The epidemic of HIV/AIDS in India is following the same pattern as that of sub-Saharan Africa in the 1980s, and it could become just as devastating unless preventive action is taken now, according to researchers from the University of California, Berkeley, in a paper to be published Saturday (June 21) in the British Medical Journal.
“In hindsight, opportunities were missed to stem the explosive growth of AIDS in Africa,” says Dr. Malcolm Potts, professor of population and family planning at
The European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO)
The outlook for patients with advanced rectal cancer is looking more promising with a new treatment approach developed by Professor Andres Cervantes’ team in Spain. The results of a trial of chemo-radiation followed by surgery were presented at the European Society of Medical Oncology’s conference in Edinburgh today (20 June), demonstrating how to prevent a recurrence of the cancer.
Rectal cancer is a very difficult c
An emerging species of yeast, Candida parapsilosis is causing increasing numbers of infections because it spreads easily from medical devices into the blood stream of patients. Science Foundation Ireland has recently awarded almost €1 million to Dr. Geraldine Butler of the Conway Institute of Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, Dublin for her pioneering studies of this yeast.
As the yeast grows on the plastic surface of catheters, heart valves or intravenous lines, it forms a thin film ca
A collaboration of scientists mainly from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center and at the University of Washington (Seattle) has made an important discovery linking the powerful cancer-causing oncogene, myc, with the gene behind the premature aging disease, Werner syndrome. Their finding reveals that the MYC oncoprotein turns-on Werner syndrome gene expression, and posits the Werner syndrome gene as a potentially important participant in MYC-induced tumorigenesis.
Werner syndrome is a rare gen
Physicians at the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital are using a new technology to treat patients with brain aneurysms. Matrix© coils provide better stabilization of the aneurysms and promote faster healing of the lesion. So far, two patients have received the Matrix© coil treatment at the MNI/H. The Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital is one of three centres in Canada chosen to use the new Matrix© coil. The others are Toronto Western and Foothills Hospital in Calg
People who brush their teeth for longer and harder than is necessary may not be making them any cleaner, and could be causing permanent damage, according to new research.
A study using electric toothbrushes by the University of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, found that when researchers increased the length of people’s brushing regime and the pressure they applied to their teeth, the removal of harmful bacteria was only improved up to a point.
Beyond that point, say experts from Newcastl
Minimally invasive treatment of disease, a revolutionary alternative to larger surgical incisions and longer recovery times, is undergoing its own transformation. Interventional radiologists are fusing imaging technologies with the accuracy of robots and automated instruments to help physicians target cancerous tumors and diseases with exquisite precision.
Three major categories of technology are at the forefront: robotics, global positioning systems (GPS) and next-generation image di
A new analysis showed that increases in bone mineral density (BMD) only accounted for 6 to 12 percent of the reduction in non-vertebral fracture risk that resulted from osteoporosis treatment over three years in postmenopausal women.
Previously, analyses of clinical trial data for three major osteoporosis therapies have shown that increases in BMD account for only a fraction (
Evaluation of WHO criteria for identifying patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome out of hospital: prospective observational study BMJ Volume 326, pp 1354-8
Current World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines for diagnosing suspected SARS may not be sufficiently sensitive in assessing patients before admission to hospital, suggest researchers from Hong Kong in this week’s BMJ.
The study took place in a newly opened SARS screening clinic at the Prince of Wales Hos
For patients with eczema, applying fluticasone propionate cream twice a week, alongside daily emollient treatment, significantly reduces the risk of relapse, say researchers in this week’s BMJ.
The study involved 376 patients with moderate to severe eczema from 39 dermatology clinics in six countries. All patients were experiencing a ’flare’ of their condition.
Patients applied fluticasone propionate (cream or ointment; once or twice daily) for four weeks to s
Uncontrolled use of antiretroviral drugs in developing countries could accelerate HIV resistance, warn researchers in this week’s BMJ.
Most people in developing countries who suspect they have a sexually transmitted infection seek care in the private sector because of the stigma attached, and evidence of uncontrolled use is already emerging among largely unregulated private providers, says Ruairi Brugha of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
These treatm
Discovery could lead to new drug therapy for some childhood cancers
Investigators at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital have discovered a previously unrecognized way that certain types of cancer cells can be forced to activate a self-destruction program called apoptosis.
The finding suggests that drugs designed to activate apoptosis might be effective anti-cancer therapies. This strategy would target specific molecules in the cancer cell rather than rely on chemothera
In combating West Nile virus, information could be the ultimate repellant. In an effort to develop an early-warning system for potential West Nile virus outbreaks, Cornell University’s Northeast Regional Climate Center (NRCC) and the Department of Entomology will spend this summer collecting climate data in areas where disease-carrying mosquitoes are found.
The U.S. government-funded research, it is hoped, will result in the first Web-based, degree-day calculator that warns publ
Goran Ivanisevic’s offer to serve strawberries at this year’s Wimbledon may be a more useful job than he imagined. As well as delicious with cream, this symbol of the summer could help fight cancer according to scientists.
Research has shown that natural plant chemicals in strawberries can inhibit the growth of cancer cells. And now scientists at the Institute of Food Research have begun work to identify the compounds responsible.
“The modern strawberry is just one of hundreds of va
An article published in the journal BMC Medical Informatics and Decision Making describes the creation of the first comprehensive listing and classification of precancers, drawn from the medical literature. Using this classification, the precancers have been organized into groups that share similar biologic profiles and, hopefully, similar treatments.
Precancers precede invasive cancers. They are localized changes in tissue – lesions – identifiable by their morphologic structure. During car
Researchers at Johns Hopkins’ Wilmer Eye Institute and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals have identified an experimental medicine that stops the blinding blood vessel growth associated with diabetic eye diseases and possibly macular degeneration in laboratory mice.
By injecting a fused protein called VEGF-TRAP (R1R2) into the eyes or bloodstreams of mice, scientists halted new blood vessel growth in the rodents’ eyes and stopped existing blood vessels from leaking. Study results were publ
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