Health News

Proximity Of Fast-Food Restaurants To Schools Affects Black And Hispanic Students More Than Asian And White Students

Date: Jun-03-2013
When their schools are near fast-food restaurants, black and Hispanic adolescents are more likely to be overweight and receive less benefit from exercise than Asian or white students, according to a study published in the current issue of Journal of Public Policy & Marketing. The study underscores the importance of understanding how adolescents respond to fast-food availability near school. "Our study demonstrates that fast food near schools is an environmental influence that has magnified effects on some minority children at lower-income urban schools," said Brennan Davis, Ph.D...

Extremely Low Doses Of Marijuana's Psychoactive Component Protect Brain Before And After Injury

Date: Jun-03-2013
Though marijuana is a well-known recreational drug, extensive scientific research has been conducted on the therapeutic properties of marijuana in the last decade. Medical cannabis is often used by sufferers of chronic ailments, including cancer and post-traumatic stress disorder, to combat pain, insomnia, lack of appetite, and other symptoms. Now Prof. Yosef Sarne of Tel Aviv University's Adelson Center for the Biology of Addictive Diseases at the Sackler Faculty of Medicine says that the drug has neuroprotective qualities as well...

Participants Motivated To Sit Less, Move More, By Pedometer Program

Date: Jun-03-2013
Indiana University researchers found that a simple program that uses pedometers to monitor how much people move throughout the day was effective at increasing physical activity, decreasing sitting time, a particular problem for office workers, and helping participants drop some pounds. "Even if somebody works out 30 minutes a day, the fact that they're sitting and not moving for long periods of time for the rest of the day is in and of itself detrimental to their health and well-being, physiologically," said Saurabh S...

Perception Of A Women's Sexual Interest And Intent Altered In Sleep Deprived Men

Date: Jun-03-2013
A new study suggests that one night of sleep deprivation leads to an increase in men's perceptions of both women's interest in and intent to have sex. Results show that when they were well-rested, both men and women rated the sexual intent of women as significantly lower than that of men. However, following one night of sleep deprivation, men's rating of women's sexual intent and interest increased significantly, to the extent that women were no longer seen as having lower sexual intent than men. Sleep deprivation had no significant effect on variables related to commitment...

Mastectomy Often The First Choice For Young Breast Cancer Patients

Date: Jun-03-2013
A new study of young women with breast cancer has found that most chose to have a mastectomy rather than a surgical procedure that would conserve the breast, researchers report at the 49th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, May 31-June 4, in Chicago...

A Targeted Beam Of Energy Directed At Painful Sites Of Bone Metastases Can Cause Relief Within Days

Date: Jun-03-2013
A high-dose of ultrasound targeted to painful bone metastases appears to quickly bring patients relief, and with largely tolerable side effects, according to new research presented by Fox Chase Cancer Center scientists at the 49th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology on Monday, June 3. During the procedure, known as MR-guided focused ultrasound, doctors direct a concentrated beam of energy to specific nerve endings that are causing pain in bone metastases...

Narrowing The Search For Biomarkers Of Drug Resistance In Head And Neck Cancer Patients

Date: Jun-03-2013
Researchers from Fox Chase Cancer Center presented data at the 49th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology which shows the discovery of potential biomarkers that may be used to identify patients with head and neck cancer whose tumors are unlikely to respond to treatment by the targeted therapy cetuximab - a type of monoclonal antibody. The FDA approved the drug, in combination with radiation or as a second-line drug after chemotherapy had failed, in 2006. In 2011, the drug was approved as a first-line treatment for metastatic disease, in combination with chemotherapy...

Seeking A Less Toxic Radiation Treatment For HPV-Positive Oropharynx Cancer

Date: Jun-03-2013
Researchers from Fox Chase Cancer Center and other institutions have completed a phase II clinical trial that may help identify those patients with HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer who do not require the full radiation dose given in a standard regimen of Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT). Preliminary findings were presented by Shanthi Marur, first author on the study and an oncologist at the Johns Hopkins Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, at the 49th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology...

Further Tests To Determine The Efficacy Of The Drug Nivolumab For Lung Cancer

Date: Jun-03-2013
A promising new therapy for the most common form of lung cancer appears to produce largely manageable side effects, and an ongoing clinical trial is determining whether the compound treats tumors more effectively than what's on the market, according research that scientists at Fox Chase Cancer Center presented at the 49th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. "We're very excited about this drug," says Hossein Borghaei, DO, chief of thoracic medical oncology at Fox Chase...

Improving Sleep And Promoting Recovery In Patients With Mild TBI Using Bright Light Therapy

Date: Jun-03-2013
A new study suggests that bright light therapy may improve sleep, cognition, emotion and brain function following mild traumatic brain injury (TBI). Results show that six weeks of morning bright light therapy resulted in a marked decrease in subjective daytime sleepiness. This improvement was further associated with improvements in the propensity to fall asleep and nighttime sleep quality. Bright light therapy also affected depressive symptoms...