Roche warns of fake cancer drug

Roche warns of fake cancer drug

WASHINGTON

The maker of the widely prescribed cancer drug Avastin is warning doctors and patients about counterfeit vials of the product that have been distributed in the U.S.

Roche’s Genentech unit said Tuesday that the fake products do not contain the key ingredient in Avastin, which is used to treat cancers of the colon, lung, kidney and brain. The drug is a huge money-maker for Roche, generating about $6 billion a year.

A spokeswoman said the counterfeit drug has been distributed to health-care facilities in the U.S., though it’s unclear how many vials are in circulation or where they may be concentrated.

358 confirmed dead in prison fire

COMAYAGUA, Honduras

A Honduran supreme- court judge says officials have confirmed 358 dead in a prison fire, making it the worst of its kind in at least a century.

Justice Richard Ordonez, who is leading the investigation, said that with 856 prisoners packed into barracks, the farm prison in the Comayagua province north of the capital was at double capacity.

Some 115 bodies have been sent to the morgue in the capital of Tegucigalpa.

A 1930 prison fire in Ohio killed 322 people.

Gov. defends flags at half-staff for singer

NEWARK, N.J.

Gov. Chris Christie on Wednesday strongly defended his decision to have flags lowered to half-staff Saturday for Whitney Houston, saying he rejects criticism that she “forfeited the good things that she did” because of her struggles with substance abuse.

The Republican governor said his office has been receiving emails and other messages disparaging Houston and attacking his decision to have flags flown at half-staff at state government buildings Saturday, the day of her funeral in the Newark church where she sang in the choir as a child.

In online postings, there were two main arguments against the honor for the “I Will Always Love You” singer, who died over the weekend in California at age 48: One was that it should be reserved for members of the military, first responders and elected officials. The other was that it’s wrong to honor a drug addict.

Iran says it’s ready for nuclear talks

WASHINGTON

Iran has told world powers it is ready to resume talks as soon as possible over its disputed nuclear program, according to a letter obtained Wednesday by The Associated Press, an offer that could reflect its difficulty in coping with tough U.S. and European sanctions, or amount to another delaying tactic as it moves ahead with activities that could bring it closer to developing an atomic bomb.

The letter from chief Iranian nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili was sent Tuesday, just a day before Iran claimed two major advances in producing nuclear fuel and indicated it was on the verge of imposing an oil embargo on European countries to retaliate for sanctions.

‘Personhood’ for embryos in Okla.

OKLAHOMA CITY

The Oklahoma Senate has overwhelmingly approved an anti-abortion “personhood” bill that declares life begins at conception.

The vote Wednesday upset doctors who fear the proposed law will jeopardize reproductive medicine.

The bill now heads to the House, where it is expected to pass. Republican Gov. Mary Fallin typically won’t comment on pending legislation, but she has described herself as strongly “pro-life.”

Associated Press