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Patients with terminal cancer may be less competent to make big decisions

Patients with terminal cancer face difficult decisions. What treatment options support their goals? When is it reasonable to discontinue care? A study published in the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry shows that these patients may be less competent to make these decisions than their doctors think.

21 Feb 2018

Penn study sheds new light on immune cell identity

Almost all cells in the human body have identical DNA sequences, yet there are 200-plus cell types with different sizes, shapes, and chemical compositions. Determining what parts of the genome are read to make protein and which are silenced is orchestrated by proteins called transcription factors.

21 Feb 2018

Advanced method holds promise for substantial improvements in breast cancer diagnosis

Enhancing the diagnosis of breast cancer is the stated goal of a research team at the German Cancer Research Center in Heidelberg. The scientists have combined an advanced method of diffusion-weighted MR imaging with intelligent image analysis methods to detect malignant changes in tissues.

21 Feb 2018

Cancer initiation found to be similar across organs

Recent research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis demonstrated that mature cells in the stomach sometimes revert back to behaving like rapidly dividing stem cells.

21 Feb 2018

Lay-health workers may be able to reduce hospital readmissions rates, study suggests

A recent study published in Health Education Research suggests that lay-health workers may be able to significantly reduce readmissions rates to hospitals for high-risk patients following surgery.

21 Feb 2018

Study reveals increased disease risk after early heart surgery

Infections and autoimmune diseases are more common among people who have undergone heart surgery as children and had their thymus removed at the same time, which is often done to get access to the heart. This is evident in a study published in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

21 Feb 2018

Early dermatology consultation for presumptive cellulitis can improve outcomes, prevent misdiagnoses

Study finds that early dermatology consultation for presumptive cellulitis can improve patient outcomes, reduce costs and reduce unnecessary hospitalization.

21 Feb 2018

People with major depressive disorder have reduced arginine levels, study shows

People suffering from major depressive disorder, MDD, have reduced arginine levels, a new study from the University of Eastern Finland shows. Arginine is an amino acid which the body uses to produce, e.g., nitric oxide.

21 Feb 2018

Bad bedside manna: Bank loans signed in the hospital leave patients vulnerable

Laura Cameron, then three months pregnant, tripped and fell in a parking lot and landed in the emergency room last May — her blood pressure was low and she was scared and in pain. She was flat on her back and plugged into a saline drip when a hospital employee approached her gurney to discuss how she would pay her hospital bill.

21 Feb 2018

French scientists develop new wearable laser that eradicates skin conditions

French scientists at ‘Texinov Medical Textiles’, have developed a knitted laser fabric that blasts the skin with light, giving treatment to inflamed skin or lesions over a 2 and a half hour appointment.

21 Feb 2018

Bioactive compound limits collateral damage in the kidneys after heart attack

A heart attack triggers an acute inflammatory response at the damaged portion of the heart's left ventricle. If this acute inflammation lingers, it can lead to stretching of the ventricle and heart failure. The inflammation can claim another victim -- the kidneys.

21 Feb 2018

Sleep disruptions in menopause correlated with hot flashes and depression

Sleep disruptions are one of the most commonly reported complaints among menopausal women. A new study of middle-aged women found that sleep problems vary across the stages of menopause, yet are consistently correlated with hot flashes and depression.

20 Feb 2018

Researchers target abnormal epigenetic mechanisms involved in childhood cancers

Several childhood cancer cell types show features of immature neural cells, and there is evidence suggesting that these tumors may arise from neural crest stem cells that underwent abnormal changes during embryonic development.

20 Feb 2018

Adults with congenital heart disease have increased risk for dementia, study finds

A new study is believed to be the first to show a higher risk of dementia in adults who were born with heart disease.

20 Feb 2018

Researchers provide safety data for common antiparasitic drug used to treat Chagas disease

Benznidazole is one of the two existing antiparasitic drugs for Chagas' disease treatment. However, it is a poorly tolerated drug and its use to treat chronic disease raises safety concerns. Knowledge about its toxicity profile is scarce and mostly based on post-marketing observational studies.

20 Feb 2018

Computerized tissue-imaging may help predict early recurrence of lung cancer

Case Western Reserve and Cleveland Clinic are leading development of a computerized tissue-imaging program that could soon help identify which lung cancer patients are likely to face an earlier recurrence of the disease.

20 Feb 2018

Moderate and severe exacerbations associated with decline in physical activity of COPD patients

A study led by researchers from the Barcelona Institute for Global Health, a center supported by the "la Caixa" Banking Foundation, has shown that both moderate and severe exacerbations in COPD patients are associated with a decline in their physical activity level.

20 Feb 2018

Trump administration proposes rule to loosen curbs on short-term health plans

Insurers will again be able to sell short-term health insurance good for up to 12 months under a proposed rule released Tuesday by the Trump administration that could further roil the marketplace.

20 Feb 2018

Study describes new protection mechanisms to fight neurodegeneration in Parkinson's and Alzheimer's

A new research study reveals RAC1 protein could be a new therapeutic target to study the molecular mechanisms related to the neurodegenerative processes in Parkinson's disease.

20 Feb 2018

Scientists explore connection between bad sleep habits and stiff blood vessels

What do bad sleep habits and stiff blood vessels have in common? Nothing good, say scientists exploring what appears to be a direct connection between a circadian clock that isn't working as it should and an enzyme that promotes inflammation working overtime.

20 Feb 2018