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Physicians validate reclassification of breast cancer stages

Breast cancer is diagnosed as having progressed to any of four stages, Stage IV being the most advanced. The stages are classified by the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) on the basis of how much the cancer has spread.

7 Jun 2006

Treatment options for brain metastases

Adding whole-brain radiation therapy to highly-focused radiation therapy does not improve survival for patients with cancer and brain metastases, but it may reduce the likelihood of the recurrence of brain metastases.

7 Jun 2006

Aggressive invasive treatment of heart attack patients who develop cardiogenic shock could save lives

Despite advances in treatment, people with a heart attack who survive the first hit and get to a hospital remain in danger.

7 Jun 2006

Health education helps African American smokers quit

The first clinical trial to focus on light smokers shows that African Americans are motivated to quit more by completing health education than by using nicotine gum.

7 Jun 2006

Calcium and vitamin D supplements do not reduce breast cancer

A large multicenter randomized clinical trial reported that supplementation with calcium and vitamin D did not reduce breast cancer risk in the overall population.

7 Jun 2006

Pneumonia can be treated effectively in nursing homes

There may be no advantage to taking nursing home residents to hospital for treatment of pneumonia.

7 Jun 2006

Midbrain, striatal and amygdalar dopaminergic dysfunction in ADHD

The brain's dopamine system, which has long been associated with reward learning and reward-related behavior, works differently in treated and untreated attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) individuals.

7 Jun 2006

Hyperscanning - a new approach to studying social interactions

Researchers at Baylor College of Medicine (BCM) have mapped not only where trust forms in the brain but have also uncovered clues as to how humans represent themselves and others as physical responses in their brains.

7 Jun 2006

Trastuzumab results promising for HER-2 positive breast cancer patients

Researchers have shown that patients who receive trastuzumab at the same time as post-chemotherapy radiation treatments for HER-2 positive breast cancer have no more risk for major side effects or complications than those who do not receive the drug.

7 Jun 2006

Prophylactic surgery reduces the incidence of ovarian and related cancers

A new multicenter study is the first to suggest that the prophylactic removal of the ovaries and fallopian tubes may provide a different benefit for women who carry a genetic mutation in the BRCA2 gene than for those who have a BRCA1 genetic mutation.

7 Jun 2006

Human Papillomavirus testing and liquid-based cytology

Human papillomavirus (HPV) testing was more sensitive than traditional Pap smears at detecting precancerous lesions of the cervix, a study in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute reports.

7 Jun 2006

Initial findings from the BBC 'diet trials

Commercial diets are a useful way to lose weight. And those based on group support seem to fare better at keeping the weight off in the long term, finds a study in the British Medical Journal.

7 Jun 2006

Severe body image concerns under-recognized in teens

Adolescents with negative body image concerns are more likely to be depressed, anxious, and suicidal than those without intense dissatisfaction over their appearance, even when compared to adolescents with other psychiatric illnesses.

7 Jun 2006

Study finds PET imaging value in tracking diabetes progression

"Diabetes is the only major disease with a death rate that continues to be on the upswing," proclaimed a front-page New York Times story recently.

7 Jun 2006

Exercise is emerging as a new therapeutic weapon to tackle cancer

When individuals with breast or prostate cancer followed a moderate, home-based exercise program using resistance bands and walking, the patients had less fatigue during radiation treatments, greater strength and could walk farther and faster in only four weeks, researchers discovered in a pilot study.

7 Jun 2006

HIV prevention in Mexican schools

Current efforts to combat sexually transmitted infections and unplanned pregnancy in schools do not change sexual risk behaviour, concludes a study in the British Medical Journal.

7 Jun 2006

Correlation between education, smoking and obesity

Researchers from Cornell University use rich microdata from the National Longitudinal Study of Youth in 1979 to analyze the correlation between high school completion and the two leading preventable causes of death - smoking and obesity.

7 Jun 2006

Impact of obesity on treatment of chronic hepatitis C

According to a new study, obese patients chronically infected with the hepatitis C virus (HCV) and treated with combination drug therapy may have better outcomes if the underlying abnormalities caused by excessive fat tissue are corrected.

6 Jun 2006

Long-term benefits of imatinib for patients newly diagnosed with chronic myelogenous leukemia

The overall survival of most people with chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) treated with imatinib (Gleevec, STI-571) is extremely high and the relapse rate is quite low, according to new data from a study out of the Oregon Health & Science University Cancer Institute.

6 Jun 2006

Delayed calf muscle phosphocreatine recovery after exercise identifies peripheral arterial disease

Between 8 and 12 million Americans are affected by peripheral arterial disease, or PAD, where the arteries that bring blood to the legs are blocked by atherosclerotic plaque.

6 Jun 2006