New treatment regimen shows clinical benefit in advanced colon cancer
|
|
A new treatment regimen for patients with metastatic colon cancer appears to offer clinical benefit even when used after multiple other treatments have failed, say research physicians at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, a part of Georgetown University Medical Center.
The research team found that combining a PARP inhibitor with chemotherapy (temozolomide) offers significant benefit in patients who had no further treatment options. However, the study is small, and does not include a comparison arm, so further investigation is needed, they add. The study will be presented in an oral session on Saturday, June 4th, at the 2011 annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology in Chicago.
PARP, short for “poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase” is a key part of a cell’s DNA repair apparatus, and is important for protecting our normal cells against DNA damage. However, cancer cells become resistant to chemotherapy in part by increasing PARP expression and thus rapidly repairing DNA damage intentionally caused by chemotherapy. PARP inhibitors are designed to overcome a cancer cell’s ability to repair the damaged DNA. (They are showing promise in both breast and ovarian cancers, and are being studied in a variety of other cancer types).
Late-Breaking Clinical Trials
|
|
Results from C91 “Late-Breaking Clinical Trials” on Tuesday afternoon, May 17, will bring new light to clinical problems and potential treatments. While five examine possible new therapies for people with asthma (pregnant women), emphysema, lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM), TB and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a sixth looks at the safety of physician- vs. nurse-led transport teams for critically ill patients,
In one, researchers from Australia identified a way for pregnant women with asthma to avoid exacerbations. This randomized, controlled trial tested a management algorithm for asthma in pregnancy based on fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FENO) which indicates level of inflammation, and symptoms, and compared this to standard, guideline-based care.
Heather Powell, MMedSci, and colleagues enrolled 242 pregnant asthmatic women before 20 weeks’ gestation. They measured FENO, symptoms and lung function at monthly visits. For the women randomized to the algorithm-based treatment, FENO was used to increase or decrease their ICS medications. Long-acting beta agonists were used to treat symptoms when FENO was not elevated.
Economic factors associated with increase in closures of emergency departments
|
|
Over the last 20 years, the number of hospital emergency departments in nonrural areas in the U.S. has declined by nearly 30 percent, with for-profit ownership, location in a competitive market, low profit margin and safety-net status associated with an increased risk of emergency department closure, according to a study in the May 18 issue of JAMA.
“As the only place in the U.S. health care system that serves all patients, emergency departments (EDs) are the ‘safety net of the safety net.’ Federal law requires hospital EDs to evaluate and treat all patients in need of emergency care regardless of ability to pay,” according to background information in the article. “Between 1998 and 2008, the number of hospital-based EDs in the United States declined, while the number of ED visits increased, particularly visits by patients who were publicly insured and uninsured. Little is known about the hospital, community, and market factors associated with ED closures.”
Renee Y. Hsia, M.D., M.Sc., of the University of California, San Francisco, and colleagues conducted a study to examine the factors that may be associated with the closure of hospital EDs. The study included emergency department and hospital organizational information from 1990 through 2009, acquired from the American Hospital Association Annual Surveys and merged with hospital financial and payer mix information available through 2007 from Medicare hospital cost reports.
Stem cell study could pave the way to treatment for age-related muscle wasting
|
|
A team led by developmental biologist Professor Christophe Marcelle has nailed the mechanism that causes stem cells in the embryo to differentiate into specialised cells that form the skeletal muscles of animals’ bodies. The scientists published their results in the British journal Nature on Monday (May 16).
Scientists world wide are racing to pin down the complex molecular processes that cause stem cells in the early embryo to differentiate into specialist cells such as muscle or nerve cells. The field has the potential to revolutionise medicine by delivering therapies to regenerate tissue damaged by disease or injury.
Differentiation happens soon after fertilisation, when embryonic cells are dividing rapidly and migrating as the animal’s body takes shape.
Vitamin D Improves Exercise Outcomes in Patients with COPD
|
|
Vitamin D supplements may help patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) get more from their pulmonary rehabilitation programs, according to a study conducted by researchers from Belgium.
The study results will be presented at the ATS 2011 International Conference in Denver.
“Our study shows that high doses of vitamin D supplementation on top of a standard rehabilitation program improve the outcome in terms of exercise capacity and respiratory muscle strength,” said Miek Hornikx, physiotherapist and doctoral student in the department of pneumology at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in Leuven, Belgium.
CPAP improves daytime sleepiness even in patients with low levels of symptoms
|
|
Continuous positive airway pressure, or CPAP, can increase alertness and even improve quality of life for sufferers of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), even if their symptoms are minimal, according to a study conducted by researchers in Europe. Patients enrolled in the study reported an improvement in daytime sleepiness within six months of beginning CPAP treatment.
The study will be presented at the ATS 2011 International Conference in Denver.
“Treatment with CPAP clearly reduces daytime sleepiness and improves quality of life in patients with very limited symptoms, at a rate of about half the improvement seen in patients with more severe symptoms,” said Sonya Craig, research fellow at Churchill Hospital, Oxford.
Federal agency seeks Medicaid savings with better care
|
|
A small percentage of people account for a huge share of Medicaid healthcare program costs and U.S. officials on Wednesday announced a drive to save money while improving care for these patients.
The initiative will focus on coordinating care of people who receive health coverage under both the Medicaid program for the poor and the Medicare healthcare program for the elderly, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said.
These 9.2 million “dual eligibles” tend to have multiple chronic illnesses and 43 percent have a mental impairment. They represent only 15 percent of Medicaid enrollees but account for about 40 percent of the spending, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which oversees the programs.
400,000-plus women raped in Congo yearly: study
|
|
More than 400,000 women are raped in the Democratic Republic of Congo every year, according to a study by U.S. researchers published Wednesday, but the United Nations has expressed doubt over the findings.
Congo, which has a population of around 60 million, has endured decades of conflict, characterized by the use of brutal sexual violence against civilians, with mass rapes still regular in the largely lawless eastern provinces.
The study, which used nationwide data collected by the government between 2006 and 2007, found that on average 1,100 women were raped every day in the vast central African country.
Lessening the Dangers of Radiation
|
|
For diagnosing head and neck ailments, tests that use radiation are always less desirable than those that don’t. Otolaryngologists have a wide range of techniques available to them, including CT or “CAT” scans, MRI and ultrasound. CT uses significant radiation and MRI a lower amount, but ultrasound is a non-invasive, non-radiating technique. It does not require injection of radioactive contrast material and has no side effects.
Now, a new study by Tel Aviv University exploring the efficacy of expensive and invasive CT scans has found that, in some cases, they don’t offer a clinical advantage over a simple, inexpensive ultrasound procedure.
In his study, Dr. Michael Vaiman of Tel Aviv University’s Sackler Faculty of Medicine compared the efficacy of CT versus ultrasound scans for locating vertebral arteries in the throat, an important assessment that must be completed before a surgeon operates in the neck area of the body.
Vitamin D deficiency in pneumonia patients associated with increased mortality
|
|
A new study published in the journal Respirology reveals that adult patients admitted to the hospital with pneumonia are more likely to die if they have Vitamin D deficiency.
Vitamin D is known to be involved in the innate immune response to infection.
The team of researchers at Waikato Hospital and the Universities of Waikato and Otago, measured vitamin D in the blood samples of 112 adult patients admitted with community acquired pneumonia during the winter at the only acute-care hospital in Hamilton, New Zealand.
Oncolytic viruses effectively target and kill pancreatic cancer stem cells
|
|
Oncolytic viruses quickly infect and kill cancer stem cells, which may provide a treatment for tumors that are resistant to conventional chemotherapy and radiation, particularly pancreatic cancer, according to new research from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York. The findings are especially important since pancreatic cancer has a poor prognosis and is difficult to detect and treat at early stages.
Investigators led by Joyce Wong, MD, surgical researcher with Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, investigated whether they could use oncolytic viruses, which are naturally occurring viruses that have been genetically engineered to be safe and express tracking genes, as a possible therapy against pancreatic cancer stem cells. These stem cells are thought to cause disease recurrence and metastasis, even after therapy, and oncolytic viruses may offer a new treatment strategy.
“What we learned is that oncolytic viruses have been engineered to selectively target cancer cells and have a low toxicity profile in animal studies,” said Dr. Wong. “Targeting the cancer stem cell may enhance our ability to eradicate tumors and prevent future recurrence of disease.”
Red Cross delivers first relief aid to Deraa
|
|
Aid workers from the Red Cross and Red Crescent on Thursday delivered their first emergency relief supplies to the southern Syrian city of Deraa, cradle of an uprising against President Bashar al-Assad, a spokesman said.
The one-day visit granted by Syrian authorities coincided with an announcement that its army units have begun to leave Deraa, but residents described a city still under siege.
A convoy of two trucks carrying drinking water and two trucks with food and first aid materials accompanied the team of 13 experts from the Syrian Red Crescent and International Committee of the Red Cross, ICRC spokesman Hicham Hassan said.
House Republicans back away on Medicare overhaul
|
|
Congressional Republicans on Thursday backed away from a contentious plan to overhaul Medicare that President Barack Obama and fellow Democrats have turned into a weapon against them for next year’s elections.
House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee Chairman David Camp said his panel will not advance a Republican proposal to privatize Medicare for future retirees because it stands no chance of getting passed by the Democratic-led Senate. But Camp said the powerful tax-writing committee will act on any compromise reached on a deficit reduction plan.
“I’m interested in finding a way forward that will get signed into law,” Camp told reporters at an event sponsored by Health Affairs, a health policy journal.
Study suggests prolonged bottle feeding increases the risk of obesity
|
|
Experts agree that obesity prevention should begin before children enter school. But due to a lack of conclusive data, health care providers often have trouble advising parents about which interventions are the most beneficial. A new study soon to be published in The Journal of Pediatrics suggests that limiting prolonged bottle use in children may be an effective way to help prevent obesity.
Dr. Robert Whitaker and Rachel Gooze of the Center for Obesity Research and Education at Temple University, and Dr. Sarah Anderson of The Ohio State University College of Public Health, analyzed data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Birth Cohort, a large national study of children born in 2001. They analyzed data from 6750 children to estimate the association between bottle use at 24 months of age and the risk of obesity at 5.5 years of age.
Of the children studied, 22% were prolonged bottle users, meaning that at 2 years of age they used a bottle as their primary drink container and/or were put to bed with a calorie-containing bottle. Nearly 23% of the prolonged bottle users were obese by the time they were 5.5 years old. “Children who were still using a bottle at 24 months were approximately 30% more likely to be obese at 5.5 years, even after accounting for other factors such as the mother’s weight, the child’s birth weight, and feeding practices during infancy,” Dr. Whitaker notes.
Nonprofit Health Organizations Increase Health Literacy Through Social Media
|
|
As the presence of social media continues to increase as a form of communication, health organizations are searching for the most effective ways to use the online tools to pass important information to the public. Now, researchers at the University of Missouri have found that nonprofit organizations and community groups appear to be more actively engaged in posting health information and interacting with the public on Twitter than other types of health-related organizations, such as health business corporations, educational institutions and government agencies.
“Twitter may be more appealing to nonprofit organizations because it creates a barrier-free environment that allows these organizations to share important information through real-time exchanges without significant efforts,” said Hyojung Park, a doctoral candidate at the Missouri School of Journalism. “Unlike business organizations such as pharmaceutical companies, nonprofit health organizations and advocacy groups may suffer from lack of funding, staff, and other resources in developing and implementing communication strategies for health intervention and promotion programs. Thus, it is likely that nonprofit organizations and support groups recognize the rapid growth of Twitter and its value as an inexpensive but highly effective communication tool.”
In her study, Park explored how health-related organizations use Twitter, which is a popular social media outlet, to promote health literacy in society and to raise awareness of their brands and manage their images.
