Medical Treatments

Flu shots are recommended for all pregnant women.

Flu Vaccine During Pregnancy Not Linked To Autism

7:39pm November 28, 2016

by Nancy Shute

Neither getting the flu nor getting a flu shot appears to increase the risk of autism in children, a study finds. The shots are recommended because the flu poses health risks to mother and fetus.

Biomedical researchers are amassing huge amounts of patient data but are having trouble making sense of the information.

Big Data Coming In Faster Than Biomedical Researchers Can Process It

6:28pm November 28, 2016

by Richard Harris

There's a plethora of projects to gather data about the brain, various kinds of cancer and every type of cell in the body. But researchers are struggling to keep up with the information explosion.

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Medical researchers are including more patient voices in the discussion of how research is carried out.

Patients Increasingly Influence The Direction Of Medical Research

12:13pm November 28, 2016

by Richard Harris

Medical researchers are no longer ignoring the people who have the most to gain — or lose. But as patient advocates become more influential, they risk being co-opted by the biomedical industry.

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Lobbyists seeking to influence the 21st Century Cures Act descended on lawmakers.

Legislation That Would Shape FDA And NIH Triggers Lobbying Frenzy

6:00am November 25, 2016

by Sydney Lupkin

More than 1,455 lobbyists weighed in on the 21st Century Cures Act in this congressional cycle. Only one health bill since 2011 has garnered more attention.

Marijuana is now legal for recreational or medicinal use in more than half the country, but it's still banned in professional sports.

NFL Players Searching For Painkiller Choices Hope For Relaxed Marijuana Ban

2:36pm November 21, 2016

by Tom Goldman

Now that marijuana use is allowed in 28 states, it has opened up renewed questions about the drug as a pain reliever for people — including players in the National Football League.

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When Morton Pollner was diagnosed with lung cancer at age 76, he thought it was a death sentence.

Older Patients Can Benefit From Lung Cancer Surgery

8:50am November 21, 2016

by Patti Neighmond

Lung cancer affects mostly older people, but they're often not offered surgery as a treatment. A study finds that most older people can tolerate surgery, and that it extends lives.

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When Georgia Moore (second from left) was diagnosed with leukemia in 2010, her parents, Trevor and Courtney Moore, worried about the germs her younger sister, Ivy, would bring home from school.

Texas Parents Have Unanswered Questions About School Vaccination Rates

11:57am November 18, 2016

by Anna Casey

Data about the number of unvaccinated kids in individual public schools aren't available to parents in Texas. Some of them are looking to change the reporting requirements.

The skin of the golden poison dart frog, Phyllobates terribilis, secretes a deadly poison that might lead to a better understanding of how to treat malfunctions of the human nervous system.

Chemists Re-Create Deadly Frog Poison In The Lab

6:28pm November 17, 2016

by Rae Ellen Bichell

The toxin comes from tiny frogs in Colombia — the ones that pack a punch on the tip of poison darts. In the past, research on toxins like this has led to some pretty amazing drug discoveries.

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The number of doctors prescribing millions of dollars in medication annually in Medicare's drug program has risen considerably.

Health & Safety

A Growing Group Of Doctors Are Big-Money Prescribers In Medicare

7:16am November 17, 2016

In 2011, just 41 health care providers prescribed more than $5 million each in medicines under Medicare Part D. In 2015, that number was 514. The rise of expensive hepatitis C drugs is a factor.

Eating healthy will do more for your immune system than megadoses of supplements.

Want To Prevent The Flu? Skip The Supplements, Eat Your Veggies

3:46pm November 16, 2016

by Katherine Hobson

It's flu season — time for the marketing of juices and supplements that claim to boost immunity. But they don't help, scientists say. Instead, try eating healthy and getting enough sleep.