By Daniel Diaz, MD
Faculty Peer Reviewed
Now that the New Year has rolled in and winter has finally started to declare itself, it’s time for us to stop making resolutions and start acting upon them. Whether it’s losing weight, quitting smoking, or getting into shape, January is a very popular time to turn over a new leaf judging by the number of new gym memberships and fad diets that abound this time of year.
For those of us who overindulged during the holiday season,…
By Synphen H. WU, MD, PhD.
Faculty Peer Review
Welcome to the final Primecuts of the year!
As 2011 draws to a close and we look ahead to 2012, the state of the economy continues to weigh on people’s minds. This week, just in time for Christmas, Congress approved a two-month extension of the payroll tax cut, which had been set to expire on December 31st. The bill prevented a 2% increase in the payroll tax rate, an end to emergency federal unemployment benefits, and…
By Jason Feliberti, MD
Faculty Peer Reviewed
“Tis the season to be Jolly,” and if you’re like me “Tis the season to hope for new toys.” The Holidays are around the corner, and if there is any evidence behind the massive shopping that was done during the Black Friday weekend, new electronics are the hot items. However, in the medical profession where so much movement is towards the implementation of technology to improve care-coordination and patient outcomes; some speculate that these devices may be…
By Sunnie Kim, MD
Faculty Peer Review
In an effort to steer clear of financial collapse, European leaders announced last week that they signed an intergovernmental treaty to enforce stricter budgetary discipline. The treaty, a result of nearly ten hours of talks, will hopefully begin the process of stabilizing the Eurozone. The bigger news may be that Britain finds itself the lone man out after refusing to sign the treaty after being denied some exemptions to the fiscal regulations. Although the rest of the world…
By Rachel Bond, MD
Faculty Peer Reviewed
A Gift…From Yourself? Stem Cells.
With Thanksgiving just passing, it is hard not to comment on all one can be thankful for. Now, with ‘Frosty the Snowman’ and ‘Let it Snow’ blasting at the retail stores, it is also not too hard to succumb to the holiday cheer. With the holidays close in sight, why not start talking about gift giving? As physicians, we have a lot to be thankful for, and the ultimate gift we can provide…
By Juliette Provenzano-Gober, MD
Faculty Peer Reviewed
The FDA announced this week that they are revoking Avastin (bevacizumab) approval for treatment of metastatic HER 2 negative breast cancer. The FDA commissioner, Margaret A. Hamburg, MD, concluded that Avastin has serious side effects such as elevated blood pressure and hemorrhage without proof that it will provide benefit. Hypertension can lead to further cardiovascular complications and with questionable oncological benefit, this drug will no longer be recommended for patients with breast cancer. This brings us to…
By Jessica Taff, MD
Faculty Peer Reviewed
The New York City Marathon this past weekend marked a yearly event in the city’s lifecycle. As the leaves fall and a November chill fills the air, the race reminds us of the importance of physical activity to our health maintenance. And just when we thought it was too late to reactivate those new year’s resolutions, we were gifted with an extra hour from the daylight savings gods.
In line with this reflection on health prevention and health…
By Todd Cutler, MD
Faculty Peer Reviewed
Double, double toil and trouble;
Fire burn, and Primecuts bubble!
Welcome to a special Halloween edition of Primecuts!
For the past ten years the drug Xigris (human activated protein C or drotrecogin alfa) and its manufacturer have been mired in drama and controversy. Once projected to reach a billion dollars in yearly sales, Xigris has continually disappointed both in the boardroom and in the intensive care unit. The final chapter in this saga appears to have been written…
By Demetrios Tzimas, MD
Faculty Peer Reviewed
In our last Primecuts, Dr. Mathew Robinson reported on the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force’s new recommendation against measuring prostate specific antigen (PSA) as a method of screening for prostate cancer. This week, prostate cancer has made it back into the headlines. JAMA reports on some concerning findings in an extended follow-up of the original Selenium and Vitamin E Cancer Prevention Trial (SELECT). The original trial was initiated because of prior retrospective evidence that Selenium and Vitamin E…
By Matthew Robinson, MD
Faculty Peer Reviewed
Men like their numbers. Boys compare little league batting averages. Teens boast their bench press max. Young men pride themselves in digits ill begotten from a cheap pick-up line. Older men – those over age 40 – know their PSA (prostate specific antigen) better than the date of their wedding anniversary. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) is now taking away this number, and replacing it with a letter, D – the grade they gave to PSA…
By Kevin Hsueh, MD
Faculty Peer Reviewed
Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann set the media abuzz two weeks ago when, during a Republican presidential debate, she called the HPV vaccination a “potentially dangerous drug” that could cause a “negative reaction” in little girls. Her statement infuriated physicians, not only because it was yet another major national figure endorsing the apparently unkillable myth of the mysteriously toxic vaccination, but also in that here was a government figure contradicting the findings of a report just issued on…
By Robert J Gianotti, MD
Welcome to the first autumn installment of Primecuts. Here in upstate New York the leaves are already beginning to change as I drink a tasty mug of Oktoberfest. My day of football overindulgence is interrupted only by thoughts of Listeriosis and that tasty cantaloupe sitting uneaten on the counter. My heart goes out to the unfortunate farmers in Colorado as they suffer the aftermath of a rare but serious outbreak of Listeria infection in the heartland. I’m reminded that…
