NY Attorney general: $100M settlement from health insurers will fund independent cost databaseOctober 27th, 2009 NY AG: Consumers can soon access health cost infoSYRACUSE, N.Y. — Consumers across the country soon will be able to find impartial information about out-of-network health care costs on a new Web site, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said Tuesday.
Coffee may be good for chronic hepatitis C patientsOctober 21st, 2009 WASHINGTON - Patients of chronic hepatitis C, who drink three or more cups of coffee daily, have a 53 percent lower risk of liver disease progression than non-coffee drinkers, says a new study. The study, led by Neal Freedman of National Cancer Institute (NCI), found that patients with hepatitis C related cirrhosis who did not respond to treatment benefited from increased coffee intake.
Biomakers that trigger aggressive liver cancer identifiedOctober 21st, 2009 WASHINGTON - Scientists from Taipei Veterans General Hospital have identified certain biomakers that appear to trigger aggressiveness of liver cancer. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) or primary liver cancer forms in the epithelial tissue of the liver and is most commonly caused by the hepatitis B virus (HBV) or hepatitis C virus (HCV).
High fat diet during pregnancy 'ups severe liver disease risk in offspring'October 14th, 2009 WASHINGTON - In a new study, researchers at the University of Southampton have found that a high fat diet during a woman's pregnancy makes her offspring more likely to develop a severe form of fatty liver disease when they reach adulthood. The research has been published in the journal Hepatology.
Human parasites can cause fatal liver cancerOctober 12th, 2009 SYDNEY - Human liver fluke can bring on one of the most fatal forms of liver cancer by secreting granulin, a hormone known to trigger unbridled cell growth. Michael Smout and Alex Loukas from the Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR) say they are excited by the discovery which shows that a growth hormone from a parasite can affect human cells.
Scientists produce liver cells from patients' skin cellsOctober 9th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Scientists have successfully produced liver cells from patients' skin cells, potentially opening the way to treating a range of diseases that affect the liver's functioning. The research team generated patient-specific liver cells by first repeating the work of James Thomson and colleagues at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, who showed that skin cells can be reprogrammed to become cells that resemble embryonic stem cells.
Scientists grow liver cells from patients' skin cellsOctober 8th, 2009 WASHINGTON - In a breakthrough study, researchers at The Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee have succeeded in producing liver cells from patients' skin cells. Led by Dr. Stephen A. Duncan, the study has paved the way for treating a wide range of diseases that affect liver function.
Protein 'key' may guide efforts to develop treatments for nicotine addictionOctober 3rd, 2009 WASHINGTON - American researchers at Grinnell College in Iowa may be very close to developing effective treatments for nicotine addiction, for they have uncovered a "key" that may "unlock" certain proteins that respond to the poisonous chemical which is found in tobacco. Mark Levandoski, associate professor of Chemistry, examined the family of proteins in the nervous system that respond to nicotine.
Link between metabolic syndrome, liver disease in fat teen boys foundSeptember 30th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Researchers from The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia have found a possible link between metabolic syndrome and liver disease in obese teenaged boys. In the study, researchers have found strong association between metabolic syndrome and elevated levels of the liver enzyme alanine aminotransferase (ALT), a marker of NAFLD.
Wisconsin corrections officials begin work to collect missing samples of DNA from felonsSeptember 22nd, 2009 Wis. corrections officials collect missing DNAMADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin corrections officials have ordered felons whose DNA is missing from a statewide database to report to their local sheriff's department to submit a sample.
Mechanism related to onset of genetic diseases identifiedSeptember 18th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Scientists from Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona (UAB) have identified a mechanism that could trigger onset of various genetic diseases. They have found a process by which proteins with a tendency to cause conformational diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, familial amyloidotic polyneuropathy, familial amyloidotic cardiomyopathy, etc.
Exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke linked to liver diseaseSeptember 11th, 2009 WASHINGTON - People can develop liver disease even when they are exposed to second-hand tobacco smoke, according to a study. Scientists at the University of California, Riverside (UCR) have found that exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke can lead to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), a common disease and rising cause of chronic liver injury wherein fat accumulates in the liver of people who drink little or no alcohol.
Aerobic exercise can cut risk of nonalcoholic fatty liver diseaseSeptember 10th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Patients with a sedentary lifestyle who engage in routine physical activities lower their risk of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), say researchers from the University of Sydney. The lower risk of problems associated with fatty liver was not contingent upon weight loss, but a direct result from the increased aerobic exercise, the study published in the October issue of Hepatology found.
Regular aerobic exercise lowers risk of fatty liverSeptember 10th, 2009 SYDNEY - Patients with a sedentary lifestyle who engage in routine physical activities have a lower risk of developing non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The lower risk of problems associated with fatty liver did not depend on weight loss, but was a direct result of increased aerobic exercise.
Infant with protruding heart stable after operation: doctorsSeptember 3rd, 2009 NEW DELHI - Doctors at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Thursday operated upon an infant born with a protruding heart and pushed the organ within the body after creating space for it. The 8-day-old boy is now said to be "stable and recovering".
