According to a new report from the American Cancer Society, the death rate from cancer has fallen 22 percent since its peak in 1991. That means more than 1.5 million cancer deaths were avoided. The figures are part of “Cancer Statistics, 2015.” The number was published in the Society’s journal CA: A Cancer Journal for… Continue reading Cancer Deaths Are On The Decline
Tag: Staying Current
Scientists Help Put Bedbugs to Bed Forever
The world owes a debt of gratitude to Simon Fraser University biologist Regine Gries in Canada. Her arms have provided a blood meal for more than a thousand bedbugs each week for five years while she and her husband, biology professor Gerhard Gries, searched for a way to conquer the global bedbug epidemic. A release… Continue reading Scientists Help Put Bedbugs to Bed Forever
A Better Test for Chemical Toxicity
Researchers from the University of Utah have developed a highly sensitive toxicity test that could serve as an alert system to possible toxicity in prescription drugs. About one third of prescription drugs are withdrawn or have warnings added because of such problems. The test could help researchers discover toxicity early in the research process, before… Continue reading A Better Test for Chemical Toxicity
Another Reason Why Red Meat Is Bad for You
Researchers have found that eating red meat, already known to be a bad health habit, may also introduce a tumor-forming substance into the body. The discovery was made by researchers from the University of California, San Francisco and was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The scientists focused on the possibly… Continue reading Another Reason Why Red Meat Is Bad for You
A Protein to Help The Immune System
Researchers from the Johns Hopkins University have found that the enzyme SPPL3 activates T cells, which defend the immune system. Because the enzyme’s structure is similar to that of presenilin enzymes, which have been implicated in Alzheimer’s disease, a university news release said, the researchers’ finding could shed more light on how presenilin functions, in… Continue reading A Protein to Help The Immune System
Police Body Cameras Can Prevent Use of Force
Researchers from the University of Cambridge’s Institute of Criminology (IoC) in the UK have published the first full scientific study of the landmark crime experiment they conducted on policing with body-worn-cameras in Rialto, California in 2012. The results have been cited by police departments around the world as justification for rolling out this technology. A… Continue reading Police Body Cameras Can Prevent Use of Force
Study: Patients Accurately Report Their Cognitive State
A device that measures the state of an aging brain is reliable and valid when patients themselves use it, according to a new study. The patient self-reporting version of the Healthy Aging Brain Care Monitor measures 27 items on a four-point scale to assess cognitive, psychological and functional symptoms. It operates in the same way… Continue reading Study: Patients Accurately Report Their Cognitive State
Next-Generation UTI Treatment
University of Michigan Medical School researchers have identified bacterial genes that cause the urinary tract infections (UTIs) to spread. The discovery points the way to a potential new target for treating UTIs, which are a global public health concern mostly affecting women. UTIs lead to lost work time, emergency room visits, and health care spending… Continue reading Next-Generation UTI Treatment
When Are Computers Better Than Doctors?
A computer system did better than doctors when it came to collecting and reporting information about patients, according to a study by researchers at Cedars-Sinai. The investigators said that their study indicates the possibility of computers to improve the quality of medical care. They emphasized that they didn’t expect technology to replace physicians in clinical… Continue reading When Are Computers Better Than Doctors?
A New Discovery About a Wonder Drug
Researchers have discovered a new way in which the wonder drug penicillin fights infections. Penicillin, discovered in 1928, works by attacking enzymes that build the bacterial wall cell. Once the medicine gets through that wall, the bacteria die. Over the years, though, resistance to antibiotics has developed and is now a serious health threat. But… Continue reading A New Discovery About a Wonder Drug
People Want To Learn About Medical Risks As Soon As Possible
The higher their risk of certain illnesses, the more people are inclined to take action, ranging from seeking information to undergoing surgery, a new study shows. The investigation by researchers from Yale and Syracuse universities reveals the attitudes that so many consumers have in an age of “surveillance medicine.” The findings were published in the… Continue reading People Want To Learn About Medical Risks As Soon As Possible
Can Meditation Cure Cravings for Painkillers?
People who are addicted to prescription painkillers can reduce cravings by learning to enjoy other parts of their life, according to a new study. The research, published in the Journal of Behavioral Medicine, was conducted by Eric L. Garland, associate professor at the University of Utah College of Social Work. He and his colleagues looked… Continue reading Can Meditation Cure Cravings for Painkillers?
Can Financial Incentives Solve Persistent Senior-Health Issues?
A unique, interview-style study has zeroed in on financial and educational issues that need more attention as older adults go from hospital to rehabilitation centers to home – and too often back again. A team of researchers from Johns Hopkins University found that the participants in the interviews called for better attention in preventing errors… Continue reading Can Financial Incentives Solve Persistent Senior-Health Issues?
A New Use for Mushrooms?
A couple of poisonous mushrooms may show scientists how to attack deadly diseases. Scientists at Michigan State University have discovered an enzyme, which they have called POPB, that’s key to the potency of poisonous mushrooms. They found that the enzyme helps manufacture chemical compounds known as cyclic peptides, which are often used to create new… Continue reading A New Use for Mushrooms?
A Vaccine to Fight Cancer
A personalized “cancer vaccine” is coming closer to reality, researchers say. Scientists from the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis tested investigational vaccines in computer simulations of cancer as well as cell cultures and animal models. The results showed that the vaccines could enable the immune system to destroy or drive into remission… Continue reading A Vaccine to Fight Cancer
Vaccine Holds Hope of Preventing MRSA
Research reported online in December 2014 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA holds new hope for preventing or reducing the severity of infections caused by the “superbug” MRSA. In the study, infectious disease specialists at the Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center (LA BioMed) reported that a new… Continue reading Vaccine Holds Hope of Preventing MRSA
A New Understanding: Why the Immune System Doesn’t Always Fight Back
Researchers have drawn closer to understanding why the immune-system process can go wrong. The investigators, from Johns Hopkins, focused on how the immune system chooses bits of protein to turn into so-called dominant epitopes. In a typical immune-system reaction, white blood cells are programmed to fight dominant epitopes. To further understand that process, a team… Continue reading A New Understanding: Why the Immune System Doesn’t Always Fight Back
The Brain and “Social Pain”
When it comes to physical vs. emotional pain, the brain seems to have a separate area to process each, new research shows. Until now, experts have believed that the different kinds of pain went through the same circuits. But investigators from the University of Colorado Boulder have demonstrated that the two kinds of pain are… Continue reading The Brain and “Social Pain”