Pharmaceuticals
Opinion
For subscribers
‘Tip of the iceberg’: Investing in the Ozempic revolution
Investment mania around a new family of drugs that purportedly offer a miracle cure for obesity has made some pharmaceutical companies into supergiants.
- by Elizabeth Knight
Latest
Pfizer’s $14 billion COVID sales warning sparks investor relief
The past few days have been a reckoning for Pfizer, the pharma giant that gained most from the pandemic and has seen the biggest blow from its decline as demand for COVID shots and pills declined.
- by Nacha Cattan
One in three people will get shingles in their lifetime. Now there’s a free vaccine
The Shingrix vaccine will be available for free from November 1 for all over 65s, First Nations people aged over 50 and immunocompromised people over 18.
- by Lisa Visentin
The cold and flu drug you’ve relied on for years doesn’t work
They may be stocked on the shelves of pharmacies and supermarkets across Australia, but the pills you’ve been popping to stop your runny nose are no better than a placebo.
- by Laura Banks
Nobel Prize in Medicine for scientists who paved the way for COVID vaccines
The discoveries of Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman enabled the development of mRNA vaccines against COVID-19 and could be used in the future to create other shots.
- by David Keyton and Mike Corder
Exclusive
Sexual health
Getting the pill just got easier for women in NSW
Ella Hall has applauded the move to give pharmacists the power to prescribe the contraceptive pill, saying it was a big cost saving for women.
- by Laura Banks
New nuclear medicine factory to replace ageing site at Lucas Heights reactor
The improved facility, where radioactive drugs used to diagnose cancer will be produced, will be built at the site of Australia’s only nuclear reactor, in southern Sydney.
- by Liam Mannix
Exclusive
Medicine
Ozempic manufacturer’s sponsored content ‘pushing the boundaries’
An obesity “awareness campaign” by the company behind the world’s top weight-loss drug will be reviewed by the regulator as doctors raise concerns.
- by Mary Ward
Australian-made cancer drug gets billion-dollar US FDA approval
A drug for a lethal bone marrow cancer, invented in Melbourne, is set to become a global blockbuster after US regulators gave it the green light.
- by Liam Mannix
Common anti-anxiety meds turning Australians into accidental addicts
Patients aren’t being properly told about the long-term risk of everyday medications, with Australians developing dependencies on the drugs.
- by Amber Schultz
Opinion
Pharmacy Guild
Pharmacists want to have their cake, eat it, and get another cake for later
Patients being able to get a 60-day supply of medicine will not destroy pharmacies and protesting against these wins isn’t the way to go.
- by Peter Breadon