Underactive Thyroid and Pregnancy
“When women think about pregnancy, the thyroid gland is seldom the first thing that leaps to mind. Nestled in the neck, the gland makes hormones that govern metabolism, helping to regulate body weight, heart rate and a host of other factors.” “Prenatal Testing of Thyroid Is Debated” discusses the risks associated with thyroid disorders during […]
Women aren’t properly represented in scientific studies
Women aren’t properly represented in scientific studies With all the hype about personalized medicine one day, doctors will use patients’ genomes to tailor treatment. One would hope that the medical community already had a decent grip on differences between the sexes…Yet scientists and clinicians often ignore sex differences, if they are even aware of them. […]
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 […]
