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Cancer-immune, naturally

FOR generations scientists have tirelessly been looking for a cure to what appears to be the enemy from within—cancer. Though tremendous progress has been made and multiple avenues of treatment made available, it is apparent that there is never going to be a single golden bullet to cure cancer because …

NCD battle starts now

Historic it may be—even if watered down. The unanimous adoption of a “political declaration” by the UN on the need to fight the rising tide of non-communicable diseases (NCD) is a singular development and, as analysts have been reminding us, it is only the second time a health issue has …

Is UN giving in to industry?

THE UN General Assembly has adopted a watered-down political declaration to reduce the burden of chronic lifestyle diseases. The event signals the beginning of a larger fight between industry and health policy makers. The resolution was passed at a summit ahead of the General Assembly in New York on September …

Non-communicable diseases: The unrecognised public health threat

Updates from UN Down To Earth reports on UN General Assembly in New York. Keep visiting to know the latest on non-communicable diseases. 'Lifestyle' diseases spur UN to act Health is rarely the topic of discussion at the UN general assembly. But starting September 19, the UN began a high-level …

Time to wake up to threat of NCDs

Jyotsna GovilHonorary additional secretary of the Indian Cancer Society It is the first time the government has agreed that the numbers (of people) killed by non-communicable diseases (NCDs) have long overtaken the communicable diseases numbers. Government was till now concentrating only on the communicable diseases like polio and AIDS. According …

'Lifestyle' diseases spur UN to act

Health is rarely the topic of discussion at the UN general assembly. But starting September 19, the UN began a high-level meeting to debate a strategy to tackle non-communicable diseases (NCDs). This is the second time that the world body is calling a meeting on health. More than a decade …

Evergreen Novartis

For sheer persistence you have to hand it to Novartis. Ever since its blood cancer drug Glivec was refused a patent in 2006, the Swiss multinational has been fighting India’s patent law, or at least a crucial section of it, with the patent authorities and in the courts. With case …

Centre bans gutkha

The government of India has banned the sale of gutkha and other chewing tobacco products across the country. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) issued new regulations on August 1, prohibiting the use of tobacco and nicotine in any edible product. Health experts and civil society groups …

Lured, used and discarded

THAT day when Darla Dhanalakshmi suffered severe joint pain and numbness in the limbs she knew something was seriously wrong. She had been suffering from the pain since January after she visited a clinic on the outskirts of Hyderabad. There she was asked to pop an unknown pill. The pain …

Yoga boost for cancer patients

IT IS standard practice in most Indian hospitals to recommend a physical regime consisting of yoga and gentle exercises to patients undergoing cancer treatment. There has been an understanding that yoga improves physical function and emotional wellbeing as chemotherapy—the commonly used treatment for cancer—causes fatigue and weakens the immune system. …

Ethics on trial

Nine-year-old Rani is unhappy. She has to stay away from her mother Janki Patel, who is taking part in a clinical trial at a centre 10 kilometres from her house at Bapu Nagar in Ahmedabad. “I do not like these trials. They take my parents away,” says Rani. In their …

Poisons we live with

About a year ago, this magazine carried a story on how lethal toys could be. I was struck by a paragraph that described how children could be ingesting chemicals when chewing a toy meant for teething children. That scary feeling came back while reading What’s gotten into us? Staying healthy …

Radiation's unknowns weigh on Japan

As officials in Japan agonise over what constitutes a safe radiation dose for people who live near the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactors, the state of the science has been a daunting problem. Studies on the effects of exposure are based mostly on large doses delivered quickly by atomic bombs, while …

Death on camera

BBC will broadcast the death of 84-year-old cancer victim, Gerald, in the second episode of its new series Inside the Human Body, on May 12. Presenter Michael Mosley told the Radio Times it was important not to “shy away from talking about death and, when warranted, showing it”. Programme makers …

A nano cure for cancer

IMAGINE a future when magnetic particles less than 100 nanometers in diameter will target, detect and capture images of cancer cells in your body. A team from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kharagpur, thinks such a future is possible. Researchers designed nanoparticles that can be used to transport drug …

Push to prevent cancer, strokes

PUBLIC health programmes in India are focused on infectious diseases like cholera and malaria. But non-communicable diseases (NCDS) like cancer and heart ailments are known to kill more people. Union health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad acknowledged rising incidence of NCDS at a two-day World Health Organization (WHO) meeting which concluded …

Kerala gets cautious

Endosulfan poisoning in Kasaragod district has made the Kerala government cautious in its approach to use of pesticides. Agriculture minister M Retnakaran recently announced that the ban on extremely and moderately hazardous pesticides in Kasaragod will be extended to Idukki district. The news augurs well for Idukki, known for its …

Aspirin boosts accuracy

COLORECTAL cancer is a leading cause of mortality in both developed and developing countries. Screening methods for colon cancer depend on detecting the precancerous changes. Generally, colonoscopy is carried out but the test is expensive (Rs 25,000-Rs 30,000) and the procedure highly invasive. An alternative is Fecal Occult Blood Test …

Don’t pee in pool

DO CHEMICALS used to disinfect water harm our health? Evidence suggests drinking water purified with common disinfectants like chlorine and bromine causes urinary bladder cancer. But it was not clear whether the chemicals can affect health when used to keep swimming pools or bathing water clean, until now. Spanish and …

Biography of malignancy

In 1947, a Boston shipyard worker’s child fell sick. Examining the twoyear- old’s blood through the microscope, Sydney Farber, a city doctor, saw billions of malignant white cells “dividing in frenzy, their chromosomes condensing and uncondensing, like tiny clenched and unclenched fists.” The child was suffering from leukaemia and by …

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