Women's Health News

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Many women with invasive breast cancer unaware of skin-sparing mastectomy

In the U.S., more than 180,000 women are diagnosed with invasive breast cancer each year. Many of these women will undergo mastectomy surgery that will result in disfiguring scars because they are unaware of the availability of skin-sparing mastectomies and did not ask their surgeons about this treatment option. Skin-sparing mastectomy is a surgical technique to remove cancerous breast tissue by using the same minimal and judiciously placed incisions used by plastic surgeons for elective breast surgery.

16 Apr 2010

Novartis Pharma AG initiates second Phase I trial for oral PTH1-34: Emisphere Technologies

Emisphere Technologies, Inc. today announced that Novartis Pharma AG has initiated a second Phase I trial for an oral PTH1-34 which uses Emisphere's Eligen Technology, and is in development for the treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis. Emisphere Technologies is a biopharmaceutical company that focuses on a unique and improved delivery of pharmaceutical compounds and nutritional supplements using its Eligen Technology.

16 Apr 2010

CycleBeads Conception Kit for women contemplating pregnancy

A scientifically-based tool developed by researchers from Georgetown University's Institute for Reproductive Health to help women prevent pregnancy naturally, is now being used by a growing number of women to help plan pregnancy.

16 Apr 2010

Research may help develop simplified test for early detection of breast cancer

Researchers at the University of Arkansas are building a library of synthetically produced antibodies that can detect and rapidly validate proteins secreted by breast cancer cells. Their work will accelerate the process of developing a simple blood test for early detection of breast cancer.

16 Apr 2010

Advaxis initiates Phase 2 clinical trial of ADXS11-001 for treatment of CIN

Advaxis, Inc., the live, attenuated Listeria monocytogenes (Listeria) immunotherapy company, initiated the Company's first clinical trial site in its randomized, single blind, placebo-controlled, Phase 2 clinical trial of ADXS11-001 for the treatment of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia.

16 Apr 2010

Study links cancer growth to sugar-based modification found naturally in the body

Researchers at Drexel University College of Medicine have discovered that a certain type of sugar found naturally in the body is elevated in breast cancer cells and is critical for cancer growth and movement. When researchers reduced and normalized the levels of this sugar, they were able to slow the growth of the cancer cells and block invasion. The findings, published in the March 1 issue of Oncogene, represent a potential new therapeutic target for treating aggressive forms of breast cancer.

15 Apr 2010

First Edition: April 15, 2010

In today's headlines: The jobless benefits package, including a COBRA subsidy extension and Medicare-doctor pay fix, advances in the Senate. In the House, a committee chairman cancels a hearing on business health care complaints.

15 Apr 2010

Novel drug helps discover mechanisms underlying female sexual arousal

By using a novel prototype drug, researchers have discovered more about the mechanisms underlying female sexual arousal. These findings are published today in the British Journal of Pharmacology.

15 Apr 2010

New findings may allow clinicians to prevent complications in pregnancy

Researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine have found that epigenetic marks on human placentas change from the first trimester of pregnancy to the third, a discovery that may allow clinicians to prevent complications in pregnancy.

15 Apr 2010

Research reveals demand for over-the-counter oral contraceptives in the US

American women who live along the U.S.-Mexico border frequently buy over-the-counter oral contraceptives from Mexican pharmacies because they don't need a prescription and can send a friend to pick up the pills, according to a study by researchers from two University of Texas campuses and Ibis Reproductive Health.

15 Apr 2010

Gene defect promotes aggressive forms of ovarian cancer

CANCER RESEARCH UK scientists have discovered how mistakes in a key gene drive the early stages of aggressive ovarian cancers. This could improve diagnosis of aggressive forms of the disease and lead to new treatments, according to a study published in the Journal of Pathology this month.

15 Apr 2010

Partners HealthCare offers $40 million to control health insurance costs in Massachusetts; Neb. Gov. signs new abortion law

Partners HealthCare, whose Boston teaching hospitals have been blamed for helping to drive up medical spending, is offering $40 million toward reducing double-digit health insurance rate increases for small businesses, part of a broader package that will be unveiled today by Senate President Therese Murray.

15 Apr 2010

Joint psychoanalytic treatment may benefit both mother and child

Even when a baby has been longed for, some mothers might have trouble bonding with their baby, who in turn may develop disturbed behaviour, such as crying, poor sleeping patterns and breast refusal.

15 Apr 2010

Genomic component playing key role in promoting breast cancer progression discovered

Life Technologies Corporation today announced that its scientists have teamed with researchers from Stanford University School of Medicine, and other institutions to discover a genomic component that plays a key role in promoting breast cancer progression. A study published today in the journal Nature details how levels of a specific kind of non-coding RNA molecule in primary breast tumors regulate metastasis and tumor invasiveness and may be an important target for cancer diagnosis and therapy.

15 Apr 2010

New strategy, more funding needed to meet maternal, child health MDGs

"Dozens of countries are unlikely to meet" the Millennium Development Goal targets related to maternal and child health without a new strategy and an additional $20 billion each year, according to a report released Tuesday, the Canadian Press reports (Lederer, 4/14).

15 Apr 2010

A renewed effort to reduce global toll of maternal and child deaths

Widespread global use of known and proven maternal and childcare techniques, practices, and therapies could save the lives of millions of women, newborns and children each year, according to a new analysis prepared for a mid-April meeting of world leaders and technical experts on maternal and child health.

15 Apr 2010

Global maternal deaths decreased by more than 35% between 1980 and 2008, study finds

The number of maternal deaths around the world has decreased from more than 500,000 in 1980 to an estimated 342,900 in 2008, according to a Lancet study published online on Monday, the BBC reports.

15 Apr 2010

MRI technology depicts women's anxiety of getting fat

A group of women in a new study seemed unlikely to have body image issues - at least their responses on a tried-and-true psychological screening presented no red flags.

15 Apr 2010

Bariatric surgery can reduce pregnancy complications in obese women

Obese women who have bariatric surgery before getting pregnant are at significantly lower risk for developing dangerous hypertensive disorders during pregnancy than those who don't, according to a study of medical insurance records by Johns Hopkins experts.

15 Apr 2010

Experts, public consider health reform merits, hardships and unintended consequences

Confusion persists about health reform and insurance for members of Congress. "The law stipulates that lawmakers and some members of their staffs enroll in new health insurance exchanges. But an apparent drafting error in the law makes it unclear when that transition is supposed to occur."

15 Apr 2010