Smoking’s effects on genes may play a role in lung cancer development and survival

Smoking plays a role in lung cancer development, and now scientists have shown that smoking also affects the way genes are expressed, leading to alterations in cell division and regulation of immune response. Notably, some of the changes in gene expression persisted in people who had quit smoking many years earlier. These findings by researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, appeared in the Feb. 20, 2008, issue of PLoS ONE. more  

Hormone refractory prostate cancers more likely to spread to other organs

Prostate cancers that are resistant to androgen deprivation therapy are more invasive and more likely to spread to other organs than androgen dependent prostate cancers, UCLA cancer researchers have found. more

Standard test for blood sugar control not accurate in diabetic dialysis patients

The standard test for measuring blood sugar control in people with diabetes is not accurate in those on kidney hemodialysis, according to new research at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center. more  

Obesity linked to stroke increase among middle-aged women

Middle-aged women’s waists aren’t the only thing that increased in the last decade. So did their chance of stroke. In a new study reported at the American Stroke Association’s International Stroke Conference 2008, rising obesity rates have been linked to more strokes among women aged 35 to 54. more

Memory loss and other cognitive impairment becoming less common in older Americans, study finds  

Although it’s too soon to sound the death knell for the “senior moment,” it appears that memory loss and thinking problems are becoming less common among older Americans. more

Study shows effects of vitamin D and skin's physiology 

Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have found that previtamin D3 production varies depending on several factors including skin type and weather conditions. The study will appear in the March 2008 issue of the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research. more

Gene newly linked to inherited ALS may also play role in common dementia

Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have linked a mutation in a gene known as TDP-43 to an inherited form of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), the neurodegenerative condition often called Lou Gehrig's disease. more

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