Pancreatic cancer is a tough opponent. Doctors are always looking for clues to predict how patients will respond to treatment. One such clue might be neutropenia, a condition where white blood cells drop to low levels. This often happens as a side effect of chemotherapy. In a recent study, researchers looked at patients with pancreatic cancer who were treated with a...
Biliary tract cancer (BTC) has long been a challenging disease to treat. Traditionally, doctors relied on a combination of cisplatin and gemcitabine as the go-to treatment. But things are changing. Adding durvalumab, a type of immunotherapy, to this mix has shown promising results. It's making a real difference in how long patients live. So, what's the big deal abou...
In the world of COPD treatment, understanding what makes a therapy work is crucial. The ELLITHE trial took a deep dive into this by looking at how patients responded to a combination treatment involving fluticasone furoate, umeclidinium, and vilanterol. This mix, taken once a day through a single inhaler, showed promising results. The study focused on two key areas:...
Jaw pain can be a real hassle, making even simple tasks like eating or talking uncomfortable. A recent study looked into how well laser therapy and mouth splints work for people with jaw muscle pain. The study involved 99 people, mostly women, who were split into three groups. One group used a mouth splint, another got laser treatments, and the last group did both. ...
Hereditary angioedema (HAE) is a rare condition that causes painful swelling. Two treatments, garadacimab and lanadelumab, were put to the test to see which one works better. Since there are no direct comparisons, researchers used a clever method called matching-adjusted indirect comparison (MAIC) to make an educated guess. Garadacimab was given once a month, while ...
Chordoma is a tough cancer to treat. It's rare, and doctors don't have many options. But there's a new drug called palbociclib that might help. Researchers tested palbociclib on people with advanced chordoma. They wanted to see if it could stop the cancer from growing. The results are promising. Palbociclib works by blocking certain proteins. These proteins help ca...
Back pain that won't quit is a real problem for many people. It's called chronic non-surgical refractory back pain. That's a mouthful, but it just means pain that doesn't get better with usual treatments. Now, there's some interesting news from two big studies. They looked at a high-tech solution called ECAP-controlled closed-loop spinal cord stimulation. It's like a...
Dementia is becoming more common, and it's a big worry. Scientists have found that about 45% of dementia cases could be avoided if people changed certain habits. This is where the European project LETHE comes in. It's all about creating a digital tool to help people manage their risk factors and keep their minds healthy. The idea is to make a mobile app and a system...
Romiplostim is a medication that boosts platelet production in the body. It has shown potential in treating aplastic anemia, a condition where the body struggles to make enough blood cells. This drug is particularly useful for patients who haven't had success with other treatments. However, its effectiveness varies greatly among individuals. Researchers analyzed dat...
Over the past decade, China has been fine-tuning how it approves new traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs). The goal? To make the process better suit the unique nature of these treatments. This effort has led to some interesting changes in what counts as solid evidence for approval. Before the reform, the process was quite different. The focus was heavily on clinical...