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FDA issues interim safety and risk assessment of Melamine and Melamine-related compounds in food

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued the results of its interim safety and risk assessment of melamine and melamine-related compounds in food, including infant formula.

5 Oct 2008

Medical student gender and self-confidence: Females underestimate their abilities and males tend to overestimate theirs

Despite performing equally to their male peers in the classroom and the clinic, female medical students consistently report decreased self-confidence and increased anxiety, particularly over issues related to their competency. A new study published in the September 2008 issue of Patient Education and Counseling found that female medical students also appeared less confident to patients.

5 Oct 2008

Eli Lilly starts second global phase III trial of investigational Alzheimer's disease compound

Eli Lilly and Company today announced it will begin enrolling patients in a second Phase III study of LY450139, a gamma-secretase inhibitor being investigated as a potential treatment to delay the progression of mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease.

2 Oct 2008

Bayer's new oral anticoagulant Xarelto (Rivaroxaban) gets European licence

A new drug launched today could help in the fight against what experts and campaigners are calling a 'major patient safety issue' - the prevention of hospital-acquired DVT (deep vein thrombosis).

2 Oct 2008

Will patients stick to physical therapy? Questionnaire can help doctors predict

Patients' responses to a simple questionnaire can reliably predict whether they will adhere to physical therapy after spine surgery, Johns Hopkins researchers suggest in a new study. The findings could help physicians identify patients who might benefit from additional preoperative preparation to ensure they attend therapy sessions and follow through with prescribed exercise, a factor that can greatly affect their long-term recovery.

2 Oct 2008

Most young adults under 50 unlikely need colorectal screening

Young adults without a family history of bowel disease are unlikely to develop adenomas, the colorectal polyps most likely to lead to cancer, according to new research directed by scientists at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center. The finding supports current cancer screening guidelines recommending adults in general undergo screening colonoscopies starting at age 50.

2 Oct 2008

Mammograms read by computers will boost cancer detection and reduce doctors' workload

A computer can safely replace a medical expert in a revolutionary way of interpreting a breast X-ray - according to a Cancer Research UK funded study.

2 Oct 2008

Merck ditches taranabant for obesity

Merck & Co., Inc. will not seek regulatory approval for taranabant, an investigational medicine, to treat obesity and is discontinuing its Phase III clinical development program for taranabant for obesity.

2 Oct 2008

Birth size a marker of susceptibility to breast cancer later in life

The findings from a study by a team based at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) are published in PLoS Medicine.

2 Oct 2008

7 million pregnant women in sub-Saharan Africa infected with hookworms

A study published by PLoS reveals that between a quarter and a third of pregnant women in sub-Saharan Africa, or almost 7 million, are infected with hookworms, putting them at risk of anaemia.

2 Oct 2008

Research suggests doctors should consider kidney-sparing surgery

A study of almost 1,500 kidney cancer patients treated at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center suggests that surgery to spare as much kidney tissue as possible may improve overall survival in patients who also have reduced kidney function at the time their cancer is diagnosed. The finding is significant because both kidney cancer and decreased kidney function appear to be increasing.

2 Oct 2008

Statin-induced muscle disorders are focus of $2.5 million in grants from NIH

Approximately 200,000 of the 38 million people in the U.S. who take statins to treat high cholesterol may develop life-threatening muscle disease.

2 Oct 2008

Raised risk of prostate cancer in Black men

Black men living in England are three times more likely to get prostate cancer than White men and tend to be diagnosed five years younger, researchers have found.

2 Oct 2008

Experts confront cancer trend: aging population, new challenges

A growing cadre of specialists - geriatric oncologists - is the latest group of medical pioneers to meet the challenge of a rising cancer incidence among older adults. They are investigating how to fill the gaps in the way oncology is practiced today, which sometimes neglects the special needs of the elderly.

2 Oct 2008

Cholesterol research, begun in the 'Little Skate,' Garners Award

New research on the way the body processes cholesterol has earned a scientist at the University of Rochester Medical Center one of the highest honors in the field.

2 Oct 2008

New technology promises tests for diseases such as cancer in 15 minutes

Scientists at Leeds University in the UK say soon, testing for diseases such as cancer and multiple sclerosis, could take as little as 15 minutes and could be as simple as using a pregnancy testing kit.

1 Oct 2008

Molecule provides new understanding of cause of colon cancer

Scientists investigating a molecule known to play a key role in causing colon cancer have made a series of ground-breaking discoveries that could have major implications for future treatment of the disease, responsible for 655,000 deaths worldwide per year. Their findings are published in the journal Cancer Research.

30 Sep 2008

New gout gene discovery

Researchers have identified two new genes - and confirmed the role of a third gene - associated with increased risk of higher levels of uric acid in the blood, which can lead to gout, a common, painful form of arthritis.

30 Sep 2008

Parents warned that second-hand smoke may trigger nicotine dependence symptoms in children

Canadian researchers are warning parents who smoke around their children that second-hand smoke may trigger nicotine dependence symptoms in their offspring.

30 Sep 2008

Don't ask, don't tell doesn't work in prenatal care

While obstetrical care providers are doing a good job working with their patients on smoking cessation, they are not doing as well on abuse of other substances that can harm a woman's unborn baby. A new study appearing in the September 2008 issue of the journal Patient Education and Counseling reports that patients don't volunteer information about substance abuse unless specifically queried.

30 Sep 2008