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Viewpoints: 'Outrageously high fee' for emergency services; Mysterious rise in autism cases

The calculus for medical charges in general is beyond comprehension, with outrageously high fees used as a starting point in a bizarre game of bargaining. Glenn Melnick, who teaches hospital finance at USC, told me it's as crazy as if he asked to buy the TV in my living room, and I gave him a price of $1 million to start the conversation.

3 Apr 2012

Views on the Supreme Court review: No matter what the decision, reform will go on; The case threatens the court's legacy

Listening to the lawyers talking nonstop last week about health care gave me a headache, so I decided to consult one of the nation's top doctors. He offered a real-world diagnosis of what's happening in health care - and a reminder of how much it's changing, regardless of what the Supreme Court decides about Obamacare. My medical guru is Delos "Toby" Cosgrove, chief executive of Cleveland Clinic, a $6 billion network that's one of the biggest and best providers in the country.

3 Apr 2012

Health reform means ER use jumps in Colo.; Calif. insurance premiums rise; Ore. waits to see who wants in on coordinated care

Even people who just got health insurance use the emergency departments to access their care, according to a new study by University of Colorado School of Medicine researchers. It's not just people who lost insurance or people living long without it, the researchers note -- any change in health insurance status, whether positive or negative, tends to send people to the ER because they don't know where else to go.

3 Apr 2012

SDMI installs Toshiba's Vantage Titan 3T in the U.S.

Steinberg Diagnostic Medical Imaging Center (SDMI) in Las Vegas needed an MR system to perform a range of patient exams at a high-volume imaging center. To solve this issue, it recently installed the first Vantage Titan 3T in the U.S. from Toshiba America Medical Systems, Inc.

3 Apr 2012

PET allows survival predictions in sarcoma after initial cycle of neoadjuvant chemo

An early Positron Emission Tomography (PET) response after the initial cycle of neoadjuvant chemotherapy can be used to predict increased survival in patients with soft tissue sarcomas, according to a study by researchers with UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center.

3 Apr 2012

Patients prefer immediate access to radiology reports

You've been experiencing severe back pain and weakness in your right leg. Your doctor orders a spinal MRI to help determine the cause. The radiology report diagnoses cancer. Would you rather read the detailed medical report right away at home or wait until your doctor was available to explain the test results, diagnosis and treatment options? This scenario was part of a study at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center designed to determine if patients wanted online access to radiology test results and, if so, how quickly.

3 Apr 2012

State-based health policies grab attention

With the federal law's fate uncertain, action taken so far by the states -- either to implement the national overhaul or to advance reforms of their own -- have claimed more significance and headlines.

2 Apr 2012

Ingenuity iReport for Real-Time PCR optimized for TaqMan Gene Expression Assays

Ingenuity Systems, a leading provider of information and analysis solutions for life science researchers, and Life Technologies Corporation today announced Ingenuity iReport for Real-Time PCR optimized for TaqMan Gene Expression Assays.

2 Apr 2012

Bruker acquires SkyScan

Bruker Corporation today announced that it has acquired all of the shares of SkyScan N.V., a scientific instruments company located near Antwerp, Belgium. Financial details were not disclosed. For the remainder for 2012, the acquisition of SkyScan is expected to add approximately $13 million to Bruker's revenue and to be accretive to EPS by about $0.01.

2 Apr 2012

Galeterone safe, effective for patients with CRPC

Patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer had limited side effects and in many cases a drop in prostate-specific antigen expression with galeterone (TOK-001), a small-molecule oral drug, according to phase I data presented at the AACR Annual Meeting 2012, held here March 31 - April 4.

2 Apr 2012

Tokai Pharmaceuticals announces data from galeterone Phase 1 trial for CRPC

Tokai Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing new treatments for prostate cancer, today announced that its lead candidate galeterone (TOK-001) was well-tolerated with minimal side effects and demonstrated efficacy in patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) in a Phase 1 study.

2 Apr 2012

Metformin may slow growth rate of prostate cancer in men

The use of metformin in men with prostate cancer before prostatectomy helped to reduce certain metabolic parameters and slow the growth rate of the cancer, according to the results of a phase II study.

2 Apr 2012

$Pazopanib demonstrates clinically meaningful activity in patients with refractory urothelial cancer$

Pazopanib demonstrates clinically meaningful activity in patients with refractory urothelial cancer

The antiangiogenic drug pazopanib has demonstrated clinically meaningful activity in patients with refractory urothelial cancer, according to results presented at the AACR Annual Meeting 2012, held here March 31 - April 4. The results also revealed that increases in interleukin-8 levels early after treatment with pazopanib may predict a lack of tumor response to the therapy.

2 Apr 2012

Johns Hopkins Hospital's new home to open on May 1

The Johns Hopkins Hospital's new home, set to open on May 1, will redefine the very essence of the hospital experience, and cutting-edge technology designed to improve care, streamline workflow and encourage efficiencies will play a central role.

31 Mar 2012

CT scans more effective than traditional lung cancer detection methods

A new study led by researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine indicates that CT scans are more effective than traditional lung cancer detection methods at identifying aggressive lung cancers in their most treatable stages.

31 Mar 2012

Perspectives: All this fuss about the word 'tax'; Civic lessons from the Supreme Court

It is now clear that the law will impose heavy burdens on state and family budgets and increasingly possible that its mandate that all Americans purchase health insurance or face penalties will be ruled unconstitutional. ... We and our Republican colleagues voted against the law two years ago and will continue to work toward a smarter, step-by-step solution that will make health care available to more Americans at a lower cost to the federal government, the states, and individuals seeking care.

31 Mar 2012

Fujifilm introduces Aspire CRm Full Field Digital Mammography system

FUJIFILM Medical Systems U.S.A., Inc. today unveiled the Aspire CRm Full Field Digital Mammography (FFDM) system, the latest addition to the company's expanding women's health offering. The Aspire CRm is an ideal option for smaller, stand alone breast imaging centers who want to easily transition from analog to digital imaging.

31 Mar 2012

Mirada Medical, BioClinica partner to extend oncology clinical trials

BioClinica, Inc., a global provider of clinical trial management solutions, today announced a partnership with Mirada Medical, a leading provider of medical image analysis software. BioClinica will integrate Mirada's XD3 software solution into its imaging core lab technology to further enhance its PET capabilities and expertise for molecular imaging trials.

From Clario 31 Mar 2012

Top-line results from Shire's SPD476 phase 3 trial on diverticulitis

Shire plc, the global specialty biopharmaceutical company, today announced top-line results of the PREVENT2 trial, a phase 3 investigational study of once-daily SPD476, MMX mesalamine in patients with a history of diverticulitis.

31 Mar 2012

Myths and facts about concussion

Suppose your son or daughter has just been brought home from an athletic field with a concussion, complains of being tired and wants to go to sleep. Should you let that happen? "There was a time when it was considered life-threatening to let someone suffering from a concussion to fall asleep," said Chris Hummel, a certified athletic trainer and clinical associate professor in Ithaca College's Department of Exercise and Sport Sciences.

30 Mar 2012