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Deletion on chromosome 11q may guide decision to use chemotherapy for neuroblastoma

When genes are deleted on a particular section of chromosome 11, the result is an aggressive form of the childhood cancer neuroblastoma. A new study suggests that detecting this genetic deletion during the initial evaluation of children with neuroblastoma may indicate to physicians that they should recommend a more aggressive regimen of chemotherapy to fight the cancer.

16 May 2005

Drugs that block the enzyme Odc prevent the onset of cancers

The drug DFMO prevents cancer in laboratory models of lymphoma but fails to kill existing cancerous cells that have lost the ability to self-destruct, according to investigators at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

16 May 2005

Statin chemoprevention with minimal surveillance could prevent 96 percent of colon cancers

Ulcerative colitis affects about one out of every 2,000 Americans, and after living with the disease for 30 years, nearly 22 percent of those people will develop colon cancer.

16 May 2005

Valium puts humans and amoeba to sleep

Biologists at University of California, San Diego (UCSD) have discovered that the popular sedative Valium has similar effects on the social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum as it does in humans. Their surprising finding that Valium, as well as a "natural Valium" molecule found in human brains, causes the social amoeba to enter a dormant or "sleep" phase, may provide new insights into how cells in higher organisms, including humans, communicate with each other.

16 May 2005

Identifying high-risk prostate cancer means more prudent treatment decisions

While prostate cancer is a very common diagnosis, it is a deadly disease in relatively few men. One in 6 men will develop prostate cancer during his lifetime. However, of these, only one in 10 cases will be life-threatening.

16 May 2005

Scientists discover how excess body fat can lead to the onset of diabetes

One out of 12 people in the western world suffers from type 2 (adult onset) diabetes. Worldwide, 150 million people are diabetic and their numbers are expected to double in the next 20 years, a result of the growing obesity epidemic. Yet, the reasons for the strong correlation between excess body fat and diabetes have been puzzling researchers.

16 May 2005

Association between maternal exposure to toxoplasmosis and increased risk for developing schizophrenia

Toxoplasmosis is a parasitic infection that can develop from eating undercooked meat and unwashed fruits and vegetables, drinking contaminated water, or not washing one's hands after gardening or changing cat litter boxes. Researchers found a potential link between high maternal toxoplasmosis gondii antibody titers and development of schizophrenia spectrum disorders in the adult offspring.

16 May 2005

High-risk for melanoma patients no more likely to take proper precautions in the sun

Those considered high-risk for melanoma--the most dangerous form of skin cancer--are no more likely to sunbathe protected than those who are unaware of their risk, according to a new study conducted by McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) researchers.

16 May 2005

Improvements in critical care decrease risk of post-injury multiple organ failure

Improvements in critical care and decreased use of blood transfusions over the course of the last decade are associated with decreases in the rate, severity and risk of death from post-injury multiple organ failure, according to a study in the May issue of Archives of Surgery.

16 May 2005

Survival rates higher for children receiving living donor liver transplant

Children who undergo liver transplantation have better survival rates with living donor liver transplant graft than with deceased donor organ transplant, although factors other than the type of graft also are important, according to a study in the May issue of Archives of Surgery.

16 May 2005

Increased levels of estrogen that occur during pregnancy may be associated with improvement in psoriasis

Anecdotal reports have suggested that psoriasis tends to improve during pregnancy, according to background information in the article. The current study investigated prospectively how psoriasis fluctuates in pregnancy and correlated progesterone and estrogen levels in pregnancy with psoriatic change.

16 May 2005

Intralesional immunotherapy for common warts is effective and safe

Injection of skin test antigens (preparations used in skin tests for immunity) into warts appears to stimulate the immune system and successfully treat the injected wart and also helps to treat distant non-injected warts, according to a study in the May issue of Archives of Dermatology.

16 May 2005

Combined MRI and mammography more effective at detecting breast cancer in high risk women

Annual screening, using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and X-ray mammography, is the best way to detect breast cancer in women that have a high genetic risk of the disease, according to a study published online by The Lancet.

16 May 2005

St. John's Wort only minimally effective in relieving major depression

St. John’s Wort, the herbal medicinal long thought to relieve symptoms of depression, provides only minor benefits in patients with the most acute depression and perhaps no benefit for those with chronic depression.

16 May 2005

Two new retroviruses among central Africans who hunt nonhuman primates

A team of researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the Army Health Research Center (CRESAR) in Cameroon have discovered two new retroviruses among central Africans who hunt nonhuman primates.

16 May 2005

Statins appear to lessen chance of developing breast cancer

According to a new study women who are taking the cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins, such as Lipitor or Mevacor, appear to have much less chance of developing breast cancer.

16 May 2005

Acne drug not linked to increased suicide risk

A recent study has found that the popular acne-fighting drug Accutane, which has been linked to birth defects, did not cause depression in a group of adolescents.

16 May 2005

Extract of the kudzu vine may help heavy drinkers drink less

An extract of the kudzu vine may help heavy drinkers drink less, according to a new study in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research.

16 May 2005

Remicade shows promise in treating ulcerative colitis

Results from two Phase III, placebo-controlled clinical trials found that approximately two-thirds of patients with moderate to severe, active ulcerative colitis (UC) treated with Remicade (infliximab, 5mg/kg) demonstrated a significant improvement in symptoms.

16 May 2005

New study demonstrates high rates of tumor death in patients receiving regimen

A new pilot study suggests that treating soft-tissue sarcoma with a new regimen of intense chemotherapy and a short course of radiation before surgery may be beneficial. About 41 percent of study participants were found to have complete tumor death at the time of surgery.

16 May 2005