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Women may need stronger lipid-lowering regimens

Women who are at high risk for cardiovascular disease are significantly less likely to achieve their lipid-lowering treatment goals than their male counterparts, show findings from a Chinese study.

7 Jun 2012

Aldosteronism linked to poor bone health

Primary aldosteronism is associated with low bone mass, increased prevalence of osteoporosis, and vertebral fractures, Italian research shows.

7 Jun 2012

Adjuvant chemoradiotherapy boosts esophageal cancer survival

Chemoradiotherapy significantly improves the outcome of patients undergoing surgery for cancer of the esophagus or esophagogastric junction and is well tolerated, suggests research in The New England Journal of Medicine.

7 Jun 2012

Remote coaching helps improve diet and exercise habits

Study findings suggest that remote coaching supported by mobile technology and financial incentives could encourage healthier eating and physical activity habits in adults.

7 Jun 2012

Successful pregnancies common for female liver transplant recipients

New research confirms that successful pregnancies are common for female liver transplant recipients. The study appearing in the June issue of Liver Transplantation, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, found miscarriage risk was lower and the live birth rate higher among women following liver transplantation than in the general U.S. population.

7 Jun 2012

Medical professionals challenged to be better role models for their patients

In an era of soft drink bans and restrictions on junk food ads, students at the Johns Hopkins University schools of medicine and nursing are recommending a different approach to aid the more than 170 million Americans who are overweight or obese. By publicly committing to basic tenets of healthy living — regular exercise, eating a balanced diet and managing stress — future nurses and physicians are challenging peers and practicing medical professionals to model healthy behaviors for their patients.

7 Jun 2012

BRF to fund research that focuses on sports-related concussive injuries among young children

The Brain Research Foundation (BRF) today announced it will fund research that aims to improve pediatricians' ability to evaluate and manage sports-related concussive injuries among young children, and guide future research regarding the diagnosis, treatment and long term effects of these events.

7 Jun 2012

Enrollment complete in Advaxis’ ADXS-HPV Phase 2 study on CIN 2/3

Advaxis, Inc., a leader in developing the next generation of immunotherapies for cancer and infectious diseases, announced today that it has completed enrollment of 40 patients in the second of three dose cohorts in Lm-LLO-E7-07, a randomized, single blind, placebo controlled Phase 2 dose escalation study assessing the safety and efficacy of ADXS-HPV for the treatment of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) 2/3.

7 Jun 2012

Astute Medical announces completion of $40.4M Series C financing

Astute Medical, Inc., a developer of novel, biomarker-based medical diagnostics, today announced the completion of a $40.4 million Series C financing led by MPM Capital and including new investor Kaiser Permanente Ventures.

7 Jun 2012

CDI introduces MyCell Services

Cellular Dynamics International, Inc. (CDI), the world's largest commercial producer of human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell lines and tissue cells, today announced the launch of its MyCell Services.

7 Jun 2012

First Edition: June 7, 2012

Today's headlines include a report that some lawmakers on Capitol Hill are meeting to attempt to find ways to deal with an upcoming deadline -- Jan. 1 -- which is also known as the "fiscal cliff."

7 Jun 2012

Hospitals get graded for patient safety

Hospital executives are about to find out if they make the grade under a new rating system developed by the Leapfrog Group that debuts online Wednesday - and some are not happy about it. Under Leapfrog's Hospital Safety Score initiative, hospitals are given a letter grade - A, B, C, D or F - on how safely they treat patients. The grade reflects patient injuries, infection rates and the frequency of medical and medication errors.

7 Jun 2012

WHO warns of drug-resistant strains of gonorrhea

"Drug-resistant strains of gonorrhea have spread to countries across the world, the U.N. health agency said on Wednesday, and millions of patients may run out of treatment options unless doctors catch and treat cases earlier," Reuters reports.

7 Jun 2012

Biologic treatments reduce mortality risk in patients with rheumatoid arthritis

According to a study presented today at EULAR 2012, the Annual Congress of the European League Against Rheumatism, patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who are prescribed biologic treatments have a significantly lower mortality risk (adjusted hazard ratio [HR]: 0.61) than those just treated with traditional disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs).The study also found the mortality was similar irrespective of the method of action of biologics (anti-tumour necrosis factor drugs [anti-TNFs] or rituximab).

7 Jun 2012

Disney to ban junk food ads in obesity fight

The change from the children's entertainment company got a prominent backer Tuesday as First Lady Michelle Obama offered her praise for the move.

7 Jun 2012

Study finds some possible shortfalls in screening methods for female athlete triad

Female athletes, particularly those involved in high level college sports at the NCAA Division I level, are particularly prone to a trio of medical issues called the "female athlete triad." A new study conducted by sports medicine researchers at the Medical College of Wisconsin found there are some possible shortfalls in the methods used to screen these athletes for the triad, and that could put athletes at risk for lifelong health problems.

7 Jun 2012

Blog examines WHO funding

In this globalhealthpolicy.net blog post, Andrew Harmer, a research fellow at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, examines funding for the World Health Organization, highlighting two documents circulated as background reading for the just-concluded World Health Assembly.

7 Jun 2012

Young adults, adolescents with mental health disorders more likely to become long-term opioid users

Long-term use and abuse of opioid painkillers, such as OxyContin and Vicodin, has markedly increased in the United States in the last two decades. Of note, prescription opioids constitute 86.9 percent of prescription drug misuse among high school students. And last week in a two-day U.S. Food and Drug Administration public meeting, officials questioned the use of long-term opioids for chronic pain due to a lack of evidence for the effectiveness and concerns about the potential risk for addiction.

7 Jun 2012

Dengue fever vaccine 'may be in sight,' Reuters reports

Reuters reports on efforts to develop a vaccine for dengue fever, writing that "victory over ... the intensely painful 'breakbone fever' ... may be in sight." Paris-based firm Sanofi "hopes for positive results in September from a key trial among children in Thailand that would set it on course to market a shot in 2015, which would prevent an estimated 100 million cases of dengue infection each year," the news service writes.

7 Jun 2012

Clinical study demonstrates effectiveness of vismodegib in treating BCNS

A revolutionary clinical study has demonstrated the effectiveness of a new drug, vismodegib, in dramatically shrinking and preventing the formation of basal cell skin cancers - the most common cancer in the United States - in patients with basal cell nevus syndrome (BCNS), a rare genetic condition that causes hundreds to thousands of skin cancers primarily treated by surgical removal.

7 Jun 2012