The dermatology department of Jose R. Reyes Memorial Medical Center (JRRMMC) will hold a special screening of Matrix 2: Reloaded May 17 at the Premiere THX Cinema along Milelong Drive in Makati to raise funds for the renovation and expansion of its out-patient section and new dermatology research building.

    Expansion of the section will enable the department to likewise expand and improve its service to the more than 95,000 patients from Metro Manila and the provinces that come for consultation and treatment each year.

    A nationally recognized dermatology center, it provides quality skin health care to patients and offers training and research opportunities for medical professionals. It is a duly accredited training institution by the Philippine Society of Cutaneous Medicine and the Philippine Dermatological Society. All the nine consultants of the department are members of the two societies.

    Headed by Dr. Jesusa Barcelona-Tan, it has eight subspecialty sections, each with an adviser. These are dermatologic surgery (Dr. Agnes Thaebtharm); contact dermatitis, allergy, environmental and occupational dermatology (Dr. Lilian Villafuerte), photodermatology (Dr. Barcelona-Tan); psoriasis (Dr. Elizabeth Tianco); dermatopathology (Dr. Daisy Ismael), immunodermatology (Dr. Benjamin Bince); and general dermatology (Dr. Mercedes Beloso). Dr. Ma. Flordeliz Casintahan is the research coordinator.

    The department was first established in 1956 as the skin and tumor clinic of San Lazaro Hospital, later transformed into the leprosy research and training services of the Bureau of Disease Control under the Ministry of Health.

    In 1975, it was transformed into the dermatology research and training service to expand its scope beyond leprosy.

    It was integrated into the JRRMMC as a department in 1986, with Dr. Ma. Luisa Abad-Venida as its first chair. She was succeeded by Dr. Lillian Lopez-Villafuerte who served from 1999 to 2001.

Pascual Lab Introduces Immuvit

 

Pascual Laboratories recently launched Immuvit, an "immune system booster" developed by noted Swiss pharmacist Karl Heinz Rueckert.

    Immuvit, the latest supplement to hit the local market, contains standardized extracts from Korean and Siberian ginseng, two widely studied varieties of the legendary root.

    Rueckert, chair of Rueckert Pharmaceutical Company who visited the country for the product launch, said the extracts were products of his more than 30 years of research aimed at standardizing them to preserve and enhance their potency.

    Rueckert, more popularly known as "Mr. Ginseng," developed the first standardized ginseng extract known as G115 from the Korean ginseng root, also called the "man-root" because of its shape. Korean ginseng is most highly-prized variety that has been used for centuries as a medicinal herb and aphrodisiac. Russian botanist Carl Anton Meyer called it Panax, meaning "cure all."

    On the other hand, Siberian ginseng is well known in ancient China as a tonic, but the West took note of it only in the 1950s when a Russian scientist discovered its antistress properties. It has been shown to help combat fatigue and alleviate common ailments.

    "RPC ginseng extracts are standardized to 5.5 percent ginsenosides, the active substances that produce increased energy and performance. Each Immuvit capsule contains a consistent level of ginsenosides," said Rueckert.

    He said that laboratory tests they conducted with mice showed that the extracts increased energy as observed in the "57-percent longer swimming time" of mice given the extracts compared to those given placebo. He added that their immune-enhancing properties were shown in blood tests of studies of cancer patients given the RPC ginseng extracts. Microscopic examination showed the good cells being able to ward off the cancer cells, he said.

    Rueckert said that aside from ginseng, Immuvit also contains the well-known antioxidant Coenzyme Q10. Antioxidants have been shown to inhibit cell damage caused by free radicals. It also has nine major vitamins, 14 essential minerals, and beta-carotene, and selenium.

Merck KGaA to Launch New Cancer Drug

DARMSTADT, Germany

Merck KGaA expects to market Erbitux, a new treatment for cancer of the colon or rectum, in Europe next year.

    "We are confident that the drug meets regulatory requirements for application to the European Agency for the Evaluation of Medicinal Products (EMEA)," Merck said following an external review of data from clinical trials. The company said it was "on track" with its plan to file for approval of Erbitux with the EMEA in mid-2003. Merck expects to generate annual sales of up to US$500 million from the drug. Merck KGaA bought the marketing rights for Erbitux outside the United States from ImClone Systems for US$60 million. Bristol-Myers owns the US rights for the drug. AFP

Obagi Points the Way to Skin Health

 

PEELING BLUE Dr. Obagi shows Filipino dermatologists how to do the Obagi Blue Peel, a patient-tailored skin correction method.

Dr. Zein Obagi, founder of the Obagi Skin Health Restoration System, defines beautiful healthy skin as "skin that is smooth and tight, even in color tone, free of disease and sensitivity, naturally hydrated, and functioning properly to combat disease and signs of ageing."

    Last March 14, he was in the country to share this insight, as well as much of his philosophy and expertise on skin health, with Filipino dermatologists at the Asian Institute of Management conference center.

    Obagi points out that to correct the damage that the sun, age, pollution, and bad habits have created over time, one must target not just the skin's surface and the symptoms of skin disease but each individual skin cell and cell functions.

    "The key to beautiful, youthful-looking skin is a comprehensive skin care regimen that stimulates and regulates cellular functions." He explains that the program he has devised acts as a total skin fitness that can be used indefinitely.

    Obagi's treatment philosophy stresses and focuses on skin response, interaction with various treatments, and the suitability of different treatments for a particular skin type.

    His skin health restoration system is a treatment process that uses specially developed products to repair prior skin damage. It also incorporates the Obagi Blue Peel, a revolutionary way of executing a chemical peel.

    This in-office procedure uses a low concentration of the chemical trichloroacetic acid (TCA), mixed with a special blue base to slow penetration. Because it allows the physician to monitor and control the depth and number of coats applied, the process can be tailored to a patient's individual needs. When properly performed, it corrects a variety of facial and nonfacial problems, including surface wrinkles or scars, large pores, and deeper pigmentation.

    The Obagi Circle of Doctors, an association of Obagi prescribing dermatologists, was also launched that day. It will serve as an interaction platform among dermatologists and will answer concerns regarding Obagi Medical Products.

Cream for Stretch Marks Introduced

 

A novel product for the treatment of stretch marks was recently introduced in the Philippines by Axis Unlimited Corporation (AUC). Called Flugena Antismagliature cream, it comes from IDI Farmaceutici Dermocosmetic Line popular in Italy and Europe for cosmetic enhancement and care of skin after aesthetic or cosmetic surgery.

    AUC, which distributes the product in the country, said Flugena Antismagliature is a combination of fine substances containing multi-lamellar liposomes, enriched concentric microspheres that are selectively absorbed by skin cells. Covered with membranes chemically similar to natural cell membranes, they are passively released into areas of striations and need not be massaged for rapid absorption, the company said.

    According to AUC, the cream contains Echinacea angustifolia extracts from the roots of the homonymous plant known for its restorative and protective properties, wheat germ oil (which is rich in unsaturated acids that are important for proper functioning of the cell membranes), panthotenilic alcohol as an epidermal supplement, and soybean lecithin (a blend of vegetable phospholipids present in the liposomes of the product).

    Flugena Antismagliature is available at Cinderella Megamall Branch, Toddler's Nook at Shangri-La Plaza Mall, Procreation Store at Crossing's Department Store, and Blue Mountains Health and Beauty Spa at Le Domaine Condominium in Salcedo Village, Makati.

 

 

 

Novartis Gets into Antivirals

BASEL, Switzerland

Swiss pharmaceutical group Novartis has agreed to buy a 51-percent stake in Idenix, a US biotech company that specializes in antivirals. The agreement also includes rights to key drugs still being developed, Novartis said.

    Idenix, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has a clinical portfolio that includes three "promising" potential treatments for hepatitis. It also has pre-clinical research programs targeting HIV and other viruses, according to Novartis.

    Novartis will pay US$255 million in cash, followed by two payments of US$178.5 million in cash or American Depository Shares, on condition that Idenix's hepatitis C drug receives marketing approval in the US and European Union, it said.

    Idenix will also receive an upfront licensing payment of US$75 million for the hepatitis B products. Further milestone payments are conditioned on the achievement of regulatory approvals and sales targets. AFP