Health News

• Canada OKs Osiris drug; first stem cell therapy May 18, 2012
  BOSTON (Reuters) - Osiris Therapeutics Inc said on Thursday that Canadian health regulators have approved its treatment for acute graft-versus host disease in children, making it the first stem cell drug to be approved for a systemic disease anywhere in the world. […]
• GSK melanoma drug shows promise in early trial May 18, 2012
  LONDON (Reuters) - An experimental cancer drug developed by Britain's GlaxoSmithKline may add vital months to the lives of melanoma patients whose disease has spread to their brains, according to data from an early-stage trial published on Friday. […]
• South Carolina woman battles flesh-eating bacterial disease May 17, 2012
  CHARLESTON, South Carolina (Reuters) - A new mother of twins in Greenville, South Carolina, is the latest victim of a rare and potentially fatal flesh-eating bacterial infection, health officials said on Thursday. […]
• New York judge with cancer makes case for marijuana May 17, 2012
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - A cancer-stricken judge in New York has become an unlikely voice in support of legalizing the use of medical marijuana with the admission that he smokes pot to ease the side-effects of his treatments. […]
• Breastfed babies may gain less weight May 17, 2012
  NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Babies who are fed milk from their mothers' breasts gain less weight over their first year compared to babies fed milk -- breast or formula -- from a bottle, suggests a new study. […]
• Fewer girls completing all three HPV shots: study May 17, 2012
  NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Among girls and women who get their first human papillomavirus, or HPV, vaccine, the percent who complete all three doses is dropping, according to a new study. […]
• FCC chooses spectrum for wireless medical devices May 17, 2012
  NEW YORK (Reuters) - The telecommunications regulator on Thursday announced plans to set aside a chunk of spectrum for connecting wireless medical devices to allow for more convenient and cost-effective health monitoring. […]
• Study unpicks gene changes behind breast cancer May 17, 2012
  LONDON (Reuters) - Scientists have mapped the complete genetic codes of 21 breast cancers and created a catalogue of the mutations that accumulate in breast cells, raising hopes that the disease may be able to be spotted earlier and treated more effectively in future. […]
• Sex, age may affect athletes' concussion recovery May 17, 2012
  NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Female and high school athletes may need more time to recover from a concussion than their male or college counterparts, a new study finds. […]
• Many pregnant women may not get STD tests May 17, 2012
  NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Despite recommendations that pregnant women have tests for certain sexually transmitted diseases, many may not be getting them, a new study suggests. […]