B Acad Nat Med Paris
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Patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells as well as human embryonic stem cells are pluripotent and their derivation has been used for the understanding of numerous diseases. Currently they are also used for the treatment of neurologic disorders such as Parkinson disease or cardiac disorders. Gene therapy has been successful for the treatment of hemophilia A and B, hemoglobinopathies and immunodeficiencies. Hemopoietic stem cell transplantation is a well-accepted therapeutic strategy for Leukemias, whereas CAR-T cells is a new promising approach even for lymphomas and myeloma.
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B Acad Nat Med Paris · Oct 2020
Review[Biosimilar medicines: Regulatory issues and medico-economic impacts].
The concept of biosimilar medicine was launched by 2001 and 2004 European Directives. First European marketing authorizations were delivered in 2006. They are "copies" of biologically manufactured medicines, mostly proteins. ⋯ Introduction of biosimilar medicines of monoclonal antibodies has represented a remarkable event in the domain of rheumatology, gastroenterology and dermatology with infliximab, etanercept and adalimumab biosimilars and in cancerology domains with rituximab, trastuzumab and bevacizumab biosimilars. Biosimilar medicines availability reduces the risk of drug supply rupture of princeps but their main impact is the economic one allowing cost reduction of costly princeps biological medicines. With the acquired clinical experience, the initial fears concerning switch form princeps to a biosimilar for a given patient has progressively disappeared.
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Since Antiquity, pandemics periodically strike humanity. Plagues of Athens, galenic, justinianic, and medieval plagues provoked millions of deaths, and subsequent famines and socio-political changes. ⋯ The decline of Europe benefited to the USA, dominant power during the XXth century. The present pandemic of coronavirus Covid-19 will have important economic consequences, some of then being unsuspected yet.