Health

Study weighs benefits of transplants for leukemia

Leukemia patients who have blood stem cell transplants survive just as long on average as those who undergo the more invasive procedure of having a bone marrow transplant, scientists said on Monday.

Bone marrow transplants involve the collection of stem cells from the bone marrow — a complicated procedure in which the patient must have a general anesthetic and surgery.

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Fewer Childhood Deaths From Rheumatic Disease

Death rates for U.S. children with rheumatic diseases are much lower than previously reported, a new study has found.

There were 110 deaths among these patients, a number that was significantly less than expected, the researchers noted. The risk of death was notably greater for children with systemic lupus erythematosus and dermatomyositis, but not for systemic juvenile rheumatoid arthritis.

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Loving Foster Homes Improve Kids’ Attention, Impulsivity

Foster children who are placed in stable, loving homes show noticeable improvement in symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity compared to children who get moved around a lot and live with parents who are often annoyed or angry at them, research finds.

Linares, an associate professor of pediatrics and psychiatry at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City, pointed out that the children in the study did not necessarily have attention-deficit hyperactivity

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Ageing Asia problem ’serious as climate change’

Longer lifespans, falling fertility rates and growing ranks of elderly people in Asia can pose problems as serious as the impact of climate change, a leading expert warned Monday.

“I will compare that with climate change. We prefer not to believe in that because its inconvenient,” he said, referring to former US vice president Al Gores celebrated environmental documentary “An Inconvenient Truth”.

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Herceptin Again Proves Mettle Against Breast Cancer

High-risk breast cancer patients with HER2-positive tumors benefit from receiving the targeted therapy Herceptin while undergoing chemotherapy, new research shows.

“The reason why Herceptin is so valuable to patients who have locally advanced breast cancer is they have a very bad prognosis,” he continued.

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Peanut allergies less common than tests suggest

Many children who test positive for sensitivity to peanuts may not actually have full-blown allergies to the food, a new study suggests.

As it stands, peanut allergy is typically diagnosed through a skin test, blood test or both.

UK researchers found that among 79 8-year-olds who were deemed peanut- sensitive by standard allergy testing, only 7 turned out to have true allergies when they underwent more-extensive testing that is less commonly used in routine practice.

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Premature Aging of the Brain Seen in HIV Patients

Premature aging is striking the brains of people infected with the virus that causes AIDS, new research suggests.

“The graying of the AIDS patient community makes this infections effects on the brain a significant source of concern,” study author Dr. Beau Ances, an assistant professor of neurology at Washington University in St.

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Girl’s odyssey shows challenge of fighting obesity

Paris Woods is hardly a poster child for the obesity epidemic. Lining up dripping wet with kids on her swim team, she’s a blend of girlish chunkiness and womanly curves.

Like nearly one-third of American teens, Paris Woods is overweight. Her doctor worries her weight will creep up into the obesity range.

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Scientists Decode Brain Cancer Cell Line

The first complete genomic sequencing of a brain cancer cell line has been performed by U.S. scientists.

The finding also may result in new and better ways to monitor for brain cancer recurrence, as well as a test to determine when brain cancer has been destroyed, which would prevent overtreatment with harmful anti-cancer drugs that can cause long-term health problems.

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