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Genetic link between rheumatoid arthritis and the X chromosome

Researchers have pieced together new genetic clues to the arthritis puzzle in a study that brings potential treatments closer to reality and could also provide insights into why more women than men succumb to the disabling condition.

15 Nov 2012

Viewpoints: Obama must tell allies that entitlements can't be excluded from fiscal deal; Medical device tax will thwart innovation

As bipartisan negotiations over avoiding the "fiscal cliff" draw nearer, many of President Obama's core Democratic supporters are urging him to fix the debt through defense cuts and tax increases rather than by tackling Social Security, Medicare and other federal entitlement programs. It's a reprise of progressive resistance to the entitlement trims Mr. Obama contemplated during the abortive debt-reduction negotiations with House Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) last year.

15 Nov 2012

Researchers describe structure of active site core of topoisomerase II alpha anti-cancer drug target

A group of researchers at the University of California, Berkeley have for the first time described the structure of the active site core of topoisomerase II alpha, an important target for anti-cancer drugs.

15 Nov 2012

Objections from India bar experts calling for global treaty against fake drug trade from WHO meeting

"A group of experts calling for a global treaty to stop the lethal trade in fake medicines has been barred from attending a World Health Organization meeting, highlighting deep divisions that are blocking progress on the subject," Reuters reports (Hirschler, 11/13).

15 Nov 2012

Breakthrough treatment for survivors of traumatic brain injury

The first treatment breakthrough of its kind for survivors of traumatic brain injury (TBI) or stroke will be published in the December 1 issue of the journal CNS Drugs, with an accompanying editorial.

15 Nov 2012

Simple ways to reduce risk of lung cancer

More than an estimated 160,000 people in the United States will die from lung cancer this year, making it the country's leading cause of cancer death. According to the National Cancer Institute, it surpassed breast cancer as the number one killer in women back in 1987. It causes more deaths than colon, breast and prostate cancer combined, according to the American Lung Association. Bruce Johnson, MD, the director of the Lowe Center for Thoracic Oncology at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, sorts out the facts about lung cancer and offers simple ways to reduce risk.

15 Nov 2012

Roundup: Disparity in states' fiscal health; Ark. Medicaid shortfall threatens care; Mich. Blue Cross pushes to become nonprofit

Factors such as growing unfunded pension liabilities and burgeoning fixed costs related to programs like Medicaid are weighing down weaker states, while stronger states are benefiting from improved business conditions and strong employment growth, he said. A closer look at some specific metrics shows this fiscal disparity.

15 Nov 2012

Viewpoints: Voters want Medicare protected in 'grand bargain;' Increases in taxes can't cover the 'fiscal cliff'; Kids' health needs more attention

As the ranking member on the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Domestic Monetary Policy and Technology, let me simply state the hard truth. To avoid the fiscal cliff and to get our budget deficit and the national debt under control, we need to do three things simultaneously: cut spending, increase revenue and have the courage to put everything on the table in a responsible, bipartisan manner.

15 Nov 2012

Study on effect of glucose on cancer growth in mice

An animal study conducted by researchers at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center raises questions about the consequences of diet - specifically glucose, the plant-based sugar that fuels cell life - on increased activity of an oncogene that drives tumor growth.

15 Nov 2012

MRC funds largest ever study of genetics relating to lung disease

Researchers from the Universities of Nottingham and Leicester are leading the largest ever study of the genetics relating to lung disease.

15 Nov 2012

Pharmaceutical compounding problems spread under lax regulation

News outlets report that congressional oversight was lacking and the Boston Globe uncovers documents about the company that started the meningitis outbreak.

15 Nov 2012

Viruses to treat metastatic cancers

There exists a "type" of cancer that is common yet rarely discussed—metastatic cancer, or cancer that has spread from the part of the body where it originated (the primary tumor) to another (such as lungs, bones or liver). Although much research is being done to combat primary tumors, there still exists a crucial need to find a treatment that can be effective against metastatic cancer, or "mets." Could a virus be the answer that finally beats the mets?

15 Nov 2012

Global health community should save AMFm because it saves lives

The Affordable Medicines Facility-malaria began as a pilot program in 2010 to "provide a 'co-payment' to the manufacturers of [artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs)], thereby allowing commercial wholesalers and private or government health services to purchase the drugs at a fraction of the already low negotiated price," Kenneth Arrow, a Nobel laureate in economic sciences in 1972 and an emeritus professor of economics at Stanford University, writes in a New York Times opinion piece.

15 Nov 2012

New gene delivery vehicle opens route to the heart of cells in solid tumors

There are plenty of effective anticancer agents around. The problem is that, very often, they cannot gain access to all the cells in solid tumors. A new gene delivery vehicle may provide a way of making tracks to the heart of the target.

15 Nov 2012

Antibody-coated stents carry increased risk of myocardial infarction and re-operation

If narrowed or blocked coronary vessels have to be widened or opened, a vascular support (stent) is usually inserted. Drug-coated stents are preferred for patients at high risk of renewed narrowing of vessels (restenosis). However, the use of antibody-coated stents has been increasing in recent years. Current studies provide indications that these new antibody-coated stents more frequently lead to myocardial infarction and make re-operation necessary.

15 Nov 2012

Scientists eliminate metastasis in laboratory experiments

In laboratory experiments, scientists have eliminated metastasis, the spread of cancer from the original tumor to other parts of the body, in melanoma by inhibiting a protein known as melanoma differentiation associated gene-9 (mda-9)/syntenin. More than 1 million cases of skin cancer are diagnosed each year in the U.S., and melanoma is the deadliest form.

15 Nov 2012

Biliary sludge common in dogs

Biliary sludge occurs in around a third of dogs, most often in senior animals, and with no difference in frequency between males and females, shows analysis of ultrasonography data for more than 1000 animals.

14 Nov 2012

Anesthetic choice may not be critical in noncardiac surgery

The choice of general anesthetic does not appear to influence the risk for myocardial infarction in patients undergoing noncardiac surgery, report researchers.

14 Nov 2012

LA Times investigates doctors' connection to prescription drug abuse

Prescription overdoses kill more people than heroin and cocaine. An L.A. Times review of coroners' records finds that drugs prescribed by a small number of doctors caused or contributed to a disproportionate number of deaths.

14 Nov 2012

Certain UTI-causing bacteria become more difficult to treat with current antibiotics

Certain types of bacteria responsible for causing urinary tract infections (UTIs), the second-most-common infection in the United States, are becoming more difficult to treat with current antibiotics, according to new research from Extending the Cure (ETC), a project of the Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics & Policy.

14 Nov 2012