Surgery News and Research

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More women with early-stage breast cancer opting for double mastectomies

A University of Minnesota cancer surgeon and researcher has found a dramatic increase in the number of women diagnosed with the earliest stage of breast cancer choosing to have both breasts surgically removed.

12 Apr 2009

Thymosin beta-4 protein prompts damaged heart cells to repair themselves after a heart attack

A protein that the heart produces during its early development reactivates the embryonic coronary developmental program and initiates migration of heart cells and blood vessel growth after a heart attack, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found.

12 Apr 2009

Research could lead to new non-antibiotic drugs to counter hospital infections

Lack of an adequate amount of the mineral phosphate can turn a common bacterium into a killer, according to research to be published in the April 14, 2009, issue of the Proceedings of the National Academies of Science.

9 Apr 2009

Kidney reconstruction performed though single incision hidden in the navel

With a single incision hidden in the navel, surgeons at the University of California, San Diego Medical Center have successfully removed a cancerous kidney tumor while saving the patient's kidney.

9 Apr 2009

Medtronic commences abdominal aortic aneurysm stent graft study

Medtronic, Inc. has announced the start of ENGAGE, the largest ever study of its kind, which will evaluate the performance of the Endurant stent graft, an implantable medical device designed to provide an advanced minimally-invasive alternative to open surgical repair of abdominal aortic aneurysms.

9 Apr 2009

Many skin cancer patients do not receive sentinel lymph node biopsy

Although clinical practice guidelines recommend sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsy for many patients with clinically node-negative melanoma, a new analysis from the National Cancer Database (NCDB) of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) has found approximately half of patients do not receive recommended evaluation of their lymph nodes and that the type of health insurance a patient has, the type of hospital delivering treatment, and the hospital's geographic region are all associated with provider compliance with those guidelines.

9 Apr 2009

Cancer vaccines receive orphan drug designation for advanced head and neck cancer

Two experimental vaccines from the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) recently received a federal orphan drug designation for advanced head and neck cancer, according to a company official.

9 Apr 2009

Study looks at functional decline in seniors after hospitalization

Motivation and expectation may be factors in helping older adults regain lost functional ability after hospitalization, say researchers with the Birmingham Veterans Administration Medical Center and UAB (University of Alabama at Birmingham).

8 Apr 2009

Aggressive treatment for early stage bladder does not improve survival

Despite enduring more invasive tests and medical procedures, patients who were treated aggressively for early stage bladder cancer had no better survival than patients who were treated less aggressively.

8 Apr 2009

Gene delivery appears safe for regenerating tooth-supporting gum tissue

Scientists at the University of Michigan have developed a method of gene delivery that appears safe for regenerating tooth-supporting gum tissue---a discovery that assuages one of the biggest safety concerns surrounding gene therapy research and tissue engineering.

8 Apr 2009

Discovery of marker for colon stem cells could shed light on tumor growth

Cancer researchers led by Bruce Boman, M.D., Ph.D. director of Cancer Genetics and Stem Cell Biology at the Helen F. Graham Cancer Center of the Christiana Care Health System, and a faculty member at the University of Delaware, have discovered an enzyme common to both normal and malignant colon stem cells that will assist scientists searching for a cure for colon cancer.

8 Apr 2009

Hybrid cardiac revascularization procedures

Patients with coronary artery disease -- blockages of the vessels that feed the heart -- can be treated in a number of ways.

6 Apr 2009

Simple bedside test improves diagnosis of chronic back pain, could guide treatment

A simple and inexpensive method of assessing pain, developed by Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) researchers, is better than currently used techniques for distinguishing neuropathic pain - pain caused by damage to the nervous system - from other types of chronic back pain.

6 Apr 2009

Study examines benefits of psychosocial intervention for prostate cancer patients prior to surgery

Brief stress management sessions prior to and immediately after surgery may have both short- and long-term benefit for men undergoing a radical prostatectomy for early-stage prostate cancer, according to research from The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center.

6 Apr 2009

Cost-cutting measures are creeping into the medicine cabinet

Cost-cutting measures are creeping into the medicine cabinet. We split pills in half or take the drugs every other day to stretch our doses. We stop filling the prescriptions for our most expensive drugs. We buy prescriptions from online pharmacies with questionable credentials.

6 Apr 2009

Experimental vaccine shows promise for the treatment of early lung cancer

An experimental vaccine that triggers the patient's immune system to identify and attack specific tumor cells is showing new promise for the treatment of early lung cancer.

6 Apr 2009

Pre-surgical stress management improves mood, quality of life

6 Apr 2009

2,516 potential biomarkers of pancreatic cancer

A cancer scientist from Johns Hopkins has convinced an international group of colleagues to delay their race to find new cancer biomarkers and instead begin a 7,000-hour slog through a compendium of 50,000 scientific articles already published to assemble, decode and analyze the molecules that might herald the furtive presence of pancreatic cancer.

6 Apr 2009

Avastin safe and effective at delaying tumor progression

The use of Avastin alone to treat a subgroup of recurrent Grade 3 brain tumors showed it was safe and effective at delaying tumor progression, according to a retrospective study of 22 patients conducted by a researcher at the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance.

6 Apr 2009

Two non-pharmacological interventions reduce depression after heart surgery

Two non-pharmacological interventions-cognitive behavior therapy and supportive stress management-appear more effective than usual care for treating depression after coronary artery bypass surgery, according to a report in the April issue of Archives of General Psychiatry.

6 Apr 2009