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Study shows longer treatment for children with langerhans cell hystiocytosis improves survival rates

Washington, DC—A new international study finds that prolonged, intense initial treatment in children with multi-system Langerhans cell histiocytosis (MS-LCH) can achieve survival rates as high as 84 percent—a full 15 percent improvement over the previous clinical trial in this series.

Twitter may become less interactive and more an advertising broadcast medium like TV or radio

PITTSBURGH—Popular social media site Twitter may eventually resemble a broadcast medium like television or radio, with users reading messages written by celebrities and corporations rather than writing their own "tweet" messages of up to 140 characters, suggests a new study coauthored by Andrew T. Stephen, assistant professor of business administration and Katz Fellow in Marketing in the University of Pittsburgh's Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business and College of Business Administration.

Study finds that radiation oncology research is critically underfunded by NIH

Radiation oncology research received 197 grants, totaling only 1.6 percent ($85.5 million) of the $5.4 billion in cancer research funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Fiscal Year (FY) 2013, according to a study available online and in the June 1, 2013, print issue of the International Journal of Radiation Oncology • Biology • Physics (Red Journal), the official scientific journal of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO).

New Mayo Clinic approach could lead to blood test to diagnose Alzheimer's in earliest stage

ROCHESTER, Minn. -- Blood offers promise as a way to detect Alzheimer's disease at its earliest onset, Mayo Clinic researchers say. They envision a test that would detect distinct metabolic signatures in blood plasma that are synonymous with the disease -- years before patients begin showing cognitive decline. Their study was recently published online in the journal PLOS ONE.

Childhood abuse linked with food addiction in adult women

Women who experienced severe physical or sexual abuse during childhood are much more likely to have a food addiction as adults than women who did not experience such abuse, according to a new study published in the journal Obesity. The study's findings provide valuable new information regarding potential causes and treatments for food addiction and obesity.

The value of randomized clinical trials in radiation oncology clinical practice

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Cancer patients, physicians and insurers want to be sure that whatever therapy is recommended and provided to patients is based on evidence, preferably results from randomized clinical trials. But are there enough clinical trials data to provide this level of confidence?

A University of North Carolina School of Medicine study says not necessarily. Radiation oncologists evaluated how often patients were seen in their clinic with medical decisions to be made that were not specifically addressed by randomized controlled trials.

Re-creating the original colors of treasured ivory carvings from the ancient past

The fabled ivory carvings from the ancient Phoenician city of Arslan Tash — literally meaning "Stone Lion" — may appear a dull monochrome in museums today, but they glittered with brilliant blue, red, gold and other colors 2,800 years ago, a new study has confirmed after decades of speculation. It appears in the ACS journal Analytical Chemistry.

Human scabs serve as inspiration for new bandage to speed healing

Human scabs have become the model for development of an advanced wound dressing material that shows promise for speeding the healing process, scientists are reporting. Their study appears in the journal ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces.

EORTC study identifies patients with anaplastic oligodendroglioma that benefit from adjuvant PCV

A further report on the results of EORTC trial 26951 indicates that CpG island methylator phenotype (CIMP) status and O 6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) promoter methylation as assessed by MGMT-STP27 are the most informative for identifying grade III glioma patients who might benefit from the addition of procarbazine, CCNU and vincristine (PCV) chemotherapy to radiation therapy.

Flexible opals

Instead of through pigments, these 'polymer opals' get their colour from their internal structure alone, resulting in pure colour which does not run or fade. The materials could be used to replace the toxic dyes used in the textile industry, or as a security application, making banknotes harder to forge. Additionally, the thin, flexible material changes colour when force is exerted on it, which could have potential use in sensing applications by indicating the amount of strain placed on the material.

New research finds hernia surgery offers value for money

New research suggesting that elective hernia surgery offers value-for-money and improved quality of life for patients has been published by the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine. The new analysis is based on patients' own assessments of their health-related quality of life together with costs reported by hospitals. The research also indicates that keyhole surgery may offer more health benefit and value for money than open surgery for hernia operations. Recently it has been suggested that the NHS could save money by reducing access to hernia repair surgery.

Results of the 'Global Research Council' in Berlin announced

This news release is available in German.

Walking or bicycling to work influenced by others

People who walk or bike to work are likely to influence their co-workers and partners to do the same, according to health researchers. "Social influences are important, specifically interpersonal influences, such as spouses and co-workers," said Melissa Bopp, assistant professor of kinesiology, Penn State. She emphasized that community and employers also significantly influence whether people choose to actively commute.

Want to move up at work? Be a true believer

New research is tweaking an old adage about how to get ahead in a competitive workplace: It's not just who you know, but what you believe in.

A recently published BYU business study finds that employees who are "true believers" in the mission of their organization are more likely to increase in status and influence than non-believers.

Physicians insufficiently informed of the side effects of drugs

Dr. Geneviève Durrieu (from the Pharmaco-epidemiology team assessing the use of medication and the risks involved, Unit 1027 "Epidemiology and public health analyses: risks, chronic diseases and handicaps" - Inserm / Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier) led the French part of this study, the results of which are published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine. Within the framework of this international study, is France proving to be a model student?