Friday 2 October 2020

Influence of bots on spreading vaccine information not as big as you think

The influence of bots on vaccine-related discussions on social media is a lot smaller than we think, with only a minor fraction of information from bots reaching active social media users.

Enhancing blood sugar control boosts brain health for people with type 2 diabetes

Controlling blood sugar levels improved the ability to clearly think, learn and remember among people with type 2 diabetes who were overweight, a new study shows. But losing weight, especially for people who were obese, and increasing physical activity produced mixed results.

HER2+ breast cancer patients live longer if drugs given before surgery eradicate tumour

Final analysis of results from a randomised clinical trial of lapatinib and trastuzumab given before surgery in patients with early HER2-positive breast cancer has found that women who had no signs of residual disease after treatment (known as a pathological complete response, pCR) survived longer without the cancer returning than patients who did not. This was more likely to happen in patients who received the two anti-cancer drugs together, rather than as single agents.

Researchers reveal which benign breast disease is most likely to develop into cancer

Benign breast diseases (BBD), which are non-cancerous disorders of the breast, such as lumps, are known to increase the chances of subsequent breast cancer. Now a team of Spanish researchers have found that the way BBD is detected as part of a national screening programme is an indication of which are more likely to become cancerous.

Risk of heart disease in breast cancer patients can be predicted from routine scans

Automated analysis of breast cancer patients' routine scans can predict which women have a greater than one in four risk of going on to develop cardiovascular disease, according to research presented at the 12th European Breast Cancer Conference.

Face masks unlikely to cause over-exposure to CO2, even in patients with lung disease

New research findings contradict statements linking wearing face masks to carbon dioxide poisoning by trapping CO2. During the COVID-19 pandemic the wearing of face masks has become a highly political issue with some individuals falsely claiming that wearing face masks may be putting people's health at risk. The study published in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society shows otherwise.