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Study reveals changes in brain activity in response to withdrawal of life support

At a time when "donation after cardiac death" (DCD) has become an important approach to increasing the number of transplant organ donors, a provocative new study shows changes in brain activity occurring in response to withdrawal of life support, reports the May issue of Anesthesia & Analgesia, official journal of the International Anesthesia Research Society (IARS).

5 May 2010

Hepatitis B treatment appears to improve liver transplant outcomes for some patients: Study

Treatment to reduce recurrence of hepatitis B appears to improve liver transplant outcomes for some patients, according to a Mayo Clinic study presented at the American Transplant Congress under way May 1-5 in San Diego.

5 May 2010

Quark to present poster on predicting risk of DGF following machine perfusion of renal transplants at ATC 2010

Quark Pharmaceuticals, Inc., the world leader in clinical development of RNAi-based therapeutics, announced today the presentation of a poster at the 2010 American Transplant Congress titled, "A Nomogram for Predicting Risk of Delayed Graft Function Following Machine Perfusion of Renal Transplants."

5 May 2010

Argos Therapeutics announces presentations on sCD83 protein capabilities at 2010 American Transplant Congress

Argos Therapeutics today announced two oral presentations detailing data on its soluble CD83 (sCD83) protein program at the 2010 American Transplant Congress, held May 1-5 in San Diego. The data, which were produced by Argos in collaboration with scientists from the University of Western Ontario, demonstrate that sCD83 is capable of inducing immune system tolerance to transplant grafts and suppressing an anti-donor antibody response, via a multi-faceted mechanism-of-action that impacts B and T cells, as well as dendritic cells.

5 May 2010

States rely on federal funds to buttress Medicaid programs; Worry about the future

Late last year, when Congress' willingness to pass an enormous health care bill still was very much in doubt, states had a more modest goal that should have been easier to achieve. They wanted Congress to pass a 6-month extension of the part of the economic stimulus program that is helping to pay for their Medicaid programs.

5 May 2010

Additional pivotal Phase 3 trial data for MoxDuo IR released

QRxPharma announced today the release of additional pivotal Phase 3 trial data for MoxDuo IR, an immediate-release Dual-Opioid pain therapy. Required for New Drug Application submission with the United States Food and Drug Administration, this "combination rule" study compared the efficacy and safety profiles of MoxDuo IR against component doses of morphine and oxycodone alone for the management of moderate to severe post-operative pain following bunionectomy surgery.

5 May 2010

Rigel Pharmaceuticals reports net loss of $22.3M for first-quarter 2010

Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today reported financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2010.

4 May 2010

Neural stem cell transplantation promising for Batten disease

Neuronal Ceroid Liposfuscinosis (NCL), often referred to as Batten disease, is a rare and fatal neurodegenerative disorder that afflicts infants and young children. NCL is caused by a deficiency of a lysosomal enzyme, and is a relatively rare disease, affecting an estimated 2 to 4 of every 100,000 babies born in the U.S. Although NCLs are classified as rare diseases, they often affect more than one child in families that carry the defective gene, and tragically, are always fatal.

4 May 2010

CA-BSI can be reduced in children through quality improvement efforts: Study

Bloodstream infections associated with catheters can be significantly reduced through quality improvement efforts, possibly leading to better health outcomes and lives saved, decreased stays at the hospital and related costs, according to a new study.

4 May 2010

Researchers receive $250,000 to study inventive cell-transfer therapy to treat cortical dysplasia

University of Florida researchers will receive $250,000 to study an inventive cell-transfer therapy to treat cortical dysplasia, a condition where the brain develops abnormally before birth, causing severe epilepsy in children and adults.

4 May 2010

Belatacept preserves kidney function in transplant recipients better than cyclosporine, says study

Two-year results from phase III clinical trials show the experimental immunosuppressive drug belatacept can better preserve kidney function in kidney transplant recipients while preventing graft rejection when compared with the standard immunosuppressive drug cyclosporine.

3 May 2010

Extended hepatitis C treatment increases sustained virological response after liver transplant

Extending hepatitis C treatment for liver transplant patients beyond current standards results in high clearance rates of the hepatitis C virus from the blood, and a low relapse rate, according to a study by Henry Ford Hospital.

3 May 2010

Choice of transplant center can make noteworthy difference in patients' outcomes: Study

For patients in need of a liver transplant, their choice of a transplant center can make a noteworthy difference in their outcomes, according to a Mayo Clinic study presented at the American Transplant Congress under way May 1-5 in San Diego.

3 May 2010

FDA issues complete response letter for Bristol-Myers Squibb's belatacept

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued a complete response letter regarding the Biologics License Application for belatacept in kidney transplantation.

3 May 2010

Measuring children's blood pressure is complicated: Researchers

A Johns Hopkins Children's Center study of 2,500 patient records suggests that medical staff fails to check a child's blood pressure a fifth of the time, and is not recognizing what constitutes an abnormal reading in those whose blood pressure they do check.

3 May 2010

Heart and liver transplant recipients at higher risk of developing lung cancer: Researchers

Heart and liver transplant recipients are at particularly high risk of developing lung cancer after receiving the donated organ, researchers report at the 2nd European Lung Cancer Conference. They are advising doctors to screen for such cancers in these patients to maximize the chance of detecting the malignancy early.

3 May 2010

Health outcomes explored at DDW 2010

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, which may soon be the leading indication for liver transplant, is found to be significantly associated with worse transplant outcomes. In addition, a new tool for diagnosing NAFLD represents an alternative to liver biopsy, which is more expensive and prone to complications, and ultrasound and alfafeprotein blood test screening are an effective alternative to CT scan and MRI for patients with cirrhosis at high risk for hepatocellular cancer.

3 May 2010

Kidney transplant recipients have higher risk of cancer: Researchers

Kidney transplant recipients are known to have a higher risk of cancer, compared to the general population, due to the need to take immunosuppressive drugs to prevent organ rejection. Results published today from a significant, long-term study suggest that no single medication appears to increase this cancer risk.

30 Apr 2010

Liver transplant recipients develop premature immune senescence: Researchers

Researchers at the University of Cambridge found that liver transplant recipients develop premature immune senescence, the normal process by which the immune system ages and becomes less effective. Full details appear in the May issue of Liver Transplantation, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.

30 Apr 2010

BioScrip reports net loss of $7.2M on revenues of $335.1M for first-quarter 2010

BioScrip, Inc. today announced a first quarter net loss of $7.2 million, or $0.18 per share on revenues of $335.1 million. These results compare to net income of $3.3 million, or $0.08 per share, on revenues of $325.7 million for the first quarter of 2009.

30 Apr 2010

Transplant News and Research

Study reveals changes in brain activity in response to withdrawal of life support

Hepatitis B treatment appears to improve liver transplant outcomes for some patients: Study

Quark to present poster on predicting risk of DGF following machine perfusion of renal transplants at ATC 2010

Argos Therapeutics announces presentations on sCD83 protein capabilities at 2010 American Transplant Congress

States rely on federal funds to buttress Medicaid programs; Worry about the future

Additional pivotal Phase 3 trial data for MoxDuo IR released

Rigel Pharmaceuticals reports net loss of $22.3M for first-quarter 2010

Neural stem cell transplantation promising for Batten disease

CA-BSI can be reduced in children through quality improvement efforts: Study

Researchers receive $250,000 to study inventive cell-transfer therapy to treat cortical dysplasia

Belatacept preserves kidney function in transplant recipients better than cyclosporine, says study

Extended hepatitis C treatment increases sustained virological response after liver transplant

Choice of transplant center can make noteworthy difference in patients' outcomes: Study

FDA issues complete response letter for Bristol-Myers Squibb's belatacept

Measuring children's blood pressure is complicated: Researchers

Heart and liver transplant recipients at higher risk of developing lung cancer: Researchers

Health outcomes explored at DDW 2010

Kidney transplant recipients have higher risk of cancer: Researchers

Liver transplant recipients develop premature immune senescence: Researchers

BioScrip reports net loss of $7.2M on revenues of $335.1M for first-quarter 2010

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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