Measles News and Research

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Measles is a highly contagious, serious disease caused by a virus. It remains a leading cause of death among young children globally, despite the availability of a safe and effective vaccine. An estimated 197 000 people died from measles in 2007, mostly children under the age of five.

Measles is caused by a virus in the paramyxovirus family. The measles virus normally grows in the cells that line the back of the throat and the lungs. It is a human disease not known to occur in animals.

Experts in Britain wholeheartedly back MMR jab

A disciplinary hearing due to begin this week in the UK may well settle the debate over any link between the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine (MMR) and autism.

16 Jul 2007

Vaccine for human cytomegalovirus

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences have patented a strategy for developing a human vaccine to prevent against Human Cytomegalovirus (hCMV) infection and disease.

23 Jun 2007

New infectious diseases blueprint for action

New vaccines are available to make significant gains against cervical cancer deaths and debilitating pain from shingles, but infectious diseases experts warn that their full potential will not be realized without changes in the way vaccines for adults and adolescents are promoted, financed, and delivered in the United States.

19 Jun 2007

How 'memory' T cells protect the body from viral diseases

A scientific discovery by Fox Chase Cancer Center researchers helps explain how 'memory' T cells protect the body from viral diseases.

19 Jun 2007

Common DNA variations underlie susceptibility to fever after smallpox vaccination

Their finding is the first to link individual differences written into the genetic code with a vaccine-related complication, albeit a mild one.

19 Jun 2007

Autism - MMR vaccine has it's day in court

A test case in an American court could in one way or another settle the debate on the possible link between autism and childhood vaccines.

11 Jun 2007

Preparing for a baby

Planning for pregnancy can help your baby get the best possible start in life. Here are eight valuable tips from Barbara Coulter-Smith, D.O., an obstetrician/gynecologist on the medical staff at Baylor Regional Medical Center at Grapevine.

8 Jun 2007

Sailors sent home because of mumps

A Canadian naval vessel had been forced to send almost it's entire crew home after one of the crew members developed a case of the mumps.

28 May 2007

U.S. parents not in favor of HPV vaccine mandates

While debate in several state governments continues to grow over school mandates for Gardasil – a vaccine recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for girls ages 11 to 12 that is designed to provide protection against human papillomavirus, or HPV, the virus linked to cervical cancer and genital warts – the majority of U.S. parents have already reached a decision on the issue: They do not want the vaccine to be mandated.

24 May 2007

Health workers to get mumps booster in battle against the spread of the disease

The outbreak of mumps which is currently rife in parts of Canada has prompted Health officials to make 40,000 doses of a mumps booster available to health workers across Nova Scotia.

14 May 2007

Mumps makes a comeback Canada

Health officials in Canada are concerned about an outbreak of mumps which appears to be spreading.

7 May 2007

Vaccination week in the Americas

The countries of the Americas are preparing a huge promotional effort for the fifth year of Vaccination Week in the Americas, which this year aims to immunize some 55 million persons.

18 Apr 2007

Scientists tackle cancer with different approaches

Studies presented at the 2007 meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research show how researchers are using the new, as well as the natural, to help design and test new drugs to treat cancer.

18 Apr 2007

Rising vaccine costs put kids at risk

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is alarmed that the soaring costs of vaccines combined with lower reimbursements from insurance companies will lead to the under- immunization of the nation's children and unnecessary outbreaks of preventable diseases.

11 Apr 2007

India is poised to revolutionize biotechnology

India's health biotech firms are emerging as a major global player, with growing means and know-how to produce innovative as well as generic drugs and vaccines at costs small relative to those of giant Western firms, according to ground-breaking Canadian research.

10 Apr 2007

Mayo Clinic tests engineered measles virus against multiple myeloma

Mayo Clinic Cancer Center has opened a new Phase I clinical trial testing an engineered measles virus against multiple myeloma, a cancer of the bone marrow that currently has no cure. This is the third of a series of molecular medicine studies in patients testing the potential of measles to kill cancer.

5 Mar 2007

Vaccines for measles-mumps-rubella and varicella are effective in extremely preterm infants

The study, which included 16 term and 16 extremely preterm (born before about 6 months of pregnancy) infants born between May 2002 and May 2005, is the first of its kind to examine the antibody levels of measles, mumps, rubella and varicella in this population before and after vaccination. It was published in this month's Pediatrics.

5 Mar 2007