Hold on to your hats! The new Medicare-approved Drug Discount Cards that are scheduled to become available in June 2004 will not only entitle Medicare beneficiaries to lower drug prices but will also send the drug industry on a wild ride over the next 18 months.

Manufacturer: Sanofi-Synthelabo, Inc. Drug Class: Platinum antineoplastic agent Description: Oxaliplatin for injection is an organoplatinum complex in which the platinum atom is joined with 1,2-diamino-cyclohexane (DACH) and with an oxalate ligand as a “leaving group,” an atom (or group of atoms) that is displaced as stable species and takes the bonding electrons with it. Oxali-platin [...]

Manufacturer: Eli Lilly Drug Class: Antifolate antineoplastic agent Description: Pemetrexed for injection exerts its action by disrupting folate-dependent metabolic processes that are essential for cell replication. By inhibiting dihydrofolate reduc-tase, thymidylate synthase, and glycinamide ribonucleotide formyl transferase, it interrupts the de novo synthesis of both purines and pyrimidines. As a single agent, it is active [...]

Cetuximab (Erbitux™) for IV Use Only
Manufacturer: Imclone Systems, Inc./Bristol-Myers Squibb
Drug Class: Recombinant, human/mouse chimeric monoclonal antibody
Description: Cetuximab binds specifically to the extracellular domain of human epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). Produced in mammalian (murine myeloma) cell culture, cetuximab is composed of the fragment variable (Fv) regions of a murine anti-EGFR antibody with human immunoglobulin G1 [...]

The future looks bright for individuals living with chronic hepatitis B. Only a decade ago there were no treatment options. Although there is still no complete cure for hepatitis B, there are 7 approved drugs for adults (2 for children) and many promising new drugs in development. Current treatments seem to be most effective in [...]