Epidemiology News and Research

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Eradicating polio a better option than extended control of the disease

Concerns about the high perceived costs of eradicating the relatively low number of polio cases worldwide have led to recent suggestions that it is time to shift from a goal of eradication to control—abandoning eradication and allowing wild poliovirus to continue to circulate, which proponents of control believe can sustain the low number of cases.

15 Apr 2007

Margaret Foti receives inaugural AACR award for cancer research

The Board of Directors of the American Association for Cancer Research is pleased to honor Margaret Foti, Ph.D., M.D. (h.c.) with the first annual AACR Award for Leadership and Extraordinary Achievements in Cancer Research.

12 Apr 2007

New vaccine to prevent type-1 polio three times as effective as standard vaccine

The study found that each dose of the new monovalent oral poliovirus vaccine, known as mOPV1, protected 30% of susceptible children in northern India against paralytic poliomyelitis. The standard trivalent vaccine in the same setting protected just 11% of children per dose.

12 Apr 2007

Varying treatment of asthma

Asthma symptoms vary greatly among individuals and vary at times with each individual.

10 Apr 2007

Male births on the decline in the U.S. and Japan

A study published in this week's online edition of Environmental Health Perspectives reports that during the past thirty years, the number of male births has decreased each year in the U.S. and Japan.

10 Apr 2007

Heart study observes 20th year in Forsyth County

Because of the 4,035 Forsyth County residents who participated in a long-running study of heart disease risk factors, researchers at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center and colleagues have made major findings such as how being overweight is associated with becoming disabled and that passive smoking increases the risk of hardening of the arteries.

9 Apr 2007

Physical, emotional burden of breast cancer lingers for older survivors

Surviving breast cancer is both a physical and an emotional ordeal, but the consensus among researchers is that life generally returns to normal for most women within two years of completing treatment.

7 Apr 2007

Multivitamin supplements improve birth outcomes among children born to HIV-negative women

Each year an estimated 20 million children are born with low birth weight worldwide, more than 95% of them in developing countries.

5 Apr 2007

Study looks at the prevention of adolescent substance abuse

Why do young people smoke cigarettes or use alcohol or drugs? What skills do they need to avoid starting these habits? A new study by researchers from Weill Cornell Medical College shows that competence skills can reduce adolescent substance use over the long term, even when friends smoke or use alcohol.

5 Apr 2007

Although breast cancer mortality has declined as a whole, declines are greatest for women under 70

A new study shows that recent declines in breast cancer mortality rates have been most significant among women with estrogen receptor (ER)-positive tumors and women younger than 70.

4 Apr 2007

People without health insurance more likely to forego routine physical exams

The lack of health insurance prompts people to forego routine physical exams and have a reduced awareness of cardiovascular risk factors and is associated with increased rates of stroke and death, researchers have concluded.

4 Apr 2007

Current predictions of future incidence of asbestos-related disease substantially underestimated

The analysis by Dr Mark Clements, from the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, and colleagues shows that the peak number of cases of mesothelioma, a deadly cancer caused by asbestos, will occur four years later and the future total incidence may be in excess of 35 per cent higher than existing models would have predicted.

4 Apr 2007

Eating red meat increases a woman's chance of developing breast cancer

Women who eat the most processed meat, such as bacon, sausages, ham or pies, run a 64 per cent greater risk of breast cancer than those who eat none.

4 Apr 2007

Recognition for cancer researchers

World-class cancer researchers whose science has significantly contributed to progress in the fight against cancer will be recognized April 14-18, 2007, by the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) at its 2007 Annual Meeting in Los Angeles, Calif.

3 Apr 2007

Harvard presents to Motion Picture Association of America on depiction of smoking in movies

Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) is releasing materials presented to the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) in a scientific briefing requested by the MPAA last February 23, 2007 in Hollywood on the health impact of youth smoking and the behavioral influence of films that depict tobacco use.

3 Apr 2007

Where you live might play a bigger role in your risk for heart disease than your ethnicity or race

New research reveals that rural residents were more knowledgeable about healthy eating and heart disease risk than urban residents, but that urban residents were more motivated and optimistic about getting healthy.

3 Apr 2007

Community-based measures fail to reduce HIV levels

Interventions that target individuals with a high risk of contracting HIV have a negligible impact on HIV transmission in the general population, according to a new study of communities in Zimbabwe, published today.

2 Apr 2007

Maternal beef consumption associated with lower sperm concentration

New research has shown that women who ate a lot of beef while pregnant had sons who were more likely to suffer from poor sperm quality as adults, and it suggests that the growth promoters used in cattle may play a role in these men's reduced fertility.

2 Apr 2007

Optical biopsy finds cancers in first tests on human tissue

In its first laboratory tests on human tissue, a light-based probe built by researchers at Duke University's Pratt School of Engineering almost instantly detected the earliest signs of cancer in cells that line internal organs.

2 Apr 2007

Higher trans fat levels in blood associated with elevated risk of heart disease

High consumption of trans fat, found mainly in partially hydrogenated vegetable oils and widely used by the food industry, has been linked to an increased risk of coronary heart disease (CHD).

30 Mar 2007