Health & Drugs
Global effort prompts huge drop in measles deaths
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Measles deaths have plummeted by 74 percent globally this decade thanks to a concerted effort to vaccinate children in Africa and other hard-hit regions, health officials said on Thursday. Full Article
Vermont called healthiest state, Louisiana last
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Louisiana has displaced Mississippi as the unhealthiest U.S. state and other Southern states were close rivals due to high obesity and smoking rates in new rankings that deemed Vermont the healthiest. Full Article
Consumer commission sued over chemicals in toys
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Two public advocacy groups sued the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission on Thursday, saying the commission is acting unlawfully by not planning to fully implement a new ban on toys containing toxic chemicals. Full Article
Vaccine makers urge speedy accord on pandemic plan
GENEVA (Reuters) - Governments need to overcome their "pandemic fatigue" and act quickly to finalize a response plan to potential flu threats, leading drugmakers said on Thursday. Full Article
Abortion not seen linked with depression
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - No high-quality study done to date can document that having an abortion causes psychological distress, or a "post-abortion syndrome," and efforts to show it does occur appear to be politically motivated, U.S. researchers said on Thursday. Full Article
"Rogue" stem cell clinics exploit hope: report
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Rogue clinics around the world may be exploiting hope and ignorance by offering unproven stem cell therapies, a group of stem cell experts said in a report released on Wednesday. Full Article
Study sheds light on breast cancer drug failure
LONDON (Reuters) - The most commonly used breast cancer drug may cause tumors to spread in a small number of women with low levels of a protein which makes cells stick together, British researchers said on Thursday. Full Article
No benefit of extended hepatitis C therapy for some
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - In patients with advanced chronic hepatitis C infection who have not responded to prior therapy with the standard combination drug treatment -- peginterferon and ribavirin -- prolonged low-dose, or "maintenance" therapy does not reduce the rate of disease progression, new research shows. Full Article
Contaminant confirmed in tainted heparin
BOSTON (Reuters) - The contaminant linked to dozens of deaths and hundreds of illnesses from tainted batches of the blood thinner heparin manufactured in China was chemically related to a dietary supplement used to treat joint pain, researchers confirmed on Wednesday. Full Article
European origin may up Latinas' breast cancer risk
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Among United States Latinas, a greater degree of European genetic ancestry is associated with an increased risk of breast cancer, the results of a new study indicate. This could be due to environmental factors, genetic factors, or the interplay of the two, the study team suggests. Full Article
Commodities
| Commodity | Last | Pct Chg | Trade Date/Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oil | 42.38 | -7.22% | 4 Dec 19:58 GMT |
| Gold | 762.0 | -0.85% | 4 Dec 20:07 GMT |
