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Viewpoints: Medicare provider cuts 'won't work'; A 'pamphlet isn't a plan'

Once the presidential election is over, Congress will try to address the Medicare cost shortfall one way or another. They will almost certainly consider a method that is guaranteed to fail: Medicare rate cuts for doctors and hospitals. It's been tried before, most notably as part of the 1997 Balanced Budget Act. Not once since the BBA required annual physician rate cuts have those cuts been implemented, leading every year to the predictable and depressing final-hours "doc fix" vote.

26 Oct 2012

UWCCC enrolls first patient in Phase 1-2 PET imaging trial of LIGHT for solid tumors

Novelos Therapeutics, Inc., a pharmaceutical company developing novel drugs for the treatment and diagnosis of cancer, today announced that the University of Wisconsin Carbone Cancer Center, a leading oncology research institution, has enrolled the first patient in a Phase 1-2 positron emission tomography (PET) imaging trial of I-124-CLR1404, a cancer-targeted PET imaging agent, in patients with nine solid tumor types, including triple negative breast, soft tissue sarcoma, colorectal, gastric, esophageal, prostate, ovarian, pancreatic and head & neck cancer.

26 Oct 2012

Roundup: New laws on breast screening irk some doctors; Improved school meals cut obesity; More Coloradans use ER

In a sign of the improving national economy, Medicaid spending growth this year slowed to 2 percent as enrollment in the state-federal health insurance program for the poor also slowed for the third consecutive year, according to a report released Thursday. In 2011, Medicaid spending soared by nearly 10 percent, which helped put the entitlement program in the crosshairs of politicians looking to lower the federal deficit and ease pressure on state budgets.

26 Oct 2012

Focused ultrasound technology safe, effective in treating patients with tremor-dominant Parkinson's

The Focused Ultrasound Foundation today announced a new clinical trial investigating the use of focused ultrasound technology in treating patients with tremor-dominant Parkinson's disease.

25 Oct 2012

Scientists develop new breast cancer screening method with less radiation

Scientists have developed a way to produce three-dimensional X-ray images of the breast at a radiation dose that is lower than the 2D radiography methods used in clinics today. The new method enables the production of 3D diagnostic computed tomography (CT) images with a spatial resolution 2-3 times higher than present hospital scanners, but with a radiation dose that is about 25 times lower.

25 Oct 2012

Combination of phase contrast tomography and EST can produce high-quality 3D breast images

Like cleaning the lenses of a foggy pair of glasses, scientists are now able to use a technique developed by UCLA researchers and their European colleagues to produce three-dimensional images of breast tissue that are two to three times sharper than those made using current CT scanners at hospitals. The technique also uses a lower dose of X-ray radiation than a mammogram.

23 Oct 2012

X-ray technology improves early detection of pulmonary disease

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is considered the fourth most common cause of death in the United States. Usually the precursor to this life-threatening lung disease is a chronic bronchitis. Partially destroyed alveoli and an over-inflation of the lungs, known as emphysema, are serious side effects. However, the subtle differences in the tissue are barely discernable in standard X-ray images.

23 Oct 2012

AAP announces national winners of 2012 Children's Art Contest

Winners of the 2012 American Academy of Pediatrics Children's Art Contest were announced Saturday, Oct. 20 at the AAP National Conference and Exhibition at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans.

22 Oct 2012

Study shows few adolescent females undergo pregnancy testing in hospital emergency department

Few adolescent females undergo pregnancy testing in the hospital emergency department, even when they complain of lower abdominal pain, or before they are exposed to radiation for tests or examinations, according to an abstract presented Friday, Oct. 19, at the American Academy of Pediatrics National Conference and Exhibition in New Orleans.

20 Oct 2012

Lean principles help improve stroke treatment at Barnes-Jewish Hospital

A process developed to increase efficiency and productivity in Japanese car factories has helped improve stroke treatment at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, report researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

20 Oct 2012

Mental Health experts examine classifications of children's illness; Eating disorders patients worry about coverage

The Wall Street Journal looks at the effort to include kids' problems in the newest revision of psychiatrists' diagnostic manual. Also, KHN offers a story about the debate over health insurance for people with eating problems.

20 Oct 2012

Research roundup: Financial impact of reducing surgical complications; Pay for performance to doctors, hospitals yields mixed results

The authors write: "We found that if a hospital's surgical inpatient volume is not growing, such a program results in negative cash flow. We also found that if a hospital's surgical volume is growing, and if the hospital can sufficiently reduce the average length-of-stay for surgical patients without complications, the cash flow could be positive. We recommend that hospitals with limited growth prospects that are nonetheless contemplating a surgical complication reduction program establish agreements with payers to share in any savings generated by the program."

20 Oct 2012

Research may lead to new ways to identify women with breast cancer risks from low-dose radiation

Scientists from the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have identified tissue mechanisms that may influence a woman's susceptibility or resistance to breast cancer after exposure to low-dose ionizing radiation, such as the levels used in full-body CT scans and radiotherapy.

18 Oct 2012

Study finds overall decline in cholesterol levels among U.S. adults

An analysis of nationally-representative data indicates that between 1988 and 2010 there has been a trend of declining average levels of total cholesterol, non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol for U.S. adults overall, according to a study in the October 17 issue of JAMA.

17 Oct 2012

Companionship can reduce nerve-related pain

Companionship has the potential to reduce pain linked to nerve damage, according to a new study.

16 Oct 2012

$Arthroscopy best for scaphoid fracture assessment$

Arthroscopy best for scaphoid fracture assessment

Research shows that radiographs and computed tomography cannot replace arthroscopy for the diagnosis of unstable and displaced fractures of the scaphoid wrist.

15 Oct 2012

Pregnancy stress can cut brain benefits of motherhood

A new study in animals shows that chronic stress during pregnancy prevents brain benefits of motherhood, a finding that researchers suggest could increase understanding of postpartum depression.

15 Oct 2012

Women's health, Medicare and the health law mark tight races in various states

Asked where he would cut the government, Mr. Brown cited President Obama's health care law, which, he said, was crushing Massachusetts businesses. He said the law would remove $700 billion from Medicare, an assertion that Mr. Romney made in last week's presidential debate. "That's the same playbook that Mitt Romney used a week ago tonight," Ms. Warren said. "It was wrong then, it's wrong tonight."

15 Oct 2012

BC Cancer Agency second prestigious Vancouver institution to install MILabs Molecular Imaging System

MILabs is pleased to announce that the BC Cancer Agency, located in Vancouver, British Columbia will install a MILabs U‐SPECT/CT system to expand their current molecular oncology imaging and research capabilities. The U‐SPECT/CT is able to deliver high resolution, sensitivity and scanning speed contributing to outstanding quantification results and the ability to detect heterogeneous molecular processes in tumors.

12 Oct 2012

Viewpoints: Wis. Senate candidates Thompson, Baldwin offer competing views of health law; 'Disturbing lack' of oversight of compounding pharmacies

The meningitis outbreak that has sickened at least 119 people and killed 11 of them has laid bare a disturbing lack of regulatory oversight of pharmacies that mix drug compounds and ship them around the country. Unless Congress passes legislation to strengthen the hand of the Food and Drug Administration, the public will continue to be at risk from contaminated products.

11 Oct 2012

CT News and Research

Viewpoints: Medicare provider cuts 'won't work'; A 'pamphlet isn't a plan'

UWCCC enrolls first patient in Phase 1-2 PET imaging trial of LIGHT for solid tumors

Roundup: New laws on breast screening irk some doctors; Improved school meals cut obesity; More Coloradans use ER

Focused ultrasound technology safe, effective in treating patients with tremor-dominant Parkinson's

Scientists develop new breast cancer screening method with less radiation

Combination of phase contrast tomography and EST can produce high-quality 3D breast images

X-ray technology improves early detection of pulmonary disease

AAP announces national winners of 2012 Children's Art Contest

Study shows few adolescent females undergo pregnancy testing in hospital emergency department

Lean principles help improve stroke treatment at Barnes-Jewish Hospital

Mental Health experts examine classifications of children's illness; Eating disorders patients worry about coverage

Research roundup: Financial impact of reducing surgical complications; Pay for performance to doctors, hospitals yields mixed results

Research may lead to new ways to identify women with breast cancer risks from low-dose radiation

Study finds overall decline in cholesterol levels among U.S. adults

Companionship can reduce nerve-related pain

Arthroscopy best for scaphoid fracture assessment

Pregnancy stress can cut brain benefits of motherhood

Women's health, Medicare and the health law mark tight races in various states

BC Cancer Agency second prestigious Vancouver institution to install MILabs Molecular Imaging System

Viewpoints: Wis. Senate candidates Thompson, Baldwin offer competing views of health law; 'Disturbing lack' of oversight of compounding pharmacies

Achieving and maintaining ISO 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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