| Syria arrrests prominent dissident
Syria has arrested prominent dissident Riad Seif as part of an intensifying crackdown on dissent, human rights groups in Damascus reported on Tuesday. Mr Seif, a former MP, was arrested because of his involvement with the “Damascus declaration", calling for democracy in Syria, said Ammar Qorabi, the head of the National Human Rights Organisation. Mr Seif, who suffers from prostate cancer, was denied permission by the authorities to leave the country for medical treatment, a decision he likened to “being sentenced to a slow death." The travel ban was criticised by the US State Department. Syria regularly denies dissidents the right to travel. Mr. Qorabi's statement called Mr Seif who was jailed from 2001 to 2005, a symbol of the Damascus spring. That is a reference to a brief period of more political openness after the current president, Bashar Assad, succeeded his father Hafez Assad in 2000.
Folic acid's trade-offs of concern
It was all about the babies. A decade ago, when the U.S. required flour, bread and pasta to be fortified with folic acid, health experts believed it would help prevent devastating birth defects such as spina bifida.
There's no question that it worked. As many as 1,000 newborns a year in the United States - and many more elsewhere - have been spared so-called neural tube defects because their mothers got a crucial infusion of folic acid before they even knew they were pregnant.
But now some scientists are asking whether there have been unforeseen trade-offs for the population as a whole - including thousands of additional colon cancer cases each year, a somewhat smaller bump-up in prostate cancer, and an increase in cognitive impairment among the elderly.
.
Androgen Deprivation Therapy-induced Fractures in Men With ...
Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT), such as orchiectomy or gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist therapy, is increasingly used for the treatment of localized, high-risk, or biochemical relapse of prostate cancer. Bone mineral density loss is associated with ADT, presenting an increased risk for fractures, and strategies for preventing bone loss include antiresorptive therapy and lifestyle changes, such as smoking cessation and reduced alcohol consumption. Androgen Deprivation Therapy-induced Fractures in Men With Nonmetastatic Prostate Cancer: What Do We Really Know?
Celestia S. Higano, MD
Go to Test Questions .
|
