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Amgen announces results of Phase 3 trial in the treatment of bone metastases

Amgen (Nasdaq: AMGN) today announced detailed results from a Phase 3 trial evaluating denosumab administered subcutaneously versus Zometa(R) (zoledronic acid) administered as an intravenous infusion in the treatment of bone metastases in 1,776 advanced cancer patients with solid tumors (not including breast and prostate cancer) or multiple myeloma. These results were presented today at the 2009 ECCO 15 - ESMO 34 European Multidisciplinary Congress in Berlin, Germany (Abstract Number: 20LBA).

21 Sep 2009

Capzule and Accent iPhone applications for physicans

Webahn, Inc. announces the launch of two new iPhone Apps for physicians. Capzule for its online Electronic Medical Records service Capzule.com and Accent, a voice recording application, for its online transcription service OvernightScribe.com.

21 Sep 2009

Study reveals that daily commuting may lead to mosquito-borne diseases

University of Hawaii at Manoa assistant researcher Durrell Kapan recently published a paper, Man Bites Mosquito: Understanding the Contribution of Human Movement to Vector-Borne Disease Dynamics, in PLoS One. Published August 26, the paper highlights how daily commuting patterns in mega-cities may be a critically overlooked factor in understanding the resurgence of mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue fever, infecting 50-100 million people annually.

21 Sep 2009

Macada Holding and K-World Trade sign exclusive territory agreement

Macada Holding, Inc. (PINKSHEETS: MCDA) announces its subsidiary LyfeTec, Inc. has signed an exclusive territory agreement for the Central Republic of Africa with the company K-World trade with Prince Ketcha whose company specializes in all medical equipment/supplies with and for government support in Douala, Cameroon, Africa.

21 Sep 2009

JDSU announces key advancements in complete portfolio of tunable solutions

JDSU (NASDAQ: JDSU) (TSX: JDU) today announced key advancements as part of its strategy to offer a complete portfolio of tunable solutions in multiple form factors for use within DWDM networks.

21 Sep 2009

Study: Racial health disparities cost $229 billion from 2003-2006

"Racial health disparities cost the United States $229 billion between 2003 and 2006 — money that could help cover an overhaul of the nation's health care system, according to a new report by Johns Hopkins and University of Maryland researchers," The Baltimore Sun reports.

21 Sep 2009

Clothes for women who undergo a mastectomy

One in eight U.S. women will be diagnosed with breast cancer during their lifetime, and currently slightly more than half, 56 percent, undergo mastectomy. Few fashion options exist for those who don’t seek reconstructive surgery or postpone it until after their treatment and recovery — a condition the clothier Wear Ease (www.WearEase.com) seeks to remedy.

21 Sep 2009

Invatec launches a 3-dimensional distal Embolic Protection System for Carotid Artery Stenting

Invatec, a comprehensive innovator of interventional products, today introduced FiberNet®, a 3-dimensional distal Embolic Protection System (EPS) for Carotid Artery Stenting with the lowest crossing profile (0.031’’) and highest performance capabilities on the market, manufactured by Lumen Biomedical. FiberNet provides superior deliverability and can be used in vessels ranging from 3.5 to 7 mm.

21 Sep 2009

TIME examines voluntary airline tax that aims to fund global health projects

TIME examines a voluntary airline tax, to be introduced in the U.S. and several European countries in January, that aims to "make up a shortfall in official government aid to poor countries — a shortfall exacerbated by the world financial crisis." The tax will be used to combat HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, and it will also go towards improving maternal health and reducing child mortality.

21 Sep 2009

"We are going to make sure healthcare is affordable and accessible for everybody": SEIU

"This is a moment of profound change for this country -- from kitchen tables to town halls to the floor of the Senate, this nation is engaged in a vigorous and heated debate about how we rebuild our economy, solve our national healthcare crisis and restore the American Dream.

21 Sep 2009

Recent releases: Climate change, health; ITNS; Mexico H1N1; Policy Tracker; TB treatment; blogs

In addition to the Lancet's recent publication of an opinion piece and letter by 18 doctor association leaders about the potential health risks associated with climate change, the journal includes an editorial about sexual and reproductive health and climate change and a comment on the upcoming Copenhagen conference in December (9/19).

21 Sep 2009

PTA balloon catheter for high pressure dilation procedures

Invatec, a comprehensive innovator of interventional products, today announced the availability of REEF HP, a PTA Balloon Catheter, ideal for use in all peripheral high pressure dilatation procedures. The “lesion-specific” design of the balloon material is particularly useful in “hard-to-dilate” situations and the availability of variable shaft lengths mean that the Reef HP is equally suited to both arteriovenous (AV) shunts (50cm shaft),and peripheral applications (80/120cm shaft).

21 Sep 2009

Research counters criticisms of Canadian health care system

Bloomberg reports that allegations that the Canadian health care system offers inferior treatment, rationing and long lines are wrong, according to wide-ranging and long-standing research.

21 Sep 2009

Researchers find new technique for long-term treatment of DVT

Deep Venous Thrombosis (DVT) is a serious condition that involves the formation of a blood clot inside of a deep vein usually in the legs. A patient with DVT is typically treated with anticoagulants (blood thinners) however researchers have found that image-guided interventional radiology procedures may play a more central role in the long-term treatment of DVT, according to a study published in the October issue of the American Journal of Roentgenology (AJR).

21 Sep 2009

Increasing the half life of proteins to treat diseases such as hepatitis B

Many biopharmaceuticals comprise small proteins that are quickly eliminated from the body. Scientists at the Technische Universitaet Muenchen (TUM) combine such small proteins with a kind of molecular balloon that swells and thus prolongs the half-life of the proteins in the body. The TUM spin-off XL-Protein GmbH has now started to further develop this new technology with blockbuster potential.

21 Sep 2009

Douglas: State Governors need 'time, flexibility' for successful health reform

KHN reports that "[w]hen it comes to making changes in the nation's health care system, states will need 'time and flexibility,' according to Vermont Gov. Jim Douglas, the Republican head of the National Governors Association."

21 Sep 2009

Today's selection of opinions and editorials

There's enough wrong with the Baucus proposal as it stands to make it unworkable and unacceptable. But that said, Senator Baucus's mark is better than many of us expected. If it serves as a basis for negotiation, and the result of those negotiations is a plan that's stronger, not weaker, reformers are going to have to make some hard choices about the degree of disappointment they're willing to live with (Paul Krugman, 9/17).

21 Sep 2009

Obama: Vitriol on health proposal is 'proxy' for other issues

To advocate for his health care proposal, President Barack Obama taped interviews with five Sunday talk shows (CBS, NBC, ABC, CNN, Univision) and each was allowed to use one excerpt before the programs are broadcast.

21 Sep 2009

New report explores the management of pregnancy and depression

A new report from the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, which is published by Elsevier in the September-October 2009 issue of General Hospital Psychiatry (http://journals.elsevierhealth.com/periodicals/ghp/home), explores the management of pregnancy and depression.

21 Sep 2009