients, 18-55 years of age with relapsing-remitting MS, were randomized to receive either […]

Original post by admin and weightlossopinions.com

If you have, or know someone who has, estrogen receptor (ER) positive breast cancerm=, you may want to read this article about not eating grapefruit.
It is well-known that something in grapefruit decreases the metabolism of certain drugs, one of which is estrogen. It’s not known exactly how this happens, but it’s known that grapefruit inhibits the activity of an enzyme that is needed to “digest” the estrogen (the enzyme is called CYP3A4, and it is found in the liver and in the intestine). So normally, if you take estrogen (let’s say for post-menopausal symptoms), your body gets rid of it at a certain rate through metabolism by this enzyme. But if you consume grapefruit, which reduces the enzyme’s activity, then less estrogen is metabolized and so more estrogen is still in your body. So if you take estrogen pills you shouldn’t eat grapefruit because it could cause side effects from […]

Original post by admin and weightlossopinions.com

Maybe you saw the headlines that the high blood pressure drug Diovan (valsartan) might have some kind of impact on Alzheimer’s disease. But depending on what article you read, you’d get a very different report. If you read the article in U.S. News & World Report, you’d have gotten a fair and balanced picture of the research on which the headlines were based. But if you read the article at Fox News, you’d have gotten a highly misleading account.
First of all, the research being reported was conducted in mice a pretty important bit of information that tells you that it has no immediate relevance to humans and that any potential benefit for mankind would be years away. The U.S. News article mentions the word mice in its title (in the sub-heading) and in the first sentence of the article. It lets you know right away that it’s animal, not human, […]

Original post by admin and weightlossopinions.com