Women's Health News

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Combo hormone therapy increases risk of breast cancer in women with new-onset tenderness

The debate about using menopausal hormone therapies to relieve symptoms in post-menopausal women has been ongoing. Is the combination therapy of estrogen and progestin better or worse than just giving women estrogen alone? In women who still have a uterus (those who have not had a hysterectomy), progestin counteracts the increased risk of uterus cancer when estrogen is given alone, but at the expense of an increase in breast cancer risk compared to estrogen alone.

19 Nov 2011

Avastin drug not safe and effective for breast cancer patients: FDA Commissioner

FDA Commissioner Margaret A. Hamburg, M.D., said today she is revoking the agency's approval of the breast cancer indication for Avastin (bevacizumab) after concluding that the drug has not been shown to be safe and effective for that use.

19 Nov 2011

GAVI Alliance to fund roll-out of vaccines against cervical cancer, rubella in developing countries

The GAVI Alliance "has agreed to fund the roll-out of vaccines against cervical cancer in developing countries, offering protection against a disease that kills one woman every two minutes," Reuters reports.

19 Nov 2011

FAMEDS founder condemns FDA decision on Avastin for metastatic breast cancer

Breast cancer patients, their families and advocates expressed extreme disappointment at today's Food and Drug Administration (FDA) decision to remove the anti-cancer drug Avastin from the approved medication list for treatment of late stage breast cancer.

19 Nov 2011

FDA revokes approval of Avastin for breast cancer

The commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration on Friday revoked the approval of the drug Avastin as a treatment for breast cancer, ruling in an emotional issue that pitted the hopes of some desperate patients against the statistics of clinical trials.

19 Nov 2011

Women with pre-existing hypertension more likely to develop depression during pregnancy

Women with a history of high blood pressure before getting pregnant have a higher risk of depression than women who develop pregnancy-related hypertension, according to a new study.

19 Nov 2011

High fish intake during pregnancy leads to better verbal intelligence, motor skills in children

The statement that 'fish is good for the brain' is increasingly backed-up by scientific evidence but what the actual outcomes are in terms of mental performance or 'brain power' is still being discovered.

18 Nov 2011

Longer looks: The Supreme Court and health law politics; Obama and drug shortages

There are eighty-two Planned Parenthood affiliates nationwide, operating nearly eight hundred clinics. Planned Parenthood says that one in five women in the U.S. has been treated at a Planned Parenthood clinic. Critics of Planned Parenthood, who are engaged in a sustained attack on the organization, say that most of those women are going to the clinics to have abortions, paid for, in violation of the Hyde Amendment, with taxpayer money.

18 Nov 2011

Chloroquine-chemotherapy combination holds potential for metastatic breast cancer treatment

An anti-malaria drug used for more than 60 years is now being studied for use in breast cancer patients whose disease has not responded to traditional chemotherapy treatment.

18 Nov 2011

Stroke incidence related to blood type: Study

A latest study reveals that the risk for stroke maybe tied to blood type, with men and women with type AB and women with type B facing greater risk than people with type O. Researchers add that this study does not prove the link but it agrees with other studies that have tied A, B, and AB to heart attack and to blood clots in the legs. And type O has been linked to a heightened risk for bleeding, which implies less chance of the clots that are responsible for most strokes.

17 Nov 2011

Annual report on sexually transmitted infections reveals rising trends

New figures reveal that cases of some common sexually spread diseases continue to increase in the United States. These numbers come in the annual report on sexually transmitted disease released by health officials this Thursday.

17 Nov 2011

MammaCare technology sets standards for clinical breast exams

MammaCare, a revolutionary tool that has set standards for teaching women and clinicians how to perform clinical breast exams, is training professionals around the country to detect lumps earlier and save lives.

17 Nov 2011

Incidences of self harm rises among adolescents: study

A recent large population based study shows that at least one in 12 teenagers commit self-harm. The commonest form of self harm is by cutting or burning, as a way of coping with depression, anxiety or other problems.

17 Nov 2011

Psychiatric medication use soaring among women: Report

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder or ADHD commonly affects boys more than girls. However a new report shows that among adults, the numbers have changed with women’s use of ADHD medications risen over the past decade surpassing that of men.

17 Nov 2011

Women much more likely to suffer from “broken heart syndrome”

Researchers have found that a woman’s heart is broken more easily than a man’s. In fact females are seven to nine times more likely to suffer “broken heart syndrome,” when sudden or prolonged stress like an emotional breakup or death causes overwhelming heart failure or heart attack-like symptoms, the first nationwide study of this finds. Usually patients recover with no lasting damage add researchers.

17 Nov 2011

IRIN examines efforts to train midwives, improve maternal health in Laos

"In 2010, for the first time in more than 20 years, 140 midwives graduated in Laos but specialists say their skills may go untapped because the country's women are not used to visiting health workers," IRIN reports. "Only 34 percent of women in Laos seek the advice of medical professionals; even fewer see one when they are pregnant, according to government data from 2009-2010," the news service writes.

17 Nov 2011

Mannosides show promise against urinary tract infections

An experimental treatment for urinary tract infections has easily passed its first test in animals, alleviating weeks-long infections in mice in as little as six hours.

17 Nov 2011

Potential breakthrough in treating late-stage ovarian cancer

A potential breakthrough in treating late-stage ovarian cancer has come from University of Guelph researchers who have discovered a peptide that shrinks advanced tumours and improves survival rates for this deadly but often undetected disease.

17 Nov 2011

Link between NRXN3 gene and impulsivity

Being impulsive can lead us to say things we regret, buy things we really don't need, engage in behaviors that are risky and even develop troublesome addictions. But are different kinds of hastiness and rashness embedded in our DNA? A new study suggests the answer is yes -- especially if you're a man.

17 Nov 2011

Bionovo initiates Menerba Phase 3 trial in menopausal hot flashes

Bionovo, Inc., a pharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of safe and effective treatments for women's health and cancer, today announced that the first patient has now been randomized and will begin dosing in the Phase 3 pivotal clinical trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of two doses of Menerba (MF101) among a cohort of postmenopausal women for the treatment of menopausal hot flashes.

17 Nov 2011