Health News

Married cancer patients 'likely to live longer'

Date: Sep-24-2013
People who are married when they are diagnosed with cancer are more likely to live longer, compared with those who are unmarried. This is according to a new study published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. Researchers conducted a retrospective analysis of 734,889 people from the National Cancer Institute's Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results Program who were diagnosed with cancer between 2004 and 2008...

Midday naps boost learning in preschoolers

Date: Sep-24-2013
A new study finds that midday naps boost learning in preschoolers, suggesting if policymakers eliminate classroom naps for young children to allow more time for educational activity, it could backfire. Researchers from the University of Massachusetts Amherst write about their findings in the current online issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, PNAS. They explain in their study background that despite the fact midday naps are common in early childhood, we know little about their structure and function...

Pharmacognosy, Phytochemistry & Natural Products�conference, October 21-23, 2013, Hyderabad, India

Date: Sep-24-2013
A paradigm of new drug development from herbal resources, at Pharmacognosy, Phytochemistry & Natural Products�conference during October 21-23, 2013 at Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel, Hyderabad, India. Historically, medical plants hold a major share of therapeutic regiment even for most fatal and incurable disorders, enormous amount of flora and fauna rendered several active drug moieties now available in the market. Including the phytomedicines, plants are rich source of nutraceuticals, pharmaceutical aids, flavouring agents, and cosmeceutical and accounts for a major global market share...

FDA issues final guidance for mobile medical apps

Date: Sep-24-2013
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that it has issued final guidance for developers of medical mobile apps - user-friendly software programs that run on mobile communication devices, such as smartphones and tablet computers. The guidance reveals that the federal agency will focus regulation on a small subset of medical apps that present a greater risk and will exercise discretion for the majority that pose minimal risk to consumers...

New research into mental wellbeing and HIV highlights need for greater support

Date: Sep-24-2013
New research by leading HIV support agency Positively UK, in partnership with Janssen, has provided fresh insights into the links between HIV and poor mental wellbeing. The results, launched at Positively UK's Conference of People Living With HIV and published in the States of Mind Report, highlight the burden of poor mental health in the HIV community. The report explores the impact of mental health issues on the lives of people living with HIV (PLWHIV) and calls for more to be done to reduce the burden...

Leicester leads two groundbreaking trials into treatments for asbestos-related cancer

Date: Sep-24-2013
University of Leicester researchers are leading two major trials into treatments for a type of cancer which affects those exposed to asbestos.  Professor Dean Fennell, of the University's Department of Cancer Studies and Molecular Medicine, is leading two groundbreaking trials into mesothelioma - a form of lung cancer strongly linked with exposure to asbestos.  Mesothelioma most commonly starts in the inner lining of the chest wall, causing it to thicken, reducing lung capacity - which in turn puts a strain on other organs including the heart...

Early test warns of world's leading eye disease, age-related macular degeneration (AMD)

Date: Sep-24-2013
A new, quick and simple eye test can predict who is more at risk of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a leading cause of blindness worldwide. Researchers at Australia's Vision Centre (VC) have found that while people with early AMD can still see in fine detail, other parts of their vision may be damaged and this isn't revealed by current eye tests. The new test, by revealing the damage, can show doctors or optometrists where to look and when to watch a patient more closely, helping them to lessen the risk of the disease and avoid total blindness...

Accurately identifying neck tumors using robotics improves treatment, survival, Pitt study finds

Date: Sep-24-2013
Using robotic surgery done through the mouth to more accurately identify the cause of lumps in the neck can help physicians to better target more personalized therapies for patients and dramatically improve survival, according to a study led by the University of Pittsburgh's Umamaheswar Duvvuri, M.D., Ph.D., and encompassing the largest series of patients treated with transoral robotic surgery (TORS) in the U.S. Dr...

UNAIDS reports a 52% reduction in new HIV infections among children and a combined 33% reduction among adults and children since 2001

Date: Sep-24-2013
As world leaders prepare to meet at the United Nations General Assembly to review progress towards the Millennium Development Goals - a new report from the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) shows dramatic acceleration towards reaching 2015 global targets on HIV. New HIV infections among adults and children were estimated at 2.3 million in 2012, a 33% reduction since 2001. New HIV infections among children have been reduced to 260 000 in 2012, a reduction of 52% since 2001...

UCB receives CHMP positive opinion for Cimzia® (certolizumab pegol) in severe active axial spondyloarthritis

Date: Sep-24-2013
UCB has announced that the European Medicines Agency's (EMA's) Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) has adopted a positive opinion recommending extending the European Union marketing authorization for the use of Cimzia® (certolizumab pegol) in the treatment of adult patients with severe active axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA). AxSpA is a form of spondyloarthritis that affects mainly the spine and sacroiliac joints, and comprises both ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and axSpA without X ray evidence of AS (non-radiographic axSpA [nr-axSpA]) sub-groups...