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UK Health News
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Purple GM tomatoes may ward off cancer - The Guardian 27th October 2008
Tomatoes that have been genetically modified to be rich in antioxidants can give protection against cancer, a team of British scientists has found. Researchers at the John Innes Centre in Norwich created the crop of purple tomatoes by altering them with genes from snapdragon flowers. In tests, mice that were prone to cancer lived almost a third longer if their diet was supplemented by the modified tomatoes.
Additional StoryGM tomatoes may ward off cancer – shame they’re purple - The Sunday Times 26th October 2008
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Purple tomatoes are latest weapon against cancer, say scientists - The Telegraph 27th October 2008
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British scientists breed purple ’super tomato’ that can fight against cancer - Daily Mail 27th October 2008
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Purple tomato ‘may boost health’ - BBC Health News 26th October 2008
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‘Fear of pain’ causes big rise in caesareans - The Observer 26th October 2008
Nearly a quarter of all births in Britain last year were by section - up from 9 per cent in 1980. Now a leading midwife says this is ‘unacceptably high’, and that women lack the confidence to have a natural birth. Denis Campbell reports.
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Women comment on their C-section experiences - The Observer 26th October 2008
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Superbugs still claim the lives of too many patients – yet Labour has cut the number of single rooms on hospital wards
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Bad Science: Listen carefully, I shall say this only once - The Guardian 25th October 2008
Welcome to nerds’ corner, and yet another small print criticism of a trivial act of borderline dubiousness which will lead to distorted evidence, irrational decisions, and bad outcomes in what I like to call “the real world”. So the ClinPsyc blog (clinpsyc.blogspot.com) has spotted that the drug company Lilly has published identical data on duloxetine - a newish antidepressant drug - twice over, in two entirely separate scientific papers.
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Call for more use of email and video conferencing across NHS - The Guardian 24th October 2008
The NHS should revolutionise the way it communicates with patients by making more use of email and the internet, a thinktank said today. The health service has been slow to use new technology widely used in other sectors, said the King’s Fund.
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Experience: A 37-year case of insomnia - The Guardian 25th October 2008
When someone tells me they’ve had a bad night’s sleep, I find it hard to sympathise. I can’t believe anyone sleeps as badly as me. On a good night I get three hours of restless catnapping, waking every 15 minutes and then dropping off again. I regularly go for two or three nights with no sleep at all.
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I’m 16 weeks pregnant and still suffering from terrible morning sickness - I’m carrying twins, which could be making it worse. Everyone tells me the nausea should trail off by 12 or 13 weeks, but it hasn’t. When can I expect to feel a little better?
People with mental health problems will be driven into poverty by the introduction of a new benefit today, campaigners have warned. Around half of applicants for the employment and support allowance are expected to be rejected because of much stricter rules, forcing thousands of people with mental health problems on to the much less generous job-seekers allowance, or into jobs they are unable to cope with and which could lead to a relapse in their conditions.
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Benefits reforms to be introduced - BBC Health News 27th October 2008
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‘Zagat-style’ guide will rate hospitals - The Independent 27th October 2008
Ministers are planning the first “Zagat-style” user’s guide to the NHS, which will rate hospitals and GP practices on the basis of comments from patients. Star ratings could be given to the most popular NHS establishments in the same way as guides to eating out rank restaurants on the number of positive responses they receive.
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Number of babies born in prison soars - The Independent 27th October 2008
The number of children born behind bars has almost doubled since Labour came to power, with new figures showing women prisoners currently giving birth at nearly four a week. Figures from the Ministry of Justice show that 283 children were born in prisons in England and Wales between April 2005 and July this year, an average of 1.7 a week. But 49 babies were born between April and the beginning of July this year alone, almost four a week, meaning the 2008 total could reach nearly 200 if births continue at the same rate, more than double the 64 prison births recorded in 1995-96 before Labour came to power.
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Leading article: A prison scandal that should shame us all - The Independent 27th October 2008
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‘Liquid cigarettes’ to be launched - The Independent on Sunday 26th October 2008
A soft drink claiming to offer the same nicotine fix as a cigarette is to launch in the UK. Cans of Liquid Smoking, which look strikingly similar to red and white cigarette cartons, offer smokers an alternative to shivering outside bars and restaurants. “We’ve got a product that has the same effects as nicotine, but which you can drink in restaurants and on flights,” said Martin Hartman of the United Drink and Beauty Corporation.
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Cigarette drink aims to beat smoking ban - The Telegraph 27th October 2008
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Pour yourself a cigarette: The new ‘Liquid Smoking’ drink that promises an instant high for smokers trying to beat the ban - Daily Mail 27th October 2008
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Sight loss drug to be licensed as cosmetic - The Independent on Sunday 26th October 2008
Glaucoma treatment gives users longer eyelashes. It started out as a medicine, a prosaic treatment for glaucoma. Now it is being used for its cosmetic effects, promising to turn women into doe-eyed beauties within days
New StoryMPs must rule on assisted suicide, says Director of Public Prosecutions - The Times 27th October 2008
Any reform of the law on assisting suicide is a matter for Parliament, not prosecutors, the Director of Public Prosecutions has told The Times. Sir Ken Macdonald, QC, said that it would “undermine the rule of law” if he were to say that those who helped loved ones to die could escape prosecution. Link to Article
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10,000 set to pay for top-up cancer drugs - The Sunday Times 26th October 2008
Up to 10,000 patients will pay to top up their care when Alan Johnson, the health secretary, lifts the ban next month on National Health Service patients buying drugs that the state does not fund. Johnson’s U-turn, reported in last week’s Sunday Times, will end the policy of withdrawing NHS care from cancer patients who pay privately for life-prolonging drugs. It follows a campaign by the paper to end the practice.
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Health secretary Alan Johnson man lift ban on top-up payments - The Times 25th October 2008
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Health Secretary Alan Johnson tackles top-ups and trawlers ‘but never yachts’ - The Telegraph 24th October 2008
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NHS rips up drug rules to give dying patients better final weeks of life - Daily Mail 24th October 2008
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Third of ‘regular’ drinkers at risk of fatal liver damage - The Sunday Times 26th October 2008
Almost a third of routine drinkers in a new study had sustained enough liver damage to increase their risk of early death. The research at University College London found an unexpectedly high level of liver abnormalities among routine drinkers described as “normal working people” who consume more than average but would not regard themselves as alcoholics.
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Health trusts spend £50m on translators - The Sunday Times 26th October 2008
Health service trusts are being hit by soaring translation bills, with hospitals and GP surgeries spending more than £50m a year on linguists for patients who cannot speak English. One in six of the 200 trusts that released data under the Freedom of Information Act said the annual bill for interpreters more than doubled last year.
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Scientist quits UK in stem cell row - The Sunday Times 26th October 2008
A leading British scientist is leaving the country to work in France after claiming that British science gives too much priority to embryo experiments over “more ethical” alternatives. Colin McGuckin, professor of regenerative medicine at Newcastle University, believes that more funding should be given to work with adult stem cells.
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Two babies die at hospital with E coli outbreak - The Times 25th October 2008
Two babies have died at a hospital where there has been an outbreak of E. coli. The premature babies were in the neonatal unit at the Luton and Dunstable Hospital in Bedfordshire. A spokesman for the hospital said that the bacterium would have contributed to the deaths of the babies, but would not have been the sole cause.
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Two babies die after E.coli outbreak at hospital intensive care unit - The Telegraph 24th October 2008
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Two babies die in E.coli outbreak at special care unit - Daily Mail 24th October 2008
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Monthly injection stops arthritis in its tracks - The Telegraph 27th October 2008
Hundreds of thousands of rheumatoid arthritis sufferers are offered new hope by a treatment which can stop the disease in its tracks.
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‘Smart drug’ which halts arthritis pain ‘could be here in six months’ - Daily Mail 27th October 2008
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Hospitals bring in knife detectors to stop attacks - The Telegraph 25th October 2008
Police are installing knife detectors in hospital entrances in an attempt to prevent violence spilling on to Accident and Emergency departments.
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Stress due to mounting debt costs NHS millions - The Telegraph 25th October 2008
Treating ill health caused by the stress of bad debts costs the NHS millions of pounds a year, Government research has found.
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Health chiefs face sack if they fail to improve - The Telegraph 25th October 2008
The chief executives of more than 30 failing hospitals and primary care trusts will be fired en masse unless they improve their performance.
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Every call to NHS Direct costs £25 - The Telegraph 25th October 2008
Every phone call to the Government’s health helpline costs the taxpayer £25, new figures show, which is as much as a visit from a patient to a GP.
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Patient’s treatment delayed after notes sent to New Zealand - The Telegraph 24th October 2008
A patient has endured months of back pain because her medical notes were lost after being sent to the other side of the world to be typed up.
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Mother waits three months for arthritis treatment after medical notes are sent to New Zealand - Daily Mail 24th October 2008
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Disgraced Raj Persaud quits job as consultant - The Telegraph 24th October 2008
Celebrity psychiatrist Raj Persaud has quit his job as a consultant at a leading hospital four months after he was suspended for plagiarising the work of other academics.
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Mary Poppins midwife team helps new mothers - The Telegraph 24th October 2008
Max Davidson applauds the return of home-visiting super-midwives .
‘Mothers need to have realistic expectations and to set themselves achievable goals,” says London midwife Anita O’Neill. “They shouldn’t assume that they’ll be able to get back into their size 10 jeans a fortnight after giving birth, then just carry on. Motherhood changes everything.”
A hospital nurse has been suspended for allegedly chatting on her mobile phone while carrying out a blood test. Calista Ukaegbu is said to have used hand signals to tell the woman patient what to do because she was so engrossed in her conversation.
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A woman holidaying in Italy was marched off her flight home to Britain minutes before take-off - for being 31 weeks pregnant. Katharina Bishop was left standing on the runway with her husband and sobbing six-year-old son as airport staff removed their luggage from the hold.
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Widow, 71, died after doctors ignored penicillin warning - Daily Mail 27th October 2008
A grandmother died after hospital doctors gave her penicillin even though her medical notes and drug chart made clear she was allergic to it. June Cutmore was even wearing a red wristband to draw attention to the allergy. The 71-year-old widow went into anaphylactic shock and died after being injected with Augmentin - a form of the drug.
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Pensioners should be prescribed long walks to make them feel happier, Government advisers said yesterday. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice) wants GPs to persuade the elderly to enrol on local walking schemes.
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Thousands of women will be denied preventive medicine for weakening bones under new NHS guidelines, warn campaigners. Some patients with osteoporosis will have to get significantly worse before their GP can give them the treatment they need, says the National Osteoporosis Society (NOS).
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Bright teenagers are a disappearing breed, an alarming new study has revealed. The intellectual ability of the country’s cleverest youngsters has declined radically, almost certainly due to the rise of TV and computer games and over-testing in schools.
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Respect for your elders is a thing of the past, according to a survey published today. Around four in five people believe automatic respect for the older generation has disappeared.
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Lesley Clarke is not the first woman to find solace in the gym, nor will she be the last. She found the endorphins produced by a strenuous regime of stretching and lifting was an effective way to banish the emotional pain of daily life, for an hour or two at least. It was, she concedes, a form of therapy.
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The prostate and why men need to know more about it - Daily Mail 25th October 2008
Prostate cancer is the most common cancer among men in the UK, killing 10,000 a year. This represents only a quarter of the men diagnosed with it. About one in three men over the age of 50 have some cancer within their prostate and nearly all men over 80 have a small area of prostate cancer. Most of these cancers grow extremely slowly and so, particularly in elderly men, will never cause any problems.
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Revealed: The facts behind the great health drink illusion - Daily Mail 25th October 2008
They contain no artificial sweeteners, colours, or preservatives and their natural ‘health boosting’ claims entice millions worldwide to spend an incredible £2.8billion on these drinks a year. But what health benefits - if any - do they really have? ‘Drinking “natural” is a lifestyle choice because too often we assume artificial ingredients are bad for us,’ says nutritionist Dr Carrie Ruxton.
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Almonds … you’d be nuts not to eat them - Daily Mail 25th October 2008
Despite its high fat and calorie content, the almond is starting to emerge as one of nature’s so-called ’superfoods’. ‘Most of the fats in almonds are monounsaturated. It has been shown this can lower cholesterol and so reduce the risk of heart disease,’ explains Dr Joanne Lunn, of the British Nutrition Foundation.
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The scan-tastic ways to discover what health risks you face - Daily Mail 26th October 2008
Scans are now one of the most common tools used by doctors and can pick up early warning signs of hundreds of conditions from heart attack and stroke to hepatitis. And although they are used by the NHS, we increasingly take our health into our own hands. As a result the private physical ‘MoT’ market has soared, with the UK industry now worth an annual £99million - a staggering rise of 30 per cent since 2003. But are these checks necessary and, if so, who needs them and why?
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A woman had to visit doctors more than 1,000 times over 20 years before they finally diagnosed her illness. Christine Wicks, 65, first visited her doctor with persistent sore throats and ear pain in 1988. As the pain worsened and spread around her body, dozens of GPs and specialists blamed her problems on everything from tonsillitis and strokes to multiple sclerosis and heavy smoking - even though she has never smoked.
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Couples may soon be given the option of screening embryos for all genetic diseases after a revolutionary breakthrough by British scientists. A ‘universal test,’ which will allow prospective parents at risk of passing on gene defects to conceive healthy children with IVF, is understood to be nearing completion.
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‘One-stop’ embryo test unveiled - BBC Health News 24th October 2008
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New drugs could be hit in squeeze - BBC Health News 27th October 2008
The credit crunch is likely to hit the discovery and production of many new medicines, experts are warning. Professor David Wield, of the government-backed Economic and Social Research Council, said investment in biotech firms was drying up.
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A guide to the Hippocratic Oath - BBC Health News 26th October 2008
When I asked my medical students to name famous doctors in the history of medicine, their first answer was Harold Shipman, the GP who murdered hundreds of patients. I nearly swallowed my tongue.
E-nose can ’sniff’ out deadly bug - BBC Health News 24th October 2008
An electronic nose has been developed which can identify potentially-fatal strains of pneumonia by “smelling” the breath of a patient. The Breathatron, developed by doctors at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital, works by detecting chemicals in saliva.
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‘I didn’t want to know my risks’ - BBC Health News 24th October 2008
When doctors told Ronald Chapman he had an aortic aneurysm in his abdomen he was worried - he knew nothing about what it was or how it might affect him. The aneurysm, caused when the body’s largest artery swells, had been detected during a scan for an unrelated kidney condition.
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International Health News
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How to wake up to the sun without being late for work - The Independent 25th October 2008
The turning back of the clocks tonight marks the descent into winter, bringing with it shorter days, darker evenings, and a condition that a rapidly increasing number of people now dread all year: seasonal affective disorder – SAD. Figures reveal that up to four million people in the UK may now be affected by SAD – up from 500,000 a decade ago. That, even with a recession descending, has sparked a spending boom among those desperate to find a way to lift the gloom.
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Murky truth behind Swiss suicide ‘clinic’ Dignitas - The Times 25th October 2008
The Swiss call it the Gold Coast, the string of silent, discreetly guarded villas fringing Lake Zurich. Bankers, tycoons and the heirs to family fortunes live here, so the lakeside is fenced off and there is only one narrow rocky strip where the public can plunge into the water.
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‘Thus began the worst journey I’ve been on...’ - The Times 25th October 2008
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Beta-blockers, once widely used to lower blood pressure, may actually lead to heart problems, researchers have warned. The drugs work by slowing the heart rate and so reducing blood pressure - which has been shown to have beneficial effects on people who have had a heart attack or who have heart failure.
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Scientists are step closer to uncovering the ‘ideal cold treatment’ after pinpointing the body’s natural defences to the virus. It activates genes of the body’s immune system in the nose, including natural antivirals, which could form the basis of ‘ideal’ drugs, the team reports.
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Suicide linked to brain changes - BBC Health News 27th October 2008
The brains of people who commit suicide are chemically different to those who die from other causes, a Canadian study has suggested. Researchers analysed brain tissue from 20 dead people and, in those who killed themselves, they found a higher rate of a process that affects behaviour.
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Transsexual gene link identified - BBC Health News 26th October 2008
Australian researchers have identified a significant link between a gene involved in testosterone action and male-to-female transsexualism. DNA analysis from 112 male-to-female transsexual volunteers showed they were more likely to have a longer version of the androgen receptor gene.
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Action call over maternal deaths - BBC Health News 24th October 2008
Urgent action is needed to reduce the number of women dying during pregnancy and childbirth, the World Health Organization has said. Its director of maternal health, Dr Franciso Songanem, said funding needed to be better co-ordinated
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‘New prostate’ grown inside mouse - BBC Health News 24th October 2008
Scientists have grown new prostate glands in mice, in another advance for stem cell technology. The team from San Francisco were able to isolate single cells with the ability to generate an entire prostate.
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Texts tackle HIV in South Africa - BBC Health News 24th October 2008
The popularity of mobile phones in South Africa is helping to tackle HIV and Aids in the nation. Project Masiluleke will send one million free text messages a day to push people to be tested and treated.
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US scientists ‘erase mice memory’ - BBC Health News 23rd October 2008
Scientists in the US say they have developed the ability to selectively wipe out uncomfortable memories. In experiments with mice, researchers from the Medical College of Georgia were able to eliminate memories without any damage to the rodents’ brains.
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Cheshire and Merseyside Health News
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McDonalds: ‘You can’t ban our big macs!’ - Liverpool Echo 25th October 2008
FAST food giant McDonald’s today claimed Liverpool’s bid to ban children’s meals with toys was “unworkable”. City officials are preparing to meet the firm’s executives to discuss the council’s push to outlaw Happy Meal deals to help tackle childhood obesity.
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Mum has baby nine hours after being told she was pregnant - Liverpool Echo 25th October 2008
A TEENAGER gave birth to a baby boy on her mother’s bathroom floor just NINE hours after finding out she was pregnant. Shocked Gemma Gladwinfield, 19, of Stockbridge Village, found out she was seven months pregnant at 5pm on Tuesday.
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North-West in poverty crisis - Liverpool Echo 25th October 2008
AROUND half a million children across the North-West live below the poverty line, the government has admitted. The broad total is the highest of any part of the UK outside London and is unchanged since 2000, when it fell from 600,000.
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Two patients a day hit by danger bug - Liverpool Echo 24th October 2008
MORE than two patients a day caught a potentially deadly superbug at Liverpool’s biggest hospital trust. Figures reveal there were 183 cases of clostridium difficile, or C-diff, at the Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen hospitals in just 91 days from April to June. Dubbed “the new MRSA”, C-diff is hard to control because spores can survive on clothes and surfaces for years.
Additional StoryHospital superbug cases soar by 33% – but new measures show dramatic improvement - Liverpool Daily Post 24th October 2008
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Out-of-hours GPs top table - Southport Visiter 22nd October 2008
MORE Southport GPs are open out-of-hours than in most other parts of the country, new figures reveal. Doctor’s appointments are available in the evenings and weekends at 52.7% of the medical practices in the borough. The statistics – announced six months after a deal was struck with the Government in return for higher pay – show Sefton Primary Care Trust topping the national average of 51.4%, surpassing neighbours Halton and St Helens (21.6%), Wirral (31.1%) and Knowsley (34.5%).
New StoryThe heart of the matter - Chester Chronicle 24th October 2008
STAFF at the Countess of Chester Hospital are being helped to avoid developing diet-related heart disease. The hospital has joined the Heart of Mersey campaign, a health promotion and education partnership that focuses on tackling poor diet, smoking and exercise issues.
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Mind aims to close gaps in mental health care - Chester Chronicle 24th October 2008
GAPS in Chester’s mental health services are being put under the spotlight. Chester and District Mind Association used World Mental Health Day to present their “Mind the Gaps” report into mental health services in the area.
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Hospital gardens aim to help the healing process - Chester Chronicle 24th October 2008
HEALING and art have come together with the unveiling of three gardens at the Countess of Chester Hospital. Each space has been given a work of art, created from workshops held in school and community groups.
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Cumbria and Lancashire Health News
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Cancer unit bid goes to Westminster - Carlisle News & Star 25th October 2008
THE move to build a new £15m cancer unit in South Cumbria has been taken to parliament. NHS Cumbria, the county’s Primary Care Trust, is working with other trusts to assess the feasibility of developing a new facility in South Cumbria to provide radiotherapy and chemotherapy treatments, with WGH a potential site. The oncology unit at Furness General Hospital in Barrow already provides chemotherapy but cancer patients needing radiotherapy have to travel to Preston or Carlisle.
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Care fears as beds cut - Carlisle News & Star 25th October 2008
CUTS to bed numbers at Furness General Hospital have raised fears among staff about the standard of patient care. Beds on the gynaecology ward and a surgical ward are due to go from November 1. The gynaecology ward will have its 16 beds slashed to 10 and it will close at the weekends. Beds on the surgical ward – Ward One – will fall from 30 to 24.
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EXACTLY where Carlisle’s new ‘super surgery’ is built will now be determined as part of a wider review of GP services across the city. NHS Cumbria, the primary care trust (PCT), will look at the accessibility of GP and other frontline services. The review will look at medical sites and assess where there is potential for further development.
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Greater Manchester Health News
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750 get hospital superbug - Manchester Evening News 24th October 2008
MORE than 750 people were diagnosed with the superbug clostridium difficile in three months at Greater Manchester hospitals - but this was a drop on last year. New figures show fewer people in the region suffered from the vomiting and diarrhoea bug between April and June than for the same period last year.
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`Dr’ ban for dentist - Manchester Evening News 24th October 2008
A SURGERY has been ordered to stop calling a dentist `doctor’ in adverts for facial surgery because it is ‘misleading’. The private Woodvale Clinic in Knutsford used dentist John W Stowall’s honorary title in a magazine advert offering ‘a comprehensive range of services to achieve an improved youthful and attractive appearance’, including ‘facial fillers and lip enhancements’.
Full links to the articles detailed can be found at www(dot) fade the blog 2 (dot)blogspot (dot)com, This has been a Podcast of Another 15 Minutes ... Health News from the Fade Library.
