June 10, 2013
As a physician who conducts research on decision-making, I have been asked many times: What does behavioral economics teach us about the role of living wills in medical care? Famed behavioral economist Dick Thaler recently opined on this topic in … Read More
June 10, 2013
Italian border authorities arrested 77-year-old Israeli citizen Gedaliah Taub on Friday on suspicion of international human organ trafficking. Taub was detained at the Rome airport after officials determined his passport was forged. (Times of Israel)
June 10, 2013
American geneticist Howard Jacob has glimpsed the future. Without medical motivation, he has had his genome sequenced and now carries his genetic profile around with him via an app on his tablet. (Sydney Morning Herald)
June 10, 2013
Infertile Australians are being offered a new discounted model of IVF, which can be thousands of dollars cheaper but offers a lower chance of success. (Sydney Morning Herald)
June 10, 2013
A new research paper in PLOSOne this past week claims to have found a fatty tissue source of pluripotent adult stem cells. The team of scientists, led by Gregorio Chazenbalk, an associate researcher with UCLA Obstetrics and Gynecology, have dubbed these … Read More
June 10, 2013
Researchers have been able to mobilize the brain’s native stem cells to replenish a type of neuron lost in Huntington’s disease. In the study, which appears today in the journal Cell Stem Cell, the scientists were able to both trigger … Read More
June 10, 2013
New research from McMaster University may offer some hope for the parents of children with fatal Tay-Sachs disease. The work points to drugs that may help mitigate the symptoms of the genetic condition, which kills sufferers while they are still … Read More
June 10, 2013
Terming researches in gene-doping detection as promising, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has hoped that a reliable test could be ready for the Rio summer Olympic Games. (Business Standard)
June 10, 2013
Deciding who gets transplants is a complex medical issue that should be decided by transplant experts, not the courts or members of Congress, experts say. [Interview with Art Caplan and Jonathan Moreno] (U.S.A. Today)
June 10, 2013
Chenara, Aaron and Jessica Guare – the world’s first triplets born through IVF technology – turn 30 today. (News.com.au)
June 7, 2013
While the employees might say they’re interested in employer coverage, “we believe they will opt out,” says Mr. Angelo. His reasoning? “They’d rather have the cash than pay the employee portion of the premium.” (The Wall Street Journal)
June 7, 2013
Ms. Usrey-Roos is certain that Parker’s new verbal ability resulted from an experimental drug he was taking in a clinical trial, and has continued to take for three years since then. She said she no longer had to wear sweaters … Read More
June 7, 2013
A judge’s ruling Thursday makes another child waiting for a lung transplant in Philadelphia more quickly eligible for adult lungs. The family of Javier Acosta, 11, asked a federal judge to issue a restraining order to block a policy that … Read More
June 7, 2013
Arena Pharmaceuticals says its weight loss drug Belviq will be available to U.S. patients beginning next week, nearly a year after the drug was officially approved by federal regulators. (AP)
June 7, 2013
The Department of Social Protection has confirmed it will appeal a landmark ruling on surrogacy that allowed a genetic mother to be named as the legal mother on the birth certificate of her children. (Irish Times)
June 7, 2013
Researchers at the University of Cambridge have discovered that a single mutation in a leukemia-associated gene reduces the ability of blood stem cells to make more blood stem cells, but leaves their progeny daughter cells unaffected. Their findings have relevance … Read More
June 7, 2013
It should be within our rights to take our own lives when the circumstances warrant it. That means we must be prepared to accept laws in favor of assisted suicide. This becomes even more important in light of potential technologies … Read More
June 7, 2013
Argentina’s health care providers must now provide fertility treatments to anyone older than 18 who wants them, be they married or single, gay or straight. (Washington Post)
June 7, 2013
Spoiler Alert: The stork doesn’t deliver babies. But after reading this you may wish it did. The use of artificial reproductive technology is on the rise. And with it comes some murky questions involving ethics, estate planning and the law. … Read More
June 7, 2013
Anti-doping experts reported progress Thursday in the search for a reliable test for gene doping, although they still don’t know when it will be ready for use in competition. IOC medical commission chairman Arne Ljungqvist said a test would be … Read More
June 7, 2013
Scientists at the Danish Stem Cell Center, DanStem, at the University of Copenhagen have discovered that they can make embryonic stem cells regress to a stage of development where they are able to make placenta cells as well as the … Read More
June 7, 2013
Governor Hickenlooper has signed the “Violence Against Pregnant Women Act” which could carry fines as little as $2,000 for drunk drivers who harm pregnant women, causing the deaths of their children. (Sacramento Bee) Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2013/06/06/5477008/personhood-usa-colorado-governor.html#storylink=cpy
June 6, 2013
The U.S., India and other nations are facing shortages of tuberculosis drugs—threatening to reverse decades of progress against a deadly disease that is becoming increasingly untreatable. (The Wall Street Journal)
June 6, 2013
In medicine, plasma usually refers to the liquid component of blood. Now scientists are researching how to better harness the plasma found in stars and lightning—the fourth fundamental state of matter, alongside solids, liquids and gases—to cut into the body … Read More
June 6, 2013
As I sat, unable to understand the words reverberating off the ancient stone walls of Scotland’s Iona Abbey, my wife noticed a hearing assistance sign with a “T†and nudged me to turn on the “telecoils†in my new aids. … Read More
