Weight-Loss Drug Benefit Spans HFpEF, HFmrEF
CLEVELAND — Semaglutide 2.4 mg (Wegovy) improved outcomes across the range of moderately reduced and preserved ejection fraction in heart failure (HFmrEF, HFpEF) related to obesity, a prespecified secondary analysis of the STEP-HFpEF trial showed. The benefits were consistent across subgroups, reported Javed Butler, MD, MPH, MBA, of the Baylor Scott and White Research Institute […]
Fezolinetant Benefits Women Not Suited for Hormone Therapy
PHILADELPHIA — Fezolinetant (Veozah) improved menopause-related vasomotor symptoms in women unsuited or unwilling to take hormone therapy, according to a pooled analysis of two phase III studies. The analysis of the SKYLIGHT-1 and -2 trials showed significant improvements with two different dosages of the newly approved drug versus placebo in both the frequency and severity […]
Complete PCI Better for Older MI Patients Too
AMSTERDAM — Complete revascularization improved outcomes over culprit-lesion-only stenting in older acute myocardial infarction (MI) patients, the FIRE trial affirmed. Among a population ages 75 and older, the composite risk of death, MI, stroke, or any revascularization came out a relative 27% less common when addressing all the stenosed vessels during the same hospitalization (15.7% […]
COX-2 Inhibitor Added to Levonorgestrel Improved Emergency Contraception Efficacy
Taking the oral cyclo-oxygenase (COX)-2 inhibitor piroxicam in combination with levonorgestrel improved emergency contraception efficacy versus levonorgestrel alone, with no additional adverse events, a randomized controlled trial showed. Piroxicam 40 mg combined with levonorgestrel 1.5 mg prevented 94.7% of expected pregnancies compared with 63.4% with levonorgestrel plus placebo (P<0.0001), reported Raymond Hang Wun Li, MD, […]
More Transparency Needed in Healthcare, House Members Told
The U.S. healthcare system would be greatly improved by more transparency from all players, including hospitals, pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), and insurers, members of Congress and witnesses agreed Wednesday at a House hearing. “For too long medical prices have been shrouded in mystery and patients have lived in fear of how much their medical bills […]
Hemodiafiltration Reduced Dialysis Mortality in Kidney Failure
High-dose hemodiafiltration improved survival compared with standard hemodialysis for patients with kidney failure resulting in the need for kidney-replacement therapy, according to the randomized CONVINCE trial. High-dose hemodiafiltration cut all-cause mortality to 17.3% compared with 21.9% on conventional high-flux hemodialysis over a median 30 months of follow-up (HR 0.77, 95% CI 0.65-0.93), reported researchers led […]
Novel IDH1/2 Inhibitor Shows ‘Dramatic Effect’ in Low-Grade Glioma
CHICAGO — Oral vorasidenib monotherapy significantly improved progression-free survival (PFS), and delayed the time to next therapy, in patients with mutated, low-grade glioma, according to an interim analysis of the INDIGO trial. Among 331 patients with grade 2 isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH)-mutant glioma, who received no prior treatment other than surgery, those randomly assigned to receive […]
CDK4/6 Extends Reach Into Early-Stage Breast Cancer
CHICAGO — Adding ribociclib (Kisqali) to adjuvant endocrine therapy significantly improved invasive disease-free survival (iDFS) in patients with early-stage, high-risk breast cancer and hormone receptor (HR)-positive/HER2-negative disease, an interim analysis of a large phase III study found. In the NATALEE trial, which included patients with node-negative disease, the CKD4/6 inhibitor plus endocrine therapy combination resulted […]
Perioperative Toripalimab Prolongs EFS in Stage III Lung Cancer
Adding an investigational anti-PD-1 drug to perioperative chemotherapy improved event-free survival (EFS) in patients with resectable, stage III non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), an interim analysis of a phase III study found. Among 404 patients receiving perioperative chemotherapy in the so-called Neotorch trial, the median investigator-assessed EFS was not reached in patients assigned to toripalimab, […]
TEER Improves Quality of Life With Severe Tricuspid Regurgitation
NEW ORLEANS — Transcatheter edge-to-edge repair (TEER) of severely regurgitant tricuspid valves improved outcomes, largely in terms of quality of life, the TRILUMINATE Pivotal trial showed. Compared with medical therapy alone, the percutaneous placement of an investigational TriClip device to hold the leaflets together was favored in a Bayesian analysis with a win ratio of […]