Tag Archives: CDC

Business, Finance, Occupation & Industry

Is It Worth Getting a Flu Shot? The Answer May Surprise You…

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By Sean Williams, The Motley Fool


Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

I believe some of this plays into common misconceptions that the flu shot will make you sicker, as well as the fact that researchers are doing nothing more than giving you their best guess as to which strain will be dominant this year. Without certainties, more people than the CDC would like are opting not to get vaccinated.

Conversely, this represents a major growth opportunity for flu vaccine makers. These include:

  • FluMist by AstraZeneca : This is the only nasal spray approved by the FDA, and, according to AstraZeneca, it produced 12 million doses for this year’s flu season. Despite having no needles involved, sales of FluMist haven’t taken off as many analysts had expected.
  • Fluzone by Sanofi : As of January, Sanofi’s Fluzone had sold better than expected, with the company producing 60 million doses and selling out of certain aspects of its immunization therapy. Fluzone comes with a particularly shorter and less intimidating needle, which induces less apprehension over “getting a shot.”
  • Fluvirin by Novartis : Novartis’ Fluvirin shipped roughly 36 million doses through mid-January and works in similar fashion to Fluzone. One of the big difference is its approval, which ranges from age 4 and up, versus Fluzone, which can be used in infants as young as six months.
  • Fluarix, Flulaval, and Relenza by GlaxoSmithKline : Flulaval is a vaccine that Glaxo has been supplying regularly for nearly a decade. Fluarix is an “

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Every year, it appears that flu season starts earlier and earlier, and somehow, every year, the virus mutates into its “most virulent form ever.” Sometimes it’s a wonder we even survive with the way that news stations discuss the near-plague that sweeps across the country beginning every fall and extending into winter. Yet, we persevere based on a combination of factors, including good genetics, healthy eating habits, making smart life choices, and, supposedly, in some cases, by getting a flu shot.

Keep that needle away, Doc
The jury has definitely been shown both sides of the coin when it comes to the effectiveness of annual flu vaccines. On one hand, physicians will admit that the flu shot is not a cure-all potion that will prevent the flu. Researchers, each year, must take their best guesses based on the data available on what strains of the flu will be circulating and hope that they’ve given flu vaccine manufacturers the proper guide to protect our growing, and aging, population. These guesses are often fairly accurate, but they don’t produce perfect results.

There’s also quite a bit of skepticism regarding the effectiveness of existing flu medications like Tamiflu, which was developed by Gilead Sciences and licensed to Roche . In November, a researcher linked to the British Medical Journal called for European Union nations to sue Roche for not divulging all of its Tamiflu records in 2009 when requested. Roche countered by noting that it released all pertinent legal information, but refused to release confidential patient-level data to the BMJ researchers. The World Health Organization added Tamiflu to its “essential medicines” list, which resulted in many countries stockpiling the medication. However, the vaccine is simultaneously being investigated by the European Medicines Agency (Europe’s version of the Food and Drug Administration) for not reporting the side effects — including deaths — for 19 separate drugs, including Tamiflu, used on approximately 80,000 people in the U.S. 

The numbers don’t lie
On the other hand, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have made it quite statistically clear that there exists demonstrable evidence that flu shots serve a benefit to the greater population. Whether it be in reducing the severity or longevity of the illness, or building the body’s immune system up to support against the virus, the CDC is clear in recommending that people over the age of six months get vaccinated annually.

The CDC posted its mid-season update for 2012-2013 on this year’s vaccine effectiveness (known as VE) on Feb. 21. To my astonishment, the figures were actually quite encouraging. The CDC‘s VE estimate for protection all age groups was 56%. This year’s vaccine was 47% effective against flu A — the H3N2 virus, which is the most common virus this season – and 67% effective against flu B. These results might underwhelm some of you, but the end result is that patients who developed flu A had their chance of hospitalization …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Health

Number Of Turberculosis Cases Reaches All Time Low, USA

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The incidence of tuberculosis (TB) reached an all-time low in 2012, with only 9,951 reported cases of TB last year in the United States, according to a new CDC report. This represents a 6.1 percent drop from 2011. The provisional TB surveillance data indicated that 44.2% of counties in the United States didn’t report any new cases of TB between 2010 and 2012. Foreign born people were 11… …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Medical News Today

Health

One In 50 Kids Has Autism In U.S., CDC

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One in 50 school-aged kids has autism in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The finding came from a survey of parents which revealed that the number of American children with autism spectrum disorder has increased significantly since 2007. As of 2012, one in 50 kids aged 6 to 17 has a form of autism, vs. one in 88 children just five years prior… …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Medical News Today

Business, Finance, Occupation & Industry

Arena Faces Europe's Obesity Opportunity

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By Dan Carroll, The Motley Fool

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You can’t find a hotter topic in health care than obesity. From its impact on public health and quality of life to its long-term costs to advanced economies, rising obesity rates across the world are one of the most polarizing trends for the future. It’s no surprise then that Arena Pharmaceuticals and VIVUS  — rivals squaring off with their FDA-approved obesity drugs Belviq and Qsymia, respectively — capture the hearts and opinions of investors everywhere.

While the FDA has been happy to welcome Belviq and Qsymia to the market, Europe hasn’t been so kind. The European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use, or CHMP, rejected VIVUS’ appeal for approval last month and has also raised questions this year about Belviq’s approval. While Arena’s European fate hasn’t been decided yet, what are these companies missing out on if Europe rejects both obesity drugs? Let’s go inside the obesity crisis across the Atlantic to see just how damaging a rejection could be.

Lower obesity rates, but no less a crisis
It’s easy to point to the U.S. as the capital of the obesity revolution, but Europe’s not at all skinny by comparison. The U.K.’s Academy of Medical Royal Colleges has raised concerns that Britain’s obesity crisis could soon become “unresolvable,” and rates are on the rise across the continent.

According to the World Health Organization, between 2% an 8% of all health care costs can be attributed to obesity in Europe, depending on country and region. That’s considerably less than the U.S., where 17% of all health care costs come back to obesity; then again, European obesity rates are considerably less than in America.

15% of French citizens were obese as of 2012, according to a study sponsored by ObEpi-Roche — while Romania reported obesity rates of just 8% in women and 7.6% in men. The U.K. reported the top obesity rate among European women at 24%, while Malta reported the highest male rate at 22%. Both are still considerably less than the U.S.’s astronomical 35.7% adult obesity rate in 2012, as measured by the CDC.

That’s not to say that obesity drug companies like Arena don’t have an opportunity in Europe. Obesity rates have been rising fast — France’s 2012 statistic included a 35% increase in obesity in 18 to 24 year-olds in just the prior three years. By comparison, only 11.2% of French citizens were obese in 2008; total obesity rates for the nation climbed almost 34% between 2008 and 2012. Europe’s problem is growing fast, but America’s obesity crisis still tops the charts among advanced economies.

However, with health care budgets under attack in Europe due to the continent’s ongoing fiscal crisis, Europe’s ability to pay for obesity drugs is under fire.

Budgets under fire
France’s 2012 obesity study showed that poorer people had a higher likelihood of being obese than their wealthier counterparts. While Arena’s Belviq isn’t a very expensive drug by pharmaceutical standards — the company set …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Business, Finance, Occupation & Industry

Meridian Bioscience Announces illumigene® Group A Streptococcus and illumigene® Group B Streptococcu

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By Business Wirevia The Motley Fool

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Meridian Bioscience Announces illumi gene ® Group A Streptococcus and illumi gene ® Group B Streptococcus Tests Categorized “Moderate Complexity” by FDA

CINCINNATI–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Meridian Bioscience, Inc., Cincinnati, Ohio (NAS: VIVO) today announced the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) has re-categorized Meridian’s illumigene®Group A Streptococcus andillumigene® Group B Streptococcus tests as “Moderate Complexity” under the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA). Moderately complex tests are assays that are considered to be simple and easy to use.

The Moderate Complexity categorization of both of these tests allows the benefits of the illumigene platform to be available to all Moderate Complexity laboratories that are in U.S. hospitals and clinics, empowering them to offer an accurate, rapid, simple molecular test for each of these pathogens.


illumigene Group A Streptococcus is a qualitative molecular test for the detection of Group A Strep pharyngitis. Acute pharyngitis is one of the most frequent illnesses for which pediatricians and other primary care physicians are consulted, with an estimated 15 million visits per year in the United States. Clinical studies show that illumigene Group A Streptococcus increased detection of positives by 53% over traditional culture in symptomatic patients.

Group B Streptococcus (GBS) continues to be a major perinatal pathogen, for both mothers and their infants, and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. illumigene Group B Streptococcus fully complies with the CDC guidelines for the detection of GBS and clinical studies have shown that broth enrichment, followed by testing with illumigene Group B Streptococcus, increased detection of true positives by 29% over traditional culture, thus allowing for appropriate treatment of mother at time of delivery, ensuring the best outcome for baby.

Jack Kraeutler, Chief Executive Officer, stated, “Due to its simplicity and superior accuracy, our illumigene technology platform enables most clinical labs to perform sophisticated molecular diagnostics without the high costs of capital equipment and ongoing service charges. The Moderate Complexity classification of the illumigene Group A Streptococcus test and the illumigene Group B Streptococcus test, along with illumigeneC. difficile, enables more labs to adopt molecular testing thereby helping to provide better patient outcomes.”

Meridian is a fully integrated life science company that develops, manufactures, markets and distributes a broad range of innovative diagnostic test kits, purified reagents and related products and offers biopharmaceutical enabling technologies. Utilizing a variety of methods, these products and diagnostic tests provide accuracy, simplicity and speed in the early diagnosis and …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Health

Organ Transplant Recipient Died Of Rabies, CDC Confirms

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A transplant organ recipient died of rabies in Maryland, the CDC announced. It also confirmed that the patient had contracted the infection through the transplantation which occurred over one year ago. Three other patients had received organs from the same donor. The CDC says they have been contacted and are getting their rabies vaccinations… …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Medical News Today

Articles of Interest

Texting And Talking On The Phone While Driving More Common In U.S. Than Europe, CDC Finds

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By The Huffington Post News Editors

March 14 (Reuters) – More U.S. drivers chatted on the phone or used email and text messaging while behind the wheel in 2011 than did their counterparts in several Western European countries, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Thursday.
The data showed 69 percent of Americans aged 18 to 64 reported they had talked on their cell phone while driving in the previous 30 days, more than in any European country surveyed. In Europe, rates ranged from 59 percent in Portugal to 21 percent in the United Kingdom.
Additionally, nearly a third of Americans reported they had read or sent text or email messages while operating a car, compared with 15 percent of drivers in Spain. Portuguese and American drivers were on par when it came to texting but full country-by-country data was not immediately available.
“Overall, drivers in the United States used their mobile phones to talk and text more than drivers surveyed in each of the other European countries,” said Rebecca Naumann, a CDC researcher on the survey.
The newly released data, collected in 2011 from thousands of drivers, comes at a time of growing public concern over the effects of distracted driving, which has been linked to thousands of vehicular deaths and injuries in recent years and has led to counter efforts by lawmakers and parents.
“We need to make a commitment to putting our devices away while we are in the car,” Naumann said.
The data came amid concerns over the impact of mobile phones and electronic devices on driving and road safety. Thirty-three U.S. states and the District of Columbia restrict at least some drivers from using their cell phones while driving, the CDC said.
Researchers said there was no significant difference in behavior along gender lines but that younger drivers were more likely to use their devices behind the wheel. Roughly half of U.S. drivers aged 18-24 reported reading and sending text or email messages, compared to nearly 10 percent of drivers aged 55 to 64.
Each day in the United States, more than nine people are killed and more …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Huffington Post

Business, Finance, Occupation & Industry

The Price of America's Obesity Epidemic

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By Dan Carroll, The Motley Fool

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In the year 2000, no U.S. state had an obesity rate above 30%. In 2010, 12 states did.

That’s hardly the most shocking statistic of the obesity epidemic, America’s most serious ongoing crisis. Much has been made about the health implications of being overweight: Between increased risks of diabetes to hypertension and other ailments, obesity brings a whole host of unwanted factors to sufferers. However, the worst consequence of this growing challenge isn’t the health dilemma; it’s the economic predicament sparked by rising obesity rates.

With health care costs already on the rise as America ages, the country’s growing waistlines will present one of the future’s most dire economic challenges — unless Americans get a handle on stopping the obesity outbreak today.

How obesity will hurt average Americans
35.7% of Americans were obese as of 2010, according to the CDC. The last two decades have seen a dramatic rise in its incidence, and the costs to overweight individuals have skyrocketed.

Health care spending alone for overweight Americans averaged more than $1,400 per year above what normal citizens paid, according to a 2006 study. The impact was even greater for obese individuals, who anted up more than $2,700 above the average American’s health care spending. That amounted to obese people spending more than 5.5% more of their average household income in 2006 in health care spending as compared to normal-weight citizens.

Translate that to the waning fortunes of the average American’s wallet, and it’s easy to see how individuals are suffering financially under the weight of obesity. Rising costs of health insurance aren’t helping: The health care reform laws of 2010 allow employers to charge obese employees up to 30% or higher more for insurance if said employees opt out of wellness programs. However, the costs of health care reform won’t impact the overweight alone.

Health insurers can’t turn away customers with pre-existing conditions any more, and insurance premiums could be ready to skyrocket. The CEO of Aetna , the third-largest health insurer in the U.S., predicted that unsubsidized premiums could rise between 20% to 50% on average under Obamacare. Add up the rising health care costs of obesity onto what insurers will have to pay out, and now everyone’s hurting. Pooled insurance may actually help obese customers manage costs, while hindering healthy and normal-weight individuals who will pay more to subsidize the group.

This all comes as more and more Americans struggle to deal with stagnant wages and high unemployment. Obesity alone has contributed to those factors: Studies show  correlation between chronic obesity and unemployment.

Rising health care costs due to obesity won’t just cripple individuals’ financial flexibility in coming years; they will deliver a crushing blow to the U.S. economy and businesses in the long term.

What the crisis means to the economy
Here’s another statistic indicative of the problem the country’s facing: Obesity-related health care spending is estimated to cost up to $190 billion per year; or more than 20% of total U.S. health …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Business, Finance, Occupation & Industry

Will Michael Bloomberg's Policies Topple the Domestic Tobacco Industry?

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By Sean Williams, The Motley Fool

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If you’re a smoker, you know it’s been a rough ride over the past two decades. Advocacy groups have been increasing awareness regarding the dangers of smoking since the early 1990s, and even more recently, both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration have been tag-teaming the tobacco industry to bring light to these dangers.

Last March, the CDC announced a $54 million, three-month graphic advertising campaign targeting TV, radio, print, billboard, and online viewers in the hope of getting 50,000 smokers to quit. Just weeks later, the FDA hit the tobacco industry with a request to be supplied with the quantities of 20 chemicals in cigarettes known to cause cancer, lung disease, and other health problems, including formaldehyde, carbon monoxide, and ammonia. The FDA plans to release its findings to the public next month in the hope that increased awareness will reduce the amount of active smokers.

Big Tobacco’s big worry
Yet for all of these concerns, none may be more pressing for Big Tobacco companies such as Altria , Lorillard , and Reynolds American than what mayor Michael Bloomberg is doing in New York City.

In 2011, Mayor Bloomberg passed a ban outlawing smoking on New York City’s beaches, public plazas, boardwalks, and parks. Since then, Bloomberg has taken numerous other supposed “vices” to the woodshed, including sugary drinks, which he banned in any amount greater than 16 ounces within the city, and Styrofoam trays, which were the latest item to fall under his legislative guillotine. Many of you are probably of the opinion that the actions of one little old mayor probably don’t make a lot of difference … until you see Bloomberg’s track record according to Forbes.

In December 2006, a Bloomberg initiative went into effect that required restaurants to include calorie values on menus and menu boards. This was done to combat rising obesity within New York City, and not surprisingly, visible calorie values have become a norm throughout much of the country. Also in December 2006, a Bloomberg initiative to ban trans-fats within the city was passed by the Board of Health and gave restaurants 18 months to completely remove them from their foods. Lo and behold, not only did McDonald’s stop using cooking oil that was trans-fat free in New York City by the deadline, but it had also stopped using trans-fat oils throughout North America.

To sum up: When Bloomberg takes action, the result is often much bigger than what occurs within the city of New York.

The question then becomes whether this is a major problem for domestic tobacco companies. I’m going to go out on a limb based on Bloomberg’s previous track record and venture my best guess by saying “yes,” that this has a chance to become a progressively tougher ban that could threaten to sweep to other cities.

The trend is not your friend
Domestic cigarette sales have been in a …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Business, Finance, Occupation & Industry

Aetna Study Shows Decrease in Prescription Drug Misuse, Waste and Abuse Through Increased Monitoring

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By Business Wirevia The Motley Fool

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Aetna Study Shows Decrease in Prescription Drug Misuse, Waste and Abuse Through Increased Monitoring

HARTFORD, Conn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Prescription drug abuse is an epidemic in the United States with about 2.4 million Americans struggling with addiction to prescription painkillers known as opioids. According to the CDC, opioid addiction is a leading cause of death in the United States and adds $72.5 billion in expense to the health care system each year.1 A recent study of Aetna’s (NYSE: AET) programs designed to address prescription drug misuse, waste and abuse showed reduced opioid use among 4.3 million members by 15 percent between January 2010 and January 2012. These outcomes were unveiled at the Pharmacy Benefit Management Institute’s Drug Benefit Conference held February 18 – 20 in Las Vegas.

“We’re encouraged by the evidence that our misuse, waste and abuse programs are controlling access to drugs with high potential for abuse,” said Yrena Friedmann, Pharm.D., Director, Aetna Pharmacy Management. “We’ll continue to do our part to fight prescription drug abuse. We must remain vigilant for the health and safety of our members.”

How Aetna’s Misuse, Waste and Abuse Prevention Programs Work

Aetna’s programs identify when a member is accessing a drug in an amount that may be unsafe and safeguards to stop potentially dangerous situations. Aetna pharmacists work with members to ensure they get only the drug needed, in the right amount.

Aetna’s misuse, waste and abuse prevention programs work together in four phases to ensure member safety and offer support to those who need it.

1. Control – Access to prescription drugs with high potential for abuse is controlled at the pharmacy by:

  • placing a limit on how much of a drug is covered at a given time,
  • verifying medical need before coverage of a drug is approved, and
  • advising the pharmacist if a drug’s dosage amount appears unsafe.

2. Find – Each member’s prescription drug history is reviewed before a new prescription is filled. This review allows patterns of frequent use or suspicious dispensing to be identified.

3. Help …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Business, Finance, Occupation & Industry

How Sequestration Will Affect the Health-Care Sector and Your Pocketbook

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By Sean Williams, The Motley Fool

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Stop me if you’ve heard this joke before: “Two political parties walk into a bar; both point the finger at each other for the country’s fiscal mess, yet neither is willing to budge an inch from their underlying views…” My guess is you’ve heard this one all too often and it’s not even funny anymore… because the truth rarely is.

The highly anticipated sequestration, aimed at removing $1.1 trillion out of the federal budget over the next decade, kicked into effect on March 1, and is set to gradually, but decisively, remove $85 billion from the federal budget. These cuts are going to come from all walks of government – from USDA inspectors, to military spending, and even entitlement programs like Medicare, which is expected to see approximately a 2% reduction in reimbursements.  

Today, I want to take a closer look at how sequestration could impact the health care sector.

As you might imagine, many of the effects of removing government funding tend to be negative — but it’s not as cut-and-dried as it might appear on the surface.

How it’ll affect safety
The most immediate impact of sequestration appears to be whether patient and consumer safety will be affected negatively. On the surface I’d say this is a distinct possibility with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention seeing nearly a $450 million cut in its budget and the FDA, whose expenses are predominantly tied to its personnel costs, alluding that a $318 million reduction in funds will result in layoffs or furloughs totaling 2,100 USDA food inspectors.

Food safety looks like a clear loser with Tyson Foods and Smithfield Foods projected to suffer from USDA furloughs. By law, processed meat cannot be sold in stores without having been inspected, leaving Tyson and Smithfield in a big bind come the summer time when these furloughs are expected to hit the hardest. The end result may be less meat on supermarket shelves and higher prices because of it.

The bigger concern here actually stems from the CDC‘s reduced budget. As GlobalData analysts noted this past week, one of the CDC‘s primary functions is to provide educational and preventative materials and products to curb the spread of infectious diseases such as hepatitis and HIV. A lack of funding here could result in higher occurrences of these infectious diseases. However, I disagree with their analysis that this negative occurrence could have the hidden benefit of driving down costs as providers opt for cheaper drugs in the HIV space, hurting the launch of expensive new offerings like . Gilead Sciences‘   four-in-one HIV medication, Stribild. Made with all in-house compounds, if Stribild supplants Gilead’s current best-selling HIV treatment, Atripla, it will result in higher margins for the company. Keeping things in perspective, I wouldn’t expect a huge spike in HIV occurrences, but I wouldn’t be surprised if documented cases rose year-over-year.

How it’ll affect research and development
Research …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Articles of Interest

Shock CDC Study: Flu Vaccine Ineffective In 91% Of Seniors

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By Breaking News

CDC Shock CDC Study: Flu Vaccine Ineffective in 91% of Seniors

A study released today by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows shockingly low rates of effectiveness for this year’s flu vaccine.

According to the report, the flu vaccine was effective for only 9% of seniors over 65 years old. In other words, 91% of seniors who were vaccinated in the study still ended up getting the flu.

The CDC showed somewhat better results for younger persons. They claimed that the flu vaccine was effective for 58% of those aged 6 months-17 years, 46% for persons aged 18–49 years, and 50% for persons aged 50–64 years.

Overall, the CDC claimed this year’s flu vaccine was “moderately effective” and made the unprovable claim that “influenza vaccination reduced the risk for medical visits resulting from influenza A and B by 56%.”

But since young people generally have stronger immune systems than seniors it’s unclear how many of the younger test subjects would not have gotten the flu whether they were vaccinated or not.

Read More at thedailysheeple.com .

Related posts:

  1. Obama Declares War On Seniors, Steals Part Of Their SS Check Barack Obama’s war on America’s seniors knows no limits. The…
  2. The President’s Planned Changes To Medicare: Costly For Seniors What is President Obama’s plan for Medicare—Obamacare’s changes and beyond?…

…read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Western Journalism

Health

Play Disease Detective With New CDC App

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You can now be a disease detective at home with the CDC‘s free iPad App “Solve the Outbreak”. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), new disease outbreaks occur on a daily basis, and its detectives are “on the front lines”, working twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week to protect people nationwide… …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Medical News Today

Health

STDs Are An Epidemic In The U.S., CDC Warns

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In step with Valentine’s Day, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced that the U.S. has around 110 million cases of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs or STIs), amounting to 20 million new infections each year, and it is only getting worse. The announcement followed two new studies just released by the CDC… …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Medical News Today

News, Politics, Government

New Government Breast Cancer Report Calls for Focus on Prevention, Study of Environmental Risk Factors

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By Amy Westervelt, Contributor A report out this morning by the Interagency Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Coordinating Committee (IBCERCC) highlights the need for increased funding and research of the various chemical and physical factors that may contribute to breast cancer, as well as the potential for cancer prevention, not just diagnosis and treatment to decrease both the incidence of cancer and healthcare costs. This is the third federal cancer panel report to highlight the unrealized potential for cancer prevention. “Historically, investments in breast cancer research have focused primarily on diagnosis and cure,” the report reads. “Comparatively speaking, there are remarkably few examples of advances in the area of breast cancer prevention, and finding ways to identify and mitigate the environmental causes of the disease has not been a priority. At the federal level, only a small number of efforts target breast cancer and the environment. The Committee notes that, at most, 10 to 11 percent of breast cancer research projects funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) focus on environmental health. No other federal agency supports substantial research on the environmental causes of breast cancer. Other federal agencies and nongovernmental organizations, however, support and conduct research related to breast cancer and the environment and are important partners in any effort to prevent breast cancer. Breast cancer prevention is underfunded at the federal level in both research and public health programs, and future investments must focus on this area. Enhanced investments would facilitate sustained coordination across research and regulatory agencies with the objective of reducing or eliminating harmful environmental exposures and modifying social and lifestyle factors implicated in breast cancer.” Authored by federal members of the IBCERCC from agencies involved in research on breast cancer and the environment, including the NIEHS, NCI, EPA, the DoD, and the CDC; non-federal members from scientific and clinical communities; and non-federal members who represent individuals with breast cancer, the report brings together all of the federal agencies with the power to shift attention and funding toward prevention. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest