HIV Infection Not Curbed by Microbicides
Another promising theory has failed to prove true in the fight against AIDS. A trial including 9,385 women in Africa tested whether a microbicide used before intercourse could prevent HIV infection, BBC News reports. The results showed no effect when compared with a placebo. An earlier study suggested that the microbicide, applied as a gel, could lower the chance of infection by 30 percent. Lead researcher Sheena McCormack of the Medical Research Council called the result "disheartening," according to BBC News.
[Read A Good Year in the Fight Against AIDS and HIV Self-Test Proves Accurate.]
9 Top Cosmetic Treatments for Aging Skin
No one likes looking older—which is why we spend billions of dollars every year on over-the-counter products, prescription creams and fillers, and, most drastically, cosmetic surgery. Do any of these actually work to reduce the signs of aging? In many cases, yes—at least temporarily, U.S. News's January Payne writes.
But given the not-inconsiderable costs (and in the case of surgery and some procedures, the risks), it's important to be smart in your choices. Dermatologists can prescribe skin creams and perform laser skin-resurfacing and chemical peels, and they can administer injections. Surgical procedures, meantime, can be performed by cosmetic and plastic surgeons, and some ear, nose, and throat doctors (otolaryngologists). A good first step is to make sure that the doctor is board certified by the appropriate organization. Payne offers a quick guide to some of the most popular treatments and procedures. Read more.
[Read 3 Wrinkle Treatments That Work and When Anti-Aging Therapies and Youth Come Together.]
A Combo Breast-Cancer Treatment
New study results suggest that combining two breast-cancer therapies can improve survival in women with more aggressive cancer, HealthDay reports. Nearly 300 women with HER2-positive breast cancer, a type that can become resistant to treatments, participated in the study conducted by Duke University researchers. The team found that women who received a combination of the drugs Tykerb and Herceptin had a 26 percent reduced risk of death, according to HealthDay.
Earlier this year, U.S. News expert on oncology, Samuel Broder, wrote about the tools doctors use to personalize a woman's breast cancer treatment. Oncologists routinely use clinical risk profiles, including tumor size, hormone receptor content, extent of involvement of the axillary nodes, and other factors discerned only when a pathologist examines the tumor cells under the microscope, Broder wrote. These factors can be used to provide a general clinical profile that estimates the risk of a future relapse, and thereby helps doctors and patients weigh the pros and cons of adjuvant ("helping") chemotherapy as an additional option. Read more.
[Read Cancer Deaths Are Down, but Watch Out if Breast Cancer Screening Falls Off and Research Finds 'New Crop' of Breast Cancer Genes.]
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