Recent studies at Harvard, U.C.L.A. and my alma mater John Hopkins have now made it plain that doctors shouldas soon as proper safeguards can be put in placebe free to offer illicit drugs to patients who are terminally ill, in order to ease their emotional suffering and potentially offer them new perspectivesfueled by drug-induced insightsinto issues like their own mortality. At Harvard, Dr. John Halpern (as reported in the New York Times) tested MDMA (the street drug Ecstasy) to determine if it would ease the anxieties in two patients with terminal cancer. At U.C.L.A. and Hopkins, Drs. Charles Grob and Roland Griffiths used psilocybin (the active ingredient in hallucinogenic mushrooms) to help cancer patients past their paralyzing, debilitating fears. The results are reportedly consistently good. In many cases, patients are able to cope with their physical pain and psychological turmoil better than before. Some, no doubt, feel the drugs opened doors of perception previously closed to them, allowing them to make peace with their lives and the impending end of their lives. The truth is that the likelihood of creating an MDMA or psilocybin addict out of a terminal cancer patient is exactly zero. And, while we all know the … Continue reading →

24 April 2012 Last updated at 01:48 ET By Ciara Riddell BBC NI District Journalist A County Antrim woman has told the BBC how drugs turned her happy child into a withdrawn and agitated teenager. She has claimed paramilitaries are behind drug dealing in east Antrim, and that drugs are readily available. She said it was a major issue in the area and not enough was being done to stop drug dealers targeting young people. Julia, not her real name, said she suspected her son was taking drugs when he was about 14-years-old. She said he changed over a period of time from being a bubbly, family-orientated child to a withdrawn and agitated teenager. Her fears were confirmed when she sought advice from her GP and drug awareness centres and was told what signs to look out for. But she had never dreamed her son would become involved in drugs. "I was embarrassed to go to other parents. You know everyone is talking about your child," she said. "They get labelled as a scum bag and they're not. They get drawn into this thing. It puts pressure on everyone in the family." See more here: How drugs change my child's … Continue reading →

The study looked at 764 French children diagnosed with acute leukaemia and 1,681 children who had not. Researchers asked their mothers for details of fertility problems and if they had sought fertility treatment, including whether the women had been treated with specific methods including IVF, artificial insemination or ovarian stimulation drugs. Dr Jremi Rudant, of the Centre for Research in Epidemiology and Population Health, INSERM, Villejuif, France, who led the research, said: "Previous studies have suggested a link between infertility treatments and acute childhood leukaemia, but there havent been many studies, most of them have been small, and they focused either on IVF or hormonal treatment. "Our study was much larger and its the first time that a specific increased risk linked to fertility drugs has been found." He accepted the study did not prove that fertility drugs caused cases of childhood leukaemia: "More research is now needed to investigate more closely the link between specific types of fertility drugs and what role the underlying causes of infertility may play in the potential development of childhood leukaemia." The study also found that children of parents who struggled to conceive naturally - taking at least a year to do so - … Continue reading →

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/w4s98h/anticancer_drugs) has announced the addition of the "Anti-cancer Drugs Market in APAC 2011-2015" report to their offering. Overview TechNavio's analysts forecast the Anti-cancer Drugs market in the APAC region to grow at a CAGR of 23.7 percent over the period 2011-2015. One of the key factors contributing to this market growth is the increase in the number of cancer patients. The Anti-cancer Drugs market in the APAC region has also been witnessing the trend of an increasing number of awareness campaigns. However, the presence of alternative cancer treatments such as radiation therapy and surgery could pose a challenge to the growth of this market. This report, the Anti-cancer Drugs Market in the APAC Region 2011-2015, has been prepared based on an in-depth analysis of the market with inputs from industry experts. The report focuses on the APAC region; it discusses the Anti-cancer Drugs market in the APAC landscape and its growth prospects in the coming years. The report also includes a discussion of the key vendors operating in this market. Key vendors dominating this market space include Roche Pharmaceuticals Inc., AstraZeneca plc., Novartis International AG, and AstellasPharma Inc. Key questions answered in this report: -What … Continue reading →

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/txzrzq/anticancer_drugs) has announced the addition of the "Anti-cancer Drugs Market in Japan 2011-2015" report to their offering. Overview TechNavio's analysts forecast the Anti-cancer Drugs market in Japan to grow at a CAGR of 11.1 percent over the period 2011-2015. One of the key factors contributing to this market growth is the increase in the number of cancer patients in the country. The Anti-cancer Drugs market in Japan has also been witnessing the trend of using a combination of cancer therapies for treatment. However, stringent government regulations in Japan could pose a challenge to the growth of this market. This report, the Anti-cancer Drugs Market in Japan 2011-2015, has been prepared based on an in-depth analysis of the market with inputs from industry experts. The report focuses on Japan; it discusses the Anti-cancer drugs market in the Japan landscape and its growth prospects in the coming years. The report also includes a discussion of the key vendors operating in this market. Key vendors dominating this market space include Roche Pharmaceuticals Inc., Novartis International AG, Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Eli Lilly and Co., and AstellasPharma Inc. Key questions answered in this report: -What will the market size … Continue reading →

Study Highlights: DALLAS, April 25, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Some patients with irregular heartbeats who are taken off anti-clotting medication face a high risk of stroke or blood clotting within a month, according to new research presented at the American Heart Association's Emerging Science Series webinar. Patients with certain types of atrial fibrillation, or irregular heartbeat, take these drugs to reduce the risks of clots that could lead to a stroke. Sometimes they are instructed to stop taking the medication temporarily before surgery or permanently because of side effects. "No matter what drug they are on, patients who need anticoagulation revert back to their intrinsic risk of stroke and embolism after discontinuation, so it shouldn't be done lightly," said Manesh Patel, M.D., lead author and assistant professor of medicine at the Duke University School of Medicine. "Unfortunately, it's unclear how to provide optimal anti-coagulation coverage during periods of transition." Researchers analyzed data from a clinical trial known as ROCKET AF, finding the risk is similar whether patients are taking the drug warfarin or the newer anticoagulant rivaroxaban. Rivaroxaban is taken once daily and doesn't require the frequent monitoring of warfarin, which requires frequent dose-adjustment. In ROCKET AF, rivaroxaban was found … Continue reading →