UPI Health Business articles from July 2007

UPI Health Business archives from July 2007

Eat To Live: New fears over aspartame.
July 2, 2007... Byline: JULIA WATSON LE BUGUE, France, July 2 (UPI) -- Two years ago, Italian researchers at the prestigious Ramazzini Foundation of Oncology and Environmental Sciences published a study that showed feeding rats aspartame at levels per...

Analysis: Electricity used to kill cancer.
July 2, 2007... Byline: ED SUSMAN WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., July 2 (UPI) -- U.S. researchers said Monday that focused electric pulses can puncture holes into cancer cells, killing those cells without using extremes of heat or cold that can damage other...

Analysis: Medicare cracks down on fraud.
July 2, 2007... Byline: TODD ZWILLICH WASHINGTON, July 2 (UPI) -- Medicare officials announced a new effort Monday designed to crack down on rampant fraud among durable medical equipment dealers in Los Angeles and Miami. The Centers for Medicare and...

Health Tips: Avoiding allergies.
July 3, 2007... Byline: LIDIA WASOWICZ Ignorance is anything but bliss A U.S. study shows a dangerous trend among the estimated 12 million Americans with food allergies: ignoring advisory labels that warn of the presence of allergens. The...

Analysis: Akorn impresses the Street.
July 3, 2007... Byline: STEVE MITCHELL WASHINGTON, July 2 (UPI) -- Wall Street likes Akorn's recent moves, including the filing of a new drug application, or NDA, for its ophthalmic gel and its agreement with India-based Cipla to develop a generic drug...

Eat To Live: Good news for peanuts?
July 3, 2007... LE BUGUE, France, July 3 (UPI) -- Parents who live in dread of anaphylactic shock in their children will be cheered to learn that the days of the peanut as the provoker of this horrendously frightening allergic reaction may be numbered. ...

Analysis: Wine flowing for Sirtris?
July 3, 2007... Byline: STEVE MITCHELL WASHINGTON, July 3 (UPI) -- Wall Street's endorsement of Sirtris -- a new pharmaceutical company focused on developing medications based on a compound found in wine -- sent shares rising this week. Sirtris,...

Caregiving: Diahann Carroll says thank you.
July 3, 2007... Byline: ALEX CUKAN ALBANY, N.Y., July 3 (UPI) -- Actress Diahann Carroll wants caregivers to be thanked, so she is putting her star power behind The Wellness Community's Star Campaign, a national effort to honor the people who support...

Analysis: As co-pay rises, drugs use drops.
July 3, 2007... Byline: ED SUSMAN WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., July 3 (UPI) -- Attempts to get consumers in prescription drug plans to pay more for their pills appears to result in less use of medications -- and more use of more expensive hospitalization and...

Analysis: Medicare pay cuts worry doctors.
July 3, 2007... Byline: ROSALIE WESTENSKOW WASHINGTON, July 3 (UPI) -- Proposed cuts in Medicare payments for 2008 have some physicians worried. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced the suggested 9.9 percent reduction in payments...

HealthSmarts: Getting enough shut-eye?
July 5, 2007... Byline: KAREN DENTE NEW YORK, July 5 (UPI) -- Practicing good sleep hygiene is not something most people generally put much thought to. In our busy schedules, we often sacrifice it, squeezing more work and activities into our days at the...

Interview: Non-hospital MRSA more deadly.
July 5, 2007... Byline: ROSALIE WESTENSKOW WASHINGTON, July 5 (UPI) -- Hospital-acquired infections increase mortality rates and healthcare costs, and a growing number each year withstand traditional treatment. Methicillin-resistant staphylococcus...

Analysis: Tibotec's HIV drug shows promise.
July 5, 2007... Byline: STEVE MITCHELL WASHINGTON, July 5 (UPI) -- Tibotec's HIV drug, TMC125, may be better at fighting resistant strains of the virus than current medications, according to two phase 3 trials released Thursday. In the trials, known...

Analysis: Tibotec drugs zap resistant HIV.
July 5, 2007... Byline: ED SUSMAN WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., July 5 (UPI) -- Researchers said Thursday that new anti-AIDS drug can suppress virus to undetectable levels even for patients with highly resistant strains of HIV. "We were able to take the...

Ped Med: Pediatric treatments questioned.
July 6, 2007... Byline: LIDIA WASOWICZ SAN FRANCISCO, July 6 (UPI) -- Recent research casts children in a new medical light that illuminates the error of some doctors' ways. In one study, reported in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine,...

HealthTips: Golfers see red on the green.
July 6, 2007... Byline: ALEX CUKAN Golfers willing to give up sex, hair, raises Four out of 10 U.S. golfers would give up sex for a month to have the perfect golf swing, while one in five would sacrifice their hair and 21 percent would give up their...

Analysis: Stem cells create blood vessels.
July 6, 2007... Byline: ED SUSMAN WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., July 6 (UPI) -- Doctors have succeeded in growing new blood vessels from a person's own bone marrow cells, but researchers said Friday they are still some years away from being able to use these...

Analysis: New cystic fibrosis clue found?
July 6, 2007... Byline: ADRIANNE APPEL BOSTON, July 6 (UPI) -- A lung protein has been found to play a key role in immunity and may be another clue as to why cystic fibrosis patients are so susceptible to chronic, debilitating infections, researchers say....

Analysis: Genes aimed at pancreatic tumors.
July 9, 2007... Byline: ED SUSMAN WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., July 9 (UPI) -- Pancreatic cancer tumors shrink or disappear in animals treated with a molecularly engineered therapy that attacks the malignancy without impacting healthy tissues, researchers said...

Eat To Live: Cheap fuel or pricey food?
July 9, 2007... Byline: JULIA WATSON LE BUGUE, France, July 9 (UPI) -- Keep an eye on your household budget as we move away from fossil fuels and towards grain extracts to keep our cars on the road. What you may save at the gas pump you are likely to have...

Analysis: Street split on Genzyme.
July 9, 2007... Byline: STEVE MITCHELL WASHINGTON, July 9 (UPI) -- Genzyme suffered a setback with disappointing phase 3 results of two of its pipeline compounds, but Wall Street is split on the biotech company's future. Genzyme said last week...

Analysis: Caregiver crisis looming.
July 9, 2007... Byline: ROSALIE WESTENSKOW WASHINGTON, July 9 (UPI) -- As the percentage of Americans over 65 steadily grows, so does the demand for long-term care -- a burden that falls largely on the shoulders of family members, experts said Monday. ...

Ped Med: Kid use of mind medicines rising.
July 10, 2007... Byline: LIDIA WASOWICZ SAN FRANCISCO, July 9 (UPI) -- Research reveals a surge in the use of anti-psychotics and other mind-altering medicines in children and adolescents. The pharmacy benefits manager Medco Health Solutions' forecast...

Analysis: Alnylam is Street's new star.
July 10, 2007... Byline: STEVE MITCHELL WASHINGTON, July 10 (UPI) -- Alnylam shares soared on news of its deal with Roche that could earn the company more than $1 billion in exchange for rights to its RNAi technology. Under the terms of the deal...

Caregiving: Jaclyn Smith on breast cancer.(Disease/Disorder overview)
July 10, 2007... Byline: ALEX CUKAN ALBANY, N.Y., July 10 (UPI) -- Actress and businesswoman Jaclyn Smith says she considers herself knowledgeable, she pays attention to the news and she's won awards for her work in promoting cancer awareness, but she was...

Analysis: Newest diabetes drugs pass test.
July 10, 2007... Byline: ED SUSMAN WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., July 10 (UPI) -- An analysis of studies suggests two of the newest diabetes medications appear safe and effective in helping patients control sugar levels, researchers said Tuesday. The two...

Analysis: Patenting Mother Nature?
July 10, 2007... Byline: ROSALIE WESTENSKOW WASHINGTON, July 10 (UPI) -- Legislation currently pending in Congress would prohibit researchers from patenting genes, but experts disagree on whether such a measure would help or hinder healthcare innovation....

Eat to Live: Organic debate reopens.
July 11, 2007... Byline: JULIA WATSON LE BUGUE, France, July 11 (UPI) -- In the left corner, the organic-is-better-for-you group is waving aloft a fertilizer-free tomato. And in the right corner, the it-ain't-necessarily-so lobby is touting a bottle of...

Analysis: Lawmakers reach broad SCHIP deal.
July 11, 2007... Byline: TODD ZWILLICH WASHINGTON, July 10 (UPI) -- U.S. lawmakers on the Senate Finance Committee said they'd reached the outlines on a deal to expand the State Children's Health Insurance Program. According to lawmakers, the SCHIP...

Analysis: Street betting on Amicus' drugs.
July 11, 2007... Byline: STEVE MITCHELL WASHINGTON, July 11 (UPI) -- Wall Street is betting on Amicus' candidates for treating lysosomal storage disorders, with analysts saying the oral compounds could provide a significant advantage over Genzyme's $1.5...

Analysis: FDA reforms pass House.
July 12, 2007... Byline: TODD ZWILLICH WASHINGTON, July 12 (UPI) -- The U.S. House of Representatives approved new Food and Drug Administration reforms Wednesday, calling on the agency to step up its monitoring of drug safety in the wake of problems with...

Analysis: Medicare HMO debate heats up.
July 12, 2007... Byline: ROSALIE WESTENSKOW WASHINGTON, July 12 (UPI) -- As Congress takes a crack at Medicare reform this summer, some experts have labeled one area of the complex web a money drain. Enrollment in Medicare Advantage plans -- in which...

Analysis: Bush pick: I'll fight pressure.
July 12, 2007... Byline: TODD ZWILLICH WASHINGTON, July 12 (UPI) -- President Bush's pick to be the next surgeon general said Thursday he would resign if the Bush administration tried to exert political pressure over the health advice he gives to the...

Analysis: Breast cancer gene link studied.
July 12, 2007... Byline: ED SUSMAN WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., July 12 (UPI) -- Women who have a genetic disposition for breast cancer appear to have outcomes that are similar to other women who develop the disease, researchers said Thursday. Doctors in...

Analysis: Big Tobacco thwarting ads?
July 12, 2007... Byline: ADRIANNE APPEL BOSTON, July 12 (UPI) -- The tobacco industry is working behind the scenes and pressuring states to spend less on anti-smoking efforts, a public health researcher at Temple University said this week. Jennifer...

Health Tips: Getting hip to bone health.
July 13, 2007... Byline: ALEX CUKAN Getting hip to bone health Americans need to get hip about bone health, according to the National Osteoporosis Foundation. The foundation reports about 10 million Americans have osteoporosis and another 34...

Ped Med: Treatment cracks aplenty.
July 13, 2007... Byline: LIDIA WASOWICZ SAN FRANCISCO, July 13 (UPI) -- A troubling number of troubled children aren't getting the treatment they deserve, U.S. specialists say. Girls and boys with behavioral, emotional and mental problems may fall...

Analysis: Options for colorectal cancer.
July 13, 2007... Byline: ED SUSMAN WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., July 13 (UPI) -- Doctors suggested Friday that for patients with advanced colorectal cancer, a less aggressive, less toxic treatment schedule doesn't compromise survival time, yet may be easier for...

Analysis: Clot risk high in hospitals.
July 13, 2007... Byline: ADRIANNE APPEL BOSTON, July 13 (UPI) -- One out of three U.S. hospital patients is at risk for dangerous blood clots, but far fewer actually receive treatments to prevent the potentially life-threatening condition, according to a...

Ped Med: Non-drug options slighted?
July 16, 2007... Byline: LIDIA WASOWICZ SAN FRANCISCO, July 13 (UPI) -- When it comes to treating children with mental, behavioral and/or emotional problems, the cards seem stacked against giving the non-pharmaceutical way a chance, some U.S. specialists...

Analysis: Street expects weak Q2 for Amgen.
July 16, 2007... Byline: STEVE MITCHELL WASHINGTON, July 16 (UPI) -- Amgen has had a rough year so far and Wall Street is anticipating a weak second quarter performance from the biotech firm later this month. Lazard Capital Markets analyst Joel Sendek...

Analysis: Curry studied in Alzheimer's.
July 16, 2007... Byline: ED SUSMAN WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., July 16 (UPI) -- The most active ingredient in Indian curry appears to help human immune cells remove substances implicated in Alzheimer's disease, researchers said Monday. "We don't think it...

Analysis: Reviving the HIV vaccine hunt.
July 16, 2007... Byline: ROSALIE WESTENSKOW WASHINGTON, July 16 (UPI) -- A renewed emphasis on the critical but elusive HIV/AIDS vaccine is needed, along with more funding, to mitigate the disease's rampant spread in developing countries, health experts...

Caregiving: Physician heal thyself.
July 17, 2007... Byline: ALEX CUKAN ALBANY, N.Y., July 17 (UPI) -- As the only national columnist on caregiving, I get a lot of news releases, but the latest advice to caregivers from the Harvard School of Medicine has made it to my top three most annoying...

Analysis: Blood-fat test better with food?
July 17, 2007... Byline: ED SUSMAN WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., July 17 (UPI) -- New studies suggest that changing the timing for measuring blood fats may provide better information about future heart disease risk -- the test might be more accurate if the...

Analysis: Four ways to cover all.
July 17, 2007... Byline: ROSALIE WESTENSKOW WASHINGTON, July 17 (UPI) -- As the movement for universal health insurance gains momentum, health policy experts took on the more difficult task of finding a way to achieve that goal and presented four possible...

Analysis: New questions about Avandia.
July 17, 2007... Byline: STEVE MITCHELL WASHINGTON, July 17 (UPI) -- GlaxoSmithKline's beleaguered diabetes medication, Avandia, may be facing more bad news this week with the release of a study suggesting the drug may actually worsen complications of the...

Analysis: Does CT raise cancer risk?
July 17, 2007... Byline: ADRIANNE APPEL BOSTON, July 17 (UPI) -- Patients who receive a cardiac CT scan also receive significant levels of radiation that in some cases may lead to cancer later in life -- and young women are particularly at risk, a new...

The Age of Autism: The last word.
July 18, 2007... Byline: DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, July 18 (UPI) -- This is my 113th and final Age of Autism column. United Press International, which has been the hospitable home for this series, is restructuring, and I'm off to adventures as yet unknown --...

Analysis: Rural healthcare below par.
July 18, 2007... Byline: ROSALIE WESTENSKOW WASHINGTON, July 18 (UPI) -- Rural healthcare systems don't measure up when compared to their urban counterparts, several health-sector experts say. "We have an inequitable system across the country," said...

Analysis: Pfizer's Q2 disappoints.
July 18, 2007... Byline: STEVE MITCHELL WASHINGTON, July 18 (UPI) -- Pfizer's second quarter profits plunged 48 percent, a loss the company attributed to the patent expirations of Zoloft and Norvasc and lackluster sales of Lipitor. Goldman Sachs...

PedMed: Keeping tabs on drug effects.
July 20, 2007... Byline: LIDIA WASOWICZ SAN FRANCISCO, July 20 (UPI) -- Following through on a drug's impact after it hits the market by keeping a close eye on the patient and taking swift action if anything goes amiss is not one of U.S. medicine's strong...

Analysis: Health spending bill passed.
July 20, 2007... Byline: TODD ZWILLICH WASHINGTON, July 19 (UPI) -- The House passed a nearly $610 billion spending bill Thursday to fund health and education programs, earning a threat to block the bill from President Bush. Lawmakers approved the...

Analysis: Insulin-signaling longevity key?
July 20, 2007... Byline: ADRIANNE APPEL BOSTON, July 20 (UPI) -- New research shows it may be possible to one day take a life-extending pill that mimics the healthy effects of exercise and a low-calorie diet by lowering insulin signaling in the brain....

Analysis: Panel OK's children's insurance.
July 20, 2007... Byline: TODD ZWILLICH AND ROSALIE WESTENSKOW WASHINGTON, July 20 (UPI) -- A Senate committee approved a $35 billion expansion to a key children's health insurance program Thursday, despite a threat from President Bush to veto the...

Health Tips: Lighter back-to-school load.
July 20, 2007... Byline: ALEX CUKAN Flip-flop foot problems Flip-flops are the footwear of choice for many students, but while they may be inexpensive and stylish, they don't cushion or support the foot and can result in the groans of foot pain. The...

Analysis: Doc bias hurting black health?
July 20, 2007... Byline: ADRIANNE APPEL BOSTON, July 20 (UPI) -- Young doctors may harbor implicit racial biases, and this gets in the way of African-Americans receiving care equal to that of whites, a Harvard University study reported this week. It...

PedMed: Where remedies fall short.
July 23, 2007... Byline: LIDIA WASOWICZ SAN FRANCISCO, July 23 (UPI) -- Despite many pediatric medicines' power to defeat disease and defer death, concerns persist about what critics see as an overselling of remedies that fail to do their job. One...

Analysis: Schering-Plough posts strong Q2.
July 23, 2007... Byline: STEVE MITCHELL WASHINGTON, July 23 (UPI) -- Schering-Plough's second-quarter profits more than doubled, driven by strong sales of its cholesterol drugs, Vytorin and Zetia. Schering-Plough shares spiked in early trade Monday on...

Analysis: Healthcare lessons from Cuba?
July 23, 2007... Byline: ROSALIE WESTENSKOW WASHINGTON, July 23 (UPI) -- The United States could learn a thing or two from Cuba's healthcare system, some experts say, particularly as U.S. policymakers delve into healthcare reform. Although Cuba...

Analysis: AIDS pipeline bursting.
July 24, 2007... Byline: ED SUSMAN SYDNEY, July 24 (UPI) -- Despite a current anti-AIDS arsenal of 28 drugs, researchers this week described several potential new compounds that attack the human immunodeficiency virus, the virus that cause AIDS. "The...

Analysis: Lilly delivers strong Q2.
July 24, 2007... Byline: STEVE MITCHELL WASHINGTON, July 24 (UPI) -- Eli Lilly's second-quarter net profit dipped 20 percent, but the pharmaceutical company's earnings saw a 26-percent increase, beating Wall Street's estimates. A.G. Edwards analyst...

HealthTips: Bikini watchers beware.
July 24, 2007... Byline: ALEX CUKAN Bikini watchers be aware When customers order a bikini cut from Tiger Time Lawn Care in Memphis, they are paying a bit more for a bikini-clad woman to cut the grass. "We had a couple of customers sitting in lawn...

Caregiving: Help is on the way -- not.
July 25, 2007... Byline: ALEX CUKAN ALBANY, N.Y., July 24 (UPI) -- When the U.S. House of Representatives approved the Lifespan Respite Care Act last December, its sponsor said, "Help is on the way for family caregivers," but that help won't arrive anytime...

Analysis: Panel backs Evista cancer claims.
July 25, 2007... Byline: TODD ZWILLICH WASHINGTON, July 25 (UPI) -- An expert panel on Tuesday advised regulators to give Eli Lilly & Co. the go-ahead to expand the approved uses of its osteoporosis drug Evista. The panel of Food and Drug...

Eat To Live: Stick to nature for health.
July 25, 2007... Byline: JULIA WATSON LE BUGUE, France, July 25 (UPI) -- A very, very small study just published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition should come as a relief to manufacturers of high-fructose corn syrup. Tests on 37 people seem to...

Analysis: Spectrum drug could be delayed.
July 25, 2007... Byline: STEVE MITCHELL WASHINGTON, July 25 (UPI) -- A Food and Drug Administration advisory committee dealt a potential blow to Spectrum, GPC Biotech and Pharmion by recommending against accelerated approval for satraplatin, a move that...

Analysis: Treat HIV babies early.
July 25, 2007... Byline: ED SUSMAN SYDNEY, July 25 (UPI) -- Doctors said Wednesday that babies infected at birth with the virus that causes AIDS should be treated with antiretrovirals as soon as the infection is determined -- even within the first three...

Analysis: Can consumers drive down cost?
July 25, 2007... Byline: ROSALIE WESTENSKOW WASHINGTON, July 25 (UPI) -- A large number of patients display consumer savvy when buying healthcare, but most lack the information necessary to make informed purchasing decisions, a recently released survey...

Analysis: Genetic test guides AIDS therapy.
July 26, 2007... Byline: ED SUSMAN SYDNEY, July 26 (UPI) -- For the first time, doctors treating patients with HIV infection have a genetic test that can help guide therapy. The test identifies individuals with a particular genetic disposition towards...

PedMed: Multi-drug use questioned.
July 27, 2007... Byline: LIDIA WASOWICZ SAN FRANCISCO, July 27 (UPI) -- Be it a sign of a growing dependency on drug treatments or increasing incidence of coexisting pediatric illnesses, the number of children taking multiple medications is rising at rates...

Analysis: Gulf War illness still incurable.
July 27, 2007... Byline: ROSALIE WESTENSKOW WASHINGTON, July 26 (UPI) -- Many U.S. Gulf War veterans continue to suffer from mysterious illnesses more than 16 years after the conflict ended, several witnesses testified this week before a congressional...

Health Tips: Forestalling sickness.
July 27, 2007... Byline: ALEX CUKAN Determining and lowering disease risk A Web site allows people to answer a series of questions to find out not only his or her risk factors for several diseases, but how to lower their risk. The Siteman Cancer...

Analysis: Circumcision urged in AIDS fight.(Clinical report)
July 27, 2007... Byline: ED SUSMAN SYDNEY, July 24 (UPI) -- Researchers at an Australian conference called this week for governments and societies to adopt and scale up the voluntary circumcision of adult men as a method of preventing infections that cause...

Analysis: Doc shortage looms in Mass.
July 28, 2007... Byline: ADRIANNE APPEL BOSTON, July 27 (UPI) -- The Massachusetts health reform plan is in full swing, but so is an acute doctor shortage that may curtail the state's goal of providing care to hundreds of thousands of new patients who will...

PedMed: In praise of non-drug solutions.
July 30, 2007... Byline: LIDIA WASOWICZ SAN FRANCISCO, July 30 (UPI) -- Concerned about America's growing dependence on drug treatments, many promoters and protectors of children's health favor shifting at least some of the balance of therapeutic power...

Analysis: Street likes ImClone/BMS deal.
July 30, 2007... Byline: STEVE MITCHELL WASHINGTON, July 30 (UPI) -- Wall Street likes ImClone's deal with Bristol-Myers Squibb for expanding the development of its cancer drug Erbitux, which the biotech company announced ahead of its scheduled Tuesday...

Analysis: Single dads' kids see doc less.
July 30, 2007... Byline: ROSALIE WESTENSKOW WASHINGTON, July 30 (UPI) -- Children in single-father homes have less access to health insurance and medical care than their peers living with two parents or a single mother, according to a new study. "Kids...

Analysis: Panel says Avandia should stay.
July 31, 2007... Byline: TODD ZWILLICH WASHINGTON, July 30 (UPI) -- GlaxoSmithKline's type 2 diabetes drug Avandia should remain on the market, despite concerns that it may promote heart attacks and other cardiovascular problems, a Food and Drug...

Health Tips: Autumn diet make-over.
July 31, 2007... Byline: ALEX CUKAN Get ready to choose wisely With summer's end just weeks away, it is good time to start building a plan for eating right. Experts from The Johns Hopkins Children's Center are especially urging parents to talk to their...

Eat To Live: How to avoid a heart attack.
July 31, 2007... Byline: JULIA WATSON LE BUGUE, France, July 31 (UPI) -- Hardly a week goes by without some food or other being discovered to have some magical property to protect against heart disease. Cocoa is among the latest, with polyphenol, its...

Eat To Live: Save costs, cut packaging.
July 31, 2007... Byline: JULIA WATSON LE BUGUE, France, July 31 (UPI) -- Is your household budget not stretching as far as it used to, even as recently as this past spring? Two surveys confirm that prices have gone up in the supermarkets in the second...

Eat To Live: Indulging cravings on a diet.
July 31, 2007... Byline: JULIA WATSON LE BUGUE, France, July 31 (UPI) -- If you've been on a long-term diet, it's more than likely you'll be battling a craving for certain types of foods you know you shouldn't have. Until now, scientists believed those...

Eat To Live: Food tips for a healthy life.
July 31, 2007... LE BUGUE, France, July 31 (UPI) -- August is just around the corner, so here are some tidbits to mull over at the beach for your very best of health. Well lubricated, of course, with a high skin protection sun cream... Despite the fact...