At the MS Trust we strongly object to Multiple Sclerosis – MS being described as a terminal disease, as happened yet again yesterday in relation to the sad death of Gillian March. ‘Terminal’ is defined as “predicted to lead to death, especially slowly” (OED). We are all dying slowly but in fact the vast majority of people with MS will live fulfilling lives to an advanced age.
Malignancies of the breast can be more aggressive and associated with poorer outcome in African-Americans than other races, according to a new study. Published in the December 1, 2006 issue of CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, the study reviewed patient data from two different clinical trial protocols – to control for healthcare access biases – and found that African-Americans have tumors with poorer prognostic cellular characteristics and more aggressive clinical presentations, pointing to the possibility that racially influenced tumor biology may contribute to observed racial disparities in breast cancer outcome.
A person suffering from tennis elbow may not have to look any further than his or her own body for the most effective treatment, according to a study published in the November issue of The American Journal of Sports Medicine. Specially prepared platelets taken from the patient which are then re-injected into the tendon of the affected elbow provides more relief than more commonly-used therapies which have failed to yield results, often resulting in surgery, concludes study authors Allan Mishra MD and Terri Pavelko, PAC, PT, of the Menlo Medical Clinic, Stanford University Medical Center, Menlo Park, Calif.
Postpartum iron deficiency anaemia (IDA) is common in women. Most women are treated with either oral iron supplementation or blood transfusion. Hence, the aim of our study was to compare the effect of treatment with either oral ferrous sulphate or intravenous ferrous sucrose on postpartum IDA. Intravenous iron sucrose increases the Hb level more rapidly than oral ferrous sulphate in women with postpartum IDA. It also appears to replenish iron stores more rapidly. Study conducted by N Bhandal,a R Russella at Women’s Centre, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, UK.
A new study “Multicentre, parallel group, randomised, single-blind study of the safety and efficacy of atosiban versus ritodrine in the treatment of acute preterm labour in Korean women” conducted by J-Y Shim,a YW Park,b BH Yoon,c YK Cho,d J-H Yang,e Y Lee,f A Kima, to compare the efficacy and safety of atosiban with those of ritodrine in preterm labour.
The rising demand and increasing scarcity of donor oocytes in developed countries have led to some fertility clinics sourcing oocyte donors from abroad, particularly from poorer countries, in what is referred to as ‘transnational’ or ‘international’ oocyte donation. In a further new ‘twist’ to this scheme, frozen sperm of the recipient’s male partner is exported abroad through courier mail and is used to fertilise donor oocytes in a foreign clinic to produce embryos, which are then cryopreserved and imported back by mail for transfer to the woman.
Conventional treatment for genital warts, which are caused by the human papilloma virus (HPV), typically focuses on the visible lesions, leaving the possibility that latent infection could persist. That can result in transmission of the virus to sexual partners, and the infection could progress to cervical cancer.
In another important milestone, Glivec? (imatinib) has received US regulatory approval to help patients with five distinct and potentially life-threatening disorders, representing the first time that a regulatory authority has ever simultaneously approved one targeted medicine for so many disorders. With today’s decision, and in only five years, Glivec has now been approved in the US for seven diseases, including two solid tumors and five blood disorders with molecular targets known to be inhibited by the drug.
GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK) and Flamel Technologies (NASDAQ:FLML) announced FDA approval of once-a-day Coreg CR (carvedilol phosphate) extended-release capsules, for the treatment of three cardiovascular conditions: 1. High blood pressure, also known as hypertension. 2. A heart attack that has reduced how well the heart pumps (known medically as post-myocardial infarction left ventricular dysfunction). 3. Mild to severe heart failure.
AstraZeneca today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved SEROQUEL? (quetiapine fumarate) for the treatment of patients with depressive episodes associated with bipolar disorder. SEROQUEL already is approved for the treatment of acute manic episodes associated with bipolar I disorder and for the treatment of schizophrenia. SEROQUEL is now the first and only single medication approved by the FDA to treat both depressive and manic episodes associated with bipolar disorder.