(By Salman - iStockAnalyst Writer)The healthcare stocks remained in focus on Wednesday ahead of President Obama's speech tonight on his healthcare reform effort. The healthcare space also witnessed heightened activity amid a flurry of corporate news.

Vivus (NASDAQ: VVUS): Shares of the biopharmaceutical company soared over 65% in early trade on Wednesday after it announced that it had successfully completed two late-stage studies for its experimental weight loss drug, Qnexa. The studies, which included more than 3,750 patients, met their main objective by demonstrating statistically significant weight loss with all three doses of Qnexa vs. a placebo. Patients taking Qnexa, on average, reduced their weight by up to 14.7 percent in one trial, while the second study showed weight loss of about 13.2 percent. In both studies, patients taking placebo lost less than 3 percent of their weight. The studies included more than 3,750 patients taking a mix of three doses and placebo. There is a huge market for obesity related drugs in US. More than one third of US adults -- more than 72 million people -- and 16 percent of US children are now estimated to be overweight or obese.  Medical spending for obesity was $147 billion in 2008, an 87 percent increase over the past decade, according to a government study published July 27 in the journal Health Affairs. Vivus said the results of the studies support the company's plan to ask for Food and Drug Administration approval by the end of 2009. That could put the company's application ahead of a key rival, Orexigen Therapeutics (NASDAQ: OREX) Inc.'s Contrave32. In July, La Jolla, Calif.-based Orexigen said the drug met key weight reduction goals in three late-stage studies. Orexigen previously said it plans to ask for FDA approval in early 2010. Shares of Orexigen jumped over 7% in early trade.

XOMA Ltd. (NASDAQ: XOMA) and Arana Therapeutics Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cephalon, Inc. (NASDAQ: CEPH) announced Wednesday that they have entered into a collaboration involving multiple proprietary XOMA antibody research and development technologies, including a new antibody phage display library, and a suite of integrated information and data management systems. Under terms of the deal, Arana has agreed to pay XOMA a fee of $6 million and XOMA will be entitled to milestone payments and royalties on product sales. Under the terms of the collaboration, XOMA will be fully reimbursed for all services it may provide to Arana under the agreement.