Breast cancer drug Palbociclib freezes the growth of aggressive tumours This delays the need for chemotherapy, enabling women to lead normal lives Rationing watchdog NICE rejecting the drug due to its £2,950 a month cost Drug will only be viewed as cost-effective if its price can be cut to £590 a month A revolutionary drug considered...
Category: <span>Research Updates</span>
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'Helper cells' can turn toxic in brain injury and diseases
For many years, research on neurodegenerative diseases and spinal cord and brain injury has focused on damage to nerve cells, or neurons. Now, a new study of astrocytes – a type of cell that surrounds and supports neurons – finds that there is a subtype that can turn rogue and kill neurons, instead of helping...
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Genetic defect found to cause disease in multiple organs
New research from Queen Mary University of London has identified a novel syndrome in patients with kidney and adrenal disease New research from Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) has identified a novel syndrome in patients with kidney and adrenal disease. The research, published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, identified defects in a novel gene...
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Sickle cell trait may confound blood sugar readings among African-Americans
The test and the traitA new study in JAMA finds that HbA1c tests underreport a key blood sugar measure in African Americans with sickle cell trait. A routine diabetes test produces lower blood sugar readings in African-Americans with sickle cell trait than in those without, potentially leading patients to remain untreated or with a mistaken...
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Vitamin D discovery could prove key to new treatments for metabolic disorders and certain cancers
A team led by Motonari Uesugi, professor and deputy director of Kyoto University’s Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences (iCeMS), found that a vitamin D metabolite known as ’25-OHD’ inhibits proteins that regulate lipid production. Those proteins, called sterol regulatory element-binding proteins (SREBPs), cannot then stimulate expression of lipid-producing genes. “To our knowledge, this is the...