Roche announced that the European Commission has approved Avastin ( bevacizumab ) in combination with standard chemotherapy ( carboplatin and paclitaxel ) as a front-line (first-line following surgery) treatment for women with advanced ovarian cancer.

Merck  announced today that a Phase III study of Zolinza ( vorinostat ), for investigational use in combination with bortezomib in patients with progressive multiple myeloma , met its primary endpoint, demonstrating a 23 percent reduction in the risk of progression compared to the standard therapy of bortezomib (p=0.01).

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Erwinaze ( asparaginase Erwinia chrysanthemi ) to treat patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), who have developed an allergy (hypersensitivity) to E. coli derived asparaginase and pegapargase chemotherapy drugs used to treat ALL.

The American Cancer Society (ACS), the American Society for Colposcopy and Cervical Pathology (ASCCP), and the American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP) have proposed new guidelines for the prevention and early detection of cervical cancer.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Zelboraf (vemurafenib), a drug to treat patients with late-stage (metastatic) or unresectable (cannot be removed by surgery) melanoma, the most dangerous type of skin cancer.

AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN) today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the trade name Caprelsa for the recently approved orphan drug vandetanib, a treatment for medullary thyroid cancer that cannot be removed by surgery or that has spread to other parts of the body.

Pfizer Inc. and Acura Pharmaceuticals Inc. announce the marketing approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of OXECTATM (oxycodone HCl, USP) Tablets CII. OXECTA is indicated for the management of acute and chronic moderate to severe pain where the use of an opioid analgesic is appropriate.

An international, multi-center study has found that a recently FDA-approved drug called abiraterone acetate significantly improves overall survival in men with metastatic prostate cancer by more than 34 percent.

Basel, May 5, 2011 - Novartis announced today that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Afinitor (everolimus) tablets for the treatment of progressive neuroendocrine tumors of pancreatic origin (PNET) in patients with unresectable, locally advanced or metastatic disease.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is increasing awareness about a health plan for uninsured Americans with pre-existing conditions created by the Affordable Care Act.