A special investigative team from Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) is suspecting bacterial infection to be the cause of death of four newborns who died in succession in less than 90 minutes at a local hospital Saturday.The KCDC’s epidemiologic survey that investigates the puzzling deaths of four newborns follows the ongoing probes by the Yangcheon police and the National
Korea’s biopharmaceutical industry is increasingly adopting artificial intelligence (AI) to develop new drugs, using state-of-the-art technology to shorten development and production costs.AI can identify patterns people miss by cross-examining millions of compounds simultaneously, eliminating the guesswork in drug development that leads to substantial time and financial investment.The U.S
Six out of 10 people approve of the new government policy to cover almost all medical services, coined “Mooncare,” but oppose paying higher insurance premiums to finance it, a survey showed Thursday.The opinion poll aimed at finding public opinion on the policy that would require the government to spend 30.6 trillion won ($28.1 billion) over the next five years to cover all medical treatments
The government Thursday launched a mobile hospital in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, to deploy medical aid in critical conditions such as war or natural disasters.Officials from various government agencies will attend a tape-cutting ceremony Friday in Cheonan for the official launch, according to the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the National Medical Center, the two hosting agencies
College professors from various theological fields Thursday called for abolishing the abortion law in Korea – an issue brought to light by an online petition to the presidential Blue House that gathered 230,000 signatures in September.“Opposing abortion is not the only correct answer in bioethics,” the association of bioethics, philosophy and theology professors that are in favor of legali
Korean pharmaceutical MGmed decided to change the company’s name to Cancer Rop Co. to refocus company efforts on developing cancer drugs, at a general shareholders’ meeting Wednesday.MGmed, established in 2001, had specialized in developing molecular diagnostic techniques for various genetic diseases.The company also named Lee Jang-woo as its new CEO.
New research shows nine out of 10 young adults in Korea do not have antibodies that protect against hepatitis A, pointing out a need for additional “catch-up” vaccination programs for the most vulnerable.Hepatitis A is an acute inflammatory liver disease caused by the hepatitis A virus (HAV). The condition is highly contagious and often spreads quickly through work and school communities. The
Janssen, a Johnson & Johnson division, said a combination therapy with DARZALEX slashed the risk of disease progression or death by 50 percent in newly diagnosed multiple myeloma patients ineligible for autologous stem cell transplantation.“These findings strongly support this DARZALEX frontline regimen as a new standard of care for these patients," said the lead study investigator Maria-Victo
Bluebird Bio and Celgene posted phase 1 results of investigational drug bb2121 Sunday, which could potentially make it a “groundbreaking CAR-T therapy” for multiple myeloma, the companies said.“The responses achieved in this relapsed and refractory patient population, combined with the tolerable safety profile, reinforce the potential role of bb2121 as a groundbreaking CAR-T therapy in multipl
Teva Pharmaceutical and Pfizer said Monday they will launch generic versions of Pfizer’s erectile dysfunction drug Viagra at half the price in the U.S.Market watchers here say, however, the price cut will have little impact on Korea, which already has 52 Viagra spin-offs in the market. Unlike the U.S. market, where Pfizer’s Viagra (ingredient: sildenafil citrate) patents expire in Apri
A North Korean soldier who crossed over to the South offered a glimpse into the lives of North Koreans with the gruesome discovery of parasites in his intestines as well as other physical ailments last month. Despite the media frenzy surrounding the North Korean defector, an expert is cautioning against making sweeping generalizations of North Korean healthcare and welfare.Dr. Lee Myung-ken, a
Korea has become an official member of the International Medical Device Regulatory Forum (IMDRF), which will likely help increase the nation’s medical device export, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said Monday.IMDRF, established in 2011, is a group of medical device regulatory authorities to accelerate and harmonize international medical device regulation.IMDRF member countries ac
The number of adults getting free cancer screenings provided by the government has increased in the past few years, indicating an improvement of perceived and actual quality, the National Cancer Center (NCC) said Monday.The government currently provides gastric, colorectal, breast and cervical cancer screenings free of charge and notifies individuals via mail to get the recommended screening.
MGmed, a Korean firm specializing in molecular diagnostic techniques for genetic diseases, said Friday that it would create the world’s first postmortem gene bank by securing the DNA of deceased cancer patients.The news follows the announcement that MGmed has been selected as the priority candidate to operate the funeral home of Jecheon Myongji Hospital in North Chungcheong Province.Up
The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said Thursday it approved FemmyCycle as the first menstrual cup to be sold in Korea.FemmyCycle, developed by U.S.-based Femcap, is currently sold in 10 countries, including the U.S., Canada, and Europe.A menstrual cup is a feminine hygiene product made from silicon, inserted into the body to collect menstrual blood. Unlike tampons and pads, these cu
The Ministry of Health and Welfare’s budget for 2018 has been set at 63.1 trillion won ($57.2 billion), an increase of 9.5 percent from this year, officials said Wednesday.Spending to implement the sharply expanded health insurance plan that covers all treatments aside from cosmetic surgery, dubbed the Moon Jae-in Care, or “Mooncare,” was set at 5.2 trillion won – a cut of 200 billion won from
Global contract development and manufacturing organization Vetter Pharma has won the Corporate Health Award for excellent management and promotion of employees’ health, it said Wednesday.“The company offers all employees the opportunity to do something positive for themselves and incorporates their overall health,” Vetter’s Managing Director Peter Soelkner said. “In doing so, we also highlight
IBM’s Watson for Oncology, an artificial intelligence-based diagnostic tool, is making treatment recommendations more congruent to those made by doctors, a local hospital said Tuesday.Watson for Oncology’s top recommendations achieved a 55.9 percent concordance rate with those made by physicians for 118 colon cancer patients, Gachon University Gil Medical Center said at a press conference.
MGmed said it has emerged as the largest stakeholder of Oxford Vacmedix (OVM), a U.K. bio venture developing cancer therapies, having signed a letter of intent to acquire its shares, the Korean pharma said Wednesday. The company did not reveal how many shares it will buy.Oxford University currently holds a 21.3 percent stake in OVM.OVM is a spinoff from Oxford University established in 201
The Patent Court of Korea Wednesday decided to uphold Pfizer Korea’s patent on its pneumonia vaccine, in a blow to Korean pharmaceutical, SK Chemicals, seeking to launch an independently developed vaccine since last year.“We are examining the results from the Patent Court of Korea and will proceed with a strategy from our findings,” said a SK Chemicals spokesperson. “As for appealing to the Su