News by Subject Business & Economics

Geneticists have assembled the largest sets of African genomic data available to date, creating a resource that will help researchers understand the genetic structure of Africa as well as the effects of genetic variation on protein function and disease. The findings underscore the importance of including globally diverse participant cohorts in genetics research, and were presented in a plenary session at the American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) 2018 Annual Meeting in San Diego, Calif.

A new Florida State University College of Medicine study in mice produced results that suggest nicotine exposure in men could lead to cognitive deficits in their children and grandchildren. Further studies will be required to know if the same outcomes seen in mice would apply to humans.

Since 2013, gifts and payments to doctors by pharmaceutical and medical device companies have been publicly reported. Some medical centers, employers, and states have banned or restricted detailing visits, physician payments or gifts. In order to better understand the effects of these changes, a team of researchers from Harvard Medical School, The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice, and the American Board of Internal Medicine conducted a national survey of internal medicine doctors.

Including exercise or sport as part of cancer care can significantly improve symptom management, quality of life and fitness during and after treatment, French researchers have concluded in two presentations to be reported at the ESMO 2018 Congress in Munich. Even among patients at highest risk of poor quality of life, exercise can make a difference.

Most people with lung cancer are unaware of the benefits of regular exercise, yet new data show it can significantly reduce fatigue and improve well being. Results of two studies to be presented at the ESMO 2018 Congress in Munich underline the value of exercise, including in patients with advanced or metastatic lung cancer.

Social vulnerability showed to be a major limitation to participation in cancer screening for four tumors types - breast, cervical, colorectal and lung -- according to the French nationwide observational survey, EDIFICE 6. Also, a disbelief in cancer test efficacy among target populations was highlighted as new indicator of the non-uptake of screening, according to results to be presented at the ESMO 2018 Congress.

Immunotherapy has been a major breakthrough in oncology -- but little is known about its safety for HIV-positive cancer patients. A study to be presented at the ESMO 2018 Congress in Munich has now provided data to suggest that treatment with PD-1/PD-L-1 immune checkpoint inhibitors, which target the very system affected by the HIV virus, is feasible in this patient population for whom cancer is currently one of the principal cause of mortality.

Chemotherapy is known to have a negative impact on the reproductive potential of young breast cancer patients. Its effects on women's post-treatment fertility, however, are still poorly understood. A study to be presented at the ESMO 2018 Congress in Munich, has confirmed that natural pregnancies are possible after chemotherapy but that survivors' desire to have children decreases greatly after treatment, calling into question the need for systematic recourse to fertility preservation measures.

Researchers from the Higher School of Economics and KU Leuven have developed a method of measuring growth in students' proficiency in digital learning environments. It helps to see the progress of online course participants in dynamics, i.e., to understand how students study and how the course works. The results of the study have been published in the journal Behaviour Research Methods.