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Slimming agents could pose major health risk

Commonly used nutritional supplements and body-building agents for elite athletes could pose an increased risk of cancer according to a study undertaken at the University of Sydney.

16 Sep 2004

Potential stem cells treatment for retinitis pigmentosa and other retinal degenerations

A team of researchers from The Scripps Research Institute was able to preserve visual function in mice that were genetically predisposed to developing a profound degenerative disease that destroys their retinas.

16 Sep 2004

Health insurance plans extend efforts to end tobacco use

Nearly three-quarters of all health insurance plans included in a new survey rely on evidence-based clinical guidelines to address tobacco use, and almost all plans, 98 percent, provide full coverage for at least one type of smoking cessation intervention.

16 Sep 2004

One-third to buy cheaper Canadian drugs, 100 million find insurance coverage cut or costlier

Faced with a double-barreled crisis of shrinking health care coverage and fast-rising medical costs, two out of three American adults (67 percent) now think health care coverage should be a “guarantee” as in Canada, Britain and other nations.

16 Sep 2004

Certain people are born with an increased risk of developing alcohol problems

The Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR) and the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital have determined that although alcohol consumption and alcohol dependence are closely related, the causes of susceptibility are not necessarily the same.

16 Sep 2004

New method targeting hypermethylation detects ovarian cancer in the blood

Fox Chase Cancer Center researchers have found a new way to detect ovarian cancer in the blood. Reported in the Sept. 15, 2004, issue of Cancer Research, the new method targets hypermethylation--one mechanism used by cancer cells to turn off genes that protect against tumor development.

16 Sep 2004

Washington minority groups hit hardest by tobacco use

Washington state minority communities are more likely to use tobacco and suffer or die from tobacco-related illnesses than the rest of the state’s population, according to the Washington State Department of Health.

16 Sep 2004

ChemGenex discovers five new depression genes

ChemGenex Pharmaceuticals has announced that it has filed for patent protection for a further five novel depression-associated gene targets discovered by its depression and anxiety research group.

16 Sep 2004

RNAi enlisted in hunt for prawn vaccines

CSIRO researchers are using a biological phenomenon called RNA interference (RNAi) in an effort to develop a major biotechnological breakthrough for the aquaculture industry - vaccines for common prawn diseases.

16 Sep 2004

Surprise finding about male infertility

CANCER Research UK scientists have made a surprise finding about the molecular basis of male infertility, reporting their results in the current edition of Nature.

16 Sep 2004

Public health issues, AIDS, sex education and federal tobacco regulation take center stage

Republican and Democratic presidential campaign representatives today said their candidates will address the public health work force shortage, but they debated the need for sex education and federal regulation of tobacco

16 Sep 2004

Labor says it would fund the public education anti-smoking campaign, if elected

Australian Medical Association (AMA) President, Dr Bill Glasson, said today that Labor’s promise to inject another $21 million into anti-smoking awareness campaigns would send a strong message to the community to quit the killer habit.

16 Sep 2004

A new vector of malaria in Africa called Oveng form

Malaria affects around 600 million people in the world and leads to an annual death toll of over 2 million. It is the world’s most widespread parasitic disease.

16 Sep 2004

Most people’s diets get healthier from childhood to young adulthood

Adults eat around twice the amount of fruit and vegetables and less fat and sugar than they did as children, a new study suggests.

16 Sep 2004

PAHO volunteers ready to depart for Grenada

More than 30 volunteers, comprising a range of health and health-related service personnel, are awaiting deployment to help address crisis conditions in Grenada in the aftermath of Hurricane Ivan, according to the Pan American Health Organization's Caribbean Program Coordinator, Veta Brown.

16 Sep 2004

WHO calls for effective partnerships to tackle zoonoses

The World Health Organization (WHO) has urged countries to improve their capacity to respond to emergencies posed by natural, accidental and intentional contamination of food.

16 Sep 2004

New diagnostic tests for bird flu

On the final day of the recent HPA conference, delegates heard about work that the Agency is carrying out to prepare for an avian flu pandemic.

16 Sep 2004

Celacade shown to reduce risk of death and hospitalization in patients with advanced chronic heart failure

Vasogen has announced that comprehensive results from the Company's phase II trial of Celacade (immune modulation therapy) in advanced chronic heart failure patients were published in the September 15 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (JACC).

16 Sep 2004

Beer possesses the same antioxidant benefits as red wine

Beer drinkers can toast the news that their favourite beverage possesses the same benefits as red wine, the alcohol long celebrated for its antioxidant properties.

16 Sep 2004

Severe infections with flesh-eating bacteria are considerably more common than expected

In an EU project covering 11 countries, headed by Lund University in Sweden, it was calculated that some 1,000 cases would be found over an initial 1½-year period. Fully 5,000 were identified.

16 Sep 2004