Feature Channels: Blood

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A daily hydroxyurea pill may bring relief for children living with the painful and deadly blood disease sickle cell anemia (SCA) in resource-challenged sub-Saharan Africa, where the disease is prevalent and health care is suboptimal. This is what a multinational clinical trial called REACH discovered when it tested daily hydroxyurea treatment in 606 children between the ages of 1 and 10 years old. Study data are published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

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A new study led by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) investigated rates of bloodstream infection among patients with or without catheters in outpatient hemodialysis facilities in New England.

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A monthly roundup of research briefs showcasing recent scientific advances led by Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center faculty.

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The PhRMA Foundation awarded more than $6 million over the last two years to more than 100 leaders in scientific research in the United States. The Foundation is proud to announce another successful year supporting innovative research efforts in areas of great importance: Alzheimer’s Disease, Melanoma, Parkinson’s Disease, Schizophrenia, Breast Cancer, Lung Cancer, Leukemia, Ulcerative Colitis, Vascular Disease, and Colorectal Cancer. This year the Foundation also funded two Centers of Excellence in Value Assessment.

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Chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (CMML) is a rare disease with overlapping features of two categories of bone marrow and blood cell disorders that poses challenges in clinical management. Joint recommendations on diagnosis and treatment of CMML from two European specialty societies were published today in HemaSphere, the official journal of the European Hematology Association (EHA). The journal is published in the Lippincott portfolio by Wolters Kluwer.

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Kola Jegede, MD, a Brooklyn native, has joined NYU Langone Hospital–Brooklyn with the hope of giving back to his home borough as an orthopedic spine surgeon who can relieve pain and improve his patients’ quality of life.

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A new option – a combination of a standard drug and the novel agent venetoclax – has been granted accelerated approval by the Food and Drug Administration for certain AML patients after a large, multicenter phase 1 clinical trial showed the combination had “promising efficacy” and was well tolerated in older AML patients.

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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first ever inhibitor drug specifically approved for treating patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with a mutation in the Fms-like tyrosine kinase 3 (FLT3) gene.

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Black patients with atrial fibrillation are significantly less likely to receive oral anticoagulants--particularly newer, more effective versions-- than white and Hispanic patients.

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A new clinical trial at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) is the first in the world to investigate whether infusing an infant’s own umbilical cord blood cells, or autologous cells, can protect the brain, mitigating the risk of neurodevelopmental challenges in babies with severe congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH).

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In a study tracking the severe crisis pain of sickle cell disease and its management in 73 adults over a period of a year, Johns Hopkins researchers found that even among those on high doses of daily at-home opioids, a persistent subset was more likely to seek emergency hospital care for crisis pain and was less likely to have the pain controlled by intensive treatment.

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Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center’s latest findings on cancer immunotherapies, CRISPR for blood disorders, stem cell transplantation and insights on the immune system and cancer will be featured at the 60th annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology, which will be held Dec. 1–4 in San Diego.

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An international team of scientists, led by researchers at the University of Cyprus and University of California San Diego School of Medicine, have identified a previously unknown, large-scale association between molecular gene expression activity in blood leukocyte cells and altered neural responses to speech in toddlers with autism as measured with functional magnetic resonance imaging.

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New research reveals a need for better tools for catching severe infections in pregnant women and simple early interventions clinicians can take now to save lives.

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Penn researchers will present findings at the 60th American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition in San Diego, including studies that evaluate CAR T combinations, how the timing of CAR T therapy may impact its effectiveness, and which patients who currently aren’t eligible for CAR T therapy should have greater access.

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Talking with young adults who have Type 1 diabetes about their fears could greatly impact overall quality of life.

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Researchers in Israel have discovered that breast tumors can boost their growth by recruiting stromal cells originally formed in the bone marrow. The study, which will be published November 23 in the Journal of Experimental Medicine, reveals that the recruitment of bone marrow–derived fibroblasts lowers the odds of surviving breast cancer, but suggests that targeting these cells could be an effective way of treating the disease.

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In 2017, the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association released new blood pressure guidelines, lowering hypertension threshold to 130/80 mm Hg from the previous 140/90 mm Hg. A new study predicts that achieving and maintaining the 2017 guideline blood pressure goals could prevent more than 3 million cardiovascular disease events over ten years.

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A new study designed to reach hospitalized patients at risk shows that a “real-time” educational conversation, video or leaflet can lower the missed dose rates of drugs that can prevent potentially lethal blood clots in their veins.

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Anti-malaria drugs known as chloroquines have been repurposed to treat cancer for decades, but until now no one knew exactly what the chloroquines were targeting when they attack a tumor. Now, researchers from the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania say they have identified that target – an enzyme called PPT1.

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Hot water treatment may help improve inflammation and blood sugar (glucose) levels in people who are unable to exercise, according to a new study. The findings are published ahead of print in the Journal of Applied Physiology.

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A new study shows that the genotype of a child with severe combined immune deficiency (SCID) affects his survival rate after stem cell transplantation from an unrelated donor.

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University of Nebraska Medical Center leading national team to determine if ruxolitinib is effective for treating a certain type of graft versus host disease (GVHD) called sclerotic. The grant is funded by Incyte, a global biopharmaceutical company.

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The Public Resource of Patient-derived and Expanded Leukemias (PROPEL) offers patient-derived xenograft samples free of charge for researchers worldwide.

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Endocrine Society experts have expanded their efforts to develop streamlined methods for continuous glucose monitor (CGM) users to better manage their blood sugar levels.

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Cancer scientists led by principal investigator Dr. Daniel De Carvalho at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre have combined “liquid biopsy”, epigenetic alterations and machine learning to develop a blood test to detect and classify cancer at its earliest stages.

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A Phase I/II study, led by investigators at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, reports an investigational drug called tagraxofusp has demonstrated high response rates in patients with blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell neoplasm (BPDCN), a rare but highly aggressive – and often fatal bone marrow and blood disorder – for which there are no existing approved therapies.

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A triple therapy combining two immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICPIs) with the standard-of-care chemotherapy, a hypomethylating agent called azacitidine, has shown promising results for treatment of relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML), according to findings from a Phase II study at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

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Tiny microscopic worms, invisible to the naked eye, are helping scientists to better understand an extraordinarily complex biological pathway that connects fat to overall health and aging in humans.

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Hepatitis C drugs cure more than 90 percent of patients, but can cost more than $50,000 per patient. Findings from a new study could lead to big cost savings. In 50 percent of patients, the standard 12-week treatment regimen could be shortened to as little as six weeks without compromising efficacy.

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A combination of the standard-of-care chemotherapy drug known as azacitidine, with nivolumab, an immune checkpoint inhibitor, demonstrated an encouraging response rate and overall survival in patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML) according to findings from a Phase II study at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

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The Endocrine Society is calling for nominations for the 12th annual Award for Excellence in Science and Medical Journalism. The award recognizes outstanding reporting that enhances public understanding of health issues pertaining to the field of endocrinology.

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People younger than age 40 who have high blood pressure are at increased risk of heart failure, strokes and blood vessel blockages as they age, according to a study in JAMA led by Duke Health.

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By combining the experimental anti-cancer antibody known as 5F9 with the anti-cancer antibody rituximab, researchers managing a phase 1b clinical trial were able to induce a positive response in 11 out of 22 people with relapsed/refractory non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Eight of the 22 patients went into complete remission from their cancers.

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U.S. and European guidelines on treating Polycythemia Vera (PV), a potentially deadly blood cancer, call for two treatments for patients with high-risk disease: therapeutic phlebotomy and cytoreductive therapy with a drug called hydroxyurea (HU). HU is the most commonly used option, but evidence for HU treatment is limited and both treatments are underused. Now, researchers at Yale Cancer Center have documented reduced risk of death and incidence of blood clots in patients receiving those therapies.

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Vascular specialists at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai are the first in the United States to use the Eluvia™, a drug-eluting vascular stent system for clinical treatment of peripheral artery disease (PAD), a circulatory condition that causes a narrowing of the blood vessels and a reduction of blood flow to the limbs.

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A monthly roundup of research briefs showcasing recent scientific advances led by Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center faculty.

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Researchers from the Cancer Institute of Singapore (CSI Singapore) at the National University of Singapore have uncovered an association between RNA abnormalities and MM progression.

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A study from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis offers a potential explanation for why many AML patients experience a relapse after a stem cell transplant, and suggests a therapeutic approach that may help to place relapsed patients back into remission.

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The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology announced today that Kerry-Anne Rye of the University of New South Wales Sydney and Nicholas O. Davidson of Washington University in St. Louis will be the next editors-in-chief of the Journal of Lipid Research.

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Blood pressure and heart rate are not fixed, but rather they adapt to meet physical and social demands placed on the body, according to new research from Binghamton University, State University at New York.

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Mass shootings often trigger a sharp increase in blood donations for affected communities but more than 15 percent of the product intended to save lives could be discarded, according to a study released today in The Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery.

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A new Northwestern Medicine study published in the Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery analyzed the blood resource needs and blood donations in Las Vegas compared to other mass shooting incidents offering insight into medical needs following a mass shooting incident, which may help guide preparedness for future events.

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A new study of measuring blood pressure at home in U.S. populations has found that the ideal level is 130 over 80 or lower.

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• Within one year after initiating dialysis, patients on more frequent home hemodialysis were 23% less likely to die compared with patients receiving traditional in-center hemodialysis. • Results from the study will be presented at ASN Kidney Week 2018 October 23–October 28 at the San Diego Convention Center.

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The results of numerous high-impact clinical trials that could affect kidney-related medical care will be presented at ASN Kidney Week 2018 October 23–October 28 at the San Diego Convention Center.

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In this issue, find research on infant sugary drink consumption, China's top 20 health challenges, aging and healthy years in the Netherlands, and increasing opioid use in Massachusetts

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Multiple myeloma doesn’t play around. Within five years of being diagnosed with this form of blood cancer, about half of all patients die from it. And even if they initially respond well to treatment, the cancer can hide in their bone marrow for years before reemerging in a tougher-to-treat form.

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Researchers at McMaster University have solved a vexing problem by engineering surface coatings that can repel everything, such as bacteria, viruses and living cells, but can be modified to permit beneficial exceptions.

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New findings raise the possibility of a novel treatment for this subtype of blood and bone marrow cancer – known as acute myeloid leukemia or AML – by attacking a harmful molecule found on the cancerous cells and also reactivating the body’s white blood cells to fight them.