Tag Archives: children

Tailored doses of cytostatic improve survival rate after stem cell transplantation

The results, which are presented in the scientific journal The Lancet, are based on a clinical study conducted at 16 hospitals around the world. Chronic granulomatous disease (CGD) is a rare immune deficiency in children that causes recurrent, often difficult-to-treat bacterial and fungal infections and non-bacterial inflammations of the inner organs, which sometimes develop into tumour-like nodules of inflammatory tissue known as granuloma. …

Parental perceptions are preventing HPV vaccination success

"The greatest misperception of parents is that the HPV vaccine isn’t needed," says Mayo Clinic’s Robert Jacobson, M.D., pediatrician in the Mayo Clinic Children’s Center and lead author of the editorial. "Not only is that wrong, it’s a dangerous idea to be spreading around. Recent figures show that at least 12,000 unvaccinated women develop cervical cancer from HPV every year." Other incorrect perceptions: The HPV vaccines are not safe, and they are given to children when they are too young. Dr. …

Scientist uncovers internal clock able to measure age of most human tissues; Women’s breast tissue ages faster than rest of body

While earlier clocks have been linked to saliva, hormones and telomeres, the new research is the first to identify an internal timepiece able to accurately gauge the age of diverse human organs, tissues and cell types. Unexpectedly, the clock also found that some parts of the anatomy, like a woman’s breast tissue, age faster than the rest of the body. "To fight aging, we first need an objective way of measuring it. …

Newly discovered gene regulator could precisely target sickle cell disease

The researchers — led by Daniel Bauer, MD, PhD, and Stuart Orkin, MD, of Dana-Farber/Boston Children’s — reported their findings today in Science. Prior work by Orkin and others has shown that when flipped off, BCL11A causes red blood cells to produce fetal hemoglobin that, in SCD patients, is unaffected by the sickle cell mutation and counteracts the deleterious effects of sickle hemoglobin. BCL11A is thus an attractive target for treating SCD. …

Cultural differences explain non-completion of HPV vaccination in girls in low-income families

In the study, Spanish-speaking parents whose daughters were not fully vaccinated said their providers either did not encourage the vaccine or didn’t explain that three shots were necessary for full protection. Parents also noted that the vaccine undermined the "no sex before marriage" message they were trying to convey. …

Broccoli to fight skin cancer?

A diet heavy in cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli sprouts, has shown potential risk-reduction properties for colorectal, prostate and various other forms of cancer. Dr. Dickinson’s research currently focuses on how sulforaphane — a naturally occurring compound in broccoli with established chemopreventive properties — could possibly be used to help patients reduce their risk for skin cancer. What sets Dr. …

Genetic cause of childhood leukemia identified

"We’re in uncharted territory," said study author Kenneth Offit, MD, MPH, Chief of the Clinical Genetics Service at Memorial Sloan-Kettering. "At the very least this discovery gives us a new window into inherited causes of childhood leukemia. More immediately, testing for this mutation may allow affected families to prevent leukemia in future generations." The mutation was first observed in a family treated at Memorial Sloan-Kettering of which several family members of different generations had been diagnosed with childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). A second, non-related, leukemia-prone family cared for at a different hospital was later found to have the same mutation…