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Tonsil cancer patients harbouring HPV16 can avoid chemotherapy

Clinical researchers at Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) have confirmed that patients with oropharyngeal squamous cell cancer ("tonsil cancer") harbour a common type of human papilloma virus (HPV16), but also that such cancers are very sensitive to radiation. For some patients, this may mean successful treatment with radiation alone and avoiding the side effects of chemotherapy.

4 Nov 2009

Radiation treatment as effective and as safe in reducing the risk of prostate cancer from returning

A shorter, five-week course of radiation treatment that delivers higher doses of radiation in fewer sessions, known as hypofractionation, appears to be just as effective and as safe in reducing the risk of prostate cancer from returning as standard radiation therapy, yet is delivered in two-and-a-half weeks less time, according to interim results of a randomized study presented November 4, 2009, at the 51st Annual Meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO).

4 Nov 2009

Breastfeeding: ADA position paper details health benefits for both infants and mothers

The American Dietetic Association has released an updated position paper on breastfeeding that details health benefits for both infants and mothers and encourages promotion of breastfeeding whenever possible.

4 Nov 2009

Early-morning colonoscopies yield more polyps per patient than later screenings

The effectiveness of a screening colonoscopy may depend on the time of day it is performed. According to a new UCLA study, early-morning colonoscopies yielded more polyps per patient than later screenings, and fewer polyps were found hour by hour as the day progressed.

4 Nov 2009

H1N1 vaccine: Discussions and debates

You can't avoid H1N1 media coverage. It's front-page news on the web, the presses, the airways. Vaccine details, or lack of, are spurring discussion and debate. And a lot of people are in a quandary about whether or not to have the H1N1 shot based on their personal views and the information disseminated for public knowledge.

4 Nov 2009

MRF's research Consortium to develop effective treatments for advanced melanoma

For more than a decade, there have been no new therapies that have improved survival rates for patients with advanced melanoma. Today, at the 6th International Melanoma Congress for the Society for Melanoma Research, the Melanoma Research Foundation (MRF) announced a novel collaboration between the research community and pharmaceutical companies that will pool knowledge and resources to generate new breakthroughs in treatment.

4 Nov 2009

Stereotactic radiosurgery effectively controls pain in patients with cancer

Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS), a radiation therapy procedure pioneered at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute (UPCI) that precisely delivers a large dose of radiation to tumors, effectively controls pain in patients with cancer that has spread to the spine, according to researchers from UPCI.

4 Nov 2009

Stress related to school pressure and family finances has greater impact on young people

Stress related to school pressure and family finances has a greater impact on young people than parents believe, according to a new national survey released today by the American Psychological Association (APA).

4 Nov 2009

Eat slowly to avoid overeating

According to a new study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM), eating a meal quickly, as compared to slowly, curtails the release of hormones in the gut that induce feelings of being full. The decreased release of these hormones, can often lead to overeating.

4 Nov 2009

Work, money and job stability are significant sources of stress for Denver residents

More Denver residents say that their work, money and job stability are significant sources of stress than Americans nationwide, according to the American Psychological Association's (APA) Stress in America survey.

4 Nov 2009

One out of every eight US births is preterm; March of Dimes calls for research to prevent preterm births

The United States' extraordinarily high number of babies born too soon explains why the nation has an infant death rate significantly higher when compared to Europe, according to a new report from the National Center for Health Statistics.

4 Nov 2009

CDA, JDRF launch national campaign to identify Canada's Diabetes Champions

Today, the Canadian Diabetes Association (CDA) and Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) launched a national campaign to identify Canada's Diabetes Champions. This national celebration - held in honour of World Diabetes Day (November 14) - recognizes the ongoing commitment of millions of Canadians who build awareness of, and live with, diabetes in Canada.

4 Nov 2009

Coffee affects quality of daytime recovery sleep

Night-shift workers should avoid drinking coffee if they wish to improve their sleep, according to research published in the journal Sleep Medicine. A new study led by Julie Carrier, a Universit- de Montr-al psychology professor and a researcher at the affiliated H-pital du Sacr--C-ur Sleep Disorders Centre, has found the main byproduct of coffee, caffeine, interferes with sleep and this side-effect worsens as people age.

4 Nov 2009

PET imaging is not the basis for increasing dosage level

Positron emission tomography (PET) imaging of non-small cell lung cancer prior to receiving radiation therapy should not be the basis for determining areas that may benefit from higher doses of radiation, according to research presented by investigators at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital at the 51st ASTRO Annual Meeting (Abstract #2583/B-186).

4 Nov 2009

Common pain killers may blunt the effect of flu shots

With flu vaccination season in full swing, research from the University of Rochester Medical Center cautions that use of many common pain killers - Advil, Tylenol, aspirin - at the time of injection may blunt the effect of the shot and have a negative effect on the immune system.

4 Nov 2009

Study: Estrogen replacement may help protect brain damage

Eighteen years ago this month the National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced that it would sponsor a landmark study to examine women and cardiovascular disease. Known as the Women's Health Initiative (WHI), the study enrolled more than 161,000 women.

4 Nov 2009

Lovastatin-synthesizing enzyme successfully reconstituted

Researchers from the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science have for the first time successfully reconstituted in the laboratory the enzyme responsible for producing the blockbuster cholesterol-lowering drug lovastatin.

4 Nov 2009

Blood vessels good indicators of prostate cancer behavior

A diagnosis of prostate cancer raises the question for patients and their physicians as to how the tumor will behave. Will it grow quickly and aggressively and require continuous treatment, or slowly, allowing therapy and its risks to be safely delayed?

4 Nov 2009

News outlets examine first World Pneumonia Day

To mark the first World Pneumonia Day, Inter Press Service examines how vaccines and other strategies can be used to combat the disease, which kills more children under age 5 each year "than measles, malaria, and AIDS combined, according to the Global Coalition against Child Pneumonia."

4 Nov 2009

Scientists identify potential drug target for curing alcohol drinking behavior

A group of drunken fruit flies have helped researchers from North Carolina State and Boston universities identify entire networks of genes-also present in humans-that play a key role in alcohol drinking behavior.

4 Nov 2009