Medicine | GlobalPost

British honeymoon murder suspect's health 'worsens'

Agence France-PresseMay 15, 2013 14:24

A British man wanted in South Africa over the murder of his wife on honeymoon has suffered a mental health relapse, a court heard on Wednesday. Shrien Dewani, 33, is being treated at a hospital for depression and post-traumatic stress disorder but his lawyer said last month his condition had "improved significantly". Dewani's 28-year-old Swedish-born wife Anni was shot dead when a taxi the couple were travelling in was hijacked in a township on the outskirts of Cape Town in November 2010.

FDA approves Bayer Pharmaceuticals drug for prostate cancer that has spread to the bones

The Canadian PressMay 15, 2013 13:15

WASHINGTON - The Food and Drug Administration has approved a new injectable drug that uses radiation to treat advanced prostate cancer that has spread to the bones. The FDA said Wednesday it approved the drug, Xofigo from Bayer Pharmaceuticals, for men whose cancer has grown into bone tumors even after receiving medication or surgery to lower testosterone. The hormone spurs growth of prostate tumors. More than 238,000 U.S. men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer this year and 29,720 will die from the disease, according to the National Cancer Institute.

Fish oil found to slow down effects of junk food on the brain

Agence France-PresseMay 15, 2013 12:45

An analysis of 185 studies suggests that fish oil could minimize the negative effects junk food has on the brain.

NJ Governor Chris Christie has lap band surgery to reduce weight: aide

Thomson ReutersMay 15, 2013 12:32

NEW YORK (Reuters) - New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, who has struggled with obesity for much of his adult life, underwent lap band surgery in February to reduce the size of his stomach, at the urging of his wife and children, his press secretary said on Tuesday. Christie underwent the surgery in February, top aide Mike Drewniak confirmed in an email to Reuters.

Jolie finds more stardom with mastectomy revelation

Agence France-PresseMay 15, 2013 03:30

Angelina Jolie has found another way to be a star. Already a UN ambassador on refugee issues and an Oscar winner, Jolie is receiving accolades from health activists, doctors and fans for her revelation that she had had her breasts removed to reduce her cancer risk. The 37-year-old actress underwent a double mastectomy to minimize the risk that she might develop breast cancer as a result of inheriting a "faulty gene," and chose to publicize her surgery as an example to other women and mothers.

India unveils vaccine for deadly diarrhoea virus

Agence France-PresseMay 15, 2013 01:30

Scientists unveiled Tuesday an affordable vaccine against a deadly diarrhoea-causing virus that kills some 100,000 children in India every year. Rotavirus, which causes dehydration and severe diarrhoea, is globally responsible for some 453,000 deaths annually and is particularly threatening in Africa and Asia, where access to urgent healthcare is often out of reach.

Prosecutor urges 4-year sentence for faulty breast implants

Agence France-PresseMay 15, 2013 01:00

A French prosecutor on Tuesday called for the founder of a firm whose faulty breast implants sparked a global health scare to be given a four-year prison sentence on fraud charges. In closing arguments at the trial in Marseille, prosecutor Jacques Dallest also called for PIP founder Jean-Claude Mas to pay a 100,000 euro ($130,000) fine and to be banned from working in medical services or from running a company. The defence is to present its closing arguments from Wednesday to Friday, after a month-long trial that was among the biggest ever held in France.

Angelina Jolie has double mastectomy due to cancer fears

Thomson ReutersMay 14, 2013 18:45

(Reuters) - Oscar-winning actress Angelina Jolie said on Tuesday that she had undergone a preventive double mastectomy after finding out she had a gene mutation that leads to a sharply higher risk of both breast and ovarian cancer. Jolie, writing in the New York Times, said her mother's death from cancer at 56 and the discovery that she carried the BRCA1 gene mutation led to her decision out of fears she might not be around for her six children.

Salt in foods is still high: US study

Agence France-PresseMay 14, 2013 17:16

The amount of salt in foods that are processed or sold at fast food restaurants is still high despite calls by medical experts for people to cut sodium for better health, a US study said Monday. Americans on average eat more than twice the recommended daily allowance of salt, and as much as 80 percent of sodium consumption comes from salt that is added by restaurants or in the making of convenience foods, experts say.

FDA OKs Roche genetic test to screen for lung cancer patients who respond to Genentech drug

The Canadian PressMay 14, 2013 16:45

WASHINGTON - The Food and Drug Administration says it approved a genetic test from Roche to help doctors identify patients who can benefit from a lung cancer drug made by Genentech. The diagnostic test is the first approved to detect genetic mutations found in roughly 10 per cent of patients with the most prevalent form of lung cancer, known as non-small cell lung cancer.