Ending Development: Novartis said it will no longer seek to develop its cancer drug Tasigna as a first-line treatment for a certain type of stomach cancer, the WSJ reports . The drug is unlikely to outperform the company’s Gleevec, now used to treat the disease, the paper says. Anticipating Bids? : Exelixis expects takeover offers now that its experimental prostate-cancer drug showed positive results and has hired Goldman Sachs in preparation, reports Bloomberg News , citing people with knowledge of the matter. Exelixis wouldn’t comment to BN, saying it had a long-time relationship with Goldman. Positive Results: In a late-stage trial, Biogen Idec’s oral multiple sclerosis drug BG-12 reduced the number of patient relapses compared to a

fake drug, the WSJ reports . Full data will be presented at a medical meeting, the company says, while results from another late-stage trial are due out in the second half of the year. Screening Study: Research published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology finds that prostate-cancer screening rates don’t decline with age, despite public-health recommendations that screening should stop at 75 or when life expectancy is less than 10 years, the New York Times reports . The study finds that men in their 80s are being screened as often as those in their 50s, the paper reports. Image: iStockphoto

Here is the original:
A.M. Vitals: Novartis Won’t Develop Tasigna for Rare Stomach Cancer