Features

Coffee & Breast Cancer

Virus & Cancer !

New Rotavirus Vaccines

Surgery Inside Womb !

Loud Noise Alert !

Magnet Therapy !

New Products of SQUARE Pharmaceuticals Ltd.

EDITORIAL TEAM

OMAR AKRAMUR RAB

MBBS, FCGP, FIAGP, FRSH (UK)

P G Dip. Business Management

LATIFA NISHAT, MBBS

MAHFUZUR RAHMAN, MBBS

MAHBUBUR RAHMAN, MBBS

EDITORIAL

Dear Doctor:

Welcome to this edition of 'e-SQUARE' healthcare online !

Our current issue focused on some interesting features like "Coffee & Breast Cancer, Virus & Cancer, New Rotavirus Vaccines, Surgery Inside Womb, Loud Noise Alert, Magnet Therapy".

In our regular feature, we have some new products information of SQUARE Pharmaceuticals Ltd. as well.

Please send us your feedback !

Click on to reply mode.

Yours sincerely,

Editorial Team

Reply Mode      : e-square@squaregroup.com

The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of its editor or SQUARE PHARMACEUTICALS LTD.

Coffee Reduces Risk of Breast Cancer

A recent study says that women with a BRCA1 gene mutation, which puts them at high risk for breast cancer, could actually benefit by drinking large amounts of coffee. Researchers of the University of Toronto monitored the relationship of coffee consumption and the risk of breast cancer in 1690 women who had either BRCA1 or BRCA2 genetic profiles. Around 40 women from four different countries also participated in this study. The quantity of coffee consumed by these women was recorded by giving them a questionnaire. The report says that women who drank 6 or more cups of coffee per day reduced the risk of breast cancer by 69 percent as compared to women who did not drink any coffee. Additionally, women who drank 4 to 5 cups decreased their chances of developing cancer by 25 percent while women who consumed an average of 1 to 3 cups reduced their risk by 10 percent. The researchers found that coffee had a protective effect on carriers of BRCA1 mutation and appeared to have little or no effect on BRCA2 mutation carriers. "The mechanism by which phytoestrogens may beneficially influence the risk of breast cancer has predominantly been attributed to their structural similarity to endogenous estrogens and their ability to bind to estrogen receptors," the authors concluded. The protective effect of coffee was thought to be because of the phytoestrogens present in it.

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Viro-therapy Against Cancer

A new study conducted by the Researchers at the Hebrew University led to the isolation of a variant of the Newcastle Disease Virus (NDV-HUJ). This virus affects the birds but the variant has a high affinity toward cancer cells. Researchers from the Department of Virology at the Hebrew University Hadassah Medical School, have conducted experiments with this variant virus for the past 5 years and said that it is possible to create a new and effective weapon to fight against cancer. In case of the NDV-HUJ virus it requires cancer cells as the host cell. NDV-HUJ is a natural variant of NDV (Newcastle Disease Virus) and an attenuated variant too. It does not affect the normal cells. One of the possible explanations for this interesting behavior is that cancer cells have some deficiency in the interferon system. Interferons are anti-viral substances hence these variant viruses prefer attacking the cancerous cells. Chemotherapy is effective against the cancerous cells but affects the healthy tissues. On the other hand the NDV-HUJ virus specifically target cancer cells without causing harm to the healthy tissue. The NDV-HUJ virus treatment was experimented on 14 patients suffering from Glioblastoma Multiforme, (GBM) surprisingly they showed regression of the tumor. So far no side effects were observed. This would be the stepping-stone into the new era of cancer therapy.

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New Rotavirus Vaccines Show Success

Two new vaccines against rotavirus, which causes potentially deadly diarrhea, have shown success in clinical trials. The vaccines are called Rotarix and Rotateq. The Rotarix researchers studied more than 63,000 infants in Finland and 11 Latin American countries. The Rotateq team studied more than 68,000 babies in Finland and the U.S., including Native Americans. In each trial, babies either got real or fake vaccines (with parental consent). The real vaccines were better at curbing the rotavirus and were called highly effective at preventing illness from rotavirus, leading to fewer hospitalizations. Unlike an earlier rotavirus vaccine that was pulled from the market, the two new vaccines did not show an increased risk for intussusception.

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Heart Surgery Inside The Womb

At the children’s hospital Boston, a surgery was conducted on a female baby inside the womb. The baby underwent the world's first heart stent procedure in the womb. She was diagnosed with a heart defect called hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) inside the womb. When she was 30 weeks the doctors placed a stent in the developing fetus, the first part of the definitive three-stage corrective operation. In HLHS the left side of the heart is improperly developed. Hence it is very small and can accept very little blood. Usually there is a small hole, which allows the blood to flow from the left side to the right before leaving the heart. But in this case there was absence of a hole and hence the blood accumulated in the left side of the heart and went to the lungs. The doctors reconstructed the connection between the left and right sides of baby's heart by placing a stent that acted like a small blood vessel and carried the blood from the left side to the right side of the heart. At birth, she was breathing normally and did not raise the necessity to be put on a ventilator and recovered smoothly without any major complication associated with neither the disease nor the surgery. The second stage of the operation will occur when she is 4 to 6 months of age and the third and final stage is usually performed between 1 and 3 years of age.

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Loud Noise Linked to Benign Head Tumors

A new study from The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, reveals long-term exposure to loud noise may increase the risk of developing benign tumors linked to hearing loss and a constant ringing in the ears, or tinnitus. OSU researchers analyzed data on noise exposures and tumors of the head and brain. They looked specifically at people who developed a type of non-cancerous tumor called acoustic neuroma. The tumor gradually puts pressure on a nerve crucial to sensing sound and maintaining balance. Researchers found people exposed for long periods to loud music and noise from machines, power tools or construction equipment had the highest risk of developing tumors. They also found the longer the exposure to noise, the higher the risks. People exposed to loud noises who reported wearing ear protection had no increased risk of the tumors.

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Magnet have No Healing Power 

There is no proof that magnets have any healing powers, according to researchers from Drexel University in Philadelphia. They point specifically to problems creating impartial studies where patients are unaware they are using the products. "Extraordinary claims demand extraordinary evidence. If there is any healing effect of magnets, it is apparently small since published research, both theoretical and experimental, is weighted heavily against any therapeutic benefit," lead researcher says. "Patients should be advised that magnet therapy has no proved benefits. If they insist on using a magnetic device, they could be advised to buy the cheapest. This will at least alleviate the pain in their wallet," researchers concluded.

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