Tag: health & medicine
Government report urges changes to U.S. policies on human subject research
Commission finds that while improvements are needed, there's every reason to believe that experiments that were conducted in Guatemala in the 1940s can never happen again....
Mysterious kidney disease killing thousands of laborers in Central America
In Central America's sugarcane field, more and more workers are coming down with a disease that shuts down their kidneys. Researchers are struggling for a cause. Chemicals on the fields? Heat? Overwork? No one knows, but it's a leading cause of death for men in El Salvador and Nicaragua....
FDA, at the behest of HHS, denies permission to sell Plan B in front of the counter
The FDA had been making plans to allow TEVA Pharmaceuticals to sell its Plan B contraceptive in front of the pharmacy counter to women of any age. But Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius intervened at the last minute to prevent it....
Research discovers link between industrial cleaning chemicals, Parkinson's
New research out of California indicates there may be a link between two powerful chemicals, trichloroethylene, or TCE, and PERC, or perchloroethylene. The research came from looking at 99 sets of twins, one with Parkinson's and one without....
50 years later, remembering the horrors brought on by thalidomide
Drug makers 50 years ago finally removed the drug thalidomide from the market as evidence mounted that it caused terrible birth defects, especially in Europe. But for an alert, determined FDA employee, it could have been as bad or worse in the United States....
Governors ask feds to reclassify marijuana as medicine; government balks
Two governors want the federal government to "down-schedule" marijuana as a drug with approved medical uses. But the Health and Human Services administration is resisting. Opponents of down-scheduling say there are marijuana-based medications already on the market that are safe and effective....
Doctors question effectiveness, morality of taking an obese 8-year-old out of his home
An 8-year-old Ohio boy was taken from his parents and his home because he's overweight. He weighs nearly 200 pounds when a typical third grader weighs 60 pounds. Now the state has put him in foster care, but many are wondering if it's going to help — and if it's even right....
Patent expires on blockbuster Lipitor drug; generics on the way
After 20 years being the only game in town, Pfizer, the manufacturer of Lipitor, is about to get some competition in the space for treating those with chronic high cholesterol. The patent expired Wednesday and one generic drug is ready to hit the market. Others should arrive in six months....
Romania's healthcare system leaving poor without access to care, for years
Romania's public healthcare system is under fire for being woefully inadequate. According to many, the poor will wait years for even basic services, doctors are leaving the profession or going overseas to practice medicine....
Public gets mixed messages regarding efficacy of Avastin for treating breast cancer
Late last week, the FDA ruled that Avastin could no longer be marketed as treatment for breast cancer. But Medicare and virtually all private insurance providers will continue to pay for just that use of the drug. It's a mixed message that has raised some eyebrows....
