October 10 Pharmacy Week in Review: Women Pharmacists Day Celebrated, HPV Vaccine Use Expanded

This weekly video program provides our readers with an in-depth review of the latest news, product approvals, FDA rulings, and more. Our Week in Review is a can't miss for the busy pharmacy professional.

Nicole Grassano, Host: Hello and welcome to the Pharmacy Times News Network. I’m Nicole Grassano your host for our Pharmacy Week in Review.

The inaugural Women Pharmacist Day will be commemorated today, in conjunction with National Pharmacist Month, to recognize the important contributions female pharmacists make every day to deliver quality care to patients, and conference organizers at the National Community Pharmacy Association's Annual Convention last weekend reminded pharmacists to celebrate, Pharmacy Times reported.

Although women made up just 8% of all US pharmacists as recently as the 1960s, women now comprise 55% of the pharmacist workforce, and the number of those practicing is on the rise. About 61% of the 14,000 PharmDs earned in the US in 2016 were earned by women, according to a recent statement from Cardinal Health, a Women Pharmacist Day sponsor.

NCPA conference organizers said that Women Pharmacist Day is an excellent opportunity to celebrate the significant gains women have made in pursuing careers in pharmacy, while honoring the trailblazers who have made such progress possible.

FDA officials have approved a supplemental application for Merck's Gardasil 9 (Human Papillomavirus (HPV) 9-valent Vaccine, Recombinant) that expands the approved use of the vaccine to include individuals aged 27 to 45 years, Contemporary Clinic reported. The vaccine prevents certain cancers and diseases caused by 9 HPV types.

Every year about 14 million Americans become infected with HPV, and about 12,000 women are diagnosed with and about 4,000 women die from cervical cancer caused by certain HPV viruses, according to the CDC. HPV viruses also are associated with several other forms of cancer that affect men and women.

Type 2 diabetes remains the most common type of diabetes diagnosed in American adults, but rates are increasing among both disease subtypes, Specialty Pharmacy Times reported. A study published in the British Medical Journal used data from the CDC’s National Health Interview Survey to determine how many adults have each type of diabetes in the United States.

The prevalence of diabetes among US adults has been reported in previous studies, but data on the prevalence by subtype have been relatively unknown. Individuals with both type 1 and type 2 diabetes have difficulties producing insulin and require treatment with it for survival.

Pharmacists may get more questions about MiraLAX if their patients have seen a new commercial for the OTC medication. In the spot, called “A Different Solution,” a man says he never knew of a different solution for his constipation until his doctor recommended MiraLAX.

According to the commercial, unlike Dulcolax, Ex-Lax, and Senokot, which stimulate the nerves of the colon, MiraLAX works with the water in the body to unblock naturally.

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Thanks for watching our Pharmacy Week in Review. I’m Nicole Grassano at the Pharmacy Times News Network.