Latest science news in Health & Medicine
Smokeless tobacco increases risk of heart attack and stroke
People who use smokeless tobacco products like snus have a slightly higher risk of having a fatal heart attack or stroke, according to research published on bmj.com today...
Testing times: predicting hep C response
A new genetic test could predict which patients will benefit from treatment, and which will suffer side effects
Scientists link genetic glitches to common childhood cancer
A multicentre team of childhood cancer researchers has discovered two genetic variations linked to an increased risk for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, or ALL, the most common childhood cancer in the...
Prescriptions: So What's a Health Insurance Co-op, Anyway?
Health insurance cooperatives aren't a new idea, but they are now the likeliest alternative to a public insurance option.
Herbs 'can be natural pesticides'
Common herbs and spices show promise an alternative to conventional pesticides, scientists have said.
WHO chief urges swine flu vigilance
DAR ES SALAAM (Reuters) - The world must remain on its guard against H1N1 influenza, which has been mild so far but could become more serious as the northern hemisphere...
Mother's immune system may block foetal treatments for blood diseases
Paediatric researchers have resolved an apparent contradiction in the field of prenatal cell transplantation - a medical approach that holds future promise in correcting sickle cell disease and other serious...
Needle-free, inhalant powder measles vaccine could save thousands of lives
The first dry powder inhalable vaccine for measles is moving toward clinical trials next year in India, where the disease still sickens millions of infants and children and kills almost...
A New Test for Business and Biofuel
One of the nation’s wealthiest American Indian communities is a major investor in a start-up with the twin goals of making fuel from algae and reducing emissions.
In Arkansas, a Democrat Navigates the Health Fight
Arkansas, home of Senator Blanche Lincoln, has become emblematic of the centrist dilemma in the age of Obama.
Research Team Responds To Concerns About International Insulin Drug Trial
Accumulating safety data from the large, international ORIGIN trial have been reviewed by its independent data monitoring committee, who have concluded that there is no cause for concern.
Drug Labels Should Disclose Lack Of Comparison With Existing Medications, Experts Urge
The labeling information that comes with prescription drugs tells you what's known about the medication, but several researchers think it's high time that the labeling tell you what isn't known.
Carnitine Supplements Reverse Glucose Intolerance In Animals
Supplementing obese rats with the nutrient carnitine helps the animals to clear the extra sugar in their blood, something they had trouble doing on their own, researchers report.
Discovery Could Help Stem Infections Of Parasitic Roundworms
Biologists have discovered how a Chinese drug effective in killing parasitic roundworms works. Their discovery of the drug's biological mechanism provides important new information about how to combat parasitic roundworms,...
Metastatic Cancer And Macrophages: Cells Thought To Protect Against Cancer May Actually Promote It
The deadliest part of the cancer process, metastasis, appears to rely on help from macrophages, potent immune system cells that usually defend vigorously against disease, researchers report.
Low Choline Levels In Pregnant Women Raise Babies' Risk For Brain And Spinal-cord Defects, Study Shows
A newborn's risk for brain and spinal-cord defects rises if the mother has low blood levels of the nutrient choline during pregnancy, researchers have discovered.
Drug-resistant swine flu cases discovered in patients in Seattle
The country's first cases of drug-resistant swine flu were discovered in two leukemia patients in Seattle, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Friday.
Schools gear up for swine flu shots
(AP) -- Hundreds of schools are heeding the government's call to set up flu-shot clinics this fall, preparing for what could be the most widespread school vaccinations since the...
Tokyo hospital to test viral therapy for tumors
Tokyo University Hospital will begin a clinical test in late August of a viral therapy in which viruses are injected directly into brain tumor patients, according to hospital officials.
Gov't recommends child care plan if swine flu hits
(AP) -- The government is urging parents to have a backup plan for caring for their kids in case they are hit by swine flu once the new school...
Scientists hope tiny tubes can help repair damaged nerves
(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at the University of Glasgow are hoping to use tiny fabricated tubes to help damaged nerves heal themselves.
Swine Flu’s Risks Increase for Australia’s Aborigines
Experts say the danger is more likely related to malnutrition, chronic disease and geographic isolation than to genetic differences.
Health Care in Britain: An Expat Goes for a Checkup
Notes on the National Health Service from an American who now lives in Britain.
Novelties: Mimicking Human Cartilage to Repair a Knee
An off-the-shelf plug inserted into the damaged area can guide formation of new bone and cartilage before dissolving in about six months.
Economic View: A Public Option Isn’t a Curse, or a Cure
An insurance option run by the government would neither invigorate nor destroy the health care system.
Groundbreaking Treatment For Oxygen-deprived Newborns
Until now immediate cooling of the newborn infant was the only treatment that could possibly prevent brain damage following oxygen deprivation during delivery. New research findings from Sweden and China...
Obama visit puts focus on senator for rural state
BELGRADE, Mont. (AP) -- By making a rare presidential visit to Montana, Barack Obama has put even more pressure on the rural state's senior senator, Max...
Health Debate Fails to Ignite Obama’s Web
The enthusiasm of a historic campaign has not carried over to efforts to overhaul the health care system.