Omalizumab and peanut allergies

For kids with peanut allergies, omalizumab — aka Xolair — can be a lifesaver, literally.

By taking omalizumab every two or four weeks, many patients had significant protection against allergic reactions from food allergen contamination, particularly life-threatening conditions like anaphylactic shock.

Still, it’s not a miracle drug; it has some significant limitations. Eat a peanut-butter sandwich? No. Ride on a bus with someone eating peanuts? Probably. The folks at the University of Rochester explain it all.

J&J settles ovarian cancer suits

The company will pay $6.5 billion (over the next 25 years) to settle nearly all the lawsuits that claimed its talcum powder caused ovarian cancer. Still outstanding are a different set of suits (but not nearly as many) claiming it caused mesothelioma.

The deal still needs buy-in from at least 75% of the claimants.

Reversible heparin replacement

How’s this for an anticoagulant trick: It’s instantly reversible. That means if something goes wrong and a patient starts to bleed, you just slip ’em the antidote and the bleeding stops (in theory).

How’s it work? The drug consists of two molecules that bond to each other and to thrombin, preventing the thrombin from helping blood coagulate. The antidote breaks the connection between the drug molecules — like breaking the bond between the Wonder Twins — and that releases the thrombin. Simple!

A group of Swiss and Australian researchers came up with the new drug. They say that there are 235,000 emergency visits for anticoagulant treatment in the US every year, so that’s a lot of people who’ll be happy to see it hit the market.