Kaiser Health News staff writer Phil Galewitz writes about the so-called "botax." [More]

The debate on how to select patients who will respond best to costly drug treatments for aggressive breast cancer now favors fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) to measure the HER-2 receptor found in human breast tumors, according to a leading pathologist presenting at the Association for Molecular Pathology annual meeting. [More]

New guidelines on mammograms and pap smears set off a fierce debate. [More]

"The White House is on a collision course with Catholic bishops in an intractable dispute over abortion that could blow up the fragile political coalition behind President Barack Obama's health care overhaul," the Associated Press reports. [More]

The Associated Press: "The White House and Senate Democrats have turned to a proposal to tax breast implants, tummy tucks, wrinkle-smoothing injections and other procedures as they search for ways to pay for costly health care overhaul plans." The Senate health bill, which was unveiled Wednesday by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada "would slap a 5 percent excise tax on elective cosmetic surgeries and procedures to help pay for expanding coverage to the uninsured." [More]

Urban Institute: Progress Enrolling Children in Medicaid/CHIP: Who Is Left And What Are The Prospects For Covering More Children? - This policy brief examines the characteristics of the estimated 5 million uninsured children who are eligible for CHIP/Medicaid in 2007 (64 percent of all uninsured children; 88 percent of all low-income uninsured children), but not enrolled. [More]

Merck & Co., Inc. today announced the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMEA) has recommended approval of ELONVA® (corifollitropin alfa injection) as a treatment in controlled ovarian stimulation (COS) in combination with a GnRH antagonist for the development of multiple follicles in women participating in an assisted reproductive technology (ART) program. [More]

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius is to be commended for publicly stating the government panel opposing mammograms is "an outside independent panel of doctors and scientists who ... do not set federal policy and ... don't determine what services are covered by the federal government." [More]

This week the nation received the 2009 U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommendations on breast cancer screenings. The National Medical Association (NMA) believes African American women, in consultation with their physician, should continue the practice of routine mammography screening at age 40 or earlier depending upon the risk factors. [More]

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid last night unveiled a health care bill which includes pro-abortion language. The bill's language mirrors the Capps Amendment from the House debate -- it allows the public option to include abortion coverage and provides federal subsidies for private plans which cover abortion. [More]

Last night, Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and the Senate Democrats introduced a new Senate version of health care reform that includes government funding for elective abortion. The "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act" authorizes the Secretary to include elective abortion in the public option and subsidize health plans in the government run exchange that cover elective abortion. [More]

Obese patients are no more likely to have post-operative complications than those of average weight when undergoing robotic surgery to remove uterine fibroids, according to a study at Henry Ford Hospital. [More]

Results from a new media study among 600 physicians revealed that the majority (78%) reported that they do not agree with the new guidelines released by the Preventive Services Task Force of the Department of Health and Human Services recommending against regular mammography tests for women under 50 years old. [More]

Many women don't quit smoking because they are afraid of gaining weight. That's because nicotine suppresses the appetite and boosts a smoker's metabolism. [More]

The American College of Surgeons (ACoS) today released comments strongly supporting current American Cancer Society (ACS) screening mammography guidelines that recommend women get a mammogram every year, starting at age 40. [More]