A targeted treatment has had unprecedented success in shrinking a rare brain tumor, according to clinical trial results. These tumors are papillary craniopharyngiomas (PCPs), and the drug combo is called vemurafenib/cobimetinib. Each of 15 patients who received one or more cycles of targeted therapy responded to treatment, with an average 91% reduction in tumor size, Mass General Cancer Center researchers reported. PCPs can cause substantial health problems. They are typically treated with surgery and radiation, but incomplete removal of the tumor and toxicity from radiation can leave patients with lifelong health challenges after treatment. This can include neuroendocrine dysfunction, as well as vision or memory loss. “All patients who completed one or more cycles of therapy responded to treatment, which is the highest response rate to date of any medical therapy for brain tumors,” said study co-author Dr. Priscilla Brastianos, director of the cancer center’s Central Nervous System Metastasis Center. “These unprecedented results signal a paradigm shift for targeting brain tumors because they show that, with the right target and the right drugs, precision medicine can have a dramatic impact on brain tumors,” Brastianos added in a hospital news release. This was the first multicenter treatment protocol in this rare tumor, according to Mass General Cancer Center, which led the study. The findings were based on laboratory discoveries by researchers who studied the genetic drivers…  read on >  read on >

Teens who use stimulant medication like Ritalin to treat attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) do not have an increased risk of illicit drug use later, a new study finds. This study looked specifically at cocaine and methamphetamine use. High school seniors who used stimulant therapy were no more likely to use cocaine or methamphetamine as young adults (ages 19 to 24) than their peers who didn’t use stimulant therapy, the researchers found. “These findings should be comforting to parents who have teenagers taking stimulants for ADHD, who worry that these medications may lead to use of illicit stimulants like cocaine or methamphetamine as their children enter young adulthood and become more independent,” lead researcher Sean Esteban McCabe said in a University of Michigan news release. He’s a professor of nursing and director of the Center for the Study of Drugs, Alcohol, Smoking and Health. Some past research has tied ADHD to an increased risk for illicit drug use, so these findings should reassure concerned parents, the study team stressed. However, the researchers also found that teens who misuse prescription stimulants were significantly more likely to use these illicit drugs as young adults. Moreover, the frequency of misuse matters. About 20% of high school seniors who misused prescription stimulants like Ritalin (methylphenidate) or Adderall started using cocaine or methamphetamine in young adulthood. And 34% of teens who misused…  read on >  read on >

The European Medicines Agency is investigating concerns that popular weight-loss drugs like Ozempic and Saxenda may be linked to suicidal thoughts and thoughts of self-harm. Three case reports from Iceland spurred the agency’s safety committee to conduct a medication review, CNN reported Monday. The EMA is Europe’s equivalent of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The Icelandic Medicines Agency reported two cases of suicidal thoughts. One happened after use of Ozempic (semaglutide) and the other after taking Saxenda (liraglutide). The third report was about Saxenda and thoughts of self-injury. Both drugs are made by Novo Nordisk. The company said, “patient safety is a top priority,” adding it takes “all reports about adverse events from use of our medicines very seriously,” CNN reported. Prescribing information in the United States for Saxenda includes a recommendation to monitor patients for depression or suicidal thoughts, but Ozempic does not carry a similar warning. The weight-loss drug Wegovy (semaglutide, the same active ingredient as in Ozempic) includes in its prescribing information that reports of suicidal behavior and ideation have occurred in clinical trials with other weight-management medications, the news report said. Clinical trials in adults for Saxenda found that nine people among 3,300 reported suicidal ideation, while two in 1,900 reported suicidal ideation while on a placebo in those drug trials, CNN reported. One adult taking Saxenda attempted suicide, the…  read on >  read on >