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BCBSMA global payment model reduces spending, improves quality of patient care

A just-released study by a team of researchers at the Harvard Medical School finds that a new global payment model being implemented by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (BCBSMA) is meeting its twin goals of slowing the growth in health care costs while simultaneously improving the quality of patient care.

15 Jul 2011

Teva commends U.S. Senators for introducing Affordable Medicines Utilization Act of 2011

Teva commends Senators Scott Brown, Ron Wyden and John McCain for introducing the Affordable Medicines Utilization Act of 2011.

15 Jul 2011

Scientists identify new metabolic pathway for breast cancer

Agios Pharmaceuticals, the leading biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing novel drugs in the rapidly emerging field of cancer metabolism, announced today a publication in the journal Nature that identifies dysregulated activity of the serine pathway as a novel metabolic target in certain breast cancers.

15 Jul 2011

CAHO to receive $6.3M from Ontario Government for ARTIC Program

The Council of Academic Hospitals of Ontario (CAHO) is delighted to learn that the Ontario Government will invest $6.3 million into the CAHO Adopting Research to Improve Care (ARTIC) Program - a program aimed at moving research evidence from the bench to the bedside to drive quality and improve patient care.

15 Jul 2011

Software, No World Borders partner to provide healthcare solutions

No World Borders, Inc., a leading healthcare consulting company, announced that it formed a partnership with Software AG, a global company traded on the Frankfurt stock exchange with over $2.6 billion in market capitalization.

15 Jul 2011

Seattle Children's inaugurates new center for cancer research

Today, Seattle Children's Research Institute announced the opening of the Center for Childhood Cancer Research.

15 Jul 2011

Oxytocin does not boost prospects for normal births

A new Cochrane review says that oxytocin, a medication often used to quicken slow-paced labor in its early stages, doesn't boost the prospects for normal births. Riskier births that required cesarean section or the use of forceps didn't become less common.

15 Jul 2011

The focus on bringing down IPAB

On Capitol Hill this week, the health law's independent payment advisory panel drew criticism from both Democrats and Republicans. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius was on hand to absorb some of the attacks and answer some of the questions.

15 Jul 2011

Scientists discover high levels of antioxidants in two species of neotropical blueberries

One of the treats of summer-fresh, antioxidant-rich blueberries-has new competition for the title of "superfruit." But at least the contenders are keeping the title in the family. Researchers have found that two species of wild blueberries native to the tropical regions of Central and South America-the New World tropics, or Neotropics-contain two to four times more antioxidants than the blueberries sold in U.S. markets.

15 Jul 2011

E-cadherin may regulate up to 25% of genes within embryonic stem cells

A protein molecule that 'glues' cells together and so has a key role in cancer is also responsible for many other important functions of cells, a new study has found.

15 Jul 2011

CLEOPATRA Phase III study on HER2-positive mBC meets primary endpoint

Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, today announced that CLEOPATRA, a pivotal Phase III study, met its primary endpoint.

15 Jul 2011

Longer looks: Penalties for doctors who keep patients waiting

When she makes a doctor's appointment, Cherie Kerr makes it clear that she better not be kept waiting long. She said she usually tries to schedule the first appointment of the day, or the first one after lunch. But if the doctor is going to be late, she insists the staff give her a call -- lest the office be billed for her time in the waiting room.

15 Jul 2011

Simple dental algorithm can effectively identify patients with unrecognized diabetes

In a study, Identification of unrecognized diabetes and pre-diabetes in a dental setting, published in the July 2011 issue of the Journal of Dental Research, researchers at Columbia University College of Dental Medicine found that dental visits represented a chance to intervene in the diabetes epidemic by identifying individuals with diabetes or pre-diabetes who are unaware of their condition.

15 Jul 2011

Study: Early-stage melanomas can help predict tumor metastasis

Wanderlust in a person can be admirable or romantic. In a cancerous tumor, it may be lethal. Most deaths from cancer result from tumor cells that have strayed from their original location to insinuate their way into distant tissues. With few exceptions, however, doctors have little way of determining whether a newly formed tumor is more likely to remain idle or send invader cells to other parts of the body.

15 Jul 2011

Tocotrienol could help reduce stroke damage

Preventive supplementation with a natural form of vitamin E called tocotrienol could help reduce brain damage caused by strokes, researchers reported today at the 2nd International Conference on Tocotrienols and Chronic Diseases.

15 Jul 2011

Partially hydrolysed whey formula does not prevent allergies in high-risk infants

Despite the formula being recommended in public health guidelines set out by the Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy, the new study, published online in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, found there was no benefit in using hypoallergenic formula to prevent allergies in high-risk infants up to seven years of age, compared to a conventional cow's milk based formula.

15 Jul 2011

UTHealth enrolls first patient in new stem cell therapy trial for ischemic stroke

The first Texas patient has been enrolled by researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston in the country's first double-blind clinical trial studying the safety and efficacy of an innovative stem cell therapy that can be given up to 19 days after an ischemic stroke.

15 Jul 2011

BK channel activation involves structural rearrangements: Study

BK channels are essential for the regulation of important biological processes such as smooth muscle tone and neuronal excitability. New research shows that BK channel activation involves structural rearrangements formerly not understood.

15 Jul 2011

Babies have far less ability to recognize rapidly changing images than adults

Babies have far less ability to recognize rapidly changing images than adults, according to research from the UC Davis Center for Mind and Brain. The results show that while infants can perceive flicker or movement, they may not be able to identify the individual elements within a moving or changing scene as well as an adult.

15 Jul 2011