WASHINGTON — One of the few bills moving through Congress with bipartisan support this spring would speed government approval of lower-cost generic copies of brand-name drugs. But one company, with help from an influential former congressman, is lobbying to protect its most lucrative brand-name prod

Diesel fumes cause lung cancer, the World Health Organization declared Tuesday, and experts said they were more carcinogenic than secondhand cigarette smoke.The W.H.O. decision, the first to elevate diesel to the “known carcinogen” level, may eventually affect some American workers who are heavily e

Cases of drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB) in the UK have risen by over a quarter in the last year, the Health Protection Agency (HPA) has revealed.In 2011, 431 cases did not respond to antibiotic treatment compared to 342 in 2010, the HPA said. About 550 more cases of TB were disgnosed in 2011.The a

(Reuters Health) – There’s more evidence that the new formulation of OxyContin, the time-release version of oxycodone, is discouraging abuse of the powerful drug.But the reformulation, introduced in August 2010 to make it harder to crush the medicine into powder, limiting the ability to snort, injec

In the largest settlement involving a pharmaceutical company, the British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline agreed to plead guilty to criminal charges and pay $3 billion in fines for promoting its best-selling antidepressants for unapproved uses and failing to report safety data about a top diabetes drug, f

US health regulators have for the first time approved a drug to prevent HIV infection.Truvada can be used by those at high risk of infection and anyone who may engage in sexual activity with HIV-infected partners, said the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).Studies showed the drug reduced the risk o

(Reuters Health) – A new, small study suggests medicinal marijuana may impair users’ driving skills – but might be missed by typical sobriety tests.At doses used in AIDS, cancer and pain patients, people weaved side to side more and had a slower reaction time in the hours after using the drug, resea

The majority of people with diabetes are not controlling cholesterol levels effectively – putting them at increased risk of heart disease, a charity warns.Diabetes UK says 90% of people with the disease are having annual checks which will show up problems.But it says the most recent national diabete

Up to a million people in the UK have “completely preventable” severe headaches caused by taking too many painkillers, doctors have said.They said some were trapped in a “vicious cycle” of taking pain relief, which then caused even more headaches.The warning came as part of the National Institute fo

The Health Protection Agency (HPA) has issued a warning about the dangers of picking poisonous mushrooms.It says foragers should be aware that it is easy to mix up toxic with non-toxic varieties.Dozens of people seek medical advice each year after eating wild mushrooms which they have picked themsel