Hospital Pricing Roulette
“Study Finds Huge Variations in Hospital Charges for Appendectomy” Hospital charges appear on patients bills, but they often bear no relation to the discounted fees that an insurer will end up paying. Still, some patients do get stuck paying the retail price. They include the uninsured, those with bare-bones or high-deductible plans, and even some […]
Why Drug Companies Are Making Common Drugs up to 100 Times More Expensive
From Ten Cents Then; Now Five Dollars A drug called colchicine is all that keeps some 2 million American gout patients from suffering debilitating pain in their toes, elbows, wrists, and fingers. Doctors have prescribed the compound, derived from the seeds of the autumn crocus, for centuries. But patients who take colchicine woke up with […]
Unrealistic Optimism in Early-Phase Cancer Trials: Ethical Implications
When Optimism Is Unrealistic“But despite clearly understanding the purpose, and limits, of early-phase (Drug) trials, the patients were also blinded by what researchers called an unrealistic optimism, or an optimistic bias, when it came to applying that knowledge to their own particular situations. A majority of patients assumed that the experimental drugs would control their […]
Cancer Blood Test
New Push to Develop Cancer Blood Test – Researchers have announced plans to develop a blood test that can detect a cancer cell that has been shed from a tumor. A blood test so sensitive that it can spot a single cancer cell lurking among a billion healthy ones is moving a step closer to being […]
What Are We Going To Do With Dad?
“What Are We Going to Do with Dad?” by Dr. Jerald Winakur is a very personal account documenting his experience with the decline of his dad. It points out the reversal of roles between father and son. Dr. Winakur explores the challenges and dilemmas that families face when caregiving for elderly parents. As a physician […]
