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Genes influence how heart failure patients respond to drugs

Genes dictate the color of our hair and eyes. They factor into whether we get cancer or heart disease. And, scientists increasingly recognize, they also ensure some patients will benefit from a prescription drug, while others develop adverse reactions or simply fail to respond at all.

21 Apr 2005

Overweight not as bad as once thought

Being overweight may not be very good for you but it now seems it is nowhere near as big a killer as the US government once thought.

20 Apr 2005

FDA expert panel to review Abiomed's artificial heart

Abiomed, Inc. today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will convene an expert panel of cardiovascular surgeons and cardiologists to review the groundbreaking technologies and clinical trial data behind the AbioCor artificial heart.

20 Apr 2005

New gene linked to familial cancer

Scientists have identified a new gene that appears to be linked to a small but significant percentage of familial cancer cases – as well as seemingly randomly occurring malignancies.

20 Apr 2005

Antibiotic treatment does not reduce risk of secondary cardiac events

Taking antibiotics weekly for one year does not reduce the risk of a heart attack or other cardiac event for patients with stable coronary artery disease, according to a study funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health. It is published in the April 21, 2005, edition of the New England Journal of Medicine.

20 Apr 2005

Discovery of brain's first known 'safety circuit' gives new perspective on anxiety disorders

Scientists at Columbia University Medical Center have made a surprising finding about positive emotions that should change the way people think about anxiety disorders.

20 Apr 2005

First study of mercury and cognitive function in urban, U.S. adults

Although the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish are well known for their health benefits, many fish are also the primary source of mercury in the general population.

20 Apr 2005

New drug, RAD001, shown to stop the growth of ovarian cancer cells

A new drug, RAD001, has been shown to stop the growth and movement of certain ovarian cancer cells, according to scientists at Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia. The research was presented today at the 96th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) in Anaheim, Calif.

20 Apr 2005

Heart attack victims face increased risk of death with Natrecor

In a recent study Jonathan Sackner-Bernstein, a doctor at North Shore University Hospital in New York says that Natrecor, heart failure treatment produced by drug company Johnson & Johnson may be linked to a greater risk of death when compared with standard therapy.

20 Apr 2005

A simple spit test could predict cancers

In future scientists say, a test as simple as spitting into a collection tube or cup might be a screening test for breast cancer and the early detection of other tumours.

19 Apr 2005

No strong evidence linking blood mercury levels with worse neurobehavioral performance in older adults

In a study of older adults, researchers did not find a definitive association between blood mercury levels, which can become elevated with fish consumption, and adverse neurobehavioral effects, according to a study in the April 20 issue of JAMA.

19 Apr 2005

Cardiovascular risk factors have declined substantially over past 40 years

Prevalence of high cholesterol levels, hypertension and smoking, particularly among overweight and obese adults, have declined considerably over the past 40 years, according to a study in the April 20 issue of JAMA. This trend was not true for diabetes, which has had a stable prevalence.

19 Apr 2005

Hospitalized babies with severe breathing problems may benefit from lying on their stomachs

Infants who are hospitalized with severe breathing problems may benefit from being placed on their stomachs rather than their backs, according to a new review of recent studies.

19 Apr 2005

NSAIDs okay for tonsillectomy, new study finds

When children have their tonsils removed, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs can be used for pain relief with no significant increase in bleeding and with less nausea and vomiting, according to a systematic review of current evidence.

19 Apr 2005

Some Alzheimer’s patients can benefit from drug Memantine

The drug memantine can reduce cognitive deterioration and loss of everyday functions in patients with moderate to severe Alzheimer’s disease, according to a new review of studies.

19 Apr 2005

Researchers identify marker of heart disease in low-birthweight babies

Some low birth weight infants have large particles rich in apolipoprotein C-1, a blood protein that could put them at risk for heart disease later in life, according to a national study led by Johns Hopkins Children's Center researchers.

19 Apr 2005

Number and quality of kidney transplants much greater if national matching program adopted

A collaboration between Johns Hopkins and Massachusetts Institute of Technology scientists has mathematically demonstrated that a national matching program for kidney paired donation, also called paired kidney exchange, would ensure the best possible kidney for the greatest number of recipients who have incompatible donors.

19 Apr 2005

Researchers find promising cancer-fighting power of synthetic cell-signaling molecule

Novel anti-cancer compounds called Enigmols suppress the growth of human cell lines representing cancers of the prostate, breast, colon, ovary, pancreas, brain and blood, and reduce tumors in three animal studies, new research shows.

19 Apr 2005

Marker of heart disease in low-birthweight babies identified

19 Apr 2005

Patients' lives at risk from substandard drugs

Global action is needed to counter the dangers of substandard life-saving drugs that are putting patients' lives and health at risk, according to heart specialists writing in the new (19 April) issue of Europe's leading cardiology journal, the European Heart Journal.

19 Apr 2005