The AIDS/HIV treatment pipeline is simply full of surprises. Hydroxyurea, a relatively powerful experimental treatment for HIV, has managed to steal the spotlight from the ever-mighty protease inhibitors and continues to baffle even the most jaded researchers and treatment advocates.
In mid-July, the FDA approved thalidomide as a treatment for leprosy (Hansen's disease) with the brand name, THALOMID. So begins another chapter in the complicated history of a drug with enormous clinical potential as well as dangerous possible side effects.
Not a week goes by that we at the PWA Health Group don't get at least one request from someone for information on alternative, complementary, holistic, natural, supplemental or traditional therapies.
In early May, an FDA Advisory Committee recommended that the FDA not approve Unimed's NTZ (brand name Cryptaz). The committee asked for more analysis of the data Unimed presented, but when Unimed went to the FDA again in mid-June, the company's application was strongly rejected once again.
On June 3rd, Schering-Plough announced that they had received FDA approval to market a combination of ribavirin and interferon alpha for the treatment of hepatitis C. This approval was granted for people with hepatitis C, who had previously responded to interferon alone but relapsed, meaning their "liver enzymes" went back up after treatment.
This information is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.