Ceragem Medisys is making inroads into India with its blood glucose checker.
The blood glucose monitor manufacturer, part of the Ceragem Group, a leading manufacturer of thermal massage beds, said that it started supplying Cera Stat, a blood sugar level checker to India on Wednesday. It follows a contract it previously signed with Piramal Healthcare, a leading pharmaceutical firm in India, and Green Cross MS. Piramal Healthcare will be in charge of distribution in the country.
India is the second biggest diabetes market in the world with an estimated 60 million diabetes patients. The figure is expected to continue growing due to a shift toward a Western life-style with associated increasing obesity.
The company plans to expand to India’s neighboring countries in the near future.
Green Cross Corp. said that Hepabig-Gene, a genetically recombined Hepatitis B antibiotic therapy it is currently developing, was designated as an “Orphan Drug” by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The designation is for medicines for rare diseases suffered by less than 200,000 patients. Drug companies whose products are designated as Orphan Drugs get benefits such as tax cuts and quick approval for use.
“The designation is based on the FDA’s determination that ‘Hepabig-Gene’ will greatly improve safety, efficacy and convenience compared with previously developed products derived from blood plasma. We expect to accelerate the clinical testing and approval process in the United States,” a spokesperson for Green Cross Corp. said.
If the development is successful, Hepabig-Gene is likely to be the first genetically recombined hepatitis B therapy in the world.
Seoul National University Hospital is holding a class, “Fatigue in Cancer Patients” at 3 p.m., May 23.
Prof. Oh Bum-jo of Boramae Medical Center will give a lecture on topics such as the cause of fatigue that accompanies cancer treatment, progress of this fatigue, its management and consequences.
The lecture will be held at the Children’s Hospital building in the Seoul National University Hospital Complex in downtown Seoul. The class is open to anybody for free. For more information, contact (02) 2072-0077.
Ewha Womans University Medical Center in western Seoul is holding a symposium on robotic surgery for uterine diseases.
Professors of the gynecological cancer center at the hospital will give presentations on topics such as “Is robotic surgery better than laparoscopic surgery?” and “Misunderstandings and truths about robotic surgery.” The participants can try controlling the robots, which are increasingly used for minimal invasive surgeries, after the lecture.
The symposium will be at 2 p.m., May 22. For further details, contact (02) 2650-5998.
Yonsei University Dental Hospital is holding a class on orthodontic treatment and maxillofacial surgery, or corrective jaw surgery. The presentation will help people understand when they need orthodontic treatment and pros and cons of the corrective jaw surgery that has been wrongly regarded by many as a kind of cosmetic surgery.
For details, call the hospital at (02) 2228-8612.