Using Measurements of 100,000 Molecules Taken from a Single Patient
The Spanish National Cancer Research Centre (CNIO) routinely runs such tests on samples sent in from all over Spain. But analysing genes is just the first step towards a truly personalised medicine. And researchers are exploring new ways to analyse what goes on in each organism at a molecular scale:
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Biomarkers: New Tools of Modern Medicine
Over the last few decades there has been an explosion in the discovery of biomarkers for diagnosis, disease monitoring, and prognostic evaluation. In the April issue of Translational Research, entitled "Biomarkers: New Tools of Modern Medicine," an international group of medical experts explores the promise and challenges of biomarker discovery and highlights the latest advances in the use of biomarkers in various diseases.
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Web-Based Support Helps Women with Breast Cancer
Every day 18 Swedish women are diagnosed with breast cancer. Although there is a real need for support and information, many women struggle and get lost in the deluge of information. In a study of 227 women, researchers at the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, have developed a web-based programme to guide patients all the way from diagnosis to rehabilitation.
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EEG Shows How Brain Tracts are Formed
In the past few years, researchers at the University of Helsinki have made several breakthroughs in discovering how the brain of preterm babies work, in developing treatments to protect the brain, and in developing research methods suitable for hospital use.
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New Method Makes it Easier to Treat Prostate and Pancreatic Cancer
Laser light in combination with certain drugs - known as photodynamic therapy - can destroy cancer tumours, but is today used mostly to cure skin cancer. The reason that internal tumours are not treated with the method is that the technology does not exist to check that the precise amount of light is administered.
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Patients' Online Hospital Reviews Reflect Data on Hospital Outcomes
Patients' ratings of hospitals tally with objective measures of the hospital's performance, according to an independent study published today in Archives of Internal Medicine. Since 2008, patients have been able to post comments on and rate hospitals using the NHS Choices website, in the same way as they might rate a hotel on Tripadvisor.
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Could Alzheimer's Disease be Diagnosed with a Simple Blood Test?
Spanish researchers, led by Pedro Carmona from the Instituto de Estructura de la Materia in Madrid, have uncovered a new promising way to diagnose Alzheimer's disease more accurately. Their technique, which is non-invasive, fast and low-cost, measures how much infrared radiation is either emitted or absorbed by white blood cells.
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