A New Therapeutic Vaccine Against Prostate Cancer.
A newly approved beneficial prostate cancer vaccine won the abide Wednesday of a Medicare admonition committee, increasing the chances that Medicare will pay for the drug. Officials from Medicare, the federal guaranty program for the elderly and disabled, will consider the committee's vote when making a final decision on payment. Such a determination is expected in several months, the Wall Street Journal reported. The vaccine, called Provenge and made by the Dendreon Corp, costs $93000 per tireless and extends survival by about four months on average, according to results from clinical trials.
A office published in July in the New England Journal of Medicine found that the vaccine extended the lives of men with metastatic tumors wilful to bar hormonal treatment, compared with no treatment. And the therapy involved less toxicity than chemotherapy.
Provenge is a salutary (not preventive) vaccine made from the patient's own white blood cells. Once removed from the patient, the cells are treated with the panacea and placed back into the patient. These treated cells then trigger an invulnerable response that in turn kills cancer cells, leaving average cells unharmed.
The vaccine is given intravenously in a three-dose schedule delivered in two-week intervals. "The plan of trying to harness the immune system to fight cancer has been something that occupy have tried to attain for many years; this is one such strategy," study lead researcher Dr Philip Kantoff, a professor of remedy at Harvard Medical School and a medical oncologist at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, told HealthDay.
Tuesday, 11 October 2016
Thursday, 6 October 2016
Some Elderly Men Really Suffer From Andropause, But Much Less Frequently Than Previously Thought
Some Elderly Men Really Suffer From Andropause, But Much Less Frequently Than Previously Thought.
In describing a set of substantial symptoms for "male menopause" for the prime time, British researchers have also obstinate that only about 2 percent of men old 40 to 80 suffer from the condition, far less than previously thought. Male menopause, also called "andropause" or late-onset hypogonadism, presumably results from declines in testosterone production that occur later in life, but there has been some wrangle on how real the phenomenon is, the study authors noted. "Some aging men to be sure suffer from male menopause.
It is a genuine syndrome, but much less common than previously assumed," concluded Dr Ilpo Huhtaniemi, ranking author of a study published online June 16 in the New England Journal of Medicine. "This is momentous because it demonstrates that genuine symptomatic androgen deficiencies androgens are masculine hormones is less common than believed, and that only the right patients should get androgen treatment," added Huhtaniemi, a professor of reproductive endocrinology in the worry of surgery and cancer at Imperial College London.
Many men have been taking testosterone supplements to warfare the perceived effects of aging, even though it's not translucent if taking these supplements help or if they're even safe. The result has been mass confusion, not only as to whether male menopause exists but also how to favour it. "A lot of people abuse testosterone who shouldn't and a lot of men who should get it aren't," said Dr Michael Hermans, an affiliated professor of surgery in the Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine and key of the section of andrology, male sexual dysfunction and manly infertility at Scott & White in Temple, Texas.
In describing a set of substantial symptoms for "male menopause" for the prime time, British researchers have also obstinate that only about 2 percent of men old 40 to 80 suffer from the condition, far less than previously thought. Male menopause, also called "andropause" or late-onset hypogonadism, presumably results from declines in testosterone production that occur later in life, but there has been some wrangle on how real the phenomenon is, the study authors noted. "Some aging men to be sure suffer from male menopause.
It is a genuine syndrome, but much less common than previously assumed," concluded Dr Ilpo Huhtaniemi, ranking author of a study published online June 16 in the New England Journal of Medicine. "This is momentous because it demonstrates that genuine symptomatic androgen deficiencies androgens are masculine hormones is less common than believed, and that only the right patients should get androgen treatment," added Huhtaniemi, a professor of reproductive endocrinology in the worry of surgery and cancer at Imperial College London.
Many men have been taking testosterone supplements to warfare the perceived effects of aging, even though it's not translucent if taking these supplements help or if they're even safe. The result has been mass confusion, not only as to whether male menopause exists but also how to favour it. "A lot of people abuse testosterone who shouldn't and a lot of men who should get it aren't," said Dr Michael Hermans, an affiliated professor of surgery in the Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine and key of the section of andrology, male sexual dysfunction and manly infertility at Scott & White in Temple, Texas.
Sunday, 2 October 2016
Early Diagnostics Of A Colorectal Cancer
Early Diagnostics Of A Colorectal Cancer.
Researchers in South Korea verbalize they've developed a blood probe that spots genetic changes that signal the poise of colon cancer, April 2013. The test accurately spotted 87 percent of colon cancers across all cancer stages, and also correctly identified 95 percent of patients who were cancer-free, the researchers said. Colon cancer remains the patronize prime cancer humdinger in the United States, after lung cancer. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 137000 Americans were diagnosed with the infirmity in 2009; 40 percent of people diagnosed will pay one's debt to nature from the disease.
Right now, invasive colonoscopy remains the "gold standard" for spotting cancer early, although fecal magical blood testing (using stool samples) also is used. What's needed is a authoritatively accurate but noninvasive testing method, experts say. The new blood check-up looks at the "methylation" of genes, a biochemical process that is key to how genes are expressed and function. Investigators from Genomictree Inc and Yonsei University College of Medicine in Seoul said they spotted a set of genes with patterns of methylation that seems to be restricted to tissues from colon cancer tumors.
Changes in one gene in particular, called SDC2, seemed especially tied to colon cancer wen and spread. As reported in the July 2013 emergence of the Journal of Molecular Diagnostics, the side tested the gene-based cull in tissues taken from 133 colon cancer patients. As expected, tissues captivated from colon cancer tumors in these patients showed the characteristic gene changes, while samples infatuated from adjacent healthy tissues did not.
More important, the same genetic hallmarks of colon cancer (or their absence) "could be prudent in blood samples from colorectal cancer patients and healthy individuals," the researchers said in a memoir news release. The test was able to detect stage 1 cancer 92 percent of the time, "indicating that SDC2 is acceptable for early detection of colorectal cancer where therapeutical interventions have the greatest likelihood of curing the patient from the disease," study prospect author TaeJeong Oh said in the news release.
Researchers in South Korea verbalize they've developed a blood probe that spots genetic changes that signal the poise of colon cancer, April 2013. The test accurately spotted 87 percent of colon cancers across all cancer stages, and also correctly identified 95 percent of patients who were cancer-free, the researchers said. Colon cancer remains the patronize prime cancer humdinger in the United States, after lung cancer. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 137000 Americans were diagnosed with the infirmity in 2009; 40 percent of people diagnosed will pay one's debt to nature from the disease.
Right now, invasive colonoscopy remains the "gold standard" for spotting cancer early, although fecal magical blood testing (using stool samples) also is used. What's needed is a authoritatively accurate but noninvasive testing method, experts say. The new blood check-up looks at the "methylation" of genes, a biochemical process that is key to how genes are expressed and function. Investigators from Genomictree Inc and Yonsei University College of Medicine in Seoul said they spotted a set of genes with patterns of methylation that seems to be restricted to tissues from colon cancer tumors.
Changes in one gene in particular, called SDC2, seemed especially tied to colon cancer wen and spread. As reported in the July 2013 emergence of the Journal of Molecular Diagnostics, the side tested the gene-based cull in tissues taken from 133 colon cancer patients. As expected, tissues captivated from colon cancer tumors in these patients showed the characteristic gene changes, while samples infatuated from adjacent healthy tissues did not.
More important, the same genetic hallmarks of colon cancer (or their absence) "could be prudent in blood samples from colorectal cancer patients and healthy individuals," the researchers said in a memoir news release. The test was able to detect stage 1 cancer 92 percent of the time, "indicating that SDC2 is acceptable for early detection of colorectal cancer where therapeutical interventions have the greatest likelihood of curing the patient from the disease," study prospect author TaeJeong Oh said in the news release.
Saturday, 1 October 2016
Echinacea Has No Effect On Common Colds
Echinacea Has No Effect On Common Colds.
The herbal medicine echinacea, believed by many to heal colds, is no better than a placebo in relieving the symptoms or shortening the duration of illness, a recent study finds. "My advice is, if you are an adult and believe in echinacea, it's shielded and you might get some placebo effect if nothing else," said lead researcher Dr Bruce Barrett, an accessory professor of medicine at the University of Wisconsin. "I wouldn't say the results of the trial run should dissuade people who are currently using echinacea and feel that it works for them, but there is no new documentation to suggest that we have found the cure for the common cold".
If echinacea was able to significantly reduce the symptoms and length of colds, this study would have found it. "With this detailed dose of this particular formulation of echinacea there was no large benefit". The boom is published in the Dec 21, 2010 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine. In the study, Barrett's line-up randomly assigned 719 people with colds to no treatment, to a pill they knew was echinacea, or to a crank that could either be a placebo or echinacea, but they were not told which. The participants ranged from 12 to 80 years of age.
People in the study, which was funded by the US National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (part of the National Institutes of Health), reported their symptoms twice a daytime for about a week. Among those receiving echinacea, symptoms subsided seven to 10 hours sooner than those receiving placebo or no treatment. This represented a "small helpful intent in persons with the everyday cold," according to the study. However, this feeble decrease in the duration of their colds was not statistically significant.
The herbal medicine echinacea, believed by many to heal colds, is no better than a placebo in relieving the symptoms or shortening the duration of illness, a recent study finds. "My advice is, if you are an adult and believe in echinacea, it's shielded and you might get some placebo effect if nothing else," said lead researcher Dr Bruce Barrett, an accessory professor of medicine at the University of Wisconsin. "I wouldn't say the results of the trial run should dissuade people who are currently using echinacea and feel that it works for them, but there is no new documentation to suggest that we have found the cure for the common cold".
If echinacea was able to significantly reduce the symptoms and length of colds, this study would have found it. "With this detailed dose of this particular formulation of echinacea there was no large benefit". The boom is published in the Dec 21, 2010 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine. In the study, Barrett's line-up randomly assigned 719 people with colds to no treatment, to a pill they knew was echinacea, or to a crank that could either be a placebo or echinacea, but they were not told which. The participants ranged from 12 to 80 years of age.
People in the study, which was funded by the US National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (part of the National Institutes of Health), reported their symptoms twice a daytime for about a week. Among those receiving echinacea, symptoms subsided seven to 10 hours sooner than those receiving placebo or no treatment. This represented a "small helpful intent in persons with the everyday cold," according to the study. However, this feeble decrease in the duration of their colds was not statistically significant.
25 Percent Of Infants Suffer From Intestinal Colic
25 Percent Of Infants Suffer From Intestinal Colic.
Colic is a workaday maladjusted for babies, and new research may finally provide clues to its cause: A mignon study found that infants with colic seemed to develop certain intestinal bacteria later than those without the condition. What the researchers aren't unblocked on yet is why this would make some infants go on long crying jags after dark for months. The study authors suspect that without the right balance of intestinal flora, the babies may incident more pain and inflammation.
In particular, the study found differences in two types of bacteria. One is proteobacteria. The other is probiotics, which subsume bifidobacteria and lactobacilli. "Already in the first two weeks of life, clear-cut significant differences between both groups were found. Proteobacteria were increased in infants with colic, with a more-than-doubled related abundance.
These included specific species that are known to produce gas," said work author Carolina de Weerth, an associate professor of developmental psychology at Radboud University in Nijmegen, the Netherlands. "On the other hand, bifidobacteria and lactobacilli were increased in lead infants. These included species that would inveigle anti-inflammatory effects. Moreover, samples from infants with colic were found to hold back fewer bacteria related to butyrate-producing species.
Butyrate is known to reduce pain in adults. These microbial signatures mayhap explain the excessive crying". Results of the study appeared online Jan 14, 2013 and in the February woodcut issue of Pediatrics. Colic affects up to 25 percent of infants, De Weerth said. It is defined as crying for an common of more than three hours a day, in a general way between birth and 3 months of age, according to background gen in the study.
Little is known about what causes colic, and the only definitive cure for colic is time. The disproportionate crying usually stops at around 4 months of age, according to the study. "Newborn crying is relatively variable, and between 2 weeks and 8 or 10 weeks you can expect at least an hour of crying in a day. There may be some who turn on the waterworks less; some who cry more.
But, babies with colic really do weep for three to four hours a day," said Dr Michael Hobaugh, chief of medical truncheon at La Rabida Children's Hospital, in Chicago. In the current study, the researchers tested more than 200 fecal samples from 12 infants with colic and 12 infants with sparse levels of crying (the exercise power group). Colic was determined at 6 weeks of age.
Colic is a workaday maladjusted for babies, and new research may finally provide clues to its cause: A mignon study found that infants with colic seemed to develop certain intestinal bacteria later than those without the condition. What the researchers aren't unblocked on yet is why this would make some infants go on long crying jags after dark for months. The study authors suspect that without the right balance of intestinal flora, the babies may incident more pain and inflammation.
In particular, the study found differences in two types of bacteria. One is proteobacteria. The other is probiotics, which subsume bifidobacteria and lactobacilli. "Already in the first two weeks of life, clear-cut significant differences between both groups were found. Proteobacteria were increased in infants with colic, with a more-than-doubled related abundance.
These included specific species that are known to produce gas," said work author Carolina de Weerth, an associate professor of developmental psychology at Radboud University in Nijmegen, the Netherlands. "On the other hand, bifidobacteria and lactobacilli were increased in lead infants. These included species that would inveigle anti-inflammatory effects. Moreover, samples from infants with colic were found to hold back fewer bacteria related to butyrate-producing species.
Butyrate is known to reduce pain in adults. These microbial signatures mayhap explain the excessive crying". Results of the study appeared online Jan 14, 2013 and in the February woodcut issue of Pediatrics. Colic affects up to 25 percent of infants, De Weerth said. It is defined as crying for an common of more than three hours a day, in a general way between birth and 3 months of age, according to background gen in the study.
Little is known about what causes colic, and the only definitive cure for colic is time. The disproportionate crying usually stops at around 4 months of age, according to the study. "Newborn crying is relatively variable, and between 2 weeks and 8 or 10 weeks you can expect at least an hour of crying in a day. There may be some who turn on the waterworks less; some who cry more.
But, babies with colic really do weep for three to four hours a day," said Dr Michael Hobaugh, chief of medical truncheon at La Rabida Children's Hospital, in Chicago. In the current study, the researchers tested more than 200 fecal samples from 12 infants with colic and 12 infants with sparse levels of crying (the exercise power group). Colic was determined at 6 weeks of age.
Harm To Consumers From Changes In The Flexibility Of The Expenditure Account
Harm To Consumers From Changes In The Flexibility Of The Expenditure Account.
It's the leisure of year for leave parties, gift shopping and exposed enrollment, when many employees have to make decisions about their employer-sponsored health-care plans. Last year's monument health care reform legislation means changes are in store for 2011. One of the most significant: starting Jan 1, 2011, you'll no longer be able to reward for most over-the-counter medications using a willowy spending account (FSA). That means if you're used to paying for your allergy or heartburn medication using pre-tax dollars, you're out of fluke unless your doctor writes you a prescription.
The exception is insulin, which you can still discharge for using an FSA even without a prescription. Flexible spending accounts, which are offered by some employers, enable employees to set aside simoleons each month to pay for out-of-pocket medical costs such as co-pays and deductibles using pre-tax dollars. "This is basically reverting back to the nature FSAs were used a few years ago," said Paul Fronstin, a superior research associate at the Employee Benefit Research Institute in Washington, DC "It wasn't that want ago that you couldn't use FSAs for over-the-counter medicine".
Popular uses for FSAs cover eyeglasses, dental and orthodontic work, as well as co-pays for prescription drugs, doctor visits and other procedures, explained Richard Jensen, clue research scientist in the department of health protocol at George Washington University in Washington, DC Over-the-counter drugs became FSA "qualified medical expenses" in 2003, according to the Internal Revenue Service. The custom an FSA works is an staff member decides before Jan 1, 2011 (usually during the company's open enrollment period) how much loot to contribute in the year ahead. The employer deducts equal installments from each paycheck throughout the year, although the outright amount must be available at all times during the year.
Typically, FSAs operate under the "use it or lose it" rule. You have to lavish all of the money placed in an FSA by the end of the calendar year or the money is forfeited. Since for the most part speaking, the cost of over-the-counter medications pales in comparison to the cost of co-pays and deductibles, the 2011 substitute shouldn't be too onerous for consumers.
It's the leisure of year for leave parties, gift shopping and exposed enrollment, when many employees have to make decisions about their employer-sponsored health-care plans. Last year's monument health care reform legislation means changes are in store for 2011. One of the most significant: starting Jan 1, 2011, you'll no longer be able to reward for most over-the-counter medications using a willowy spending account (FSA). That means if you're used to paying for your allergy or heartburn medication using pre-tax dollars, you're out of fluke unless your doctor writes you a prescription.
The exception is insulin, which you can still discharge for using an FSA even without a prescription. Flexible spending accounts, which are offered by some employers, enable employees to set aside simoleons each month to pay for out-of-pocket medical costs such as co-pays and deductibles using pre-tax dollars. "This is basically reverting back to the nature FSAs were used a few years ago," said Paul Fronstin, a superior research associate at the Employee Benefit Research Institute in Washington, DC "It wasn't that want ago that you couldn't use FSAs for over-the-counter medicine".
Popular uses for FSAs cover eyeglasses, dental and orthodontic work, as well as co-pays for prescription drugs, doctor visits and other procedures, explained Richard Jensen, clue research scientist in the department of health protocol at George Washington University in Washington, DC Over-the-counter drugs became FSA "qualified medical expenses" in 2003, according to the Internal Revenue Service. The custom an FSA works is an staff member decides before Jan 1, 2011 (usually during the company's open enrollment period) how much loot to contribute in the year ahead. The employer deducts equal installments from each paycheck throughout the year, although the outright amount must be available at all times during the year.
Typically, FSAs operate under the "use it or lose it" rule. You have to lavish all of the money placed in an FSA by the end of the calendar year or the money is forfeited. Since for the most part speaking, the cost of over-the-counter medications pales in comparison to the cost of co-pays and deductibles, the 2011 substitute shouldn't be too onerous for consumers.
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