Fight Cat Allergies With Newest Asthma Drug?
Subcutaneous immunotherapy treatment (SCIT) for reducing cat allergy symptoms appeared to be more effective and longer lasting with the help of tezepelumab (Tezspire), a monoclonal antibody recently approved for severe asthma, results from a phase I/II trial suggested. While the randomized CATNIP trial failed to meet its primary endpoint — a difference in total nasal […]
SABR for Oligometastatic Cancer Turns in ‘Acceptable’ Rates of Toxicity
Stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) treatment for oligometastatic or oligoprogressive cancer appeared to come with “acceptable” rates of toxic effects, according to SABR-5 study results. Among a population of 381 patients in the phase II trial, and with a median follow-up of 25 months, rates of grade 2 or greater toxic effects were observed in 18.6%, […]
Can Paxlovid, Molnupiravir Benefit Hospitalized COVID Patients Too?
During the Omicron BA.2 wave, antivirals molnupiravir and nirmatrelvir-ritonavir (Paxlovid) appeared to have clinical benefit in hospitalized patients with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 who did not require oxygen therapy, a retrospective cohort study from Hong Kong showed. For patients who were treated with the antivirals within 2 days of hospitalization, a 52% and 66% lower risk of […]
Starch for Cancer Prevention? It’s Not as Bananas as You Think
Resistant starch appeared to have a protective effect against non-colorectal Lynch syndrome-related cancers, according to long-term follow-up of the randomized CAPP2 trial. After up to 20 years of follow-up, 5.8% of participants randomized to resistant starch — a component of dietary fiber found in foods such as bananas, potatoes, grains, pulses, and seeds — had […]
Arecibo observatory scientists help unravel surprise asteroid mystery
When asteroid 2019 OK suddenly appeared barreling toward Earth on July 25, 2019, Luisa Fernanda Zambrano-Marin and the team at the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico jumped into action. After getting an alert, the radar scientists zoned in on the asteroid, which was coming from Earth’s blind spot — solar opposition. Zambrano-Marin and the team […]
Why the Atypical Symptoms in the Latest Monkeypox Cases?
In mid-May, a young man appeared at a hospital in Montreal with a single lesion on his genitals. About a week earlier he had sexual contact with someone who tested positive for monkeypox. Over the next several days, his lesion grew in size and more lesions appeared, but they weren’t painful. He had no fever […]
Vaccination Linked to Reduction in Long COVID Symptoms
Vaccination appeared to reduce the likelihood of continuing symptoms of long COVID, British researchers found. Among adults who were first infected with the virus and then received a COVID-19 vaccine, one dose was linked to an initial 12.8% (95% CI -18.6 to -6.6, P<0.001) reduction in the odds of long COVID, and a second dose […]
House Members Remain Divided on Universal Healthcare
WASHINGTON — Democratic and Republican House members appeared as far apart as ever Tuesday on the issue of the best way to achieve universal healthcare coverage in the U.S. “Republicans are serious on this committee about trying to solve the healthcare problems we have in America, but bigger government and government-run healthcare is not the […]
Pre-Op Atezolizumab Promising in Muscle-Invasive Bladder Cancer
The use of a checkpoint inhibitor combined with chemotherapy in the neoadjuvant setting appeared to be effective for patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC), according to results from a phase II trial. Among 39 patients, the addition of the PD-L1 inhibitor atezolizumab (Tecentriq) to gemcitabine and cisplatin resulted in a non-muscle-invasive downstaging rate of 69% […]
AI for Radiation Therapy Works, but Is it Fully Trusted?
The use of artificial intelligence in creating radiation treatment plans for prostate cancer appeared to be a success, according to a blinded, head-to-head study. Overall, radiation oncologists considered the vast majority — 89 of 100 — of machine learning (ML)-generated plans clinically acceptable for treatment, reported Thomas Purdie, PhD, and colleagues at Princess Margaret Cancer […]