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Small anti-abortion advocacy group flexes muscle in midterm elections

The Washington Post reports on the increasingly important role of a small antiabortion advocacy group, the Susan B. Anthony List, which is targeting Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in his bid for re-election.

15 May 2010

TRPV4 activity vital to prevent skin dehydration

Japanese research group led by Prof. Makoto Tominaga and Dr. Takaaki Sokabe (National Institute for Physiological Sciences: NIPS) found that TRPV4 ion channel in skin keratinocytes is important for formation and maintenance of barrier function to prevent dehydration. Their finding was reported in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

15 May 2010

Lobbyists have long wish list for new health rules

Kaiser Health News staff writers Julie Appleby, Mary Agnes Carey and Phil Galewitz, working in collaboration with The Washington Post, write: "Now that the health care bill is law, an array of groups -- representing doctors, insurers, small businesses and others -- have switched to their post-passage game plans.

15 May 2010

Agronomic practices can increase cancer-preventive phytochemicals in broccoli and tomatoes

A University of Illinois study has demonstrated that agronomic practices can greatly increase the cancer-preventive phytochemicals in broccoli and tomatoes.

15 May 2010

Amgen submits BLA for denosumab subcutaneous RANK Ligand inhibitor

Amgen Inc. today announced the submission of a Biologics License Application (BLA) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for denosumab, a subcutaneous RANK Ligand inhibitor. The BLA submission summarizes clinical experience from nearly 6,900 patients across 18 clinical studies, including approximately 5,700 patients with advanced cancer in the three, pivotal, Phase 3, head-to-head trials versus Zometa® (zoledronic acid).

15 May 2010

Lobbyists turn focus to how health law will be regulated

"Now that the health care bill is law, an array of groups -- representing doctors, insurers, small businesses and others -- have switched to their post-passage game plans. Among their top goals: Helping shape the all-important regulations being written by the Obama administration," according to Kaiser Health News/The Washington Post.

15 May 2010

Recent releases in Global Health

As the 193 WHO member states gather at next week's World Health Assembly (WHA) "a draft global code of practice on the international recruitment of health personnel will be on the agenda. Negotiation and adoption of a WHO code of practice is an unprecedented opportunity to advance global consensus to address the critical challenges of migration of health workers and its effect on health systems worldwide," the authors of a Lancet Comment write.

15 May 2010

GOP launches new challenge to health law with coordinated messaging

Republicans are starting a new bid to undermine Democratic attempts at touting a new health law. The GOP effort includes attacks on both President Barack Obama's pick to run Medicare and on claims that implementation is going smoothly.

15 May 2010

Democrats weary of health changes, mull new health bills, 'doc fix'

Democrats are feeling health care "fatigue" and are doubting that Congress will consider any more health-related legislation this year. "Measures in jeopardy include bills that would require more information on healthcare prices, empower federal regulators to sign off on premium increases and strip insurers of their exemption from anti-trust laws."

15 May 2010

NFIB to join lawsuit against health law

"The nation's most influential small business lobby is joining a court challenge to President Barack Obama's health care overhaul, arguing that Americans cannot be required under the Constitution to obtain insurance coverage," The Associated Press reports.

14 May 2010

Obama administration cracks down on health care fraud

Modern Healthcare: "The government's efforts to rein in Medicare fraud and abuse recovered $2.5 billion for the program in fiscal 2009, up 29% from $1.9 billion the previous year, according to a new annual report. ... The $2.5 billion collected in fiscal 2009 is attributed to judgments and settlements in previous years as well as 2009, according to the report of the Health Care Fraud and Abuse Control Program.

14 May 2010

Heart defibrillators complicate end-of-life care

Heart defibrillators, "small implants that save lives by sending an electrical jolt to interrupt a potentially fatal heart rhythm and restore normal beating," can pose a "challenge near life's end, for both patients and their families," The New York Times reports.

14 May 2010

Hospitals plan joint efforts to increase efficiency

An association of California hospitals has proposed creating a foundation to supply doctors to at least 20 of its 160 members, with more likely to join if the project takes off, The Wall Street Journal reports. The foundation "would own clinics and centralize administrative matters including billing and electronic medical records," and it shows another step in efforts to align "doctors and hospitals, a trend expected to be accelerated by the health overhaul."

14 May 2010

Oxygen levels induce X chromosome inactivation in female cells: Study

Oxygen levels in the lab can permanently alter human embryonic stem (ES) cells, specifically inducing X chromosome inactivation in female cells, according to Whitehead Institute researchers. Human ES cells have been routinely created and maintained at atmospheric levels of oxygen, which is about 20%. Cells in the body are usually exposed to only 1-9% oxygen.

14 May 2010

New research shows healthy retirees face higher total health care costs

Healthy retirees actually face higher total health care costs over their remaining lifetime than the unhealthy, according to new research conducted by the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College and underwritten by Prudential Financial.

14 May 2010

SANUWAVE Health reports $3.0 million net loss for first-quarter 2010

SANUWAVE Health, Inc.,, an emerging medical technology company focused on regenerative medicine, today reported financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2010 and provided a business update.

14 May 2010

Report underscores need for additional research on diagnosis and treatment of food allergy

A review published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association and reported in the New York Times underscores the need for additional research on the prevalence, diagnosis, and treatment of food allergy. One of the most important points suggested by the JAMA study as well as a New York Times article on the subject is that as many as 1 in 10 people may have food allergy.

14 May 2010