Drug developer Ariad Pharmaceuticals Inc. said Thursday its third-quarter loss widened slightly on overall costs as it continues developing potential cancer treatments.

A day after drugmaker Merck & Co. completed its $41.1 billion purchase of rival Schering-Plough Corp., Fitch Ratings Service on Wednesday cut its ratings on Merck and upgraded Schering-Plough.

The new Merck becomes the world's second-biggest drugmaker overnight, and it's boasting a fat wallet to fund future deals.

The new Merck & Co. has become the world's second-biggest drugmaker overnight with a huge acquisition, but it still has a fat wallet and plans more wheeling and dealing.

Men may protect more than their hearts if they keep cholesterol in line: Their chances of getting aggressive prostate cancer may be lower, new research suggests.

Johnson & Johnson plans to cut up to 7 percent of its workforce in order to generate cost savings needed to finance increasingly costly drug research and to weather future challenges, the diversified healthcare company said on Tuesday.

Johnson & Johnson will eliminate about 6 percent to 7 percent of its global workforce, or some 7,000 to 8,000 positions, as the diversified healthcare company restructures and seeks cost savings, the company said Tuesday.

By Ransdell Pierson

Rigel Pharmaceuticals Inc. said Tuesday its third-quarter loss narrowed as the development-stage biotechnology company completed two midstage studies in its rheumatoid arthritis program.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Pensions for top U.S. executive rose by an average of 19 percent last year, and more than 200 officers saw their retirement savings surge by as much as 50 percent, even as their companies stock prices fell, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday.

U.S. regulators have refused to accept drugmaker Merck & Co.'s application for a new, combination cholesterol pill that includes rival Pfizer's Lipitor, the world's top-selling drug.

Schering-Plough Corp. said its experimental hepatitis C drug boceprevir helped eliminate the virus in about half of patients who did not respond to standard treatments.

Biotechnology giant Amgen Inc and drug wholesaler AmerisourceBergen Corp were sued on Friday by 14 U.S. states and the District of Columbia over an alleged kickback scheme designed to boost sales of Amgen's popular anemia drug, Aranesp.

Sanofi-Aventis SA reported Friday a 6 percent rise in third-quarter profit and said strong sales of its vaccine against swine flu will drive earnings higher than expected for the full year.

Merck & Co. is set to complete its $41 billion acquisition of Schering-Plough Corp. later Tuesday, creating the world's second-largest drugmaker, behind Pfizer Inc.