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Sequencing of chemotherapy and radiation therapy for early breast cancer

For women who have had surgery for early breast cancer, it may not matter whether they receive follow-up chemotherapy before, after or during radiation therapy, according to a new review of studies.

30 Oct 2006

Trial involving medical workers accused of infecting Libyan children with HIV involves 'profound political issues'

The "scientific community, AIDS activists and Libyan government would do well to recognize ... the political and diplomatic import of the case" involving five Bulgarian nurses and one Palestinian doctor accused of infecting Libyan children with HIV, Laurie Garrett, senior fellow for global health at the Council on Foreign Relations, writes in a PLoS Medicine opinion piece (Garrett, PLoS Medicine, 10/26).

30 Oct 2006

Botswana launches infant HIV testing program

Botswana in a ceremony in Francistown -- attended by Mark Dybul, who serves as the U.S. global AIDS coordinator and administers the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief -- launched a program to test six-month-old infants for HIV, according a U.S. embassy statement released on Wednesday, SAPA/SABC News reports.

30 Oct 2006

Accusations against medics charged with infecting children with HIV - attempt to cover up poor Libyan medical system

The accusations against five Bulgarian nurses and one Palestinian doctor charged with infecting hundreds of Libyan children with HIV are "an attempt to deflect Libyans' attention from the shocking state of their own medical system," a Washington Post editorial says (Washington Post, 10/29).

30 Oct 2006

The efficacy of Silybum marianum (L.) Gaertn. (Silymarin) in the treatment of type II diabetes

Diabetes is a growing health problem. Giving antioxidants is recognised as one way of helping people with diabetes to control their blood sugar levels.

30 Oct 2006

Indian Government gets it wrong about HIV Transmission

The Indian government's assumption that HIV in the country is transmitted mainly through sex, especially with commercial sex workers, is "inconsistent with evidence and very likely wrong," according to a study published in the November issue of the Royal Society of Medicine's International Journal of STD and AIDS, AFP/Yahoo! News reports.

30 Oct 2006

Six medics fight for their life in Libyan re-trial as another child dies of AIDS

The death of a nine-year old girl from AIDS in Libya brings the death toll to 52 of children in a Benghazi hospital who were allegedly deliberately infected with the virus by six foreign medics.

30 Oct 2006

FDA approves Tyzeka for the treatment of adults with chronic hepatitis B

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Tyzeka (telbivudine) for the treatment of adults with chronic hepatitis B (HBV), a serious viral infection that attacks the liver and can cause lifelong infection, scarring of the liver (cirrhosis), and eventually liver cancer, liver failure, and death.

26 Oct 2006

WHO unveils new strategy to fight some of the most neglected tropical diseases

The World Health Organization (WHO) and a group of more than 25 partner organizations unveiled a new strategy to fight some of the most neglected tropical diseases that destroy the lives and health of poor people.

26 Oct 2006

Birth of conjoined twins a medical and practical challenge

Another set of conjoined twins are expected to be born this week in Canada.

25 Oct 2006

Confusion abounds on how to treat the menopause

The results in 2002 of a large U.S. study on hormone replacement therapy (HRT) in many respects left women confused and alarmed about the treatment for the menopause.

25 Oct 2006

DIY cure for tennis elbow

Scientists in the United States have come up with a cure for tennis elbow by using the sufferers own blood.

25 Oct 2006

A couple of drinks a day protects men from heart attacks

Researchers in the U.S. say doctors should not discourage men in good health from having a drink or two each day as a moderate intake of alcohol is as beneficial to healthy men as to those at risk of heart attack.

25 Oct 2006

Link between antiretrovirals, leprosy probable

Increased access to antiretroviral drugs in developing countries has revealed a "startling and worrisome side effect" by exposing "hidden leprosy infection" in some HIV-positive people receiving antiretrovirals, the New York Times reports.

24 Oct 2006

Health officials announce physician quiz campaign to help reduce medical errors

HHS and other health officials on Monday announced a new campaign designed to limit surgical complications by encouraging patients to quiz their doctors about medical procedures, CQ HealthBeat reports.

24 Oct 2006

Use of subcutaneous injections of Epogen for dialysis patients could save Medicare $537 million annually

Administering the anti-anemia drug Epogen to kidney dialysis patients by subcutaneous injections rather than intravenously could save the federal government hundreds of millions of dollars annually, the Boston Globe reports.

24 Oct 2006

New study to evaluate whether nutrient-based factors slow the progression of age-related macular degeneration

UT Southwestern Medical Center is participating in a nationwide study investigating whether modified combinations of vitamins, minerals and fish oil products can slow the progression of vision loss from age-related macular degeneration.

24 Oct 2006

Biomarkers in blood indicate likelihood of having another stroke

People who have just suffered their first ischemic stroke, a blood clot in the brain, often have elevated inflammatory biomarkers in their blood that indicate their likelihood of having another stroke or an increased risk of dying, according to Columbia University Medical Center researchers at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital.

24 Oct 2006

Racial disparities exist in pulmonary hypertension mortality and morbidity

African-American women have the highest mortality rate for idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (IPAH), according to new research.

24 Oct 2006

New method for targeting malignant brain tumors

A new method for targeting malignant brain tumors through inducing the cancerous cells to "commit suicide" has been developed by a team of researchers headed by a Hebrew University of Jerusalem professor of biochemistry.

24 Oct 2006