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Watch and wait the best option for low-risk prostate cancer

According to the American Cancer Society, 234,000 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer this year, and 27,350 will die from it, but researchers say that as many as half of men diagnosed with low-risk prostate cancer undergo surgery or radiation therapy unnecessarily.

15 Aug 2006

Cancer patient receives first proton therapy treatment

A Cocoa Beach man with prostate cancer has become the first patient to undergo treatment at the new University of Florida Proton Therapy Institute, the first time the most advanced form of radiation therapy available has been offered in the Southeast.

15 Aug 2006

Waist-hip ratio should replace body mass index as indicator of mortality risk in older people

Older people with high waist-hip ratios (WHRs) have a higher mortality risk than those with a high body mass index, or BMI, a new study reveals.

15 Aug 2006

Treating battlefield injuries and pain in veterans from Afghanistan and Iraq

The August issue of Pain Medicine features two original research studies on treating pain in veterans from Afghanistan and Iraq.

15 Aug 2006

Plan to boost access to essential medicines for children

The first international Expert Consultation on Paediatric Essential Medicines, jointly held by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nation's Children's Fund (UNICEF), has delivered a plan to boost access to essential medicines for children.

15 Aug 2006

Drug trial fiasco induced immune system overload in patients

The doctors who treated six British men in a trial of a drug in March which went horribly wrong, say they believe the men suffered an immune system overreaction known as a cytokine storm.

15 Aug 2006

Breast cancer 'wonder drug' Herceptin carries a risk for heart problems

According to the latest research breast cancer wonder drug Herceptin puts some women at risk of heart problems.

15 Aug 2006

Low testosterone in men over 40 linked to early death

According to a new study, after the age of forty, men with low levels of the male sex hormone testosterone may have a higher risk of death over a four-year period than those with normal levels of the hormone.

15 Aug 2006

Varenicline shown to help 'quit smoking'

A drug recently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as an aid to smoking cessation appears effective both short- and long-term for smokers trying to quit, according to two reports in the August 14/28 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.

14 Aug 2006

Researchers find precise location where an antibody binds to the West Nile virus

Researchers have learned the precise location where an antibody binds to the West Nile virus, and they have suggested a mechanism for how this antibody neutralizes the virus to prevent infection.

14 Aug 2006

New findings support Rapamycin's role as cancer treatment

Scientists have long known that the blood vessels of tumors differ markedly from normal blood vessels.

14 Aug 2006

Scientific breakthrough could mean greater protection for asthmatics

Colds are known to be a major trigger of asthma attacks and asthmatics are far more likely to suffer a severe attack during a cold and even end up being hospitalised.

From Asthma + Lung UK 14 Aug 2006

Gene test for cancers could mean more effective, tailored-made treatment

Scientists in the United States have developed a test which is able to predict which lung cancer tumours are most likely to recur.

14 Aug 2006

Lipitor reduces the risk of a second stroke

Researchers have found that the drug Lipitor which is normally used to lower cholesterol, can cut the risk of a second stroke when used in double doses.

14 Aug 2006

Neuren presents phase 2 clinical trial strategy for NNZ-2566

Neuren Pharmaceuticals has announced that Mr Larry Glass, Executive Vice President and head of Neuren’s US operations, has been invited by the US Army to present Neuren’s clinical trial strategy for NNZ-2566 at the Advanced Technology Applications for Combat Casualty Care (ATACCC) conference.

14 Aug 2006

FDA warns pharmacies to stop mass-producing unapproved inhalation drugs

FDA has warned three firms, RoTech Healthcare, Inc., CCS Medical, and Reliant Pharmacy Services, to stop manufacturing and distributing thousands of doses of compounded, unapproved inhalation drugs nation-wide.

10 Aug 2006

Lipitor reduces stroke risk

In people who have experienced a stroke, but who have no known history of coronary heart disease, beginning regular treatment with the cholesterol-lowering drug atorvastatin soon after the stroke can reduce the risk of recurrent stroke by 16 percent

9 Aug 2006

As heart procedures increase, more important to the U.S. healthcare system to monitor the success of new treatments and technology

With more than a million heart and vascular interventions performed each year in the United States., it becomes even more critical to the healthcare system to keep costs down and quality high.

9 Aug 2006

Money matters too much says editor of prestigious medical journal

The editor of a top medical journal says money, and money alone, is having an "unethical influence" on medical science and by so-doing she has upped the pressure on scientists to fully disclose commercial ties by urging the employers of those who don't comply to probe them for possible conflicts of interest.

9 Aug 2006

China comes clean on bird flu

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), the two latest suspected cases of the human form of the bird flu virus in Indonesia and Thailand have been confirmed as the H5N1 strain of the disease.

9 Aug 2006