What many Americans, including many scientists, think they know about drugs is turning out to be totally wrong. For decades, drug war propaganda has brainwashed Americans into blaming drugs for problems ranging from crime to economic deprivation. In his new bookHigh Price: A Neuroscientists Journey of Self-Discovery That Challenges Everything You Know About Drugs and Society, Carl Hart blows apart the most common myths about drugs and their impact on society, drawing in part on his personal experience growing up in an impoverished Miami neighborhood. Hart has used marijuana and cocaine, carried guns, sold drugs, and participated in other petty crime, like shoplifting. A combination of what he calls choice and chance brought him to the AIr Force and college, and finally made him the first black, tenured professor of sciences at Columbia University. Intertwined with his story about the struggles of families and communities stressed by lack of capital and power over their surroundings is striking new research on substance use. Hart uses his life and work to reveal that drugs are not nearly as harmful as many think. For example, most people who use the most addicting drugs do not develop a problem. Rather, Hart says, drugs are … Continue reading →

Even if we could get a handle on conventional drugs, there would be new ones. Target practice on the USS Underwood, patrolling international waters near Panama, where U.S. Army troops, Air Force pilots, and Navy ships outfitted with Coast Guard counternarcotics teams are routinely deployed to chase drug smugglers. (Dario Lopez-Mills / AP) A trillion dollars deep and arguably no further forward, the war on drugs continues to meet new fronts. Only recently have designer drugs taken hold in forms that effectively mimic the physiologic effects of the substances we've spent decades and lives and fortunes to eliminate. The target moves perpetually faster. Vaughan Bell at The Guardianwrites that almost daily new designer substances seem to be appearing in online marketplaces. In the last year in the U.K. alone there were 73 new psychoactive synthetic drugs found on the market. At that rate demand should easily outpace capacities for detection, much less effective prohibition. Bell writes: Feb 11, 2013. Hypodermic syringes in Myanmar. The city of Myitkyina is known for having one of the highest concentrations of drug addicts in the world. The Kachin Baptist Convention, an evangelical group with over 300 churches in the state, says nearly 80 percent … Continue reading →

TORONTO -- A new study confirms that statin drugs and some antibiotics can interact badly. The study finds that while the interactions are rare, they can be serious. And the authors say that given that these drugs are commonly prescribed and commonly prescribed together, the combination should be avoided. The study was done by scientists at Western University in London, Ont., and the Institute of Clinical Evaluative Sciences in Toronto. It suggests that for every 100 patients who receive the combination of the drugs, there will be one additional hospitalization for acute kidney failure. Lead author Dr. Amit Garg says doctors should consider prescribing other antibiotics, not clarithromycin or erythromycin, for patients who are on statins but need an antibiotic. "Most people will not experience statin toxicity when they take these antibiotics," says Garg, who is a nephrologist (kidney specialist) at the Lawson Health Research Institute in London. "But a small proportion will. And that small proportion that do are getting very serious side-effects, where they're hospitalized, they have acute kidney injury, some of them require acute dialysis. "So we just want to raise attention to the point that this is a preventable drug interaction. There are very simple things … Continue reading →

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/7xpxls/global_kidney) has announced the addition of the "Global Kidney Cancer Drugs Market 2012-2016" report to their offering. Global Kidney Cancer Drugs Market To Grow At A CAGR Of 13.4 Percent Over The Period 2012-2016 TechNavio's report, Global Kidney Cancer Drugs Market 2012-2016, has been prepared based on an in-depth market analysis of the market with inputs from industry experts. Commenting on the report, an analyst from TechNavio's Healthcare team said: ''The vendors in this market are investing heavily in R&D to develop kidney cancer drugs from biological sources because this approach can increase the efficacy of the drugs. Moreover, vendors are formulating effective injection solutions that can help retain the efficacy of the drug molecule for a longer period. For instance, Pfizer Inc. is increasingly focusing on enhancing the efficacy of its kidney cancer drug Sutent. Moreover, vendors are increasing their investment in the R&D of drugs that can be used for the treatment of more than one type of cancer.'' According to the report, the US government has increased expenditure on healthcare because of the prevalence of several diseases, which are largely due to the changing lifestyles of individuals, environmental health hazards, and genetic … Continue reading →