Women's Health News

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Access to modern contraceptives, family planning services is human right

"In the developing world, an estimated 215 million women who want to delay or avoid their next pregnancy cannot exercise this right as they lack modern contraceptives, resulting in unintended pregnancies, unsafe abortions and more than 100,000 maternal deaths," UNFPA Executive Director Babatunde Osotimehin writes in this Huffington Post "Global Motherhood" blog post.

12 Apr 2012

Timing pregnancy an important health concern for women

A newly published article in the journal Nursing for Women’s Health highlights the importance of a woman’s ability to time her childbearing. The author asserts that contraception is a means of health promotion and women who work with their health care providers to ensure they are healthy prior to conceiving can minimize their risk of complications during pregnancy and childbirth.

11 Apr 2012

Austrian scientists challenge the clinical relevance of the term “basal-like” breast cancer subtype

Not all breast cancers are the same. Different types can mean different prognoses for the patient, and a different kind of treatment may be adequate. But how to classify tumors? Are molecular classification methods reliable? Mohammad Ali Lavasani and Farid Moinfar from the Unit of Breast and Gynecologic Pathology at the Medical University of Graz, Austria give a critical review of the literature with focus on “basal-like” carcinoma.

11 Apr 2012

WHO publishes 'Programmatic Update' on use of ARVs to treat pregnant women, prevent PMTCT

The WHO "recently published a 'Programmatic Update' on the use of antiretrovirals (ARVs) to treat pregnant women and prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT)," the Center for Global Health Policy's "Science Speaks" blog reports.

11 Apr 2012

Times of India examines how female health volunteers are improving maternal, child health in India

"In many parts of India, teenagers and housewives are now donning the garb of health volunteers and convincing pregnant women to deliver in hospitals, and not at homes," the Times of India reports, and profiles Lata Ravikar, "one of the many ordinary women who are leading a silent revolution in urban slums and villages across the country."

11 Apr 2012

Inexpensive female genital schistosomiasis prevention could help reduce women's risk of HIV infection

In this Huffington Post "Global Motherhood" blog post, Peter Hotez, president of the Sabin Vaccine Institute and dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, describes female genital schistosomiasis (FGS), which affects more than 100 million women and girls in Africa and "causes horrific pain and bleeding in the uterus, cervix and lower genital tract, not to mention social stigma and depression."

11 Apr 2012

Survey shows majority of Americans support women's right to access maternal, reproductive health care

In September 2010, "91 percent of Americans surveyed said they support the right for all women to have access to quality maternal and reproductive health care," PSI's "Healthy Lives" blog reports.

11 Apr 2012

Pelvic floor muscle training effective for adult women with urinary incontinence

A type of exercise called pelvic floor muscle training is effective for treating adult women with urinary incontinence (the involuntary loss of urine) without risk of side effects, according to a new report from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). The report also found that drug-based treatments can be effective, but the degree of benefit is low and side effects are common.

11 Apr 2012

New supplement outlines prospective surveillance model for breast cancer

A new supplement in the journal Cancer outlines an innovative model to address a wide range of physical issues faced by women with breast cancer and offers hope for improved function and full participation in life activities for patients through rehabilitation and exercise.

11 Apr 2012

Supplement intake predicts optimal RBC folate concentration in Canadian women

Researchers have gained new insight into why 22% of Canadian women of childbearing age are still not achieving a folate concentration considered optimal for reducing the risk of having babies with neural tube defects, despite a virtual absence of folate deficiency in the general Canadian population.

11 Apr 2012

Bayer announces updated labels for drospirenone-containing COCs in the U.S.

In agreement with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals Inc. today announced that it has updated the labels for its drospirenone-containing combination oral contraceptives (COCs) in the United States.

11 Apr 2012

UCSD Moores Cancer Center expert available to discuss breast brachytherapy

Recent controversy about breast brachytherapy - a shorter course of radiation treatment for breast cancer - has called into question whether the technique is being offered to too many women. New research on an advanced form of brachytherapy is now being reported by UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center and 11 other centers in the United States. These studies report highly favorable outcomes for a form of breast brachytherapy called SAVI.

11 Apr 2012

Women less likely to get at least 30 minutes of exercise per day

A national study shows that women are less likely than men to get at least 30 minutes of exercise per day, resulting in greater odds of developing metabolic syndrome - a risky and increasingly prevalent condition related to obesity.

11 Apr 2012

Spider venom studied as treatment for breast cancer

James Cook University Professor Norelle Daly has received a $205,000 research grant from the National Breast Cancer Foundation to analyze whether the venom of tarantulas and funnel web spiders can kill breast cancer cells.

10 Apr 2012

Health law key to Obama campaign's outreach to women voters

Late last week, the president and his deputies were linking parts of the health law and opportunities as part of their effort to draw support from women voters. At the same time, The Associated Press reports on the challenges GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney faces in his attempts to bridge the gender gap.

10 Apr 2012

New initiative focusing on GBV and HIV/AIDS will help prevent both

"The advancement of women's health and their rights is one of the core principles of President Barack Obama's Global Health Initiative," a VOA editorial states, adding, "And so it is that the United States has rolled out a new initiative that will tackle one of the greatest threats to women's health, HIV/AIDS, by attacking another scourge: gender-based violence [GBV]."

10 Apr 2012

Gates Foundation co-chair Melinda Gates delivers TEDxChange speech on access to contraceptives

On Thursday at the TEDxChange conference in Berlin, Germany, Melinda Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, "delivered a powerful case for universal access to contraception for women around the world who need and want it," the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports.

10 Apr 2012

Viewpoints: Scarcity of dental care; Surprise budget buster awaiting states on retiree health costs

We know that too many Americans can't afford primary care and end up in the emergency room with asthma or heart failure. But in the debate over health care coverage, less attention has been paid to the fact that too many Americans also end up in the emergency room with severe tooth abscesses that keep them from eating or infections that can travel from decayed teeth to the brain and, if untreated, kill.

10 Apr 2012

FDA Advisory Panel to review somo•v Automated Breast Ultrasound System

Women with dense breast tissue are a step closer to having access to an important new breast cancer screening tool.

10 Apr 2012

Researchers determine that bacteria are present in the bladders of healthy women

Researchers have determined that bacteria are present in the bladders of some healthy women, which discredits the common belief that normal urine is sterile. These findings were published in the April issue of the Journal of Clinical Microbiology by researchers at Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine.

10 Apr 2012

Women's Health News

Access to modern contraceptives, family planning services is human right

Timing pregnancy an important health concern for women

Austrian scientists challenge the clinical relevance of the term “basal-like” breast cancer subtype

WHO publishes 'Programmatic Update' on use of ARVs to treat pregnant women, prevent PMTCT

Times of India examines how female health volunteers are improving maternal, child health in India

Inexpensive female genital schistosomiasis prevention could help reduce women's risk of HIV infection

Survey shows majority of Americans support women's right to access maternal, reproductive health care

Pelvic floor muscle training effective for adult women with urinary incontinence

New supplement outlines prospective surveillance model for breast cancer

Supplement intake predicts optimal RBC folate concentration in Canadian women

Bayer announces updated labels for drospirenone-containing COCs in the U.S.

UCSD Moores Cancer Center expert available to discuss breast brachytherapy

Women less likely to get at least 30 minutes of exercise per day

Spider venom studied as treatment for breast cancer

Health law key to Obama campaign's outreach to women voters

New initiative focusing on GBV and HIV/AIDS will help prevent both

Gates Foundation co-chair Melinda Gates delivers TEDxChange speech on access to contraceptives

Viewpoints: Scarcity of dental care; Surprise budget buster awaiting states on retiree health costs

FDA Advisory Panel to review somo•v Automated Breast Ultrasound System

Researchers determine that bacteria are present in the bladders of healthy women

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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