Pembrolizumab in First-Line Boosts PFS in HER2-Positive Stomach Cancer
MADRID — Including pembrolizumab (Keytruda) in the first-line treatment of metastatic HER2-positive gastric or gastroesophageal cancer improved progression-free survival (PFS), but potential harm was seen in PD-L1-negative patients, the randomized KEYNOTE-811 trial showed. In patients receiving standard chemotherapy plus trastuzumab, median PFS improved from 8.1 months with placebo to 10.0 months with pembrolizumab (HR 0.73, […]
Scientists says identifying some foods as addictive could shift attitudes, stimulate research
Researchers from the United States, Brazil, and Spain, including scientists with the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC, published an analysis in a special edition of the British Medical Journal with a timely and controversial recommendation: It’s time for an international shift in the way we think about ultra-processed food. “There is converging and consistent […]
Sushi and Pregnancy; Which Vax Are You? ‘Scariest’ Echo Ever
The following contains links to social media websites including X, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. After study author Arghavan Salles, MD, PhD, took to TikTok to discuss her group’s recent findings that patients treated by female surgeons had better outcomes, she received an outpouring of comments describing personal experiences of harm caused by physicians. @doctoryoun […]
Doc on McConnell’s Freeze-Up; Medical Blackmail; Xmas for Nursing Students
The following contains links to social media websites including X, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Emergency doctor @jtrebach shares his medical opinion following Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s (R-Ky.) second public freeze-up. “Please don’t blackmail informed patients into doing things they don’t want to do,” tweeted Arghavan Salles, MD, PhD, after sharing a personal story […]
Testosterone Loss in Older Men: Factors Beyond Age in the Mix
Numerous factors — including body mass index (BMI), lifestyle, relationship status, and a number of disease states — were tied with declining testosterone levels in men over 70, researchers found. In a meta-analysis including about 25,000 men, testosterone levels were fairly stable from ages 17 to 70, but then started to significantly drop after that […]
Medical Hot Takes; Selena Gomez in Anesthesiology; Surgical 5-Second Rule
The following contains links to social media websites including X, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. ICU nurse @scrubhacks and ob/gyn @tiktokbabydoc hop on a TikTok trend to share their controversial hot takes on medicine. Laura Vater, MD, MPH, shares five things she learned in her first year as an attending physician. Medical students from the […]
Infant formula safety checks can be improved with stratified sampling
Producers of infant formula employ comprehensive food safety systems, including product testing to ensure those systems are working. A new study from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign finds that some testing methods are more powerful at catching contaminants than others. Spacing out samples over time in a stratified sampling pattern is better at catching risky […]
Some Health Workers See Double the Risk for Fatal Drug Overdoses
Certain healthcare workers including registered nurses (RNs) were at increased risk for fatal drug overdoses, a longitudinal study from 2008 to 2019 found. After adjustment for various factors, the risk for overdose death was more than twofold higher for RNs (HR 2.22, 95% CI 1.57-3.13) and social or behavioral health workers (HR 2.55, 95% CI […]
Ultra-processed foods largely missing from US food policy: Few federal and state policies consider ultra-processed foods, but policy activity is growing
Ultra-processed foods — including industrially produced packaged snacks, fruit-flavored drinks, and hot dogs — have been linked to health issues ranging from weight gain to certain cancers. So where are the food policies helping Americans to steer clear of these foods? A new study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine finds that only […]
What Do We Know About the EU.1.1 COVID Variant?
The CDC is tracking a handful of new COVID variants, including the EU.1.1 variant, which now makes up an estimated 1.7% of U.S. COVID cases. EU.1.1 is an XBB sublineage related to the XBB.1.5 variant that currently accounts for an estimated 27% of COVID cases in the country. So how worrisome is this variant? Experts […]