Health News

Some chemotherapy drugs induce hyper proliferation in stem cells that could lead to tumor recurrence

Date: Mar-12-2014
Using a new approach to systematically test chemotherapy drugs in an unusual animal model, a research team led by University of Massachusetts Amherst molecular biologist Michele Markstein, with Norbert Perrimon at Harvard Medical School, report that several have a serious side effect: Inducing hyper proliferation in stem cells that could lead to tumor recurrence.Markstein says, "We discovered that several chemotherapeutics that stop fast growing tumors have the opposite effect on stem cells in the same animal, causing them to divide too rapidly.

Vaccine hope for HIV offered by unique individual's immune response to virus

Date: Mar-12-2014
One person's unique ability to fight HIV has provided key insights into an immune response that researchers now hope to trigger with a vaccine, according to findings reported by a team that includes Duke Medicine scientists.The person had a rare combination of both lupus and HIV. Lupus, specifically systemic lupus erythematosus, or SLE, is a disease in which the immune system attacks the body's cells and tissue.

Liver transplant may arrest neurological damage in a rare and progressive form of autism

Date: Mar-12-2014
A patient with a rare metabolic disease that causes liver failure and autistic behavior experienced significant improvements in both her physical and mental health after receiving a liver transplant, according to a new case report published in the American Journal of Transplantation. The report's findings suggest an unexpected link between metabolic conditions and some forms of autism, and they point to the importance of a healthy liver for normal brain function.

Why knowing about the negative health impacts of tobacco does not prevent smokers from lighting up

Date: Mar-12-2014
What if the use of a product influenced your perception of it, making you even more susceptible to its positive aspects and altering your understanding of its drawbacks? This is precisely what happens with cigarettes in chronic smokers, according to a recent study by the Institut universitaire en sante mentale de Montreal and Universite de Montreal.The study showed that chronic smokers have altered emotional reactions when they are exposed to negative and positive images associated with tobacco.

Community action not enough to reduce problem drinking and related harms

Date: Mar-11-2014
Implementation of community-based interventions alone is unlikely to be effective for reducing most alcohol-related harms and risky alcohol consumption, according to a study by Australian researchers published in PLOS Medicine. Anthony Shakeshaft and colleagues from the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre at UNSW (University of New South Wales), report that alcohol-related crime, road-traffic crashes, and hospital inpatient admissions did not differ between communities that did and did not implement community-based interventions.

Research finds discrepancies between trial results reported on clinical trial registry and in high-impact journals

Date: Mar-11-2014
During a one year period, among clinical trials published in high-impact journals that reported results on a public clinical trial registry (ClinicalTrials.gov), nearly all had at least 1 discrepancy in the study group, intervention, or results reported between the 2 sources, including discrepancies in the designated primary end points for the studies, according to a study in JAMA. The 2007 Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Amendments Act expanded requirements for ClinicalTrials.gov, mandating results reporting within 12 months of trial completion for all FDA-regulated medical products.

Discontinuation of randomized clinical trials common

Date: Mar-11-2014
Approximately 25 percent of about 1,000 randomized clinical trials initiated between 2000 and 2003 were discontinued, with the most common reason cited being poor recruitment of volunteers; and less than half of these trials reported the discontinuation to a research ethics committee, or were ever published, according to a study in JAMA. Conducting high-quality randomized clinical trials (RCTs) is challenging and resource-demanding.

Study examines development of peer review research in biomedicine

Date: Mar-11-2014
An analysis of research on peer review finds that studies aimed at improving methods of peer review and reporting of biomedical research are underrepresented and lack dedicated funding, according to a study in JAMA. Mario Malicki, M.D., M.A., of the University of Split School of Medicine, Split, Croatia, and colleagues analyzed research presented at the International Congress on Peer Review and Biomedical Publication (PRC) since 1989.

Study finds comparable outcomes for commonly used surgeries to treat vaginal prolapse

Date: Mar-11-2014
For women undergoing surgery for vaginal prolapse and stress urinary incontinence, neither of 2 common repair procedures was superior to the other for functional or adverse event outcomes, and behavioral therapy with pelvic muscle training did not improve urinary symptoms or prolapse outcomes after surgery, according to a study in JAMA. Pelvic organ prolapse (protrusion) occurs when the uterus descends into the lower vagina or vaginal walls protrude beyond the vaginal opening, and can occur as a result of childbirth.

Children in the UK are eating too much salt, new study finds

Date: Mar-11-2014
According to a study in the American Heart Association journal Hypertension, children in the UK are consuming too much salt, with much of it coming from breads and cereals.Eating too much salt is one of the main factors behind high blood pressure, which in turn increases risk for heart disease and stroke. Previous studies have suggested that children who eat excessive amounts of salt are 40% more likely to have high blood pressure, compared with children who eat lower amounts of salt.In the US, the American Heart Association recommend that people eat no more than 3.