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Scientists uncover critical genetic mutation in patients with MDS

Scientists have uncovered a critical genetic mutation in some patients with myelodysplastic syndromes - a group of blood cancers that can progress to a fatal form of leukemia.

16 Dec 2011

Antimalarial drugs administered during pregnancy safer than contracting malaria, study suggests

"Antimalarial drugs are safer for pregnant women than contracting the disease," according to a study from the University of Oxford published in the journal Lancet Infectious Diseases on Tuesday that "assessed the effects of malaria and its treatment in the first trimester of pregnancy," HealthCanal.com reports.

16 Dec 2011

Decision support tool for objective diagnostics of Alzheimer's

European PredictAD project, lead by Principal Scientist Jyrki Lötjönen from VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, has developed a decision support tool for objective diagnostics of Alzheimer's disease.

15 Dec 2011

University of Southampton receives ERC grant to support research into enhanced NMR

New research from the University of Southampton could lead to enhanced MRI scans, producing brighter and more precise images, and potentially allowing the detection of cancerous cells before they cause health problems.

15 Dec 2011

Virco Lab launches HIV/AIDS EHR technology

Virco Lab, Inc., the U.S. affiliate of Virco BVBA, today announced the launch of AVIGA and AVIGA REPORTER. AVIGA is a web-based electronic health record (EHR) solution with HIV/AIDS disease-specific functionality and AVIGA REPORTER is a web-based, data-reporting module designed specifically for the purposes of conducting HIV/AIDS research and providing reporting capabilities.

15 Dec 2011

Study: Many prescription drugs use phthalates as inactive ingredients

Researchers from Boston University's Slone Epidemiology Center (SEC), in collaboration with Harvard School of Public Health, have found numerous prescription and over-the-counter drugs and supplements use certain chemicals called phthalates as inactive ingredients in their products.

15 Dec 2011

FIND, NUS collaborate to identify novel biomarkers for TB diagnosis

A research team from the National University of Singapore (NUS) Singapore Lipidomics Incubator (SLING) is collaborating with the Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics (FIND) to identify novel target molecules to be employed as biomarkers for the detection of active tuberculosis.

15 Dec 2011

FUJIFILM to acquire SonoSite

FUJIFILM Holdings Corporation, a diversified technology company that operates in healthcare, highly functional materials, and document solutions, announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement with SonoSite, Inc., a pioneer and leader in bedside and point-of-care ultrasound technology, pursuant to which Fujifilm will acquire SonoSite for approximately $995 million.

15 Dec 2011

ICRM director-general to give lecture about cancer research in India at AACR conference

Vishwa Mohan Katoch, M.D., will give a special lecture entitled "Cancer Research in India: Future Directions" at the AACR International Conference on New Horizons in Cancer Research: Biology to Prevention to Therapy, Dec. 13-16, 2011, in Gurgaon, Delhi (NCR), India.

15 Dec 2011

Roundtable discussion about caffeine and physical performance

Caffeine is regarded by some as being a potent stimulant, but the debate continues as to whether it enhances exercise performance. A range of expert opinions capture the scope of this ongoing debate in an informative roundtable discussion published in Journal of Caffeine Research, a quarterly peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.

15 Dec 2011

Lab results change in consistent ways during the course of Kawasaki disease

Children with Kawasaki disease show a pattern of changing laboratory test results as the disease runs its course, according to a study in the December issue of The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal.

15 Dec 2011

High-deductible health plans on the rise

More than one in five Americans who are privately insured are now part of high-deductible plans, a figure that's at an all-time high and growing rapidly according to a new survey by the Employee Benefit Research Institute.

15 Dec 2011

Ryan, Wyden to announce new Medicare proposal

Republican congressman Paul Ryan plans to unveil a new Medicare proposal Thursday that would give future seniors the choice of purchasing private insurance coverage or staying in the traditional federal plan. The concept, which is backed by Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, steps back from the House Budget Chairman's previous plan to end the traditional fee-for-service Medicare program for future retirees and replace it with subsidies that seniors would use to purchase private health plans.

15 Dec 2011

Widowers should find new partner to avoid risk of poor mental health

Men who have lost their partner to cancer and who are still single four to five years after their loss run a far greater risk of developing mental illness than those who have managed to find a new partner, reveals a unique study of 691 Swedish widowers carried out at the Sahlgrenska Academy.

15 Dec 2011

SU2C, MRA announce new Dream Team dedicated to melanoma research

Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C), the Melanoma Research Alliance (MRA) and SU2C's scientific partner, the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), today announced a new Dream Team dedicated to melanoma research. Jeffrey M. Trent, Ph.D., and Patricia M. LoRusso, D.O., will lead the Dream Team project entitled "Personalized Medicine for Patients with BRAF Wild-Type (BRAFwt) Cancer."

15 Dec 2011

New approaches can improve cancer care delivery

Physicians can use medical records to track the quality of cancer care and determine whether their patients are receiving the right treatments at the right time. Yet the patient is the only one who ultimately can evaluate the quality of his or her experience while receiving treatment.

15 Dec 2011

Senate Democrats seek justification for Plan B decision

Thirteen Democrats and one independent expressed disappointment in Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius' decision to block younger teenagers from buying the "Plan B" emergency contraceptive without a prescription. Meanwhile, a federal judge says he will review the decision.

15 Dec 2011

Emerging economies taking greater role in development aid

"The past year has underlined how the dramatic growth of some of the world's most populous developing economies is propelling a remarkable shift in the global geopolitics of aid and development," the Guardian reports in an article examining how "non-traditional donors" contributed large amounts to several humanitarian crises this year.

15 Dec 2011

Potential budget cuts threaten U.S. military HIV research program

This post in the Center for Global Health Policy's "Science Speaks" blog examines how potential budget cuts are threatening the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR) Military HIV Research Program (MHRP), "a $175 million program supported by the Department of Defense and other entities that is vulnerable to cuts in the fiscal year 2012 funding battle currently taking place on the Hill."

15 Dec 2011

U.N. issues $1.5B 2012 joint appeal for humanitarian aid in Somalia

The U.N. on Tuesday issued its 2012 consolidated appeal process (CAP), or joint appeal, for $1.5 billion to fund 350 projects in Somalia, "where famine and conflict have already cost tens of thousands of lives," the Guardian reports.

15 Dec 2011