Trending News Today: Lynparza Shows Benefit in Patients with Prostate Cancer, Certain Gene Mutations

AstraZeneca’s olaparib (Lynparza) was found to improve survival without disease progression in patients with metastatic prostate cancer and certain genetic mutations, Reuters reported. According to the article, olaparib met the main goal in the phase 3 study of patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer and BRCA 1/2 or ATM gene mutations who were previously treated with hormonal anticancer therapies. Olaparib is already approved for advanced ovarian cancer and metastatic breast cancer, the article reported.

A recent study found that children born with HIV may be less likely to adhere to antiretroviral therapy (ART) and have a suppressed viral load as they get older, The American Journal of Managed Care reported. According to the article, from preadolescence to young adulthood, the rate of self-reported nonadherence increased from 31% to half of study participants and the prevalence of a detectable viral load increased from 16% to 40%. Although perceived ART adverse effects affected all age groups, the researchers indicated that factors leading to nonadherence largely depended on age, the article reported.

Health officials indicated that the rise in naloxone prescriptions may be mitigating the increase in overdose deaths in the United States, The Associated Press reported. According to the article, the number of naloxone prescriptions dispensed by US retail pharmacies doubled from 2017 to last year, whereas overdose deaths have dropped. New preliminary data show that approximately 68,000 individuals died of overdoses last year, which is a decrease from the more than 70,000 in 2017, the article reported.