Diseases/Conditions News Headlines - Yahoo! News

WHO agrees to tackle research on neglected diseases

Sat, 26 May 2012 12:16:33 -0400

Campaigners on Saturday welcomed a World Health Organization pledge to tackle research and funding gaps concerning some of the developing world's biggest killer diseases.

Fitness May Boost Survival for Women With Breast Cancer

Fri, 25 May 2012 23:52:38 -0400

FRIDAY, May 25 (HealthDay News) -- Women with advanced breast cancer who have higher levels of fitness during treatment tend to live longer than women with lower levels of fitness during treatment, new research finds.

People Who Lived Near World Trade Center Report More Lung Disease

Fri, 25 May 2012 23:52:38 -0400

FRIDAY, May 25 (HealthDay News) -- People in lower Manhattan whose homes were damaged in the 9/11 terrorist attacks are more likely to have symptoms of respiratory diseases than those whose homes were not damaged, a new study indicates.

More Mental Health Care Urged for Kids Who Self-Harm

Fri, 25 May 2012 23:52:37 -0400

FRIDAY, May 25 (HealthDay News) -- Doctors have long known that some kids suffering severe emotional turmoil find relief in physical pain -- cutting or burning or sticking themselves with pins to achieve a form of release.

Cancer Patients Share Web Info With Docs for Insight, Advice

Fri, 25 May 2012 23:52:37 -0400

FRIDAY, May 25 (HealthDay News) -- Cancer patients' primary goal in talking with their doctors about information they've found on the Internet is to get more insight and advice on the online information, new research indicates.

Few U.S. Hispanics Screened for Skin Cancer

Fri, 25 May 2012 23:52:37 -0400

FRIDAY, May 25 (HealthDay News) -- Only one in 14 Hispanic adults in the United States has ever been screened for skin cancer, far fewer than the one in four whites screened, a new study finds.

Fewer Stillbirths Among Pregnant Women Vaccinated Against Flu

Fri, 25 May 2012 23:52:37 -0400

FRIDAY, May 25 (HealthDay News) -- Pregnant women who received a flu shot to protect them against the H1N1 swine flu virus had a significantly reduced risk of stillbirth, preterm birth and of having a baby small for gestational age, according to a new study.

Women get less information on post-cancer fertility

Fri, 25 May 2012 15:32:53 -0400

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Cancer treatment can sometimes lead to infertility, but young women are less likely than young men to be informed of that risk, a new study suggests. Swedish researchers found that of nearly 500 cancer survivors ages 18 to 45, most men -- 80 percent -- said their doctor had told them their chemotherapy could affect their future fertility. But only 48 percent of women said the same, the team reports in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. What's more, women were far less likely to have received information about options for preserving their fertility. ...

Chronic diseases are health ministers' target -WHO

Fri, 25 May 2012 14:28:42 -0400

GENEVA (Reuters) - The world's health ministers have agreed to try to cut premature deaths from chronic illnesses such as cardiovascular disease and cancer by 25 percent by 2025, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Friday. Heart disease, diabetes, cancers and chronic respiratory illnesses are the biggest killer globally, according to the United Nations agency. They account for 36 million deaths a year, or 63 percent of all mortality, and one-quarter of premature deaths under the age of 60. ...

Study Nixes Assumed Link Between Obesity and Heart Disease

Fri, 25 May 2012 11:57:00 -0400

FIRST PERSON | For many obese people, the risk of dying of heart disease might not be any higher than it is for their thinner friends, British researchers believe. This startling conclusion comes after years of warnings from the medical community of the link between obesity and cardiovascular disease and early death.

Why People Stick with Cancer Screening, Even When It Causes Harm

Fri, 25 May 2012 02:20:00 -0400

The data on PSA testing to detect prostate cancer has long been shaky -- so much so that the discoverer of PSA (or prostate-specific antigen, an enzyme made by the prostate) himself decried the test two years ago as "hardly more effective than a coin toss."

U.S. panel split on Pfizer rare disease drug

Fri, 25 May 2012 00:37:50 -0400

(Reuters) - A U.S. health advisory panel on Thursday issued a split vote on data for Pfizer Inc's drug to treat a rare neurodegenerative disease. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration panel voted 13 to 4 that the drug did not show that it met the main goal in a study in treating the fatal condition. However, the panel also voted 13 to 4 that the drug treated a surrogate endpoint, which may correlate with treating the underlying disease. The panel's recommendation will be considered by the U.S. ...

Strokes More Common in Southern States: CDC

Thu, 24 May 2012 23:53:51 -0400

THURSDAY, May 24 (HealthDay News) -- While fewer people in the United States are dying from strokes, the number of strokes has remained about the same, health officials report. And their findings bear out the South's reputation as the nation's so-called "stroke belt."

Efficient Disease Risk Prediction a Long Way Off, Experts Say

Thu, 24 May 2012 23:53:50 -0400

THURSDAY, May 24 (HealthDay News) -- Detailed information about a person's genetic makeup and their environmental risk factors does not significantly change their disease risk prediction, according to the results of a new simulation study.

Work-Related Asthma a Significant Problem: CDC

Thu, 24 May 2012 23:53:50 -0400

THURSDAY, May 24 (HealthDay News) -- About nine percent of all asthma cases in the United States are caused or made worse by work-related exposures, a new federal study says.

Georgia Woman Who Lost Limbs to Flesh-Eating Disease Can Now Sit Up, Breathe on Her Own

Thu, 24 May 2012 22:23:15 -0400

Georgia Woman Who Lost Limbs to Infection Can Now Breathe on Her Own

U.S. mom with flesh-eating disease remains critical

Thu, 24 May 2012 19:32:57 -0400

(Reuters) - The new mother of twins fighting a flesh-eating infection in South Carolina remained in critical condition on Thursday, but a hospital spokeswoman said she showed slight improvement. Lana Kuykendall, 36, has now undergone 11 surgeries to remove dead tissue since she was admitted to the hospital on May 11 with a painful spot on her leg, Greenville Memorial Hospital spokeswoman Sandy Dees said. She remains sedated and intubated although she is able to breathe on her own, her brother, Brian Swaffer, said. ...

FDA panel votes against Pfizer rare disease drug

Thu, 24 May 2012 18:52:01 -0400

(Reuters) - Pfizer Inc said a U.S. health advisory panel voted against its drug to treat a rare neurodegenerative disease as the data did not show enough evidence of efficacy. The panel's recommendation will be considered by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration when it takes a decision on tafamidis, a relatively minor product for the world's largest drugmaker. Pfizer said the committee voted 13-4 against the drug. FDA staff on Tuesday recommended rejecting the drug saying the data did not prove that it worked well in treating the disease. ...

Screening finds skin cancer, but does it save lives?

Thu, 24 May 2012 16:49:09 -0400

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Doctors find a high number of malignant tumors when a state-wide skin cancer screening program is introduced, says a new study. Based on results from a program in Germany, researchers say 116 people need to be screened for skin cancer and five people need to have a biopsy to find one malignant tumor. They, however, cannot say whether the screenings actually saved lives. Still, the numbers reported in the new study are "quite good," said Dr. Alexander Katalinic, one of the study's coauthors, in an email to Reuters Health. ...

MediciNova asthma drug fails trial; shares crash

Thu, 24 May 2012 10:08:36 -0400

(Reuters) - Biopharmaceutical company MediciNova Inc said its experimental asthma drug failed to meet the main goal of a second mid-stage trial, sending its shares down as much as 51 percent in extended trade. MediciNova, which is testing MN-221 as a treatment for acute asthma attacks not responsive to standard therapy, said the drug failed to show a statistically significant improvement over a placebo. MN-221 looks to treat the condition by bypassing constricted airways to deliver the drug directly into the lungs. It aims to improve FEV1 ratio when compared with a placebo. ...

Sanofi to test cancer-starving compound in China in 2013

Thu, 24 May 2012 05:23:07 -0400

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Sanofi-Aventis plans to begin testing a novel compound that is designed to starve liver cancer to death in a phase one human clinical trial in China and possibly South Korea in 2013. The compound, called slit-trap, was developed by its Chinese collaborator, Shanghai Institutes of Biological Sciences, and will soon be ready for a "first-in-man" trial. "It is now in pre-clinical (stage) and is going into clinic early next year," said chief executive officer Christopher Viehbacher in an interview in Hong Kong. ...

Cancer Docs Often Deal With Own Grief, Doubts When Patients Die

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:52:16 -0400

WEDNESDAY, May 23 (HealthDay News) -- Some cancer doctors may build up emotional walls -- distancing themselves from the patients they can't save -- to avoid grief, sadness and even despair, new research shows.

Celldex breast cancer drug shrinks some tumors: study

Wed, 23 May 2012 18:38:42 -0400

(Reuters) - Interim results from a mid-stage trial of Celldex Therapeutics Inc's experimental drug showed trends toward reducing tumors in patients with advanced breast cancer, with rates improving for those patients with high levels of a key protein. Celldex shares dropped 8 percent in after-hours trading. The drug, CDX-011, which links a tumor-targeting antibody to a cell-killing chemotherapy drug, was tested in 122 patients whose breast cancer had progressed despite several previous rounds of standard therapy. ...

MediciNova asthma drug fails trial; shares crash

Wed, 23 May 2012 18:00:56 -0400

(Reuters) - Biopharmaceutical company MediciNova Inc said its experimental asthma drug failed to meet the main goal of a second mid-stage trial, sending its shares down as much as 51 percent in extended trade. MediciNova, which is testing MN-221 as a treatment for acute asthma attacks not responsive to standard therapy, said the drug showed no improvement when compared with a placebo. MN-221 looks to treat the condition by bypassing constricted airways to deliver the drug directly into the lungs. It aims to improve FEV1 ratio when compared with a placebo. ...

Childhood cancer effects may linger in adults

Wed, 23 May 2012 17:08:30 -0400

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Survivors of childhood cancers have an increased risk of disfigurement and persistent hair loss later in life, and for some that may lead to long-term emotional distress, suggests a new study. Compared to their siblings, survivors were more likely to have scarring and disfigurement on their head, arms and legs later in life. And adults with those traits had more depression and a lower quality of life, on average. "I think it showed us these aren't necessarily life threatening late effects of cancer... ...