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Experimental drug Revlimid showing promise as treatment for myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS)

Alan List, M.D., leader of the Hematologic Malignancies Program at the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute, recently conducted a phase I/II trial of the experimental drug Revlimid showing promise as an innovative way to treat patients with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), a form of pre-leukemia.

10 Feb 2005

Patients with cancer have a 7-fold increased risk for blood clots in the legs or lungs

Studies that identify patients at highest risk of thrombosis are scarce, according to background information in the article. It is unclear what risks are for various types and stages of cancer.

9 Feb 2005

Merck may have known the overuse of mercury in their vaccines posed a dangerous health threat to children

A Los Angeles Times article today reports that Merck, a leading manufacturer of prescription drugs, knew the overuse of mercury in their vaccines posed a dangerous health threat to children.

8 Feb 2005

Mother’s depression linked with an increased risk of antisocial behavior in children

Significantly higher levels of antisocial behavior were found in seven-year-old children whose mothers were depressed during the child’s first five years of life, according to an article in the February issue of Archives of General Psychiatry.

7 Feb 2005

Cell research signals cancer hope

Scientists have moved a step closer to understanding what happens when cells receive a faulty signal that is known to be a cause of cancer.

From The University of Manchester 3 Feb 2005

Rheumatoid arthritis linked to excess risk of congestive heart failure

A serious chronic disease, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is characterized by inflammation and damage of the joint, major organ involvement and increased mortality. Among patients, about one in three deaths results from cardiovascular disease (conditions affecting the heart or blood vessels).

3 Feb 2005

Furan, a potentially dangerous chemical has been found in processed foods

A new study by McGill researchers Dr. Varoujan Yaylayan and graduate student Carolina Perez Locas explains the presence of this chemical in a wide range of food products.

3 Feb 2005

Compound, derived from a rare South American plant, stops the growth of human breast cancer cells

They started with a bare room and an idea. Now, after five years of painstaking, sophisticated tests, scientists at the University of Virginia Health System have discovered that a compound, derived from a rare South American plant, stops the growth of human breast cancer cells in laboratory cultures.

1 Feb 2005

New understanding of the causes for symptoms of sickle cell disease

A new understanding of the causes for symptoms of sickle cell disease, a condition affecting one in every 600 African-Americans, has resulted from a study by researchers at Duke University Medical Center and Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI). Their findings may lead to a new, more direct method for treating the disease, they said.

31 Jan 2005

Gene dynamin 2 underlies one form of Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease

A gene that plays many fundamental roles in cells throughout the body has, for the first time, been implicated in human disease, according to researchers at the Duke Center for Human Genetics.

31 Jan 2005

Eleventh Edition of the Report on Carcinogens

The Department of Health and Human Services released its Eleventh Edition of the Report on Carcinogens today, adding seventeen substances to the growing list of cancer-causing agents, bringing the total to 246.

31 Jan 2005

Do genes play a role in determining whether a man is gay or heterosexual?

In the first-ever study combing the entire human genome for genetic determinants of male sexual orientation, a University of Illinois at Chicago researcher has identified several areas that appear to influence whether a man is heterosexual or gay.

31 Jan 2005

Nicotine may hold promise in the early diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease

The chemical nicotine--a main ingredient in tobacco--may hold promise in the early diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease, give insight into therapeutic interventions for nicotine addiction and possibly complement the diagnosis of certain forms of lung cancer, according to a study in the January issue of the Society of Nuclear Medicine's Journal of Nuclear Medicine.

31 Jan 2005

Physical traits, genetic test help with early diagnosis of aneurysm syndrome

A research team led by Johns Hopkins doctors has defined the physical traits and genetic basis of a new aortic aneurysm syndrome that is extremely aggressive and can cause death in early childhood. Early diagnosis of the syndrome and rapid surgical repair of the swollen aorta can save lives, the researchers report in the Jan. 30 advance online section of Nature Genetics.

30 Jan 2005

$Phenoxodiol gets fast track status for its intended use in patients with hormone-refractory prostate cancer$

Phenoxodiol gets fast track status for its intended use in patients with hormone-refractory prostate cancer

Marshall Edwards today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted the investigational anti-cancer drug, phenoxodiol, fast track status for its intended use in patients with hormone- refractory prostate cancer (HRPC).

26 Jan 2005

Exercise may be the easiest for women to decrease their risk of heart disease

For decades, hormone replacement therapy (HRT) was prescribed for postmenopausal women to protect them from cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, results from the Women’s Health Initiative questioned its effectiveness, which has led to more caution in prescribing and using HRT for this purpose.

26 Jan 2005

Increase in small babies is major reason behind the increase in U.S. infant mortality

An increase in the birth of very small infants is the major reason behind the increase in U.S. infant mortality in 2002, according to a report released today by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The increase in infant mortality, from 6.8 infant deaths per 1,000 live births in 2001 to 7.0 in 2002, was the first increase in the infant mortality rate since 1958 and was reported last year by CDC.

26 Jan 2005

New highly active agents against leishmaniasis

Parasitic diseases, especially leishmaniases and trypanosomiases, kill hundreds of thousands of people every year in the world, mainly in the countries of the South. The most severe form of leishmaniosis (kala-azar, the visceral form), induced by Leishmania donovani and L. infantum, affects about 500 000 people per year and proves fatal if no treatment is given.

25 Jan 2005

Plant protein mimics hormone that mitigates diabetes and obesity

A common protein that protects plants from fungal infection mimics the activity of a hormone in mammals that is linked to weight loss and is believed to play a role in mitigating heart disease, obesity and diabetes, according to a team of researchers at Purdue University and several collaborating institutions.

25 Jan 2005

Sociologists create a love map for an entire high school

For the first time, sociologists have mapped the romantic and sexual relationships of an entire high school over 18 months, providing evidence that these adolescent networks may be structured differently than researchers previously thought.

25 Jan 2005