The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said Wednesday that it has approved the use of Johnson & Johnson's Janssen vaccine after confirming its safety and efficacy, following AstraZeneca and Pfizer vaccines.The ministry’s vaccine advisory committee checked the safety and efficacy profile of the Janssen
GC Pharma said it would continue to develop hyperimmune globulin drug for Covid-19 despite the recent statement by CoVig-19 Plasma Alliance that it confirmed disappointing results in phase 3 clinical trials.Takeda, one of the co-leaders of the CoVig-19 Plasma Alliance, said Wednesday that the group
Researchers at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology have developed a gene that can distinguish leukemia patients who respond positively to decitabine, an anticancer treatment, from those who do not, KAIST said Wednesday.The joint research team, led by Professors Kim Yoo-sik at KAIS
Hanmi Pharmaceutical said Wednesday that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted fast-track designation to its short-bowel syndrome therapy, LAPS GLP-2 Analog (HM15912).LAPS GLP-2 Analog is a new biopharmaceutical being developed for short-bowel syndrome with the company's platform technol
A civic group consisting of pharmacists criticized the government for considering export restrictions on locally made Covid-19 vaccines amid the global vaccine shortage.The Association of Pharmacists for Healthy Society (APHS) on Wednesday released a statement saying the government should consider “
Korean adolescents’ time spent on personal computers increased, but their use of paper media declined amid the prolongation of online classes, a report says.According to the comparison report of adolescents’ media usage patterns before and after Covid-19, released by the Korea Information Society De
Patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) often suffer digital ulcers (DU) or small sores on the fingers and toes due to a lack of blood flow.A local researcher recently published a study that showed treatment outcomes and clinical features of DU in Korean SSc patients.In January, professor Kim Hyun-so
Korea's daily Covid-19 cases soared to the highest level in nearly three months on Wednesday, as the pileup of sporadic infections throughout the country gradually turned concerns about the fourth rival wave into a reality.The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KCDA) said it confirmed 668
Domestic pharmaceutical companies are working on new forms of donepezil, a treatment for Alzheimer’s disease.As the donepezil market is expected to keep growing with the rising number of dementia patients, the drug companies will keep trying new forms of the drug, industry watchers said.Donepezil is
A fetus exposed to alcohol in a mother’s womb has 11 times higher chances to be diagnosed with congenital disorders than one who is not, according to a recent study.Researchers at the Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Prevention Center at Ewha Womans University Mokdong Hospital analyzed 1,675 women with pregna
The government has decided to give Covid-19 vaccines to about 400,000 illegal immigrants, according to the same criteria as the one applied to other foreigners, officials said Tuesday.“Illegal immigrants, who are not registered with the authorities and hard to identify their status, will be able to
Bladdernut shoots can help strengthen the immune system under normal conditions while suppressing immune responses under extreme immune response conditions, the Natural Institute of Forest Science (NIFOS) said Tuesday. The discovery comes amid the mounting public interests in functional food product
Despite the protracted Covid-19 pandemic, many Korean biopharmaceutical companies plan to participate in the 2021 American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), one of the biggest cancer-related conferences globally, industry sources said Tuesday.The AACR will hold its program online from Friday t
Precision medicine companies have started to expand direct-to-consumer genetic testing services. DTC genetic tests allow consumers to directly request institutions to run genetic testing online or through outlets without visiting a hospital.Currently, DTC genetic tests are limited to those for welln
A Korea University Anam Hospital (KUAH) research team has confirmed that polycystic ovary syndrome increases the risk of type 2 diabetes in women regardless of obesity.In general, polycystic ovary syndrome patients are often obese, and researchers have confirmed that they have various metabolic dise
Janssen said Tuesday that the government began providing health insurance benefits for its prostate cancer therapy Zytiga (ingredient: abiraterone acetate) as a first-line treatment for high-risk metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer (mHSPC).Patients who satisfy at least two among the followi
Korea's daily Covid-19 cases stayed in the 400s for the second day on Tuesday amid sporadic cluster infections.However, health officials and epidemiological experts predict the number could go up to 600, 700, or even 1,000 to spark the fourth viral wave unless the government tightens restrictions fu
Vitamin D deficiency is most common among obese people before they take bariatric surgery, according to a study at Seoul National University Bundang Hospital (SNUBH).A group of researchers, led by Professor Park Young-seok of the Surgery Department at the hospital, analyzed big data on the nutrient
The local health authorities are mulling to introduce rapid home test kits to expand Covid-19 screening amid the rising concerns over a fourth wave of the outbreak.However, pressured by health experts’ concerns that rapid test kits could be inaccurate, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency
Last year, MSD Korea came under fire for applying the “Self-Assurance Program (SAP),” recording conversations of doctors at a product briefing as part of its compliance monitoring, to a small meeting of two or more persons.Taking a step further, the company is reportedly planning to ban a one-on-one