This Compass points the way in the battle against HIV/AIDS

The battle against HIV/AIDS in South Africa is a mammoth task, fraught with logistical hurdles. The rate of infection is enormous, and South Africa has the highest rate of HIV infection in the world; not a happy statistic. Read more >>

Sex while HIV+ is murder - survey

Eighty-one percent of South African youth equate not telling your sexual partner that you are HIV positive with murder, a survey revealed on Wednesday. Read more >>

SA's top five recent successes in HIV

South Africa's HIV/AIDS programme has come a long way from the dark days of denialism and deadly treatment delays. Francois Venter, chairman of the country's bi-annual HIV conference, SA AIDS 2011, gave IRIN/PlusNews five reasons to be happy about the country's progress: Read more >>

HIV/Aids orphan's rousing tribute

Mandisa Dlamini, 25, the courageous orphan of murdered HIV activist Gugu Dlamini, appealed to South Africans to love and protect orphans, at the opening of the fifth South African Aids Conference in Durban last night. Read more >>

OneLove campaign reports significant results

DURBAN: Five months into Soul City Institute's OneLove regional HIV prevention campaign, research indicates that 61% of adults in South Africa are aware of the OneLove message, according to findings presented at the fifth Aids Conference by Soul City in Durban on Tuesday, 7 June 2011. Read more >>

Kimberly-Clark gives with heart to cardiac unit

This year Kimberly-Clark South Africa (K-CSA) will support the Walter Sisulu Paediatric Cardiac Foundation (WSPCF) with monthly cash donations to use wherever the organisation feels its need is greatest. Read more >>

Research identifies how cancer cells cheat death

[Kathy Wallis] Research led by David Litchfield of The University of Western Ontario has identified how biochemical pathways can be "rewired" in cancer cells to allow these cells to ignore signals that should normally trigger their death. It's one way that cancer cells may become resistant to therapy. The findings are now published in Science Signaling. Read more >>

Discovery may pave way to quitting smoking without gaining weight

[Bill Hathaway] Smokers tend to die young, but they tend to die thinner than non-smokers do. A team of scientists led by Yale School of Medicine have discovered exactly how nicotine suppresses appetite - findings that suggest that it might be possible to develop a drug that would help smokers, and non-smokers, stay thin. Read more >>

Low-dose sorafenib may improve therapy for head and neck cancer

Adding low doses of the targeted agent sorafenib to the chemotherapy and radiation now often used to treat head and neck cancer might significantly improve patient care and quality of life, according to a new study by researchers at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Centre-Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC - James). Read more >>

Vitamin D - the known and the unknown

This much researchers know: Vitamin D and calcium play a key role in bone health. Less clear is the quantity of vitamin D needed to achieve certain health outcomes, says Dr. Steven K. Clinton, director of the Prostate and Genitourinary Oncology Clinic at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Centre - Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC - James). Read more >>

Benefit of targeted lung cancer therapy confirmed

A drug that targets a specific type of lung cancer shows a dramatic response in more than half of the people who take it. The drug, called crizotinib, has been in clinical trials since 2006, and the results from the largest group of patients to take it within the first of these clinical trials are being presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO). Read more >>

Novel experimental agent is highly active in CLL patients, interim study shows

An interim analysis of a phase II clinical trial indicates that a novel experimental agent for chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL) is highly active and well tolerated both in patients who are undergoing treatment for the first time and those who have relapsed and are resistant to other therapy. Read more >>

Meditation back to basics

Research finds 'silent' meditation is effective in reducing work stress. Read more >>

Scientists find genes linked to migraines

Scientists have uncovered a trio of genes tied to migraine headaches, including one in which the link is exclusive to women, according to a new study. Read more >>

Russia vegetable ban 'not compliant' with WTO entry

MOSCOW: Russia's ban on all vegetable imports from the European Union is not compliant with World Trade Organisation entry rules, the EU envoy said Friday (3 June 2011) as Moscow seeks to join the global trade bloc this year. Read more >>

Gene change identifies brain cancer patients that respond better to treatment

New research proves that a change in a particular gene can identify which patients with a specific kind of brain cancer will respond better to treatment. Testing for the gene can distinguish patients with a more- or less-aggressive form of glioblastoma, the most common and an often-fatal form of primary brain cancer, and help guide therapy, the researchers say. Read more >>

Fewer babies contract HIV

The Department of Health has halved the rate at which newborn babies contract HIV, an achievement which has saved hundreds of thousands of lives. Read more >>

Call to assess role of mobile technology in health

With more than 70 percent of the world's five billion cellphone users living in low- and middle-income countries, mobile technology is seen as offering the potential to improve healthcare for the poor. The first African mobile health summit held in Cape Town, South Africa, from June 6 to 9 saw the release of the second global survey by the World Health Organisation (WHO) assessing this emerging field, known as "mHealth". Read more >>

SA youth sex survey released

Oh yes they are! Praekelt Foundation has released the results of a groundbreaking Youth Sex Survey, conducted on its YoungAfricaLive mobile platform that gives fascinating insight into the sexual behaviour and beliefs of South Africa's youth. Read more >>

Germany criticized even as E. coli outbreak slows

The German government came under increased criticism on Tuesday at home and abroad, accused of mismanaging the crisis surrounding an E. coli outbreak that has killed more than 20 people. Read more >>

HPCSA warns on unethical telemedicine practice

PRETORIA: The Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) has reiterated its May 2011 press release, in which it condemned any act of unethical telemedicine that is in breach of its ethical rules and regulations. Read more >>

Do-it-yourself massage: Effective, convenient and free

Based on medical traditions more than 2,\000 years old, Chinese self-massage techniques can help release tension and reduce anxiety - without the cost of visiting a professional therapist. Read more >>

Not just skin and bones: wrinkles could predict women's bone fracture risk

[Karen N. Peart] Wrinkles are a telltale sign of aging, and they might also be able to predict a woman's bone fracture risk, according to Yale School of Medicine researchers who report in a new study that the severity and distribution of skin wrinkles and overall skin quality could tell the story of bone mineral density in early menopausal women. Read more >>

Indigo Brands supports LGFB programme launch at UCT hospital

Late last month, Indigo Brands sponsored cosmetic goods and perfume to the 11 chosen cancer patients in launching the first Look Good...Feel Better (LGFB) Programme at the UCT Private Academic Hospital. The programme is offered in 23 countries worldwide. Read more >>

2011 Framepool/LBB/Challenge announces award show details

LONDON, UK / MUNICH, GERMANY / PARIS, FRANCE / LOS ANGELES, US: The voting of the jury for the 2011 Framepool/ LBB/ FireFlies Challenge is done. The shortlist of the ten best films will be announced on 16 June 2011, the final award ceremony and screening take place on 23 June 23 in Cannes' Cinéma Star. Read more >>