http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. A team of researchers led by Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has identified virtually all of the major mutations that drive acute myeloid leukemia (AML), a fast-growing blood cancer in adults that often is difficult to treat. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-scientists-genetic-playbook-acute-leukemia.html Cancer Wed, 01 May 2013 13:00:34 EST news286625897 (Medical Xpress)—Earlier this year, doctors at an infectious disease conference announced that a baby in rural Mississippi born with HIV had been "functionally cured" of the infection after receiving aggressive treatment immediately after birth. With such a result deemed to be virtually impossible only a few years ago, it's a development Tulane infectious disease expert Dr. Russell Van Dyke calls "extremely gratifying." http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-mississippi-child-hiv.html HIV & AIDS Thu, 25 Apr 2013 09:00:02 EST news286095863 A team led by Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) researchers has identified a genetic signature that appears to reflect the risk of tumor recurrence or spread in men surgically treated for prostate cancer. If confirmed in future studies, this finding not only may help determine which patients require additional treatment after the cancerous gland has been removed, it also may help address the most challenging problem in prostate cancer treatment – distinguishing tumors that require aggressive treatment from those that can safely be monitored. The report has been issued online in PNAS Early Edition. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-gene-expression-signature-signify-recurrence-metastasis.html Cancer Mon, 15 Apr 2013 16:08:58 EST news285260932 Men between the ages of 50 and 69 should discuss the limited benefits and substantial harms of the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test with their doctor before undergoing screening for prostate cancer, according to new recommendations issued today by the American College of Physicians (ACP). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-american-college-physicians-prostate-cancer.html Cancer Mon, 08 Apr 2013 17:00:01 EST news284659031 African American men on average wait a week longer than their Caucasian counterparts between the initial diagnosis of prostate cancer and treatment, according to University of North Carolina researchers. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-african-americans-longer-prostate-cancer.html Cancer Mon, 01 Apr 2013 11:37:16 EST news284035029 In what promises to be an eye-opener for many doctors and patients who routinely depend on cholesterol testing, a study led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine found that the standard formula used for decades to calculate low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels is often inaccurate. Of most concern, the researchers say, is their finding that the widely used formula underestimates LDL where accuracy matters most—in the range considered desirable for high-risk patients. Results of the study are published in an online article, ahead of print, in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-03-commonly-cholesterol-underestimates-heart-disease.html Cardiology Tue, 26 Mar 2013 13:06:59 EST news283522009 Even though a newly recognized cardiomyopathy, which mainly impacts women, is typically treatable, Tako-tsubo cardiomyopathy can also be deadly when compounded by other co-morbidities, such as heart failure, according to a study being presented March 9 at the American College of Cardiology (ACC) Scientific Sessions. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-03-beware-newly-heart-cardiomyopathy-benign.html Cardiology Sat, 09 Mar 2013 14:51:34 EST news282063077 (HealthDay)—A simple checklist could help doctors estimate whether an older patient will be alive 10 years from now, according to a new study. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-03-checklist-youll-alive-years.html Health Tue, 05 Mar 2013 17:37:45 EST news281727457 Men with low-risk prostate cancer who previously had to choose between aggressive treatment, with the potential for significant side effects, and active surveillance, with the risk of disease progression, may have a new option. Focal laser ablation uses precisely targeted heat, delivered through a small insertion and guided into the prostate by magnetic resonance imaging, to burn away cancerous cells in the prostate. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-03-focal-therapy-middle-ground-prostate.html Cancer Tue, 05 Mar 2013 16:57:01 EST news281725014 A multi-institutional team led by Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) researchers has identified a molecular pathway that appears to be essential for the growth and spread of medulloblastoma, the most common malignant brain tumor in children. In their report in the Feb. 28 issue of Cell, they show that blocking this pathway – which involves interactions between tumor cells and the surrounding tissues – leads to regression of all four molecular subtypes of medulloblastoma in several mouse models. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-growth-factor-essential-common-malignant.html Cancer Thu, 28 Feb 2013 12:33:45 EST news281277209 Researchers in Japan have created a genetic test that will help doctors diagnose prostate cancer. When given together with testing for prostate specific antigen (PSA), a widely used diagnostic biomarker for prostate cancer, the new assay could spare men from undergoing needless prostate biopsies. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-genetic-prostate-cancer.html Cancer Fri, 08 Feb 2013 13:10:18 EST news279551396 For some people with diabetes, there may be such a thing as too much care. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-12-patients-diabetes-treatment-heart-disease.html Diabetes Tue, 18 Dec 2012 11:17:55 EST news275051867 BOSTON—When people with a family history of colorectal cancer develop the disease, their tumors often carry a molecular sign that the cancer could be life-threatening and may require aggressive treatment, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute scientists report in a new study. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-12-patients-family-history-colorectal-cancer.html Cancer Wed, 12 Dec 2012 13:41:44 EST news274542098 Prostate cancer presents a dilemma for patients and the physicians who treat them. Which cancers are essentially indolent and present no risk and which are life threatening? Which can be watched and which need aggressive treatment? http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-coup-tfii-prostate-cancer.html Cancer Wed, 28 Nov 2012 13:00:28 EST news273327643 Healthcare ethics consultants are called upon in the most difficult of times; where do they turn for advice? The American Society For Bioethics and Humanities' Clinical Ethics Consultation Affairs Committee (CECA) is taking a community approach, creating an online forum for feedback and shared experiences to accompany a paper published in the Fall 2012 issue of the Journal of Clinical Ethics. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-healthcare-ethics-lessons.html Other Mon, 05 Nov 2012 17:09:30 EST news271357684 (Medical Xpress)—A Medicare rule that blocks thousands of nursing home residents from receiving simultaneous reimbursement for hospice and skilled nursing facility (SNF) care at the end of life may result in those residents receiving more aggressive treatment and hospitalization, according a new analysis. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-medicare-barrier-hospice-hospitalization.html Health Wed, 31 Oct 2012 16:23:15 EST news270919385 Women are more likely to die from a myocardial infarction than men, according to research presented at the Acute Cardiac Care Congress 2012. The gender gap in mortality was independent of patient characteristics, revascularisation delays and revascularisation modalities. Women also had longer treatment delays, less aggressive treatment, more complications and longer hospital stays. The study was presented by Dr Guillaume Leurent from the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire in Rennes, France. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-women-die-myocardial-infarction-men.html Cardiology Sat, 20 Oct 2012 04:43:46 EST news269927017 Cancer remains one of the leading causes of death in Europe and the world, and early detection and treatment remains vital in the fight. Researchers in Norway have validated a method of non-invasive imaging that they believe will aid in the identification of aggressive tumours. Their breakthrough provides valuable information about interstitial fluid pressure (IFP) of solid tumours, and their results have been published in Cancer Research. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-imaging-picture-tumours.html Cancer Fri, 12 Oct 2012 08:25:47 EST news269249138 (HealthDay)—Long-term aggressive treatment of patients with macular edema with ranibizumab during a third year correlates with reduced mean foveal thickness (FTH) and improved best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), according to research published online Oct. 8 in the Archives of Ophthalmology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-long-term-ranibizumab-beneficial-macular-edema.html Ophthalmology Thu, 11 Oct 2012 18:30:01 EST news269194573 Researchers at NYU School of Medicine have discovered the protein product of a little-known gene may one day prove useful in identifying and monitoring the development of mesothelioma in early stages, when aggressive treatment can have an impact on the progression of disease and patient prognosis. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-high-blood-based-protein-specific-mesothelioma.html Cancer Wed, 10 Oct 2012 17:00:24 EST news269103854 Leading doctors are calling for action to tackle unnecessary care that is estimated to account for up to $800bn in the United States every year. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-doctors-unnecessary-billion-year.html Health Tue, 02 Oct 2012 18:30:02 EST news268407634 Researchers validated a method of noninvasive imaging that provides valuable information about interstitial fluid pressure of solid tumors and may aid in the identification of aggressive tumors, according to the results of a study published in Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-noninvasive-enables-ifp-potential-biomarker.html Cancer Mon, 01 Oct 2012 02:31:58 EST news268277502 Knowing how tumors evolve can lead to new treatments that could help prevent cancer from recurring, according to a study published today by the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) and Scottsdale Healthcare. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-clonal-evolution-maxillary-sinus-carcinoma.html Cancer Fri, 28 Sep 2012 17:00:10 EST news268063040 Brain metastases are common secondary complications of other types of cancer, particularly lung, breast and skin cancer. The body's own immune response in the brain is rendered powerless in the fight against these metastases by inflammatory reactions. Researchers at the MedUni Vienna have now, for the first time, precisely characterised the brain's immune response to infiltrating metastases. This could pave the way to the development of new, less aggressive treatment options. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-brain-immune-response-metastasized-cancer.html Cancer Tue, 25 Sep 2012 08:10:47 EST news267779434 Melanoma, newly diagnosed in more than 76,000 Americans in 2011, is the most common and dangerous form of skin cancer. Melanoma is rare in children, accounting for 1 to 4 percent of all melanoma cases and just 3 percent of pediatric cancers. Just as adult cases of melanoma are increasing, pediatric melanoma is rising at the rate of 1 to 4 percent per year. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-childhood-melanoma-characteristics.html Cancer Fri, 07 Sep 2012 03:54:59 EST news266208890 Men and women who undergo joint replacement procedures, as well as those who have significant fractures, tend to be at an increased risk of developing pulmonary emboli (PE), blood clots that travel to the lungs where they may cause serious complications and even death. Patients are often aggressively treated with anticoagulants, or blood thinners, to help prevent the clots from forming, but a study published in the September 2012 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons indicates that some blood clots being identified by today's sensitive testing methods may not require aggressive treatments. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-anti-clotting-therapy-orthopaedic-surgery-trauma.html Surgery Sat, 01 Sep 2012 04:24:29 EST news265692254 Parental hopes of a "miraculous intervention," prompted by deeply held religious beliefs, are leading to very sick children being subjected to futile care and needless suffering, suggests a small study in the Journal of Medical Ethics. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-deeply-held-religious-beliefs-prompting.html Health Mon, 13 Aug 2012 18:30:01 EST news264092850 In the realm of deadly and disabling diseases, conditions such as cancer and Alzheimer's seem to attract the most media attention. But there are others that take a similarly high toll, and rheumatoid arthritis is one of them, Mayo Clinic researchers say. It is a common cause of disability: 1 of every 5 rheumatoid arthritis patients is unable to work two years after diagnosis, and within five years, that rises to one-third. Life expectancy drops by up to five years, they write in the July issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings in an article taking stock of current diagnosis and treatment approaches. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-07-rheumatoid-arthritis-high-toll-unemployment.html Arthritis & Rheumatism Mon, 02 Jul 2012 04:30:01 EST news260420969 (HealthDay) -- A look at statistics stretching from 1935 to 2010 found significant improvements in Americans' expected lifespans, mainly due to factors such as better medical care and declines in smoking rates. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-year-lifespans.html Health Tue, 13 Mar 2012 11:40:01 EST news250856131 Researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania have demonstrated that aggressive treatment of severe traumatic brain injury, which includes invasive monitoring of intracranial pressure (ICP) and decompressive craniectomy, produces better patient outcomes than less aggressive measures and is cost-effective in patients no matter their age––even in patients 80 years of age. These important findings can be found in the article "Is aggressive treatment of traumatic brain injury cost-effective? Clinical article," by Robert Whitmore and colleagues, published online March 6 in the Journal of Neurosurgery. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-aggressive-treatment-severe-traumatic-brain.html Neuroscience Tue, 06 Mar 2012 10:47:17 EST news250253226