Category Archives: Health

Breast Tenderness Following Combo Hormone Therapy Linked To Increased Breast Density

*Study examines biology underlying link between tenderness, cancer risk*

Post-menopausal women who experience breast tenderness after starting combination hormone therapy have a higher risk of breast cancer than women who don’t, a study by researchers with UCLA’s Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center has shown. One reason for this, they now say, may be that these women’s breasts are becoming more dense.

Such new-onset tenderness was found to be more pronounced after the start of combination estrogen-and-progestin therapy than with estrogen therapy alone. The link between new-onset tenderness and changes in breast density also was more pronounced in women on combination therapy, said the study’s first author, Dr. Carolyn Crandall, a UCLA professor of general internal medicine and a scientist with the Jonsson Cancer Center. (more…)

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New Method helps Researchers Zero in on Drugs that can kill Brain Cancer Stem Cells

Researchers with UCLA’s Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center have developed a new screening approach to identify chemical compounds that can target and kill the stem cells responsible for creating deadly brain tumors.

Glioblastoma is one of the deadliest malignancies, typically killing patients within 12 to 18 months. These brain cancers consist of two kinds of cells: a larger, heterogeneous population of tumor cells and a smaller sub-population of stem cells, which are treatment-resistant. (more…)

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“Drunkorexia:” A Recipe for Disaster

MU study finds disordered eating combined with heavy drinking is common among college students

COLUMBIA, Mo. – It is well known that eating disorders are common among teens and college students. Heavy alcohol consumption is another well-known unhealthy habit of this age group. A new study from the University of Missouri shows that when college students combine these two unhealthy habits, their long-term health may be affected. “Drunkorexia” is a new term coined by the media to describe the combination of disordered eating and heavy alcohol consumption. (more…)

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WHOI Teaming with Flatley Discovery Lab in Search for Effective Treatments for Cystic Fibrosis

The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) has signed a $1.18 million agreement with the Flatley Discovery Lab in Charlestown, Mass., to investigate and supply marine microbial extracts as possible treatments for cystic fibrosis (CF).

The life-shortening respiratory disease has eluded attempts at a cure, although researchers have been successful in some cases at adding years to a person’s lifespan, primarily through treatment with antibiotics. (more…)

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Zinc’s Role in the Brain

Research gives insight into 50-year-old mystery – zinc important for learning and memory

TORONTO, ON – Zinc plays a critical role in regulating how neurons communicate with one another, and could affect how memories form and how we learn. The new research, in the current issue of Neuron, was authored by Xiao-an Zhang, now a chemistry professor at the University of Toronto Scarborough (UTSC), and colleagues at MIT and Duke University. (more…)

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Clinical Trial Uncovers Potential ‘Functional Cure’ for HIV/AIDS

Data shows Correlation between New Therapeutic Approach, Viral Load Reduction

Data from a clinical trial involving UCLA researchers suggest that a new therapy may potentially serve as a “functional cure” for HIV/AIDS.

The therapy, called SB-728-T, involves the modification of both copies of a patient’s CCR5 gene, which encodes the major co-receptor used by HIV to infect immune system cells.

In the Sangamo BioSciences’ phase 1 trial, SB-728-T was given to HIV patients who were on highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) but were considered to be “non-responders” — that is, their CD4+ T-cell levels, a key measure of immune system health, remained low. The patients’ HAART therapy was interrupted when they received the SB-728-T therapy. (more…)

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