Body | Page 4934 | Science Codex

Genetic risk factors may tailor prostate cancer screening approaches

Men with a family history of prostate cancer and African-American men are particularly susceptible to the disease, with a twofold to sevenfold increased risk. Assessing risk in these populations has been difficult.

"There have been years of effort to try to identify genes and genetic mutations associated with prostate cancer as there are for breast cancer," said Veda N. Giri, M.D., director of the Prostate Cancer Risk Assessment Program (PRAP) at Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia. "Prostate cancer is a more genetically complex disease."

CAPHOSOL results in minimal oral mucositis and pain in head/neck cancer patients

SEATTLE, Wash., November 15, 2008 – New data show that CAPHOSOL® (www.caphosol.com), an advanced electrolyte solution, results in low rates of oral mucositis and pain in patients with head and neck (HN) cancer who are undergoing chemotherapy and radiation therapy.

Money motivates doctors to reduce ethnic differences in heart disease treatments

Financial incentives for doctors can improve the management of coronary heart disease (CHD) and reduce ethnic differences in quality of and access to care, according to Dr. Christopher Millett, Consultant in Public Health at Imperial College Faculty of Medicine in London in the UK, and his colleagues. Their evaluation(1) of the benefits of pay for performance schemes in the UK for the management of coronary heart disease, with a particular focus on ethnic differences, has just been published online in Springer's Journal of General Internal Medicine.

Calls for a more flexible approach to vaccine funding

Including quality-of-life impacts in assessments of national vaccination programs would lead to many benefits, including improved productivity and less sick leave for parents, according to an editorial co-authored by a University of New South Wales (UNSW) researcher, that has appeared in the Lancet Infectious Diseases.

Such initiatives would also protect others in society, while getting the maximum impact of population vaccination programs.

Floppy-footed gibbons help us understand how early humans may have walked

The human foot is a miracle of evolution. We can keep striding for miles on our well-sprung feet. There is nothing else like them, not even amongst our closest living relatives. According to Evie Vereecke, from the University of Liverpool, the modern human foot first appeared about 1.8 million years ago, but our ape-like ancestors probably took to walking several million years earlier, even though their feet were more 'floppy' and ape like than ours.

Why HIV treatment makes people so susceptible to heart disease and diabetes

Clinicians have known for some time that people treated for HIV also become much more susceptible to diabetes and heart disease. A study by scientists at Sydney's Garvan Institute of Medical Research has now shown some of the reasons why – enabling better patient management and monitoring.

Study helps clarify role of vitamin D in cancer therapy

A colon cancer cell isn't a lost cause. Vitamin D can tame the rogue cell by adjusting everything from its gene expression to its cytoskeleton. In the Nov. 17 issue of the Journal of Cell Biology, Ordóñez-Morán et al. show that one pathway governs the vitamin's diverse effects. The results help clarify the actions of a molecule that is undergoing clinical trials as a cancer therapy.

Mayo researchers identify dangerous 'two-faced' protein crucial to breast cancer spread and growth

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Two critical properties of cancer cells are their ability to divide without restraint and to spread away from the primary tumor to establish new tumor sites. Now, researchers from the Mayo Clinic campus in Florida have found a protein they say acts as a deadly master switch, both freeing cancer cells from a tumor while ramping up new growth.

Breaking BubR1 mimics genetic shuffle seen in cancer cells

PHILADELPHIA (Nov. 17, 2008) – A study of how one protein enzyme, BubR1, helps make sure chromosomes are equally distributed during mitosis might explain how the process of cell division goes so awry in cancer, according to researchers from Fox Chase Cancer Center. Their findings might offer a better understanding of the processes behind cancer-cell survival and drug-resistance.

Gene chips accurately detect pneumonia in ICU patients on ventilators

Nov. 17, 2008 -- Even seasoned doctors have a difficult time diagnosing pneumonia in hospitalized patients breathing with the assistance of a ventilator. That's because a patient's underlying illness often skews laboratory test results and masks pneumonia's symptoms.

Sonography in space

Los Angeles, London, New Delhi, Singapore and Washington DC (November 14, 2008) Astronauts on extended space missions can get injured or develop diseases, necessitating immediate diagnosis and treatment. Research conducted on the International Space Station (ISS) ensuring that astronauts could accurately perform remotely-guided sonograms was published in the November/December 2008 issue of the Journal of Diagnostic Medical Sonography (published by SAGE).

Canadian cold/flu breakthrough remedy undergoes NCI-sponsored trial in leukemia patients

Cancer patients – with their weakened immune systems – are particularly vulnerable when the cold and flu season hits. To help, the U.S. National Cancer Institute (NCI) is sponsoring a landmark trial to see whether a unique Canadian cold remedy – COLD-FX – can help.

Psychological interventions associated with breast cancer survival

A new study finds that breast cancer patients who participate in intervention sessions focusing on improving mood, coping effectively, and altering health behaviors live longer than patients who do not receive such psychological support. Published in the December 15, 2008 issue of CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, the study indicates that reducing the stress that can accompany cancer diagnosis and treatment can have a significant impact on patients' survival.

Hypertension develops early, silently, in African-American men

BETHESDA, Md. (Nov. 17, 2008) − Young and healthy African-American men have higher central blood pressure and their blood vessels are stiffer compared to their white counterparts, signs that the African American men are developing hypertension early and with little outward sign, according to a new study. While the study found that central blood pressure -- the pressure in the aorta, near the heart -- was higher in the African-American men, the study found no difference in brachial blood pressure -- measured on the arm -- between the two groups.

New bacteria discovered in raw milk

Raw milk is illegal in many countries as it can be contaminated with potentially harmful microbes. Contamination can also spoil the milk, making it taste bitter and turn thick and sticky. Now scientists have discovered new species of bacteria that can grow at low temperatures, spoiling raw milk even when it is refrigerated. According to research published in the November issue of the International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology, the microbial population of raw milk is much more complex than previously thought.