Chemotherapy Combination Outcomes Differ for Aged, Younger Colon Cancer Patients
The combination of chemotherapies 5FU and oxaliplatin, compared to 5FU alone, decreases colon cancer recurrence after surgery and promotes longer survival for patients under 70 - but not for those who are older, according Dana-Farber Cancer Institute scientists.
"By combining information about many patients from a collection of studies, our analysis determined that the more aggressive combination chemotherapy does not benefit older colon cancer patients as it does for those who are younger,"
More Americans Taking Drugs for mental illness
Many more Americans have been using prescription drugs to treat mental illness since 1996, in part because of expanded insurance coverage and greater familiarity with the drugs among primary care doctors, U.S. researchers said.
They said 73 percent more adults and 50 percent more children are using drugs to treat mental illness than in 1996.
HIV Antibody Tests Unreliable For Early Infections In Teens
A previously healthy teenager shows up at the doctor's office with a sore throat, fever, aches and general malaise. Routine blood tests are normal, an HIV test comes back negative, and the pediatrician sends the patient home with a diagnosis of acute viral infection.
Two weeks later, the teen returns complaining of lingering symptoms and persistent high fevers. This time, a repeat HIV test comes back positive. What happened?
100th Allogeneic Stem Cell Transplant Performed at Mayo Clinic
A 76-year-old Scottsdale man is the 100th patient at Mayo Clinic to receive an allogeneic stem cell transplant since the program began in 2003.
Allogeneic stem cell transplantation involves collecting healthy stem cells from a donor, either a relative, or from an unrelated donor who is evaluated for compatibility. In the case of an unrelated donor, a search of the National Marrow Donor Program registry of people who were previously screened to be potential donors takes place.
Thinking Therapeutically: Scientists In Search Of Smarter Tests And Treatments For Prostate Cancer
Even though prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in men in the United States, some patients may wonder whether treatment is worse than the disease. The three primary therapies-prostatectomy, external-beam radiation, and brachytherapy-cause life-altering sexual, urinary, and rectal side effects that can linger for years. But what if a simple test could differentiate an indolent prostate cancer from a highly aggressive one?
