Boxing promoter Goossen dies at 64

LOS ANGELES - Boxing promoter Dan Goossen, who handled some of the biggest names in the sport including Mike Tyson, Floyd Mayweather and Bernard Hopkins, died from liver cancer on Monday. He was 64.

"The sudden news of his diagnosis was very much a private matter and his final days were spent surrounded by his family and closest friends," the Goossen family said in a statement.

"Sadness is difficult to escape as we grieve his passing. However, we are filled with pride by the fact that Dan Goossen battled this aggressive illness with boundless strength and the last days of his life were fought and lived with unflinching bravery, pure love and grace beyond measure."

For the past several years, Goossen had been handling Chris Arreola, hoping to make the Los Angeles-based boxer the first heavyweight champion of Mexican ancestry.

Canada's Bermane Stiverne easily defeated Arreola in May for the vacant world heavyweight title at the University of South California. Arreola also lost a world title fight to Vitali Klitschko in 2009 at Staples Center Arena.

Goossen also handled world super-middleweight champ Andre Ward, who is 27-0.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Mark Gil passes away

MANILA -  Veteran actor Mark Gil passed away at 8 a.m. on Monday due to liver cancer, his family confirmed in a statement. He was 52.

Born Raphael Joseph de Mesa Eigenmann, Gil was diagnosed with cancer in 2012 and found out in June this year that it was terminal.

Upon Gil's request, his family had decided to keep secret the condition and refuted reports that the actor was battling the illness.

"It was Ralph's request that this should not be revealed, and we did not question his decision," a statement read. "To those who have asked us about his condition, especially his colleagues, the press and fans, we apologize for not being forthright, but we also ask for understanding."

Gil was among the clan of Eigenmann celebrities in local showbiz. The second child of singer Eddie Mesa and actress Rosemarie Gil, he was a sibling to Michael de Mesa and Cherie Gil, both movie stars.

He is survived by his wife, Maricar, and their daughter Stephanie Cheri, and five other children from three previous relationships. Among his children are TV stars Sid Lucero and Andi Eigenmann.

According to the joint statement of his family, Gil died peacefully in the company of his family members and had been in high spirits during his last days.

Meantime, the Eigenmanns requested that they be given time to mourn Gil's passing privately. They announced that an event celebrating the life and work of Gil will be held on Wednesday, starting at 10 a.m., at the La Salle Greenhills chapel.

Gil rose to fame for his role in the movie “Batch '81.” His other movies include “Underage,” “Indio,” “Miss X” and “Palabra de Honor,” among others.

His TV shows, meanwhile, include “Guns and Roses,” “100 Days to Heaven,” “Walang Hanggan,” “Imortal,” and “Magkaribal.” Gil’s last project with the ABS-CBN was the primetime series “The Legal Wife.”

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Bayer challenges Indian ruling on cheaper cancer drugs

NEW DELHI -- German pharmaceutical giant Bayer AG has challenged a ground-breaking Indian ruling that allowed a local firm to produce a vastly cheaper copy of its patented drug for kidney and liver cancer.

India's patents chief ruled in March the price Bayer charged for the drug, Nexavar, was "exorbitant" and ordered the firm to give a so-called "compulsory licence" to make the medicine to Indian company Natco Pharma.

"We will rigorously continue to defend our intellectual property rights which are a prerequisite for bringing innovative medicines to patients," Bayer spokesman Aloke Pradhan told AFP in an emailed statement on Saturday.

The patent controller's order "damages the international patent system and endangers pharmaceutical research," Pradhan said.

It was not immediately known when the appeal, filed with the country's Intellectual Property Appellate Board on Friday, would be heard.

Drug firms insist they need patent protection for medicines to recoup costs of long years of research and development.

Under the World Trade Organization's TRIPS Agreement, which governs trade and intellectual property rules, compulsory licences are a legally recognized means to overcome barriers in accessing affordable medicines.

The Indian ruling in March marked the first time a so-called "compulsory licence" for production of a patented drug had been granted in the country of 1.2 billion, known as a global generics drug powerhouse.

India has long been a key provider of cheap generic medicines to the developing world as it did not issue drug patents until 2005, when it was obliged to adhere to WTO intellectual property regulations.

But after a new patent law was introduced in 2005, newer medicines are increasingly being patented in India, keeping prices high.

Under the ruling, Natco will pay Bayer a six percent royalty on sales of the drug and sell the medicine for 8,800 rupees ($165) a month -- compared to the 280,000 rupees ($5,320) the company charges, which is more than 30 times as much.

Patent controller P.H. Kurian granted the right to Natco to produce the drug after concluding Bayer's pricing made it "out of reach" of most Indian patients.

Experts have said the Indian ruling could pave the way for a rush of other "compulsory licence" applications in India and in other poor nations, allowing access to patented life-saving drugs at a fraction of the cost.

source: interaksyon.com

Report: Robin Gibb has liver cancer

LONDON - Robin Gibb, singer and musician with legendary band the Bee Gees, is being treated for liver cancer after being diagnosed with the disease several months ago, Britain's Sunday Mirror reported.

The 61-year-old singer, whose frail appearance has caused concern among Britain's media, was hospitalised last week after making an emergency call from his house in Thame, south west England, according to the tabloid newspaper.

Robin's twin brother Maurice died in 2003 from complications resulting from a twisted intestine, and younger brother Andy died in 1988 following a battle against cocaine addiction.

Older brother and fellow Bee Gee Barry has returned to Britain along with 91-year-old mother Barbara, according to the report.

The British-born brothers scaled the heights of the pop world in the 1970s with disco hits "Stayin' Alive" and "Night Fever", and notched up over 200 million record sales during a career which has spanned seven decades.

Robin was forced to cancel several appointments last month, including one with British Prime Minister David Cameron, after he was hospitalised with severe stomach pains.

His spokesman said the family did not want to comment on the reports. — AFP

source: gmanews.tv