Roche Disappoints on Weak Flu Drug Sales
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BASEL, Switzerland  - Core net profit at Roche  Holding AG rose by less than expected in 2004 despite strong  sales of cancer drugs, as products such as flu drug Tamiflu  suffered a weaker fourth quarter.
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Chiron Corp. CHIR.O on Tuesday  slashed its 2004 earnings forecast after announcing that it  will not record any sales of its flu vaccine for the 2004-2005  flu season, sending its shares down 18 percent.
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GlaxoSmithKline Plc is exploring ways to sell its Fluarix flu vaccine in the United States, where supplies have run short this season after Chiron Corp lost a year&#39;s production to contamination.
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Drug-maker posts tepid results as it bides time before new products hit the market.
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Shares of Chiron Corp. CHIR.O fell 7  percent before the market open on Friday, a day after the  biopharmaceutical company said it is delaying shipment of its  flu vaccine, Fluvirin, because lots containing 4 million  vaccines do not meet product sterility standards.
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The flu vaccinations that doctors hoped  would save the lives of fragile elderly people have apparently  failed to lower death rates, U.S. researchers said on Monday.
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Influenza viruses are quickly evolving resistance to the few drugs on the market that fight them, but there are weaknesses that could be exploited, experts told a conference on Tuesday.
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Flu vaccine manufacturer expected to report significantly lower profits.
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Swiss pharmaceutical giant Roche on Thursday announced third-quarter sales up 9 percent from the same period last year, driven by strong growth from its two leading cancer treatments.
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While the FDA contends otherwise, new data show that sales of the antidepressants known as SSRIÂs have declined.
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This season's flu-shot shortage is enticing companies to enter a market that others have largely abandoned because of poor profits.- The Washington Post
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WASHINGTON -- Even before the latest fiasco over flu vaccine supply, companies were working to streamline the process of making vaccine, but experts say the major obstacle remains: There&#39;s too little demand for the shots -- and too little reward.
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NEW YORK (CBS.MW) -- Chiron&#39;s shares sank 8 percent Friday after two analyst downgrades sparked by news that shipments of Fluvirin, the company&#39;s flu vaccine, will be delayed because some doses are contaminated.
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Children with flu who are given Tamiflu, Roche AG's influenza pill, are 53 percent less likely to develop pneumonia than untreated children, the company reported on Friday.
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Roche Holding AG said Monday it will produce enough doses of the drug Tamiflu to cover this year's influenza season.
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The company cited lower sales of some of its most important health care products, including stents and an anemia drug whose sales were hurt by safety questions.
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Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG   missed forecasts with a 42 percent drop in  fourth-quarter net profit, hit by generic competition and a  one-off restructuring charge, sending its shares lower.