The Medical Freedom Channel

“All self-respecting painkillers these days offer ‘fast-acting relief,’ a promise we accept to mean anywhere from 15 minutes to more than an hour. For Alexza Pharmaceuticals Inc., which is developing drugs for migraine, pain, panic and agitation, ‘fast’ has to mean ‘within seconds.’ The Palo Alto, California-based company is developing drugs that can be ’smoked,’ and, like nicotine in cigarettes, pass through the lungs and into the bloodstream almost instantly. Investors like the idea. Alexza’s shares have risen nearly 60 percent over the past five months, dramatically outperforming the Nasdaq Biotechnology Index, which rose 15 percent over the same period. ‘What makes this an exciting story is how broadly applicable the technology could prove to be,’ said Charles Duncan, an analyst at JMP Securities, which helped take the company public for $8 a share a year ago.” [editor’s note: How about how effective it could be in relieving pain rapidly? That would seem to the real purpose here … - SAT] (01/31/07)