Amylin Pharmaceuticals and Eli Lilly have entered, in principle, into a joint supply agreement for an exenatide once weekly pen device. The companies also have initiated a phase 1/2 clinical study to examine a new exenatide once weekly suspension formulation.

Survival rates from out-of-hospital sudden cardiac arrest almost doubled when professional rescuers using cardiopulmonary resuscitation gave better chest compressions and minimized interruptions to them, according to research reported May 4 in Circulation.

Rosuvastatin (Crestor from AstraZeneca) significantly reduced the occurrence of symptomatic venous thromboembolism (VTE) in the atria of apparently healthy persons, according to a sub-study of the JUPITER trial published in the April 30 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Patients newly diagnosed with hypertension, diabetes or high cholesterol are significantly more likely to delay initiating recommended drug treatment if they face higher co-payments for medications, according to a study published in the April 27 edition of the Archives of Internal Medicine.

The value of the global pharmaceutical market is expected to grow 2.5 to 3.5 percent on a constant-dollar basis in 2009--two percentage points lower than indicated in October 2008, as deterioration in the global economic environment continues to affect market demand, according to a report from IMS Health.

Cigna has reached an agreement with Merck through which its customers can have access to increased discounts on Merck's oral anti-diabetes medications Januvia and Janumet--if Cigna provides evidence supporting medication use and glycemic control improvement in patients.

In 2008, the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation honored Roman Matlaga with its first-ever People Saving People award for saving the life of a fellow basketball player who had collapsed during a game.After Matlaga administered CPR and one AED (automated external defibrillator) shock, the stricken man awoke and asked, "Did we win?" Although Matlaga is an emergency physician, he stressed that it doesn't take a doctor to save a life. "Any one of my teammates could have taken charge of the situation," he said.

Eli Lilly has released its financial results for the first quarter of 2009, posting a 24 percent increase in net income of $1.31 billion, compared with $961.9 million from the same period last year.