Winds of Change for Tort Reform

In February of this year the Republican-led Congress passed a tort reform bill that redirects jurisdiction of many cases from state courts to the federal level… Full Article | Find a Lawyer

The Dangers of Defective Prescription Drugs

The pre-approval of certain drugs allows more Americans to enjoy the benefits of cutting edge medicines. But this also means that many defective drugs will be widely available before sufficient safety information is compiled… Full Article | Find a Lawyer

Did Your Welding Job Cause Your Manganism?

As many as one in eight - or 12.5 percent - of welders have fallen or will fall victim to manganism, a life-threatening disease brought on by exposure to the toxic mineral manganese, which is found in many of the everyday tools welders use… Full Article | Find a Lawyer

Were You Defrauded by Your HMO?

Generally, HMOs are the solution to comprehensive, affordable health care. But when these companies refuse to pay for services or prescriptions that should be covered, they can become a financial nightmare. Such conduct, called HMO malpractice, is illegal… Full Article | Find a Lawyer

The Myths of Tort Reform

In today's America, frivolous lawsuits are the norm and have cost taxpayers millions. The tort reform initiative is touted as a solution to the through-the-roof costs of medical malpractice insurance, but is it really a good idea?… Full Article | Find a Lawyer

Vioxx^® Voluntarily Pulled from Shelves by Manufacturer

Merck & Co Inc. voluntarily recalled the immensely popular arthritis drug Vioxx® on September 30, 2004, in response to study evidence that linked it to an increased risk of heart attack and stroke. This is the largest drug recall in history… Full Article | Find a Lawyer

"Gene Fault" Tied to Cancer

Scientists from the Harvard Hughes Medical Institute have located a "fault" in the PIK3CA gene that may make people more susceptible to a variety of cancers. By determining what effects the malfunctioning gene has, scientists may be able to limit or reverse damage to cells… Full Article | Find a Lawyer

Tobacco Settlement Funds Lung Cancer Research

$3.4 million of a large tobacco settlement will be used to fund lung caner research in Pennsylvania. The research team will work toward designing a new diagnostic tool that will identify lung cancer through blood tests… Full Article | Find a Lawyer

Tarceva - New Lung Cancer Drug Under Research

Research is underway to determine how effective Tarceva is in combating bronchioloalveolar cell carcinoma (BAC). BAC is a non-small cell lung cancer that, to date, has been unresponsive to chemotherapy treatments. Tarceva targets cancer cells and acts as an EGFR inhibitor… Full Article | Find a Lawyer

Chemotherapy Advances - Xyotax Presentation

Interest is growing in Xyotax, a chemotherapy treatment designed to increase the effectiveness of paclitaxel, while reducing its toxicity. Information about Xyotax was presented by Dr. Jack W. Singer at the 6th International Symposium on Polymer Therapeutics… Full Article | Find a Lawyer

Low-Tar Cigarettes Aren't Much Help Against Lung Cancer

A British study has found that low-tar or "light" cigarettes do not reduce the risk of lung cancer for smokers. Although light cigarettes do contain less tar, the study found that smokers took deeper drags, smoked more, and held smoke in their lungs longer… Full Article | Find a Lawyer

Pollution: a definite contributor to lung cancer

A long-term study about the effects of air pollution on Norwegian men found that "nitrogen oxide from air pollution was a contributing factor to their lung cancer." The study began in the 1970s and used data from 16,000 men… Full Article | Find a Lawyer

Iressa - One Last Hope

Precision cancer drugs such as Iressa provide patients with new, if slight, hope. Patients who respond to Iressa have extended their lives, sometimes by over a year. Iressa treatments began too late for Gerry Ephraim, a Chicago woman, but the hope of success gave her "a measure of comfort"… Full Article | Find a Lawyer

Lung Cancer Vaccine on the Horizon

According to the AP Newswire and CNN.com, an experimental lung cancer vaccine has proven effective in eliminating lung cancer in some patients and slowing the disease's progression in others.

The small but hope-inspiring study's researchers injected the vaccine GAVX into a 43-person cohort comprised of patients at various stages of the disease. In the last three years, the cancer disappeared in at least three patients and was slowed for five months to two years in more than 30 patients.

Though the vaccine is still in its testing stages, the researchers (from Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas) plan to submit it to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for approval by 2007.

This study is the first to show promising results in preventing the spread of lung cancer, which kills more than 150,000 patients each year… Full Article | Find a Lawyer

More workers predicted to die of asbestos-related diseases

According to the Reuters new service, the number of people who die each year (already in the thousands) from asbestos-related diseases, including mesothelioma and asbestosis, is expected to skyrocket in coming years, largely because up to one million workers are exposed to asbestos on the job every day.

A study conducted by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) predicts that at least 100,000 workers will die of mesothelioma, asbestosis, lung cancer, or gastrointestinal cancer by 2014.

In an effort to combat a national public health crisis, the EWG is recommending an immediate ban on all asbestos in the United States, Reuters said… Full Article | Find a Lawyer

Test Could Improve Early Detection of Cancer

According to Reuters Health, sputum analysis can drastically increase the likelihood that a patient's lung cancer will be successfully detected. In most cases, the CT scan-which utilizes a computer/X-ray machine combination to take pictures of the inside of the body-is performed to verify whether a patient has cancer, but studies reflect that the test can miss up to 29 percent of cancers. But when sputum analysis, or analysis of abnormal cells, is performed before the CT scan, successful detection rates increase by several percentage points, thousands of dollars are saved, and patients are more likely to receive an accurate diagnosis the first time around, Reuters said… Full Article | Find a Lawyer

Radiation therapy can save patients with inoperable lung cancer

Radiation therapy can dramatically increase a medically inoperable patient's chance of surviving stage-one non-small cell lung cancer, according to an article published by Reuters Health.

Patients who are too frail for chemotherapy or surgery appear to benefit from extracranial sterotactic radiablation, which is not as rough on the body as other treatments, the article states.

In fact, the overall survival rate in patients who received radiation therapy was 64 percent, and more than 87 percent of studied patients improved significantly… Full Article | Find a Lawyer