In India, a country with a vast population and a diverse socio-economic fabric, healthcare remains fraught with challenges including disparities in access. These socio-economic disparities are deep, and they influence health outcomes. It is imperative to bridge these gaps amid the ongoing epidemiological, nutritional and demographic transitions that are bringing …
greenpeace International, a pressure group, has called a recent report by the World Health Organization (who) on the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear accident a gross underestimation. who had predicted that the accident would cause 9,000 cancer deaths. But Greenpeace quoted data from the Belarus national cancer statistics to say Chernobyl could …
The case of Gleevec, a cancer drug required for 24,000 patients suffering from chronic myeloid leukaemia in India, highlights the problem with tough patenting regimes, including data exclusivity, in developing countries. Gleevec is made by Novartis and costs a patient Rs 120,000 a month, while Indian manufacturers claim they can …
The bedrock of southern Punjab has high concentration of the carcinogenic elements uranium and thorium. A recent study blames the high rates of cancer in this region on this phenomenon. A report to this effect was submitted to the Punjab State Council for Science and Technology (pscst) in Chandigarh recently. …
Veznova, Belarus Natasha Popova, 12, and Vadim Kuleshov, 8. Natasha was born with microcephaly; her head is too small. Vadim has a bone disease and is also mentally retarded Gomel, Belarus Annya Pesenko has a brain tumour. She was born in Zakoptye, a village which was heavily contaminated, and ultimately …
The Pentagon has stalled efforts to clean water supplies contaminated by a carcinogenic chemical despite evidence that it posed a significant health risk to millions of people, the Los Angeles Times reported recently. The Environment Protection Agency (epa) had conducted a study in the 1990s to assess the danger of …
Researchers at the Johns Hopkins University in the US have discovered a genetic switch that is crucial to cell survival. They found the gene HIF-1 controls the rate at which cells are supplied energy and even helps them cope with the absence of oxygen. A cell's energy demands are met …
compounds derived from cannabis can destroy cancer cells, according to researchers at Barts and the London Queen Mary's School of Medicine and Dentistry in the uk. Led by Wai Man Liu, the team had earlier shown that the active ingredient in cannabis, tetrahydrocannabinol (thc), could treat some forms of cancer. …
does exposure to cadmium increase the risk of cancer and other malignancies? Although the International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies cadmium as a carcinogen, there have been other population-based studies that have yielded inconsistent results. But now, a study by a group of Belgian scientists offers strong indication of …
A patent application filed in India by the Swiss pharmaceutical company, Novartis ag, has been rejected. The company had filed for an Indian patent for the crystalline version of their off-patent anti-cancer drug, Gleevec. Rejecting the application, the office of the controller general of patents, designs and trademarks in Chennai …
Exposure to pesticides as a foetus or as a child can double the risk of developing leukaemia, according to a French study. It also shows, for the first time, that use of insecticides for killing head lice could lead to cancer. Researchers from the Institut National de la Sant
a tree found in India is the world's richest source of camptothecin (cpt), a drug used to treat cancers of the ovaries and the colon. In an effort to ensure sustainable availability of cpt, researchers from Bangalore have carried out a survey of Nothapodytes nimmoniana trees in the Western Ghats. …
scientists at the University of Bonn, Germany, have identified a substance in sunflower that can prevent the human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) from reproducing in cell cultures. Called dicaffeoyl quinic acid (dcqa), the chemical is produced when the plant is infected with a fungus Sclerotinia sclerotiorum , which causes the white …
smelling cancer: Research conducted in the US presents astonishing evidence that man's best friend, the dog, may help in early detection of cancer. Led by Michael McCulloch of the Pine Street Foundation in California, and Tadeusz Jezierski of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Institute of Genetics and Animal Breeding, the …
the 200 million global consumers of aspartame, a sweetener, could be at high risk of contracting cancer, claims a recent study. Conducted by researchers from Cesare Maltoni Cancer Research Center of the European Ramazzini Foundation of Oncology and Environmental Sciences, a non-governmental organisation in Italy, the study shows the sweetener …
tobacco is in for a drastic change in image: a known carcinogen, it may now be used to help fight cancer. The plant might be one of the most effective ways to produce drugs, such as therapeutic antibodies (proteins that fight infection), and vaccines against breast cancer, among other diseases, …
viral cancer: The fusion of human cells is a normal process that leads, for instance, to the formation of muscle and bone. Viral infections can also cause cell fusion, but such cells are generally believed to die without consequences for the host. According to a recent study, however, cell fusion …
At the present stage of India's health transition, chronic diseases contribute to an estimated 53% of deaths and 44% of disability-adjusted life-years lost. Cardiovascular diseases and diabetes are highly prevalent in urban areas. Tobacco-related cancers account for a large proportion of all cancers. Tobacco consumption, in diverse smoked and smokeless …
At the present stage of India's health transition, chronic diseases contribute to an estimated 53% of deaths and 44% of disability-adjusted life-years lost. Cardiovascular diseases and diabetes are highly prevalent in urban areas. Tobacco-related cancers account for a large proportion of all cancers. Tobacco consumption, in diverse smoked and smokeless …
At the present stage of India's health transition, chronic diseases contribute to an estimated 53% of deaths and 44% of disability-adjusted life-years lost. Cardiovascular diseases and diabetes are highly prevalent in urban areas. Tobacco-related cancers account for a large proportion of all cancers. Tobacco consumption, in diverse smoked and smokeless …
