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New Drug May Offer Ways to Tame Menopause That I’Ll Ever Be Able to Go the Rest Seemed to Have Everything

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New Drug May Offer Ways to Tame Menopause That I’Ll Ever Be Able to Go the Rest Seemed to Have Everything Treating Alcoholism: A Chronic Disease (NAPSA)—Lisa R. is a child of receive treatment.iii In the last an alcoholic. She grew up in a nice “I used to think, there’s no way decade, there have been few home with a loving family who advances in the treatment of New Drug May Offer Ways To Tame Menopause that I’ll ever be able to go the rest seemed to have everything. Inside alcohol dependence. (NAPSA)—Since it was discov- her house there was a very differ- of my life without a drink.” The first new medication in ered that the risks of hormone ent story that her family kept nearly a decade to be approved by therapy outweighed the benefits, from friends and the community. the FDA for the treatment of alco- –Lisa R. ® scientists have been searching for Lisa’s mother was an alcoholic hol dependence, Campral (acam- a safe, natural way to alleviate who drank every single day and research have produced a better prosate calcium) Delayed-Release the symptoms of menopause. eventually died from liver disease understanding of the physiological Tablets, from Forest Laboratories, Participants are currently when Lisa was just 22 years old. changes of the brain from chronic, Inc., is indicated for the mainte- being recruited for a follow-up Now, at age 35, Lisa is in recovery long-term exposure to alcohol,” nance of abstinence from alcohol clinical trial of a treatment known from the very same disease. said Barbara Mason, Ph.D. of the in patients who are abstinent at as MF101 developed by Bionovo, Almost one-fourth of children Scripps Research Institute in La treatment initiation. Campral Inc. In its initial clinical trial, in the United States are exposed Jolla, California. “The normal bal- should be part of a comprehensive MF101 provided women in the to alcohol abuse or dependence in ance of brain chemistry is dis- management program that in- study with preliminary evidence their families before the age of rupted in a patient who is addicted cludes psychosocial support.iv of relief from such symptoms as 18.i Yet many alcoholics tackle to alcohol. We believe that restor- In clinical trials, Campral has hot flashes and night sweats, this disease alone, viewing it as a ing a normal balance of brain been proven to not only help alco- without the risks associated with test of personal willpower, rather chemistry effectively helps patients hol-dependent patients maintain hormone therapy. than seeking help. maintain sobriety.” abstinence, but also significantly The treatment being tested “I had no idea alcohol addiction Alcoholism continues to be a prolong the time to first drink.iii clinically targets only one of the was a disease when I was growing problem—one that costs the United Like many alcoholics, Lisa has two known estrogen receptors— up. I just thought my mother acted States $185 billion in direct and gone through several unsuccessful the estrogen receptor beta. Labo- A new treatment for menopausal that way because she felt like it,” indirect social costs per year.i These attempts to treat her dependence ratory data has shown that symptoms may provide a safer said Lisa, a mother of three daugh- costs may be explained by the fact on alcohol. However, this past MF101 does not cause the prolif- alternative to currently available ters. “It wasn’t until I found myself that many patients with the dis- March she found that combining eration of breast or uterine cancer hormone therapies. in the same boat that I began to ease are not being diagnosed or behavioral therapy with the pre- cells the way hormone therapy Book: The Experts Help You Make understand her more. I just felt treated. In fact, 82 percent of Amer- scription medication called Cam- can, making the drug a safer Informed Decisions on HRT, Nat- hopeless. I’d resigned myself that I ica’s doctors say they avoid ad- pral is the most effective treat- alternative to currently available ural Hormone Therapy, Herbal was just going to die like my dressing the issue of alcoholism ment for her. Lisa said, “I used to hormone therapies. Therapies, Traditional Chinese mother because there was no help with their patients.ii Surprisingly, think, there’s no way that I’ll ever In 2002, the Women’s Health Medicine And More” (Avery, 2006) for this.” the majority of families of alco- be able to go the rest of my life Initiative (WHI) Estrogen Plus and Chief Medical Officer of In order for people with alcohol holics whose doctor had not inter- without a drink. But now, with the Progestin Trial, with over 16,000 Bionovo, which is developing the dependence to get the necessary vened say they wanted their doctor medication I am on and the hard women participants, was stopped drug. help, it is important that health to intervene.ii work with group therapy, I find I early when it was found that the The clinical trials will take care providers recognize alcoholism Eight million people suffer can resist the need to drink.” Lisa standard dose of combination place under the directorship of is a disease that can be treated. from alcohol dependence,i yet has been abstinent ever since hormone therapy increased the renowned researcher Dr. Deborah “New advances in scientific only approximately 20 percent starting that treatment program. risk of breast cancer, stroke, Grady at four leading academic ! heart attacks, blood clots and medical centers. dementia. Bionovo expects this Phase 2 ® Campral (acamprosate calcium) is contraindicated in patients with severe renal impairment (creatinine clearance 30mL/min). Campral “Given the void that exists for a trial to be completed by the second is contraindicated in patients with known hypersensitivity to acamprosate calcium or any excipients used in the formulation. Campral does safe and effective treatment for quarter of 2007. not eliminate or diminish withdrawal symptoms. Alcohol-dependent patients, including those patients being treated with Campral, should be monitored for the development of symptoms of depression or suicidal thinking. The most common adverse events reported with Campral menopausal symptoms, our aim is “If this new drug proves to be vs. placebo (≥3% and higher than placebo) were asthenia, diarrhea, flatulence, nausea and pruritus. to discover and develop novel effective, we will be providing Campral is a registered trademark of Merck Santé s.a.s, subsidiary of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. drugs such as MF101 that can health care practitioners with a For more information, please visit www.campral.com. abate many of the symptoms that treatment they can comfortably i Grant, B.F.; Dawson, D.A.; Stinson, F.S.; Chou, S.P.; Dufour, M.C.; Pickering, R. The 12-month prevalence and trends in DSM-IV alco- have historically been treated recommend to women experiencing hol abuse and dependence: United States, 1991-1992 and 2001-2002. Drug and Alcohol Dependence 2004; (74); 223-234. with hormones,” said Dr. Mary menopause,” said Dr. Tagliaferri. ii The Rush Study. Attitudes Toward Alcoholism. Peter D. Hart Research Associates on behalf of the Rush Recovery Institute. 1998. Tagliaferri. Tagliaferri is co- For more information, log on to Available at: www.rushrecoveryinstitute.org. Accessed: January 25, 2005. author of “The New Menopause www.bionovo.com. iii Data on File, Forest Laboratories, Inc. slide. iv Campral® (acamprosate calcium) Delayed-Release Tablet Prescribing Information, Forest Laboratories, Inc., St. Louis, MO, 2004. (NAPSA)—High-quality bell peppers, summer squash and cucumbers are crisp, fresh and abundant at the supermarket. Mexico exports far more than just chiles, avocados, tomatoes and *** limes. For more information When angry, count ten before about fresh Mexican produce, (NAPSA)—California-Style visit www.freshfrommexico.com. you speak; if very angry, a Buttered Pasta couldn’t be sim- fleas and other insects, visit hundred. * * * pler to prepare, combining cooked Instead of overloading the car www.pestworld.org or contact a pasta with the rich natural taste —Thomas Jefferson with Lego bricks and coloring pest professional. *** of California butter. The delicious books, many parents are taking * * * dish comes together as quickly as along all-in-one gadgets, such as The iconic Doublemint Twins you can cook the pasta. A topping smartphones, to keep children first appeared only as illustra- of toasted bread crumbs adds a entertained. Kids stay busy surf- tions in print advertising for the pleasing crunch. And for a *** ing the Web, playing games and famous gum in 1939. Now uniquely California variation, Wit is the only wall between us snapping photos. Smartphones, there’s a new kind of twin asso- substitute grated Dry Jack for and the dark. such as the Palm Treo 650 smart- ciated with the 90-plus-year-old Parmesan. Dry Jack is an aged —Mark van Doren phone, combine a mobile phone, trademark minty taste: Dou- form of the ever-popular Mon- *** Internet access, e-mail, organizer, blemint Twins mints. Like the terey Jack, both of which were games and more into one compact namesake gum, these mints created in California. bread.com or mailed to: Wonder device. offer “double good, double fun” * * * Recipe and Memory Search; Attn: * * * but with a blend of two flavors Before connecting or lighting a Susannah Brown; 12 East Armour *** A stitch in time—at 1,000 in a single mint. They are avail- propane gas grill, use a leak- Boulevard; Kansas City, MO It isn’t what they say about you, stitches a minute, a sewing able in both Wintercreme and detection solution to check con- 64111. 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