Therapy News and Research

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700,000 adverse drug events in the U.S. each year lead to ER visits

Each year, an estimated 700,000 persons experience adverse drug events that lead to emergency department visits, according to a study in the October 18 issue of JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association.

17 Oct 2006

Underlying causes, frequencies, and outcomes of dilated cardiomyopathy

The mystery behind a commonly untreatable and undetected heart muscle disease in children is partially revealed for the first time in today's edition of the scientific journal JAMA.

17 Oct 2006

Researchers step toward therapy for respiratory syncytial virus

When a child under the age of 2 contracts a respiratory tract infection requiring hospitalization, odds are that the cause is respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

17 Oct 2006

Elderly breast cancer patients often are underdiagnosed, undertreated

Elderly women often receive substandard breast cancer screenings and treatment and delayed diagnoses compared with younger patients, according to a study published in the October issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association's Archives of Surgery, the Wall Street Journal reports.

17 Oct 2006

Measures to combat XDR-TB worldwide

Health experts have confirmed that the emergence of extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB) poses a serious threat to public health, particularly when associated with HIV.

17 Oct 2006

Scans reveal differences in autistic brains

Researchers at the University of Washington's Autism Center have found new evidence that some regions in the brains of people with the developmental disorder autism may not communicate with each other as efficiently as they do in other people.

17 Oct 2006

Incidence of kidney damage associated with coronary artery bypass surgery has increased significantly

The incidence of kidney damage associated with coronary artery bypass surgery has increased significantly over the past 16 years in the United States, but the rate of death from such damage has decreased significantly during the period, according to a new analysis.

16 Oct 2006

New technique allows partial-match cell transplants for children with most resistant leukemia

Clinicians at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital have successfully demonstrated an improved technique for blood stem cell transplantations in children that shows promise for those most likely to fail standard treatment for leukemia.

16 Oct 2006

Judge declares mistrial in case against Wyeth's Prempro

A judge in a Pennsylvania state court in Philadelphia on Wednesday declared a mistrial in a case in which a jury ruled that the use of Wyeth's combination hormone replacement therapy Prempro in part caused breast cancer to develop in a 66-year-old woman, the Wall Street Journal reports.

16 Oct 2006

Roche asks European Medicines Agency for authorization to market Herceptin

Roche on Friday announced it has submitted an application with the European Medicines Agency to market its breast cancer drug Herceptin as a treatment for women living with an aggressive form of advanced-stage breast cancer, called HER2-positive, and hormone receptor-positive breast cancer, AFX/Forbes reports (AFX/Forbes, 10/13).

16 Oct 2006

Drug therapy for heroin addicts helps women quit smoking

New research is suggesting that women trying to quit smoking can be helped by taking medication approved for the treatment of alcohol and heroin dependence.

10 Oct 2006

Nanoparticle encapsulation improves bioavailability of leukemia drug

Busulfan, which belongs to a family of drugs known as alkylating agents, is used to treat hematological malignancies, including chronic myelogenous leukemia.

9 Oct 2006

California agency releases 10-year plan for spending $3B on embryonic stem cell research

The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine -- which is in charge of implementing the 10-year, $2.95 billion state human embryonic stem cell research program approved under Proposition 71 -- on Wednesday released a draft spending plan that "sets a strikingly modest tone" for outcomes of the research.

5 Oct 2006

FDA approves test to help diagnose HIV

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the APTIMA HIV-1 RNA Qualitative Assay, manufactured by Gen-Probe Incorporated (San Diego, Calif.).

5 Oct 2006

New drug a breakthrough in the treatment of AMD

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD), is a common cause of vision loss and often affects older people.

5 Oct 2006

Advanced Neuromodulation Systems receives Australian approval for rechargeable chronic pain system

Advanced Neuromodulation Systems (ANS), the neuromodulation business of St. Jude Medical, Inc, today announced Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) regulatory approval for its Eon Rechargeable Neurostimulation System.

3 Oct 2006

Super chow, laced with semi-synthetic vitamin E derivative, inhibited spread of cancer in mice

A chemically altered form of vitamin E mixed into mouse chow dramatically reduced spread of aggressive mammary cancer in mice, suggesting that the compound in pill form could be used to treat human metastatic cancer, according to a report in the October 1 issue of the journal Cancer Research.

2 Oct 2006