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Utah tries to improve state health insurance exhange; Mich. plans for doctor shortage

The Salt Lake Tribune: "State health reform got a boost Tuesday with House passage of a fix-it bill to improve the Utah Health Exchange, an online tool for purchasing health insurance. Pitched as a free-market approach to lowering costs for small businesses, the exchange has had limited success. Only 400 people are receiving health insurance in its experimental first stage. And some of its 66 plans are up to 130 percent more expensive than what some companies were already paying. That's because insurers are calculating premiums differently 'inside' and 'outside' the exchange, said House Speaker Dave Clark" (Stewart, 2/16).

17 Feb 2010

Sorafenib drug therapy can reduce the size of primary kidney tumors before surgery

More than 57,000 Americans face a diagnosis of kidney cancer each year. Now patients with advanced disease may soon have another treatment option. Physicians who conducted a pilot study at UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center found that therapy before surgery with the drug sorafenib can reduce the size of large tumors and could be safely undertaken administered without adding significantly to the risks of surgery.

17 Feb 2010

PositiveID acquires intellectual property rights and assets of Easy Check Medical Diagnostics

PositiveID Corporation announced today that it has acquired intellectual property rights and assets of Easy Check Medical Diagnostics, LLC, to expand its portfolio of non-invasive glucose-level testing products and diabetes management tools under development. Easy Check has two primary products under development: the Easy Check breath glucose detection system and the iGlucose™ wireless communication device.

17 Feb 2010

Athersys completes enrollment in phase I MultiStem allogeneic stem cell therapy clinical trial

Athersys, Inc. and Angiotech Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced that Athersys has completed patient enrollment for its phase I clinical trial of MultiStem(R), its allogeneic stem cell therapy product, administered to individuals following acute myocardial infarction (AMI), more commonly referred to as a heart attack. Top line results of the trial are expected to be announced midyear, upon completion of the four-month patient follow-up visits and analysis of results.

17 Feb 2010

Eat fruits and vegetables to prevent heart disease

As heart disease continues to be the leading cause of death in the United States for all adults, a new report released by the Nutrilite Health Institute, America's Phytonutrient Report: Heart Health by Color*, shows that Americans are falling short on heart-healthy phytonutrients.

17 Feb 2010

Health Canada approves Talecris Biotherapeutics' PROLASTIN-C for AAT deficiency

Talecris Biotherapeutics announced today that it has received approval from Health Canada for PROLASTIN®-C (Alpha1-Proteinase Inhibitor [Human]), a more purified and concentrated version of PROLASTIN® produced using advances in manufacturing technology. A similar approval for PROLASTIN-C was granted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on October 17, 2009.

17 Feb 2010

Marcadia Biotech commences Phase 1 clinical trial of MAR701 for type 2 diabetes

Marcadia Biotech Inc. today announced that it has initiated a Phase 1 clinical trial of MAR701, a novel dual agonist of the incretin hormone receptors for glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) and gastric inhibitory peptide (GIP). Marcadia plans to initially develop this compound as a treatment for type 2 diabetes with once-weekly dosing. The Phase 1 trial will evaluate MAR701 in healthy volunteers at escalating dose levels.

17 Feb 2010

Flexible working beneficial for employees' health

There is evidence to suggest that flexible working might be beneficial for employees' health if they are allowed to have input into their own working patterns, a review by Cochrane Researchers suggests. The study may throw some light on potential health benefits associated with current trends towards more flexible working in the UK and Europe.

17 Feb 2010

StayWell Consumer Health Publishing to feature consumer health information in Pathway Genomics Genetic Health Report

Pathway Genomics™ (www.PATHWAY.com), a privately held, venture-backed company today announced an agreement with StayWell Consumer Health Publishing to feature a robust suite of consumer health information in Pathway’s Genetic Health Reports.

17 Feb 2010

Research on mosquito genes could be used for disease control measures

By unraveling the mysteries that exist within the molecular composition of mosquitoes, a team of Kansas State University researchers is trying to discover how the insects survive a parasite that causes malaria in humans.

17 Feb 2010

Patients and doctors differ when it comes to daily health activities

When it comes to daily health activities such as diet and exercise, Americans and their doctors may not always see eye to eye.

17 Feb 2010

Belatacept costimulation blocker can prevent rejection of new organs by the immune system

Initial results of a study conducted at 100 centers worldwide indicate that belatacept, a first-in-class costimulation blocker can prevent the immune system rejecting new organs. The results also suggest that it may provide similar patient and graft survival to cyclosporine but with fewer side effects and superior kidney function after 12 months. The study, published today in the American Journal of Transplantation, provides the first findings to come from BENEFIT (Belatacept Evaluation of Nephroprotection and Efficacy as First-line Immunosuppression Trial).

17 Feb 2010

Phase II clinical trial result of abiraterone drug shows promise for advanced prostate cancer

New results from a phase II clinical trial of the prostate cancer drug abiraterone suggest that it may help men with advanced disease who have tried standard treatments.

17 Feb 2010

XMRV infection is not linked to chronic fatigue syndrome

Researchers investigating UK samples have found no association between the controversial xenotropic murine leukaemia virus-related virus (XMRV) and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS).

17 Feb 2010

Effectiveness of influenza vaccines in older people: No clear conclusions

Evidence for the safety and efficacy of influenza vaccines in the over 65s is poor, despite the fact that vaccination has been recommended for the prevention of influenza in older people for the past 40 years. These are the conclusions of a new Cochrane Systematic Review.

17 Feb 2010

Study: Multiple genetic markers linked with CVD not associated with improvement in CVD risk prediction

Creation of a genetic risk score comprised of multiple genetic markers associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD) was not associated with significant improvement in CVD risk prediction in a study that included more than 19,000 women, according to a study in the February 17 issue of JAMA.

17 Feb 2010

Low RVEF increases risk of death in patients with systolic heart failure

New research from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) suggests that the ability of right side of the heart to pump blood may be an indication of the risk of death to heart-failure patients whose condition is caused by low function by the left side of their heart.

17 Feb 2010

Study demonstrates usefulness of salivary diagnostics in finding pancreatic cancer

The good news is that there may soon be a new weapon in the battle against the so-called "worst" cancer - cancer of the pancreas. A multidisciplinary group of investigators from the UCLA School of Dentistry, the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, the UCLA School of Public Health and UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center has demonstrated the usefulness of salivary diagnostics in the effort to find and fight the disease.

17 Feb 2010

BAC adds affinity resin for AAT purification to GE Healthcare’s range of custom designed media

BAC BV, the leading provider of antibody-based affinity purification technology, has extended its collaboration with GE Healthcare with the addition of a new bioprocess affinity chromatography ligand to GE Healthcare’s range of custom designed media. The latest addition to the range is an affinity resin for the purification of alpha-1 antitrypsin (AAT) from blood plasma, recombinant cell culture or transgenic sources. The new resin has been developed as part of GE Healthcare’s Custom Designed Media (CDM) programme and provides a new solution for AAT purification in the biopharmaceutical industry.

17 Feb 2010

FDA approves risk management program on ESA's for treating anemia due to chemotherapy

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved a risk management program to inform healthcare providers and their patients about the risks of a class of drugs called Erythropoiesis-Stimulating Agents (ESAs). For patients with cancer, the program is also designed to help ensure the appropriate administration of these drugs, which they receive to treat anemia that can occur as a result of chemotherapy.

17 Feb 2010

Blood News and Research

Utah tries to improve state health insurance exhange; Mich. plans for doctor shortage

Sorafenib drug therapy can reduce the size of primary kidney tumors before surgery

PositiveID acquires intellectual property rights and assets of Easy Check Medical Diagnostics

Athersys completes enrollment in phase I MultiStem allogeneic stem cell therapy clinical trial

Eat fruits and vegetables to prevent heart disease

Health Canada approves Talecris Biotherapeutics' PROLASTIN-C for AAT deficiency

Marcadia Biotech commences Phase 1 clinical trial of MAR701 for type 2 diabetes

Flexible working beneficial for employees' health

StayWell Consumer Health Publishing to feature consumer health information in Pathway Genomics Genetic Health Report

Research on mosquito genes could be used for disease control measures

Patients and doctors differ when it comes to daily health activities

Belatacept costimulation blocker can prevent rejection of new organs by the immune system

Phase II clinical trial result of abiraterone drug shows promise for advanced prostate cancer

XMRV infection is not linked to chronic fatigue syndrome

Effectiveness of influenza vaccines in older people: No clear conclusions

Study: Multiple genetic markers linked with CVD not associated with improvement in CVD risk prediction

Low RVEF increases risk of death in patients with systolic heart failure

Study demonstrates usefulness of salivary diagnostics in finding pancreatic cancer

BAC adds affinity resin for AAT purification to GE Healthcare’s range of custom designed media

FDA approves risk management program on ESA's for treating anemia due to chemotherapy

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

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