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Private website touted as interim alternative to HealthCare.gov
Pamela Lewis Dolan Medical & Allied HealthcareDespite doubts from many, including people within his own administration, President Barack Obama remains confident that the technical glitches that overshadowed the launch of the federal health insurance exchange in October will be fixed by Nov. 30. Those working on the site are feeling pressure after a Nov. 13 report from the Department of Health and Human Services found that the technical glitches had the effect the administration feared — people visiting the site got frustrated and left as opposed to buying a plan. Just 108,185 plans had been sold.
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Steady progress in chemotherapy treatment for biliary tract cancer
Dr. Afsaneh Motamed-Khorasani PharmaceuticalChemotherapy is widely used for the treatment of advanced biliary tract cancer, but the treatment methods are not fully developed in comparison with other types of cancers such as lung and colorectal cancers. Combination therapy, including cytotoxic agents and molecular-targeted agents, has been widely evaluated for advanced BTC for first-line settings. Second-line chemotherapy is found to be more effective for advanced BTC. However, more clinical trials are required to understand the effectiveness of the second-line chemotherapy.
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Understanding integration inhibitors for the treatment of HIV
Dr. Afsaneh Motamed-Khorasani PharmaceuticalIntegration of the retroviral genome into the host cell chromatin is the key step in the development of HIV disease. Blocking the integration of viral genome by integrase inhibitors is an attractive therapeutic strategy. Many integrase inhibitors were developed by rational drug design strategies. Many of these compounds proceeded for preclinical trials, but further clinical development was halted due to in vivo toxicity and nonspecificity of the drugs towards the target.
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Denying the shot: Preventing prescription abuse at the pharmacy
Jason Poquette PharmaceuticalAs pharmacists we sometimes have to take a hockey goalie's approach to prescriptions we are asked to fill. Like my son's slapshots, they must be denied. Sometimes I feel bad about this. There are patients that have real problems with abusing medications. For some of them, there is nothing they would like more than to stop abusing. But they're addicted, and the addicted mind doesn't always respond in calm, rational, logical ways to problems.
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Pharmacists: You impact more than you realize
Anisa Shivji PharmaceuticalI have been a teacher for a few years now and have watched all my students become overwhelmed and frustrated with the stress that accompanies community pharmacy. As I watch their blood silently boil, I fear that in a few years, they will all detest their jobs.
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Cutting edge: What’s new in pharmaceutical R&D
Rosemary Sparacio PharmaceuticalIt is clear that pharmaceutical companies are tackling serious diseases in therapeutic areas that heretofore were more challenging. But new technology has changed that landscape forever. And patients with diseases like cystic fibrosis, cancer, celiac disease and Crohn’s disease — just to name a few — now have a wide variety of drugs to look forward to in the near future.
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Study: Hospital CEO pay and performance not related
Pamela Lewis Dolan Healthcare AdministrationAs physician payment shifts toward outcome and value-based models, a study finds no correlation between quality and hospital CEO pay. A study published online Oct. 14 by JAMA Internal Medicine examined hospital CEO pay and its correlation to various hospital characteristics including technology adoption, quality metrics, financial performance and community benefits.
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Latest automation techniques in immunohematology testing
Dr. Afsaneh Motamed-Khorasani Medical & Allied HealthcareAutomated analyzers have been used in many clinical laboratories since their discovery in mid-1950s. They have many advantages that include improved quality of preanalytical steps, reduced error rates and reduced individual exposure to biohazardous materials. Newer techniques such as column agglutination, solid-phase red cell adherence assay and erythrocyte-magnetized technology are being adapted in immunohematology.
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Research: Old cancer drug may help prevent rejection after transplantation
Joy BurgessAccording to new transplant research in Sweden, an old cancer drug, Zebularine, may help to prevent rejection after transplantation. Rejection of the new tissue or organ has long been a problem for patients after receiving a transplant from an organ donor. However, this new discovery may help scientists to develop new anti-rejection treatments that will provide excellent results for transplant patients.
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Targeting mitochondrial ROS: A novel therapy for a number of diseases
Dr. Afsaneh Motamed-KhorasaniReactive oxygen species are generated in a number of physiological reactions in our body. They are responsible for a number of diseases, such as cancer, inflammatory, autoimmune and neurodegenerative disorders. Currently, an effective antioxidant therapy is not available. Therefore, an in-depth knowledge of the mechanisms responsible for the production of ROS and their role in the inflammation pathways is critical for the development of new drugs.
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