Friday, September 19, 2008

FTC warns consumers about bogus cancer cures

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Federal Trade Commission charged five companies with making false and misleading claims for cancer cures and said Thursday that it has reached settlements with six others. "As long as products have been sold there has been somebody out there selling snake oil to consumers," said Lydia Parnes, director of the FTC's bureau of consumer protection.

She said the agency, along with the Food and Drug Administration and Canadian authorities, is launching a consumer education campaign warning about bogus claims for cures."There is no credible scientific evidence that any of the products marketed by these companies can prevent, cure, or treat cancer of any kind," said Parnes.The products the companies marketed include essiac teas and other herbal mixtures, laetrile, black salve — a corrosive ointment — and mushroom extracts.

Thursday, September 18, 2008

Colon X-ray seen as effective at spotting cancer

(AP) ATLANTA - A long-awaited federal study of an X-ray alternative to the dreaded colonoscopy confirms its effectiveness at spotting most cancers, although it was far from perfect.

Other News:

The results of a study suggest that online-mediated syphilis testing is helpful in detecting syphilis in gay men.

Men with sleep apnea may suffer from a treatable form of erectile dysfunction caused by regular deprivation of oxygen experienced during these episodes of obstructed breathing, a new report says... full text

Monday, September 15, 2008

Ask A Pharmacist

MedHelp has announced a new free forum. Questions in the Ask-a-Pharmacist Forum are being answered by pharmacists from the drugstore.com