Women's Health News

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Today's opinions and editorials

Every debate in health care would benefit from more transparency about what things really cost and who gets paid what (Steven Syre, 12/1).

1 Dec 2009

Abortion-rights group gear up for Senate debate

Abortion-rights groups are holding a lobby day on Wednesday to fight language in the House healthcare bill that would impose greater restrictions on access to the controversial procedure. The amendment by Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.), adopted before House passage on Nov. 21, would prohibit women who receive government subsidies for healthcare from purchasing insurance that covers abortions, and it would prohibit coverage of the procedure in government-run health plans.

1 Dec 2009

AHF lauds WHO for its crucial HIV treatment recommendations

On the eve of World AIDS Day 2009, AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) praised the World Health Organization (WHO) for its new HIV treatment recommendations which include starting lifesaving antiretroviral treatment (ART) earlier (at a t-cell count of <350 cells/mm3 instead of <200) for all HIV-positive adults and adolescents and earlier treatment initiation for HIV-positive pregnant women who should now begin treatment at 14 weeks into pregnancy, rather than 28 weeks as previously recommended, and continue until the end of breastfeeding.

1 Dec 2009

MAbs for early detection of cancer

Two sets of recommendations issued earlier this month have revised longstanding guidelines concerning the age at which women should first be tested for breast and cervical cancer and how frequently.

1 Dec 2009

Use of BSGI as adjunct imaging modality for diagnosing breast cancer demonstrated

Dr. Jessica Torrente, Assistant Professor of Radiology at George Washington University Medical Center in Washington, D.C., demonstrated the integration and use of Breast-Specific Gamma Imaging (BSGI) in clinical practice as an adjunct imaging modality for the diagnosis of breast cancer today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).

1 Dec 2009

Women with gestational glucose intolerance at risk of metabolic syndrome

Women who have gestational glucose intolerance (a condition less severe than gestational diabetes) exhibit multiple cardiovascular risk factors as early as three months after birth, according to a new study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM).

1 Dec 2009

Portuguese scientists identify a molecular mechanism that can lead to metastases in breast cancers

Portuguese scientists identified a molecular mechanism that can lead to metastases (spread of the cancer from the original site to other remote parts of the body) in breast cancers. Abnormally high levels of P-cadherin - an adhesion molecule that enables cells to bind together - occur in about a third of all breast cancers and are associated with poor prognosis.

1 Dec 2009

New, fully-automated morphological system offers improved breast cancer detection

The launch of Invivo Corporation's ONCAD for DynaCAD marks the availability of the first FDA-cleared, fully-automated morphological system for the detection and analysis by a radiologist of suspicious breast lesions. The ONCAD system will be officially unveiled at the Radiological Society of North America 2009 Annual Meeting in Chicago.

1 Dec 2009

Low-dose radiation increases breast cancer risk in high-risk women

Low-dose radiation from annual mammography screening may increase breast cancer risk in women with genetic or familial predisposition to breast cancer, according to a study presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).

1 Dec 2009

Drinking sugar-sweetened cola a week prior to pregnancy elevates diabetes during pregnancy

Researchers from LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans School of Public Health, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), Harvard School of Public Health, Brigham and Women's Hospital, and Harvard Medical School, have found for the first time that drinking more than 5 servings of sugar- sweetened cola a week prior to pregnancy appears to significantly elevate the risk of developing diabetes during pregnancy.

1 Dec 2009

MRI can identify placenta accreta in pregnant women, reveals study

A study presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) revealed that MRI is a highly accurate means of identifying placenta accreta, a potentially life-threatening and increasingly common condition that is the leading cause of death for women just before and after giving birth.

1 Dec 2009

Low-income women experience significantly greater gaps in access to health care

Low-income women are four times more likely than higher-income women to report fair or poor health and nearly twice as likely to report a health condition that limits their basic physical activities, according to a new policy brief from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research.

1 Dec 2009

BSGI proves to be an effective adjunct imaging modality for detecting DCIS

Breast-Specific Gamma Imaging (BSGI) has been proven to be a highly sensitive imaging technique for the detection of ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), a difficult to diagnose breast cancer. BSGI is a molecular breast imaging technique that can see lesions independent of tissue density and discover very early stage cancers.

30 Nov 2009

Anti-Aging Institute of California offers 'Don't Pause' to get rid of menopause symptoms

Menopause - it's an unavoidable part of aging as a woman, and brings with it a host of uncomfortable symptoms that negatively impact quality of life. Hot flashes, poor sleep, mood swings, weight gain, night sweats and lethargy are just some of the life-altering symptoms of menopause and perimenopause.

30 Nov 2009

British First Lady highlights maternal mortality worldwide

Sarah Brown, wife of British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and head of the Maternal Mortality Campaign, highlighted global maternal mortality at the Royal College of Midwives annual conference on Friday, the U.K. Press Association reports.

30 Nov 2009

Presentations at Tuesday's RSNA conference

A new study from Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center reports that beverage can stay-tabs pose a potential ingestion risk. In the 1970s, U.S. manufacturers switched to the stay-tab design after safety concerns about pull-tabs. The new study found 19 cases of stay-tab ingestion at a single institution, mainly among teenagers.

30 Nov 2009

Dr. Gail Harrison to receive the March of Dimes Agnes Higgins Award

A nutritionist whose research was instrumental in adding fruits and vegetables to the federal Women, Infants and Children (WIC) food subsidy will receive the March of Dimes Agnes Higgins Award for outstanding achievement in the field of maternal-fetal nutrition.

27 Nov 2009