Bioethics & Health News
January 5

January 5, 2006

Stem Cell May Drive Breast Cancer

Recurring breast cancer could be caused by newly discovered rare stem cells transformed into a “tumour factory” by genetic errors, scientists have said.
(BBC)

Missing Gene Linked to Spread of Cancer

Scientists said on Wednesday that a gene which is usually missing in a common, aggressive childhood cancer suppresses the metastasis, or spread, of the disease to other parts of the body.
(MSNBC)

Cell Phones Tied to Family Tension

The round-the-clock availability that cell phones and pagers have brought to people’s lives may be taking a toll on family life, a new study suggests.
(Reuters)

Treatment Brings Hope for Ovarian Cancer

Pumping heavy doses of chemotherapy drugs right into the abdomen boosted survival of women with advanced ovarian cancer by 16 months in what experts call the first big advance in more than a decade against one of the most lethal cancers in women.
(AP)

Cleaning Up the Mess of Medicine in the Pages of Posterity

It was 4:30 a.m., the hour at which, if you are up all night in the name of medical training, you begin to shiver uncontrollably no matter how many patient gowns you layer on. Just when it seemed there might be time for a little nap before morning, our fifth admission of the night rolled in.
(New York Times)

FDA to Examine New Ways to Study ADD Drugs

Reports of sudden deaths, strokes, heart attacks and hypertension in both children and adults taking drugs to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder are spurring new government study into the medications’ safety.
(AP)