Although an overwhelming 98% of cancer patients wanted to know the results of the clinical trial they took part in, there is currently no standard way of conveying the information. The onus is usually placed on the patient to find out the results from their doctor. Over 1,400 people with cancer took part in a new study to determine the best way of telling patients about their clinical trial results, the findings of which were announced today at the 5th European Breast Cancer Conference (EBCC-5).
Angina, a common form of heart disease, is more dangerous for women than was previously thought, according to a new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). The collaborative study, led by UCL (University College London) and funded by the British Heart Foundation, found that angina in women is as common as it is in men, in contrast to heart attacks (myocardial infarction) which have a higher rate in men. The findings suggest that the medical profession shoul
The introduction of a smokefree law in bars and restaurants in New Zealand has had positive health and economic impacts. A study published recently in the open access journal BMC Public Health reveals that the proportion of smokers who reported smoking more when going out to public social venues halved following the implementation of the 2003 New Zealand Smokefree Environments Act. Support from smokers for smokefree bars doubled over the six months following the implementation of the Act. The s
New findings of research into Tourette’s syndrome could help to pinpoint the cause of the condition.
University of Nottingham researchers have found evidence for an unexpected conclusion — that people with Tourette’s syndrome actually have more control over some brain processes than people unaffected by the condition.
It has been a widely held view that Tourette’s — a condition that affects thousands of Britons and can seriously inhibit social interaction — is the result
Regular exercise can reduce severe symptoms in menopausal women and improve their quality of life, according to a study in the latest Journal of Advanced Nursing.
Researchers from the University of Granada in Spain found that the number of women suffering severe symptoms fell by a quarter after they took part in a 12-month supervised exercise programme, while problems increased among women who didn’t exercise.
Fifty per cent of the 24-strong exercise group had severe symp
New research at the University of Liverpool suggests that environmental contaminants, such as pesticides, are more influential in causing cancer than previously thought.
Previous studies in cancer causation have often concluded that exposure to carcinogenic or endocrine-disrupting chemicals, for example, organochlorines (OC) – found in pesticides and plastics – occurs at concentrations that are too low to be considered a major factor in cancerous disease. Now new research at th
Scientists at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have helped to identify a molecule that can be used as a vaccination agent against growing cancer tumours. Although the results are so far based on animal experiments, they point to new methods of treating metastases.
The results are presented in the online edition of the prestigious scientific journal Nature Medicine, and represent the collaborative efforts of researchers at KI and Leiden University Medical Centre in Holland.
Scientists at the London School of Economics, UK and Simon Fraser University, Canada have described the first hypothesis grounded in evolutionary genomics explaining the development of autism.
In an article to be published in a forthcoming issue of Journal of Evolutionary Biology, Dr Christopher Badcock and Professor Bernard Crespi explore the ‘imprinted brain hypothesis’ to explain the cause and effect of autism and autistic syndromes such as Asperger’s syndrome, highlighted b
Could also protect against other intracellular bacterial pathogens
When bacterial pathogens attack the surface of a cell, vaccine-induced antibodies can mount a formidable defense and fend off the bad bugs. The trouble comes when antibodies cannot recognize the pathogen because the bacteria have infected the cell and are hidden, growing inside the cell’s wall.
To mount a defense against these cloaked attackers, Darren Higgins, Associate Professor of Microbiology at H
EPSRC and Philips Research have announced a £6m agreement to fund research and training in biomedical technology. The research is aimed at the development of next generation diagnostic and monitoring technologies for medical devices. Prime application examples are likely to include health monitoring while travelling in an ambulance between a medical emergency and hospital, state-of-the-art biosensors for more general diagnostics and measurement purposes within healthcare facilities, and the r
Rapid identification of pathogens responsible for disease outbreaks critical for containment and implementation of public health measures
Researchers at the Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health led by Thomas Briese, PhD, associate professor of Epidemiology, have developed a rapid, comprehensive diagnostic test for viral hemorrhagic fevers caused by the Ebola and Marburg viruses, as well as others. The new diagnostic t
A drug that is marketed to treat Alzheimer’s disease also improves cognitive function, mood and quality of life in brain tumor patients following radiation therapy, according to a research team at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center.
After the patients were treated for six months with donepezil (trade name: Aricept), there was a significant improvement in their symptoms, the researchers reported in the March 17 issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
“Eac
Most women with cancer in one breast who decide to have the unaffected breast removed along with the diseased breast don’t regret the decision and have a quality of life equal to patients who didn’t have a preventive mastectomy, according to a survey of breast cancer survivors.
“A large majority of women were satisfied with their decisions to have the preventive mastectomy in addition to their primary breast cancer treatment,” said Ann Geiger, Ph.D., lead author, fro
Healthcare decisions must remain in the hands of healthcare professionals for the sake of patients
A balance must be struck between physicians’ responsibility to treat chronic pain and the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) duty to combat drug abuse, according to a series of seven commentaries by national thoughtleaders published today in the February issue of Pain Medicine.
The commentaries explore the current state of the use of pain medicine from a v
The recipients of the second round of Science and Innovation Awards have been announced by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).
Funding has been awarded to build the UK’s research base in the areas of nanometrology, statistics, plasma physics and the Mathematics-Computer Science interface.
Science and Innovation Awards were introduced by EPSRC in 2005 to address the issue of giving support to strategic areas of research that are particu
In a groundbreaking new study, researchers from the University of Michigan and Harvard University use cutting-edge brain-scanning technology to explore how different regions of the brain are activated when we think about certain qualities of brands and products. The study, forthcoming in the Journal of Consumer Research, is the first to use fMRI to assess consumer perceptions and has important implications for the use of metaphorical human-like traits in branding.
“[fMRI] allows one to gaug
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