Anemia News and Research

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Anemia is a decrease in normal number of red blood cells (RBCs) or less than the normal quantity of hemoglobin in the blood. However, it can include decreased oxygen-binding ability of each hemoglobin molecule due to deformity or lack in numerical development as in some other types of hemoglobin deficiency. The three main classes of anemia include excessive blood loss (acutely such as a hemorrhage or chronically through low-volume loss), excessive blood cell destruction (hemolysis) or deficient red blood cell production (ineffective hematopoiesis). Anemia is the most common disorder of the blood. There are several kinds of anemia, produced by a variety of underlying causes. Anemia can be classified in a variety of ways, based on the morphology of RBCs, underlying etiologic mechanisms, and discernible clinical spectra, to mention a few.

Variation in the BCL11A gene linked to moderated symptoms of beta-thalassemia

Beta-thalassemia is a serious, potentially life-threatening disease that affects red blood cells, cells that carry oxygen via hemoglobin throughout the body.

4 Feb 2008

Kidney cancer drug attacks a major type of acute myeloid leukemia

A drug used to treat kidney cancer also targets a genetic mutation active in about one third of patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), the most common and lethal form of adult leukemia, researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center report in the Jan. 29 edition of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

30 Jan 2008

Scientists use nanoscale polymer films to control drug delivery

Using nanotechnology, scientists from UCLA and Northwestern University have developed a localized and controlled drug delivery method that is invisible to the immune system, a discovery that could provide newer and more effective treatments for cancer and other diseases.

23 Jan 2008

Gastric cancer survivors should be aware of osteoporosis

Gastric cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world. Although the prognosis of gastric cancer is known to be poor, the survival rate for those who receive operative treatment is increasing recently by virtue of early diagnosis and aggressive surgical intervention.

17 Jan 2008

New way to boost red blood cell numbers

A common treatment for anemia a deficiency in red blood cells (rbcs) caused by their insufficient production, excessive destruction, or excessive loss is administration of recombinant erythropoietin (Epo), a hormone that stimulates the production of rbc precursors by the bone marrow.

11 Jan 2008

Takeda submits NDA for Alogliptin (SYR-322) in the U.S.

Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (Takeda) has announced that Takeda Global Research & Development Center, Inc. submitted a New Drug Application (NDA) to the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for alogliptin (development code: SYR-322), a highly selective dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitor under investigation for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.

7 Jan 2008

Hospitalizations for gastroespohageal reflux disease on the rise

Hospitalizations for treating disorders caused by gastroespohageal reflux disease (GERD ) increased by 103 percent between 1998 and 2005, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

7 Jan 2008

FDA reviews new data on risks of erythropoiesis-stimulating agents

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is reviewing new data from two studies that provide further evidence of the risks of anemia drugs known as erythropoiesis-stimulating agents, or ESAs.

4 Jan 2008

Vitamin B-12 function may be diminished by excessive folate

In a study of adults aged 20 and over, researchers at Tufts University showed that homocysteine and methylmalonic acid are at much higher levels in individuals who have a combination of vitamin B12 deficiency and high blood folate levels than in individuals who are also vitamin B12 deficient but have normal folate levels.

20 Dec 2007

Combining medications often best strategy to battle rheumatoid arthritis

For patients with rheumatoid arthritis, combining one well-known, lower cost synthetic drug with one of six biologic medications often works best to reduce joint swelling or tenderness, according to a new report funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

18 Dec 2007

Blood transfusions linked to surgery complications in women

Women die and get infections more often than men after heart surgery because they tend to receive more blood transfusions, which boost the risks of bad outcomes, according to a study published in the December Journal of Women's Health.

13 Dec 2007

Most carriers of Fanconi anemia genes are not at a higher risk of cancer

For almost 50 years, Fanconi anemia has been associated with leukemia. Not just among those who have the genetic disorder but among their family members, whose genes, they were told, made them highly susceptible to a variety of malignancies.

13 Dec 2007

Human hormone shows potential as new antidepressant agent

Novel treatment strategies for major depression with broader treatment success or a more rapid onset of action would have immense impact on public health, a new study published in the December 1st issue of Biological Psychiatry explains.

12 Dec 2007

Need for education for primary care physicians on rarely seen cancers

Many primary care physicians may lack the necessary knowledge when it comes to recognizing the signs, symptoms and making proper diagnoses in cases of blood cancers such as leukemia and lymphoma, a recent survey indicates.

10 Dec 2007

Mild chemo before stem cell transplant causes long-term remission of follicular lymphoma

Treating relapsed follicular lymphoma patients with a milder chemotherapy regimen before they receive a blood stem cell transplant from a donor resulted in long-term complete remission for 45 of 47 patients in a clinical trial, researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center report at the 49th annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology.

10 Dec 2007

Anemia drugs linked with leukemic transformation in patients with primary myelofibrosis

Mayo Clinic researchers have reported the discovery of a link between erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESAs) and leukemic transformation (conversion to leukemia) of the blood disorder myelofibrosis.

10 Dec 2007

Study results from Zolinza (vorinostat) in combination with bortezomib for multiple myeloma trial

Results from two investigational Phase I trials of ZOLINZA (vorinostat) in combination with bortezomib provide preliminary anti-tumor activity in patients with relapsed and/or refractory multiple myeloma.

10 Dec 2007

Reprogrammed stem cells cure sickle cell anaemia

Scientists in the U.S. have made a breakthrough in the fight against sickle cell anaemia, a blood disease caused by a defect in a single gene.

9 Dec 2007

Study questions impact of hemoglobin variations on mortality in dialysis patients

For patients with dialysis-related anemia, the risk of death is increased when hemoglobin levels remain persistently low over a period several months - not necessarily when they fluctuate over time, according to a study in the January Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

5 Dec 2007

Scientists develop optical device that allows them to peer through the eyes of a mouse and monitor cells passing in bloodstream

A team of researchers from the Wellman Center for Photomedicine at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Harvard Medical School (HMS) have developed an optical device that allows them to peer through the eyes of a mouse and monitor the cells passing through its bloodstream.

4 Dec 2007