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Study To Follow Pregnant Women To Better Understand Causes, Early Signs Of Autism
NIH and the advocacy group Autism Speaks are enrolling 1,200 pregnant women who have other children with autism spectrum disorders to participate in a large study that aims to identify early signs of the condition and its possible causes, the Wall Street Journal reports. Women who participate in the study -- known as the Early Autism Risk Longitudinal Investigation, or EARLI, study -- will be monitored throughout their pregnancies, and their infants will be monitored until age three. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that one in 150 children in the U.S. has an autism spectrum disorder, which includes autism, Asperger"s syndrome and pervasive developmental disorders. The study will focus on women who already have one child with an autism spectrum disorder because such women have a higher chance of having another child with the condition. Craig Newschaffer, the study"s lead investigator and a department chair at Philadelphia"s Drexel University School of Public Health, said, "By studying families who are already affected by autism, we feel we have the best chance at learning how genetics and environmental factors could work together to cause autism." Autism usually is characterized by social interaction and communication impairments, as well as unusual interests or behaviors. Although there is no cure for autism, its symptoms can be improved through therapy and medication, the Journal reports.According to Newschaffer, researchers throughout the study will collect blood and urine for DNA analysis. Samples also will be collected from the umbilical cord, placenta and meconium -- the infant"s first stool -- after birth. Infants born during the study will be provided with a series of developmental assessments, and older siblings with autism also could receive assessments to confirm their diagnosis (Corbett Dooren, Wall Street Journal, 6/9).
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Global Public Health Threat Continues From Lead-Based Consumer Paint
Although lead content in paint has been restricted in the United States since 1978, University of Cincinnati (UC) environmental health researchers say in major countries from three continents there is still widespread failure to acknowledge its danger and companies continue to sell consumer paints that contain dangerous levels of lead.
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Merck Serono Initiates Phase III Study Of Stimuvax In Breast Cancer
Merck Serono, a division of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, announced the initiation of its global Phase III clinical study of the therapeutic cancer vaccine Stimuvax® (BLP25 liposome vaccine, L-BLP25) in patients with advanced, inoperable breast cancer. The STRIDEa study will determine if Stimuvax can extend progression-free survival in patients treated with hormonal therapy who have hormone receptor-positive, locally advanced, recurrent or metastatic breast cancer. Overall survival, quality of life, tumor response and safety will also be assessed in this study. The STRIDE study will be supervised by an expert Steering Committee and is sponsored by Merck Serono, which is leading the development of Stimuvax.
Cardiovascular

Canadian Lung Association Launches New Online Tools To Help People With Lung Disease Find Local Programs

Want to find an asthma education centre or a chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) clinic near you? Need to get a lung function test and don"t know where to go? The Canadian Lung Association is making it easier for Canadians to find help in their area with new online tools: searchable databases of lung disease programs and services available in Canada. By entering your town or city or postal code, you will find programs or lung testing sites near you. For each program listed, you"ll get an interactive map that shows its location. You"ll find out who qualifies for the program, whether you need a doctor"s referral, contact information and hours of operation. "These new online tools make it really easy for people with lung disease to get connected to local services" says Melanie Wise, Consumer Health Information Manager for The Lung Association. "Patients and healthcare providers have been asking for local program information for a long time; now it"s all here, at the click of a mouse." Find an asthma program (clinic, education centre, support group) near you Find a COPD program (clinic, education centre, support group) near you Find a pulmonary rehabilitation program near you Find a lung testing lab or spirometry clinic near you These search tools were developed through unrestricted educational grants from Boehringer Ingelheim, GlaxoSmithKline Inc., and Pfizer Canada. Canadian Lung Association


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