Reuters Health News Summary

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Sun Pharma to buy US drugmaker Organon for $11.75 billion in India's largest pharma deal

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries will buy U.S. drugmaker Organon & Co in an all-cash deal valued at about $11.75 billion including debt, for the largest overseas acquisition by an Indian ​pharmaceutical company. The move comes as Sun, India's biggest drugmaker by market value, steps up a push into higher-margin specialty medicines with a sharper focus on areas such as dermatology, oncology and ​obesity to offset declining U.S. sales.

Humana partners with Mark Cuban's Cost Plus Drugs on technology, distribution

Humana announced on Monday it will ‌launch a pharmacy partnership ​with Mark Cuban's Cost Plus Drugs, with the health conglomerate's CenterWell pharmacy unit serving as a distributor for the platform. CenterWell will begin using SwiftyRx, Cost Plus Drugs' digital platform, to process prescriptions. The partnership will also allow Humana to offer mail-order prescriptions to qualifying company employees enrolled in Humana's employee health plans.

With Bayer at US Supreme Court, MAHA rallies against pesticides

"Make America Healthy Again" activists rallied at the U.S. Supreme Court building on Monday against Bayer as the justices heard arguments in the German company's effort to end thousands of lawsuits that allege its weedkiller Roundup causes cancer. A couple of hundred MAHA supporters cheered and ‌chanted on the sidewalk outside the neoclassical white marble edifice during a rally called "The People vs. Poison," waving signs with slogans such as "No Immunity for Poison" and "How Much Cancer is Acceptable?"

Britain's lifetime smoking ban set to become law

Britain's plans to ban future generations from buying cigarettes will become law this week, ushering in a policy still overshadowed by questions over how effective it will be in stopping smoking. Lawmakers last week approved the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, which introduces a rolling age restriction permanently barring anyone born on or after January 1, 2009 from buying cigarettes.

Ligand Pharma to acquire fellow biotech royalty rights buyer XOMA for $739 million

Ligand Pharmaceuticals will buy fellow biotechnology royalty aggregator XOMA Royalty for about $739 million in cash, the companies said on Monday. The deal adds more than 120 treatments, including seven marketed products, boosting Ligand's portfolio to more than 200 drugs that are in development or already on ‌the market. Shares of XOMA surged 9.7%, while Ligand's were up 1.6%.

US DEA medical marijuana registration portal to launch Wednesday

Companies seeking to register as medical marijuana dispensaries after U.S. President Donald Trump ordered the rescheduling of cannabis can do so starting on Wednesday, according to a notice on the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration's website. The DEA's medical marijuana registration portal will go live Wednesday at 9 a.m. EST, less than ‌a week after the U.S. Justice Department announced that it would immediately loosen restrictions on some marijuana products and move quickly to reclassify the drug as less dangerous.

Polish nine-day charity stream breaks records to support kids with cancer

A nine-day, non-stop live stream in Poland raised a record-breaking sum for charity, local media said on Monday, after donations totalling over 250 million zlotys ($69 million) flooded in for children with cancer. Broadcast from a small flat in Warsaw, the stream was organised by influencer Piotr Hancke, better known as Latwogang, and was supported by musicians, celebrities and sports stars including six-times Grand Slam champion tennis player Iga Swiatek and Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski.

Intellia's gene therapy for rare disease cuts swelling attacks in late-stage trial

Intellia Therapeutics said on Monday its experimental gene-editing therapy reduced the frequency of swelling attacks in patients with a rare genetic disorder in a late-stage trial, sending the company's shares 3% higher. The results prompted Intellia to start a rolling submission of its data for the gene therapy as the company aims for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's ⁠approval next year, the ​company said.

US Supreme Court split over Bayer's fight against Roundup lawsuits

The U.S. Supreme Court appeared divided on Monday over ⁠Bayer AG's effort to shut down thousands of lawsuits accusing the company of failing to warn users that the active ingredient in its Roundup weedkiller causes cancer. The justices heard arguments in the German drugmaking and crop science company's appeal of a jury verdict in Missouri state court awarding $1.25 million to a man named John Durnell who said he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma after years of exposure to glyphosate in Roundup.

EU prosecutors investigate suspected COVID procurement fraud in Romania

EU prosecutors said on Monday they were investigating 1.5 million ⁠euros ($1.76 million) of suspected fraud related to the public procurement of medical equipment in Romania during the COVID pandemic in 2021. Representatives of the unidentified company that won the contract are suspected of offering bribes to public officials at the Braşov County Emergency Hospital to tailor tender specifications in their favour, the European Public Prosecutor's Office statement said.

Eli Lilly to buy Ajax Therapeutics for up to $2.3 billion in blood cancer bet

Eli Lilly said on Monday it would buy privately held cancer drug ​developer Ajax Therapeutics for up to $2.3 billion in cash, as the U.S. drugmaker looks to expand its oncology pipeline. Lilly has been doubling down on its search for next-generation cancer treatments with its recent dealmaking spree, acquiring companies such as Scorpion Therapeutics, Orna Therapeutics and Kelonia Therapeutics.

Seaport, Hemab launch US IPOs as biotech listings gather momentum

Drug developers Seaport Therapeutics and Hemab Therapeutics launched their ⁠U.S. initial public offerings on Monday, seeking to capitalize on a growing investor appetite for new listings. The U.S. IPO market has regained momentum this month, as improving risk appetite and stronger investor sentiment encourage companies across sectors to pursue listings, despite the risks a prolonged Middle East conflict have been posing.

FDA proposes to withdraw Amgen's drug for rare autoimmune diseases over effectiveness

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) has proposed withdrawing approval of Amgen's drug for rare autoimmune diseases, citing a lack of proven effectiveness and ⁠false ​statements in its original application. In March, the agency identified 76 cases of drug-induced liver injury with evidence suggesting a causal link to Tavneos, including seven cases of vanishing bile duct syndrome (VBDS), a rare condition that can cause permanent liver damage. Eight deaths were reported among those cases.

Novartis receives European Commission approval for Rhapsido skin disease drug

Novartis has received European Commission approval for its drug Rhapsido, an oral treatment for chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU), the Swiss drugmaker said on Monday. "Rhapsido is the first oral targeted treatment approved for CSU, offering a unique approach to CSU treatment in a pill taken twice daily without any lab monitoring required," the company said in a statement.

Explainer-What does Bayer's US Supreme Court case mean for the thousands of Roundup lawsuits?

The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments on Monday in Bayer's bid to limit thousands of lawsuits alleging that ⁠the German company's Roundup weedkiller causes cancer in a case that is one part of sprawling years-long litigation over the product. Here is a look at how the court's decision, which is expected by the end of June, could affect Bayer's overall liability.

Thermo Fisher to sell microbiology business to PE firm Astorg for over $1 billion

Medical equipment maker Thermo Fisher Scientific said on Monday it would sell its microbiology business ⁠to private equity firm Astorg for about $1.08 billion. Deal consists of cash and a $50 million seller note.

After waiting years for justice, ⁠many Purdue opioid victims are defeated — by paperwork

Tammy Blanton's life unraveled after years of taking opioids initially prescribed for migraines, according to her daughter Mary Anne, who says the drugs left her mother isolated, unemployed and estranged from her family. Tammy was given opioid prescriptions by multiple providers for decades — receiving more than 200 pills a month on average during one two-year period — and a medical examiner later concluded that oxycodone and extended-release morphine, along with alcohol and anti-anxiety drugs, contributed to her accidental death at age 58 in 2017.

J&J sees AI halving the time to generate drug development leads

Johnson & Johnson is using artificial intelligence to slash by ‌half the time it takes to generate new leads for developing drugs, ‌the company's chief information officer said on Monday. Discovering new products outright and bringing them to market using AI is not yet possible, but J&J is using the new technology to screen the "potential universe" for promising chemical ​compounds or biologics, CIO Jim Swanson said at the Reuters Momentum AI event in New York.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)