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WHO says Zika virus spreads explosively, four million cases forecast

By Tom Miles and Stephanie Nebehay GENEVA (Reuters) – The Zika virus, linked to severe birth defects in thousands of babies in Brazil, is “spreading explosively” and could infect as many as 4 million people in the Americas, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday. Director-General Margaret Chan told members of the U.N. health agency's executive board the spread of the mosquito-borne disease had gone from a mild threat to one of alarming proportions. “The level of alarm is extremely high,” Chan told the Geneva gathering.

FTC sues DeVry, alleging school deceived students about job prospects

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission filed a lawsuit against DeVry University, run by DeVry Education Group Inc, on Wednesday alleging the company deceived students about the prospect that they would find work. Share of DeVry were down 17.43 percent at $19.60 following the announcement of the FTC lawsuit around midday on Wednesday. The U.S. Department of Education, which has been cracking down on for-profit schools, said on Wednesday it had ordered DeVry to stop making certain claims about its graduates' employment.

Hong Kong on holiday health alert after China bird flu death

A woman in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen has died after being infected with the highly contagious H5N6 bird flu virus, days after she was admitted to hospital, Hong Kong’s Health Department said on Wednesday. All border check points between Shenzhen and Hong Kong, and the airport, had already introduced disease prevention measures with thermal imaging systems in place, a department spokesman said. Hong Kong culled thousands of chickens and suspended imports of live poultry from mainland China in December 2014 after a H7 bird flu strain was discovered in live chickens.

Baxalta in deal to expand immuno-oncology business

(Reuters) – Drugmaker Baxalta Inc has signed a deal with privately held Symphogen under which the companies will develop immuno-oncology drugs to treat rare cancers. The deal with Symphogen comes as Baxalta approaches the final stages of negotiating a potential sale to rare diseases drugmaker Shire Pharmaceuticals. It would include a cash component of about $20 per share, with the rest of it paid in Shire stock, said the sources, asking not to be identified because the negotiations are confidential.

In first court appearance, Cosby cuts a feeble figure

(Reuters) – The sight of 78-year-old Bill Cosby walking with a cane into a Pennsylvania courthouse as he held the hands of his lawyers on Wednesday was in stark contrast to the spry, wisecracking 1980s TV dad most Americans remember. Cosby’s appearance on Wednesday included a stumble as he walked into the courthouse in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, outside Philadelphia. While Cosby is not reported to have any serious medical conditions, paparazzi photos of him in November leaving his New York townhome with his wife, Camille, supporting him, and looking weak sparked a flurry of rumors on social media that he was dying.

Valeant CEO Pearson remains hospitalized for pneumonia: Bloomberg

Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc Chief Executive J. Michael Pearson has been moved to another hospital where he is being treated for a severe case of pneumonia, a company spokeswoman told Bloomberg on Sunday. Elaine Andrecovich, a public relations manager at Morristown Medical Center, where Pearson initially was admitted for treatment on Friday, confirmed that Pearson is not at the hospital but declined to provide more details. Laurie Little, a Valeant spokeswoman, told Bloomberg that Pearson is still in a hospital but declined to say where.

Liberia monitors over 150 Ebola contacts as virus re-emerges

By James Harding Giahyue MONROVIA (Reuters) – Liberia has placed 153 people under surveillance as it seeks to control a new Ebola outbreak in the capital more than two months after the country was declared free of the virus, health officials said. The first of the new patients was a 15-year-old boy called Nathan Gbotoe from Paynesville, a suburb east of the capital Monrovia. “We have three confirmed cases and have listed 153 contacts, and we have labeled them as high, medium and low in terms of the risk,” Liberia's Chief Medical Officer Dr. Francis Kateh told Reuters late on Saturday.

‘Dangerously high’ antibiotic resistance levels worldwide: WHO

Antibiotic resistance, which can turn common ailments into killers, has reached dangerous levels worldwide, the World Health Organization warned Monday, saying users still know too little about how antibiotics work. Antibiotic resistance happens when bugs become immune to existing drugs, allowing minor injuries and common infections to become deadly. Overuse and misuse of the drugs increases this resistance, but WHO also published a survey of 10,000 people worldwide showing a range of dangerous misconceptions about the threat, which are allowing it to prosper.

Panel recommends Merck & Co continue cholesterol drug study

(Reuters) – Merck & Co said an independent data monitoring committee recommended that the drugmaker continue a study of its experimental cholesterol drug, anacetrapib. The recommendation comes a month after Eli Lilly & Co stopped testing a similar cholesterol drug, belonging to a class of drugs called CETP inhibitors. Merck said on Friday that the committee reviewed safety and efficacy data from the large study, including a futility analysis.