Blood Weekly articles from July 2001

Blood Weekly archives from July 2001

Study Questions Value of ALT With Advent Of Better Tests For HBV, HCV.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - In the olden days, laboratory workers relied on ALT values to signal a problem with non-A, non-B hepatitis contamination in blood products, but the advent...

Low-Dose Cyclophosphamide Superior To High-Dose Regimens.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Reduced-dose cyclophosphamide regimens for stem cell mobilization in multiple myeloma (MM) patients produce similar stem cell yields with less toxicity than...

Reference Values For Young Adults Applicable To Elderly.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Although normal hematological values change with age, reference red blood cell parameters used to diagnose anemia in young adults are applicable to...

New Clues Aid Detection, Ensure Blood Safety.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- New technology that could eliminate the risks of bovine spongiform encephalopathy transmission to humans via infected food or blood transfusions may be on the horizon. Oxford University and...

Excluding U.K. Blood Donors From French Blood Supply Increases Risk.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Researchers in France report that the country's debated policy of excluding blood donors from the United Kingdom would have actually caused a slight...

Modified Bone Marrow Transplant In Mice Is Successful.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Researchers at Johns Hopkins Children's Center report success in treating sickle cell disease in mice with a modified bone marrow transplant. The finding adds further support to human trials...

Hemolysis More Likely After Peripheral Blood Cell Transplants.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Peripheral blood stem cells are more likely to cause blood trauma after transplantation than are bone marrow stem cells, researchers in France warn. ...

Double Fludarabine Regimen Before Stem Cell Grafts Safe, Effective.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - A two-cycle fludarabine-based chemotherapy regimen safely increases the antitumor potency of stem cell transplantation used to treat acute myeloid leukemia...

Angioplasty Patients In Trial With Recombinant Protein rNAPc2.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Corvas International, Inc., (Nasdaq:CVAS) announced that it has completed enrollment in a multicenter, Phase IIa safety trial involving the proprietary injectable anticoagulant, recombinant Nematode...

Chemotherapy With B7-Immunoglobin G Effective In Mice.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - A combination of systemic immunotherapy using soluble B7-immunoglobin G (B7-IgG) with chemotherapy has achieved promising results in a murine model,...

Researchers Identify Protein That Homes In On Hematopoietic Progenitor Cells.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Researchers have identified a protein that allows cells to find their way to bone marrow. The finding may allow clinicians to improve bone marrow transplantation by injecting only the cells...

Statin Drugs May Reduce Risk In Older People.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The use of statin drugs is associated with a 22% reduction in the risk of deep vein thrombosis for people 65 years or older, according to an article in the June 11, 2001, issue of the Archives of...

Treatment Cessation Justified After Platelet Recovery.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Halting treatment for idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) is generally safe after patients have achieved normal platelet levels, researchers in the...

Data Support Efficacy/Safety Of Novel Lymphocyte Homing Agent.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Preliminary data show promising results regarding the efficacy and safety of FTY720, an investigational therapy for use in transplant patients. At 12 weeks, biopsy-confirmed acute rejection...

Vital Link Between Blood Cells And Transplantation Success Discussed.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- BioTransplant Incorporated (Nasdaq:BTRN) and the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) reported the detection of multilineage microchimerism in animals that had successfully accepted donor kidneys...

Ionizing Radiation Improves TRAIL Effectiveness.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - The antitumor potency of tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) is significantly enhanced by prior treatment with ionizing...

p16 Expression May Inhibit Clonal Expansion Of Hematopoietic Cells.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Deborah W. Heinrich, PhD, staff medical writer - Researchers at the University of London Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine have identified p16 as an important player in...

Certican(TM) Effectively Prevents Acute Rejection.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Certican(TM) (everolimus, RAD), appears to be effective and safe when administered in combination with Neoral(R) (cyclosporine USP) and corticosteroids to primary renal allograft patients. New...

Blood Protein Mediates Cell Stickiness.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- In April 2001, researchers reported discovering how misshapen red blood cells stick to capillary walls as they block blood flow and cause excruciating crises in patients with sickle cell disease....

Fetal Hemoglobin Prevents Endothelial Adhesion.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Fetal hemoglobin (HbF) protects patients suffering from sickle cell (SS) anemia from pathological adhesion of sickled red blood cells to endothelial cell...

Early Withdrawal of Immunosuppressive Drugs Possible.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- To minimize the risk of acute rejection during the first months after transplantation it is common practice in most transplant centers to use a combination of immunosuppressive agents. In the longer...

Selective In Vivo T-Cell Depletion Suppresses Graft-Versus-Host Disease.
July 5, 2001... 2001 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Deborah W. Heinrich, PhD, staff medical writer - In a recent research, a group in Wisconsin enhanced alloengraftment and decreased graft-versus-host disease in irradiated mice after bone marrow...

Blood Loss Estimates Often Are Inaccurate.
July 12, 2001... 2001 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Researchers in New York argue that emergency medical services (EMS) personnel may often provide hospitals with unreliable estimates of patient blood loss....

Patients Survive Longer When Vessel Growth Is Reduced In Bone Marrow.
July 12, 2001... 2001 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - A comparison of patients who have received treatments for stage III multiple myeloma reveals those who are in remission have less bone marrow angiogenesis...

Anemia Therapy Improves Cancer Patients' Quality Of Life.
July 12, 2001... 2001 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The quality of life for cancer patients treated with nonplatinum chemotherapy significantly improved when their care was supplemented with a drug that counteracts anemia, an international group of...

Mechanism Of Drug Resistance Demonstrated.
July 12, 2001... 2001 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A potent new cancer drug called STI-571, recently approved for sale by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration under the commercial name Gleevec(TM), has had remarkable success in treating patients...

Treatment For Adult Leukemia And Lymphoma Is Feasible.
July 12, 2001... 2001 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A study by researchers at University Hospitals of Cleveland, Ohio, demonstrates that, in adults, umbilical-cord blood from unrelated donors is a feasible alternative source of stem cells for...

Minimizing Or Eliminating Protein May Reduce Adverse Effects After Platelet Transfusion.
July 12, 2001... 2001 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- University of Rochester Medical Center researchers have discovered why patients who receive blood-platelet transfusions often spike fevers or develop life-threatening complications. These...

Hydroxyethyl Starch Can Increase Blood Loss In Type O Patients.
July 12, 2001... 2001 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Hydroxyethyl starch can increase the risk of excessive bleeding when used as an surgical anesthetic in patients with type O blood, researchers in France...

Radiosurgery And Embolization Are Effective Treatment.
July 12, 2001... 2001 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Researchers have found that a less-invasive treatment is safe and effective for select patients who have an abnormal connection between an artery and a vein on the surface of the brain. The...

Blood Transfusions Increase Infection Risk.
July 12, 2001... 2001 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Administration of blood and blood derivatives to patients during cardiac surgery significantly increases their risk of dangerous infections, researchers in...

Mini-BEAM Chemotherapy Linked To Poor Stem Cell Yields.
July 12, 2001... 2001 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - A chemotherapy regimen commonly used as salvage therapy for patients with Hodgkin disease and other lymphomas may result in significant impairment of stem...

VerticalNews Launch Uses NewsRx Artificial Intelligence Technology.
July 12, 2001... 2001 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- NewsRx, the leading provider of life science databases and daily and weekly health news, has leveraged its technology platform to create a new media company, VerticalNews. VerticalNews'...

Weekly Blood Cell Counts May Be Unnecessary.
July 12, 2001... 2001 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Patients undergoing radiation therapy for cancer often require less blood cell count monitoring than is typically performed, and a less-frequent monitoring...

Error Correction Methods Improve Fluorescent Microsphere Testing.
July 12, 2001... 2001 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Researchers in the United States have shown that blood flow measurements using fluorescent microspheres can be improved by using any one of three different...

Particle Embolization Reduces Blood Loss During Spinal Metastasis Surgery.
July 12, 2001... 2001 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Particulate embolization of blood can aid surgeons trying to treat spinal tumors spread from kidney malignancies, researchers in Germany say. ...

Abnormal Cranial Blood Flow May Be Factor.
July 12, 2001... 2001 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Reduced blood flow to the brain during head rotation may predispose infants to sudden infant death syndrome, or SIDS, researchers in Germany warn. ...

Stem Cell Transplantation Effective Despite Risks.
July 12, 2001... 2001 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Hemopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) provides systemic sclerosis patients with a chance for effective treatment although it carries substantial...

Hair Can Be Used To Make Skin Grafts.
July 12, 2001... 2001 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- By plucking out a few hairs, doctors can grow skin grafts from a patient's own cells. The technique could replace the painful method of taking skin from another part of the body for grafts or...

Hemodialysis Technology Advances In Preclinical Study.
July 12, 2001... 2001 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- CryoLife, Inc. (NYSE: CRY) presented the results of an animal study on the use of animal tissues to create A-V (arteriovenous) access grafts in hemodialysis applications using the company's...

Immunoblot Testing Effective For Prognosis.
July 12, 2001... 2001 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Researchers have shown that immunoglobulin G (IgG) immunoblot testing for Toxoplasma gondii is an effective means of determining patients at high risk for...

Fibrinogen Important For Providing Stability And Strength During Repair.
July 12, 2001... 2001 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - Some wounds can heal without fibrinogen, but not as strongly nor as stably as when it is present. Investigators at the Children's Hospital Research...

Modified Immunosuppression Allows Stem Cell Grafting In Elderly Patients.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - By using postgraft immunosuppression instead of highly toxic pretransplant conditioning, researchers in the United States say that elderly patients with...

Major T-Cell Molecule May Influence IL-8 Role In Bone Marrow Cancer.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - A major molecule on T cells that commonly modulates interleukin (IL)-2 transcription may also stimulate IL-8 production in patients with multiple myeloma....

Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor Effective For Patients with Refractory Disease.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Patients suffering from refractory anemia can be effectively treated with granulocyte colony-stimulating factor, researchers in Sweden report. ...

Staffing Is A Factor In New HCV Infections In Hemodialysis Patients.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - The lack of sufficient staff and high hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection rates increase a hemodialysis patient's odds for acquiring the virus at some...

Serological Screening Most Cost-Effective Method For Detecting HCV.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - Several methods are used for screening hemodialysis patients for hepatitis C virus (HCV), but a new investigation indicates serologically based methods are...

Nonviral Delivery Of Factor VIII Is Safe And Well-Tolerated.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Deborah W. Heinrich, PhD, staff medical writer - Phase I trials began for nonviral gene delivery of factor VIII in the treatment of severe hemophilia A. Though viral vectors are efficient...

Hydroxyurea Safe, Effective For Long-Term Treatment.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - The DNA synthesis inhibitor hydroxyurea can be safely used to provide long-term treatment of sickle cell disease in children, particularly children with...

Peripheral Blood Cell Grafts Provide Immune Recovery Superior To Bone Marrow.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Stem cells from peripheral blood are associated with better immune recovery after transplantation compared with bone marrow grafts, according to...

Conventional And Alternative Styrene Assays Suitable For Use.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Two techniques for measuring styrene levels in blood samples are accurate and sensitive enough for use with workers exposed to this environmental hazard,...

Radiotherapy Safe, Effective After High-Dose Chemotherapy With Stem Cell Grafts.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - After high-dose chemotherapy with stem cell support, radiation therapy can effectively treat high-risk breast cancer patients with limited toxicity,...

Leukocyte Reduction Lowers Viral Load.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Three different leukocyte reduction (LR) techniques are effective for culling cytomegalovirus (CMV) populations in blood products, according to researchers...

New Oral Anticoagulant Given Trade Name.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- AstraZeneca announced it has adopted the trade name Exanta(TM) for its investigational anticoagulant medication ximelagatran. Exanta is being studied in Phase III trials for the treatment of...

Company Says It Has Determined How Carrier Red Blood Cells Can Release Their Payload.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Drugs might soon be dispatched with pinpoint accuracy to diseased organs by using a patient's own red blood cells as drug-carrying torpedoes, reported the June 30, 2001, issue of New Scientist. ...

Researcher Asks Senate Subcommittee For Help.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Dr. John W. Holaday, EntreMed (ENMD), testified before the U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services and Education on advances in research on cancers of the blood...

Age-Group Risk Factors Differentiate Individuals With HCV In Spain.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - Injection drug use, blood transfusions, and surgery lead the list of factors associated with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection among individuals studied in...

European Science Foundation Publishes Policy Briefing For Human Stem Cell Research.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The European Science Foundation (ESF) has released a policy paper recommending the permission of studies of stem cells from embryos and adults. It also suggests reproductive cloning should not...

Genetic Variability May Predict Methotrexate Side Effects.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- In a retrospective study of 220 bone marrow transplant patients who had been treated with methotrexate to prohibit graft-versus-host disease, researchers discovered that those patients with the...

Risks Mount In The United States.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Concerns about vaccine safety, antibiotic use and resistance, and the importation of infectious diseases have recently intensified in the U.S., health officials said. The officials spoke June...

Eurobank Registry Aims To Improve Bone Marrow Transplant Success.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Newcastle University and the Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI), Newcastle, U.K., are embarking on a pioneering 1.7 million pounds sterling project aimed at improving chances of survival for thousands...

Lack Of CD26 Expression Can Aid Diagnosis Of T-Cell Disorders.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - The absence or sharp reduction of CD26 expression on the surface of T lymphocytes can help physicians and health care workers in diagnosing some forms of...

MIFAP Effective Salvage Chemotherapy Regimen.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Researchers in Germany say that a chemotherapy regimen consisting of mitoxantrone, fludarabine, cytarabine and cisplatin (MIFAP), either alone or as a...

Burundi To Try Different Drugs In Fight Against Disease.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Trying to fight three million cases of malaria a year in a population of 6.5 million people is a struggle. Health officials said that alternative anti-malarial drugs should be used in Burundi...

Transmission Via Blood Transfusion Kills Swiss Man.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A Swiss man died of malaria apparently contracted through a blood transfusion received in Switzerland, officials reported in late June 2001. The 70-year-old man received 26 units of blood when...

Janus Kinase 2 Needed For Stromal Cell-Derived Factor-Induced Movement.
July 26, 2001... 2001 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Stem cell migration provoked by stromal cell-derived factor-1 requires the mediation of Janus kinase 2 (JAK2), researchers in Massachusetts say. ...