Evaluation of Scrotal Masses - 2014 review from Am Fam Physician
Scrotal masses are caused by a variety of disorders, ranging from benign conditions to those requiring emergent surgical intervention. Painful scrotal masses require urgent evaluation. Here are some causes of scrotal masses:- Characteristics that suggest testicular torsion include rapid symptom onset, nausea and vomiting, high position of the testicle, and abnormal cremasteric reflex. Doppler ultrasonography or surgical exploration is required to confirm the diagnosis. Surgical repair must occur within 6 hours of symptom onset to reliably salvage the testicle. - Epididymitis/orchitis have a slower onset and are associated ...
Source: Clinical Cases and Images - May 29, 2014 Category: Journals (General) Tags: AFP Oncology Urology Source Type: news
New biopsy method shows prostate cancers considered 'low risk' may be anything but
This study is the first to show the value of using it early in the selection process for men interested in active surveillance.
"These findings are important, as active surveillance is a growing trend in this country," said the study’s senior author, Dr. Leonard Marks, a professor of urology and director of the UCLA active surveillance program. "It’s an excellent option for many men thought to have slow-growing cancers. But we show here that some men thought to be candidates for active surveillance based on conventional biopsies really are not good candidates."
Marks and his team identified 113 men enrolled in the UCLA...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - May 21, 2014 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news
Measles virus used to treat bone marrow cancer
ConclusionThis research has shown that a modified measles virus can produce a long-term remission of cancerous lesions in a person with multiple myeloma that has not responded to chemotherapy. Patients such as this have limited remaining treatment options, so a new treatment would offer an important development.The article describes the response of two women in a phase I trial who received the highest dose of the virus. One of the women had a lasting response; the other woman showed some signs of an early response, but these were not as good and were not as long-lasting. As yet, we don’t know what proportion of patients ...
Source: NHS News Feed - May 16, 2014 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Cancer Medical practice Source Type: news
How Does Pediatric Psoriasis Present?
Discussion
Psoriasis is an inflammatory skin disease that is chronic and relapsing with periods of remission. It occurs in genetically susceptible persons and is felt to be triggered by environmental factors including infection (especially Group A, β-hemolytic streptococcus), emotional and physical stress, and skin irritation including friction, rubbing, pressure and scratching. It is common in patients with certain HLA types including HLA-Cw*0602, HLA-Cw6, IL-15 plus others.
It occurs in about 1% of the general population with two age-onset peaks: 16-22 years and ~60 years, but can occur at any age. Some studies show...
Source: PediatricEducation.org - April 14, 2014 Category: Pediatrics Authors: pediatriceducationmin Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: news
Lab-grown vaginas successfully implanted
Conclusion
This small case series reports the apparent success of using tissue engineering techniques to develop a vagina for reconstruction in four teenage girls who had an absent vagina from birth. All of these girls had the rare condition Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser syndrome (MRKHS), where the vagina and uterus do not develop properly.
The technique used tissue samples biopsied from the girls' own vulva, which were then developed in the laboratory to make a 3D structure for reconstruction. It was hoped that by using this approach they might avoid some of the problems seen with the various types of graft tissue previ...
Source: NHS News Feed - April 11, 2014 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Medical practice Source Type: news
Family history skin cancer link
Mutations switch off gene which protects against sunlight damage to chromosomesRelated items from OnMedicaFifth of women don’t use sun creamConsider family needs in genetic testing, doctors advisedMelanoma in children more likely to be invasiveGP melanoma biopsy speeds referralThree new gene faults linked to skin cancer (Source: OnMedica Latest News)
Source: OnMedica Latest News - March 31, 2014 Category: UK Health Source Type: news
Ninds - parkinsons
Because Parkinson’s is a chronic illness, the issues that face persons with Parkinson’s disease vary with the stage of the disease. One challenge for research is how best to improve quality of life across the span of this disease. This past fall and winter the NINDS and the Parkinson’s community wrestled with this challenge in developing research recommendations for Parkinson’s disease (PD recommendations for research). Two main themes emerged. First was the emphasis placed on developing better treatments for the non-motor manifestations such as declining cognition, dyskinesias, and impaired balance, autono...
Source: PHRMA - March 28, 2014 Category: Pharmaceuticals Authors: Julie Source Type: news
Non-invasive gene expression profile test shown to identify sentinel lymph node negative melanoma patients at high risk of metastasis
Castle Biosciences Inc. has announced study results showing its gene expression profile (GEP) test (DecisionDx-Melanoma) can identify primary cutaneous (skin) melanoma tumors that are likely to metastasize in patients who had a negative sentinel lymph node biopsy. The data are being presented at the Latest in Dermatology Research Symposium session of the 72nd Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Dermatology. The DecisionDx-Melanoma test completed validation in 2013 and is widely used to determine metastatic risk in Stage I and II melanoma patients. (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)
Source: Health News from Medical News Today - March 25, 2014 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Melanoma / Skin Cancer Source Type: news
Worldwide standard in diagnosing melanoma pioneered by Moffitt Cancer Center
Moffitt Cancer Center researchers have been instrumental in making significant improvements to the diagnostic procedure called sentinel node biopsy for melanoma patients and teaching this procedure to physicians from around the world.Sentinel nodes are the first lymph nodes to which cancer cells from a primary tumor like melanoma will spread. In the sentinel node biopsy procedure, a radioactive tracer and a blue-colored dye are injected at or near the melanoma site on the skin and tracked to the first lymph node(s). (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)
Source: Health News from Medical News Today - March 12, 2014 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Melanoma / Skin Cancer Source Type: news
Stem cells generated from skin biopsies of living family members who carry a mutation associated with early-onset Alzheimer's disease
A team of Alzheimer's disease (AD) researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) has been able to study the underlying causes of AD and develop assays to test newer approaches to treatment by using stem cells derived from related family members with a genetic predisposition to (AD)."In the past, research of human cells impacted by AD has been largely limited to postmortem tissue samples from patients who have already succumbed to the disease," said Dr. Tracy L. (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)
Source: Health News from Medical News Today - March 11, 2014 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Alzheimer's / Dementia Source Type: news
Photos of Biopsy Site May Help Prevent Wrong-Site Skin SurgeryPhotos of Biopsy Site May Help Prevent Wrong-Site Skin Surgery
A new survey has fresh advice on how to reduce the risk of wrong-site skin surgeries, a problem many dermatologic surgeons have experienced at least once. Reuters Health Information (Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines)
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines - March 10, 2014 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Dermatology News Source Type: news
Worldwide standard in diagnosing melanoma established
Significant improvements have been made to the diagnostic procedure called sentinel node biopsy for melanoma patients. Sentinel nodes are the first lymph nodes to which cancer cells from a primary tumor like melanoma will spread. In the sentinel node biopsy procedure, a radioactive tracer and a blue-colored dye are injected at or near the melanoma site on the skin and tracked to the first lymph node(s). These sentinel nodes are then surgically removed and analyzed for the presence of cancer cells. If tumor cells are present within the node, the primary tumor has spread and additional lymph nodes may need to be removed and ...
Source: ScienceDaily Headlines - March 10, 2014 Category: Science Source Type: news
Long-term study confirms success of method for detecting spread of deadly skin cancer
Research at UCLA on a technique for detecting the earliest spread of melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, has confirmed that the procedure significantly prolongs patients' survival rates compared with traditional "watch and wait" techniques.
The technique, which combines lymphatic mapping and sentinel-node biopsy, allows doctors to quickly determine whether the disease has spread, or metastasized, to the lymph nodes, which occurs in approximately 20 percent of patients. Patients with cancer in their lymph nodes may benefit from having their other nearby lymph nodes removed. For the other approximately 80 per...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - February 28, 2014 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news
Long-term study confirms success of method for detecting spread of deadly skin cancer
(University of California - Los Angeles) Long-term research that was initiated at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center on lymphatic mapping and sentinel-node biopsy, techniques for detecting the earliest spread (metastasis) of melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, has confirmed that these techniques significantly prolong patients' disease-free and melanoma-specific survival over the traditional observational "watch and wait" techniques. (Source: EurekAlert! - Cancer)
Source: EurekAlert! - Cancer - February 28, 2014 Category: Cancer & Oncology Source Type: news
