But it was important to keep the risks associated with moderate sun bed use in perspective, she added, with the IARC classification putting it in the same category as sunlight, red wine and beer.

BBC: Charity demands child sunbed ban

"We use menopausal hormone therapy for women with moderate to severe hot flashes interfering with their lives, " Crandall said.

CNN: Government panel: Hormone therapy 'not recommended'

Dr Harvey, who is also a respiratory consultant at Southmead Hospital, said it remained to be seen whether tiotropium should have a use for all sufferers or targeted at those with moderate to severe symptoms.

BBC: Drug transforms life for lung patients

The companies decided to end the program for developing the compound, called Dimebon, after it failed to meet two primary endpoints in a phase 3 trial studying its use with the existing treatment Aricept in patients with mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's.

WSJ: Medivation, Pfizer Alzheimer's Drug Fails to Meet Study Goals