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New study to evaluate Pegasys and Copegus to treat hepatitis C in liver transplant patients

Roche has initiated a new study to evaluate treatment strategies to reduce post-transplant recurrence of hepatitis C infection with the most prescribed hepatitis C treatment combination in the U.S., Pegasys (peginterferon alfa-2a) and Copegus (ribavirin, USP).

21 Mar 2005

Link between C-reactive protein, heart disease and stroke

The cells that line the arteries are able to produce C-reactive protein, according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health and published in the April issue of American Journal of Pathology.

16 Mar 2005

Q. What turns an obese person into a person with diabetes? - A. Leptin

Twin epidemics of obesity and type 2 diabetes are bearing down on the world's population, threatening the lives of hundreds of millions of people. But scientists are still trying to determine how the two conditions are linked, and what it takes to turn an obese person into a person with diabetes.

16 Mar 2005

Diabetes Busting Burgers!

Chemists with the U.S. Department of Agriculture recently presented a preliminary report to the 229th national meeting of the American Chemical Society, in which they say they have discovered a form of soluble cellulose that, if added to high-fat food. The new finding could soon benefit people who regularly eat fast-foods that are high in fat.

16 Mar 2005

Antiretroviral therapy may prevent some cancers in people with HIV

In people infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) may prevent most excess cases of Kaposi sarcoma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma, according to a new study in the March 16 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

15 Mar 2005

Patients can now swallow pill-sized, disposable cameras to help diagnose diseases of the esophagus

Patients can now swallow pill-sized, disposable cameras to help gastroenterologists diagnose and evaluate diseases of the esophagus, or swallowing tube. This new diagnostic tool is a further modification of capsule endoscopy, which has been used clinically since late 2001 to examine the small intestines.

15 Mar 2005

Brewing up potential anti-cancer drugs from green tea

Drinking green tea has a protective effect against some forms of cancer but drinking large amounts can increase the risk of birth defects such as spina bifida – according to previous epidemiological studies.

15 Mar 2005

Process behind cellular export of iron may help to explain human hemochromatosis

The first direct evidence that a single protein is critical in the cellular export of iron may help to explain human hemochromatosis, researchers report in the March issue of Cell Metabolism.

15 Mar 2005

Novel Australian anti-cancer therapy has begun safety testing in human subjects

An international medical conference here heard that an Australian developed anti-cancer therapy based on the use of a common cold virus to control cancer cell growth has begun safety testing in human subjects.

15 Mar 2005

New hepatitis drug wins approval by FDA

An experimental hepatitis B drug has earned the praise of US health experts for its effectiveness and has been recommended by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory panel to treat the liver disease in adults.

14 Mar 2005

New cancer drug looks promising

Dr. E. Premkumar Reddy from Temple University School of Medicine and colleagues, in a study examining the effects of Plk1 inhibitor ON01910 on tumor growth in several animal models have found that a small molecule inhibitor of polo-like kinase1 (Plk1) could lead to a new avenue for targeted cancer therapy.

14 Mar 2005

Diabetes "cured" by transplant

61-year-old businessman and community activist, Richard Lane, has become Britain's first fully successful islet cell transplant recipient.

9 Mar 2005

Nature of electrical abnormalities occurring during the development of heart failure

A Johns Hopkins undergraduate student has contributed to new research showing that electrical changes in the heart leading to heart failure can occur long before a patient exhibits any clinical symptoms.

8 Mar 2005

Lipitor patients who reduced 'bad' cholesterol show decrease in heart attack and stroke

Patients with coronary heart disease who took Pfizer's cholesterol-lowering medicine Lipitor (atorvastatin calcium) and lowered their cholesterol to well below recommended levels experienced significantly fewer heart attacks and strokes than those who only lowered their cholesterol to recommended levels

8 Mar 2005