Gastrointestinal Health News and Research

Latest Gastrointestinal Health News and Research

Study identifies molecular changes responsible for abnormal cholesterol production and metabolism

A new study from the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine has identified molecular changes responsible for abnormal cholesterol production and metabolism in the livers of patients with a common liver condition, and these changes may explain the severity of a patient's liver disease and risks to their heart health.

8 Jun 2012

No benefits to polychemotherapy after surgery in gastric cancer

Findings from the ITACA-S trial suggest that a more intensive postoperative chemotherapy regimen does not improve outcomes over a less-intensive regimen after radical resection in patients with gastric cancer.

7 Jun 2012

Adjuvant chemoradiotherapy boosts esophageal cancer survival

Chemoradiotherapy significantly improves the outcome of patients undergoing surgery for cancer of the esophagus or esophagogastric junction and is well tolerated, suggests research in The New England Journal of Medicine.

7 Jun 2012

How to manage conflicts of interest in guideline development remains unclear

Setting an ethics framework could be useful to identify and manage conflicts of interest in the context of developing clinical practice guidelines, suggest researchers.

7 Jun 2012

Study suggests link between fungi and ulcerative colitis

Cedars-Sinai researchers say their examination of the fungi in the intestines suggests an important link between these microbes and inflammatory diseases such as ulcerative colitis.

7 Jun 2012

Study reviews role of gut microbes in nutrient absorption and energy regulation

Microorganisms in the human gastrointestinal tract form an intricate, living fabric made up of some 500 to 1000 distinct bacterial species, (in addition to other microbes). Recently, researchers have begun to untangle the subtle role these diverse life forms play in maintaining health and regulating weight.

7 Jun 2012

Omentum appears to play an important role in regulating the immune system

A fatty membrane in the belly called the omentum has until recently been considered somewhat like the appendix -- it didn't seem to serve much purpose. But Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine researchers have found that the omentum appears to play an important role in regulating the immune system.

7 Jun 2012

Ancient hepatitis B may hold clues to viral evolution, spread

The evolution of the hepatitis B virus and its possible migration have become clearer with the sequencing of the oldest sample of the virus, isolated from a mummified 16th-century Korean child, say scientists.

6 Jun 2012

Infants, children ‘susceptible to acetaminophen overdose’

Acute acetaminophen overdose is the most common identifiable cause of acute liver failure in children, warn researchers in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

6 Jun 2012

Capnography ‘useful adjunct’ to colonoscopy care

Monitoring carbon dioxide levels improves detection of altered respiration and apnea in sedated patients undergoing colonoscopy, show ColCap Study results.

6 Jun 2012

Aeterna Zentaris announces results from perifosine Phase 3 trial on colorectal cancer

Aeterna Zentaris Inc. today announced that Johanna Bendell, MD, Director of Gastrointestinal Cancer Research and Associate Director of Drug Development at the Sarah Cannon Research Institute in Nashville, Tennessee, presented Phase 3 results for perifosine in refractory colorectal cancer yesterday, at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting which is being held in Chicago.

4 Jun 2012

Final results from ArQule and Daiichi Sankyo’s tivantinib phase 2 trial on HCC

ArQule, Inc. and Daiichi Sankyo Co., Ltd. today announced final results from a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, phase 2 clinical trial with the selective MET inhibitor tivantinib as a single-agent, investigational, second-line treatment in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

4 Jun 2012

Aspirin controls two key processes to kill bowel cancer cells

Aspirin kills cancer cells by controlling two key processes that influence energy use in cells and could explain how aspirin can prevent bowel cancer. The research is published in this month's Gastroenterology.

1 Jun 2012

People with fatty livers need to lose weight

Exercising moderately for 150 to 300 minutes a week does not improve lipoprotein metabolism in obese people with nonalcoholic fatty lipid disease, show findings from a US study.

31 May 2012

‘Virtually’ no ulcer bleeding after H. pylori eradication

Rebleeding is rare in patients with complicated peptic ulcers after successful treatment for Helicobacter pylori infection, Spanish clinicians report.

31 May 2012

Gender link discovered for colorectal cancer

Researchers have identified three new colorectal cancer risk loci, including one on the X-chromosome, bringing the total number of independent loci associated with the disease to 20.

30 May 2012

Doctors may predict girls at increased risk of eating disorders based on food choices

Doctors may be able to predict which girls are at risk of developing eating disorders based on the food choices they make when they are younger, according to a new study by Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.

30 May 2012

Pre-harvest vaccines for management of E. coli in Canadian beef receive favourable conclusion

Bioniche Life Sciences Inc., a research-based, technology-driven Canadian biopharmaceutical company, today announced that a Public Health Agency of Canada study assessing the effects of various interventions on the management of E. coli O157:H7 in Canadian beef came to a favourable conclusion with regard to pre-harvest vaccines such as the Company's Econiche cattle vaccine.

29 May 2012

Abbott to highlight latest investigational research findings on HUMIRA at EULAR 2012

Abbott scientists and independent researchers will highlight the latest investigational research findings on HUMIRA (adalimumab) at the European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) Congress in Berlin, Germany, from 6-9 June, 2012.

29 May 2012

Overgrowth of bacteria in the gut linked to IBS

An overgrowth of bacteria in the gut has been definitively linked to Irritable Bowel Syndrome in the results of a new Cedars-Sinai study which used cultures from the small intestine. This is the first study to use this "gold standard" method of connecting bacteria to the cause of the disease that affects an estimated 30 million people in the United States.

28 May 2012