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Call for change in regulations surrounding xenotransplantation

A new article in The Journal of Law, Medicine and Ethics calls for a change in the regulations surrounding xenotransplantation, the transplanting of animal cells, tissues or organs into humans.

29 Jun 2007

Multiple-electrode radiofrequency ablation safe and effective way of treating patients with liver cancer

Multiple-electrode radiofrequency ablation is a safe and effective way of treating patients with liver cancer that can be completed in less time than current ablation techniques, according to a recent study conducted by researchers at the University of Wisconsin in Madison.

29 Jun 2007

Transplant of angina patients' purified stem cells provides symptom relief

The first U.S. study to transplant a potent form of purified adult stem cells into the heart muscle of patients with severe angina provided evidence that the procedure is safe and produced a reduction in angina pain as well as improved functioning in patients' daily lives, reports the lead researcher at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine.

27 Jun 2007

Radio Frequency Ablation emerges as an alternative treatment for inoperable liver cancer

Hollywood talent manager Louis Bershad, 68, whose clients include many top actors in town, recently underwent a routine MRI for kidney stones only to learn from his urologist that he also had a tumor in his left kidney.

26 Jun 2007

Intraoperative radiation therapy for breast cancer

Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) breast cancer specialists are using a new way to treat patients by delivering a one-time dose of radiation during surgery.

20 Jun 2007

Bariatric surgery should not be denied solely based on age or Medicare status

Complications after bariatric surgery appear similar between patients younger and older than age 60 and also between Medicare recipients and non-recipients, according to a study in the June issue of Archives of Surgery.

19 Jun 2007

Underuse of pancreatectomy in the United States

More than half of eligible patients with operable, early-stage pancreatic cancer don't undergo potentially life-extending surgery, suggests a study published online in the Annals of Surgery, published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

8 Jun 2007

More New Yorkers getting colonoscopies

More New Yorkers are getting life-saving colonoscopies than ever before, the Health Department announced, and people of all races and incomes are benefiting.

8 Jun 2007

Surgery underway to separate twins joined at the head

Neurosurgeons in the U.S. have begun the first of many operations to separate 3-year-old twins who are joined at the head.

7 Jun 2007

Percutaneous ethanol injection helps manage bone metastasis in thyroid cancer patients

Percutaneous ethanol injection (PEI), an injection of ethanol (alcohol) through the skin directly into a bone tumor to kill cancer cells, may be a valuable ancillary treatment for thyroid cancer patients whose cancer has spread to the bone.

5 Jun 2007

Groundbreaking robotic pancreatectomy

Surgeons at the University of Illinois Medical Center at Chicago performed a groundbreaking robotic pancreatectomy in a 39-year-old man to relieve him of debilitating pain.

1 Jun 2007

Coping with side effects from pelvic radiotherapy

Cancer patients about to undergo pelvic radiotherapy or who have had the treatment and are experiencing some of the potentially worrying and embarrassing side effects, now have a new free resource to turn to thanks to Cancerbackup and Cancer Research UK.

30 May 2007

Reversal of coma with an injection of glue

Neurosurgeons and neuroradiologists at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center injected a biosynthetic “glue” to seal off a spinal fluid leak and restore a comatose patient to consciousness.

28 May 2007

First ever lung transplant on HIV patient performed in Italy

Italian surgeons have performed the world's first lung transplant on an HIV patient.

28 May 2007

Same-day coronary angiography and surgery safe for many patients

Mayo Clinic researchers discovered it is safe -- and much more convenient and less costly -- for many patients to undergo coronary angiography and elective valve surgery on the same day, it is reported in the current issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings.

24 May 2007

New technique effective in closing accidental colonoscopy wounds

To prevent colon cancer, the second leading cause of United States cancer deaths, the American Cancer Society recommends that after age 50 people undergo colonoscopies every ten years to detect signs of that disease , either actual tumors or precancerous polyps.

24 May 2007

Concentrated radio waves proide new approach to treating precancerous esophagus condition

The use of concentrated radio waves appears to be a safe and effective way to "burn" away abnormal cell growth in the esophagus that can be a precursor of cancer.

24 May 2007

Laparoscopic radical prostatectomy with robot technology can improve survival rate for prostate cancer patients

Performing less invasive laparoscopic surgery using robotic technology may improve survival rates for prostate cancer patients, according to a study by urologic oncologists at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital's multidisciplinary Genitourinary (GU) cancer center.

22 May 2007

First beating heart transplant procedure in the US

Protected by its own nutrients and blood supply, a beating heart supported by an investigational organ preservation device was successfully transplanted into a 47-year-old man with congestive heart failure and pulmonary hypertension on Sunday, April 8.

18 May 2007

Dramatic increase in Caesarean sections

The report, published in the prestigious international journal, the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, found that the rise could not be explained by increases in clinical reasons for caesareans such as complications in pregnancy or labour/delivery and was more likely due to societal factors.

17 May 2007