Testicular cancer genetic advance

Researchers have for the first time found inherited genetic factors which raise the risk of testicular cancer.

A UK team found many testicular cancer patients shared common DNA variants on chromosomes five, six and 12 that healthy men did not have.

This finding was echoed in a separate US study in the same journal, Nature Genetics, which highlighted two of the same variations.

Both studies raise hopes of better treatments and diagnostic tests.

The UK team, from the Institute of Cancer Research, compared the profile of 730 testicular cancer patients with those of healthy men.

Hepatitis B Clearance with Longer HAART

In patients with both HIV and hepatitis B, prolonged use of drugs active against both viruses improves the odds of clearing the hepatitis, researchers said.
Action Points

* Explain to interested patients that patients with both HIV and hepatitis B are at higher risk of liver complications.

* Note that this study found that longer use of antiretrovirals that are also active against hepatitis B increased the odds of clearing the infection.

In a retrospective, longitudinal study, patients who were on such highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) for a longer period had nearly three times the likelihood of clearing the HBeAg antigen associated with active hepatitis B, according to Marina Núñez, MD, PhD, and a colleague at Wake Forest University School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, N.C.

Those patients also had a 54% improvement in the chance of clearing the so-called surface antigen — HBsAg — the researchers said in the May/June issue of HIV Clinical Trials.

In addition, the researchers found that patients with higher levels of alanine aminotransferase at baseline were at a higher risk of being diagnosed with cirrhosis within a few years.

“One of the most interesting findings was the confirmation that a simple marker, such as transaminase levels before treatment, is useful in identifyingpatients at higher risk of developing (hepatitis B-related) complications in a few years,” Dr. Núñez said in a statement.

The researchers looked at medical records of 72 patients treated at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center between 1990 and 2008 who had both HIV and hepatitis B.

During follow-up, 64 (or 88.9%) of the patients had HAART containing drugs active against hepatitis B, including tenofovir (Viread), lamivudine (3TC), or emtricitabine (Emtriva).

Most patients took at least two active drugs during follow-up, but 11.1% took only one antiretroviral with hepatitis B activity.

Six out of 34 patients positive for HBeAg (or 17.6%) cleared the antigen, the researchers found. The only factor that was associated with HBeAg clearance was long use of the medications.

Zardari forces closure of ‘Meray Mutabiq’ in Dubai

KARACHI: Under immense pressure from President Asif Ali Zardari on the Dubai government, ‘Meray Mutabiq’, the popular programme of Dr Shahid Masood on Geo TV, was banned from being telecast on Monday night from the Dubai studios of Geo TV. Dr Masood presented his programme from a different location without the use of his studio and technical facilities and announced that he had been stopped by the local authorities from presenting his programme. The popular talk show host also disclosed that he had received serious life threats from PPP leaders who had told him to come to Pakistan and conduct his programme from this country and then “we will see you”. In an exact replay of the Musharraf era, the use of influence and pressure on a foreigngovernment by the president of Pakistan is a direct attack on the freedom of the press in Pakistan, the Geo TV management said in a statement on Monday night. It announced that the programme will still be telecast from a different location, as was done on Monday night.The management of Geo TV condemned the action of the Pakistani authorities to use the influence of a foreign government to deny freedom of expression and the Press. Monday night’s programme of Dr Shahid Masood featured Group Editor of The News Shaheen Sehbai and Editor Investigations of The News Ansar Abbasi, whocondemned the action, and with one voice declared that the action would not force Geo TV to succumb to government pressure. Shaheen Sehbai expressed shock and regret and said the action showed that the PPP leaders had pushed the panic button in desperation otherwise there was no reason why they could not tolerate the voice of any journalist or any TV talk show host. Sehbai said the action by the PPP rulers was a direct negation of democracy and freedom of speech and would be resisted by all democracy and freedom loving people in Pakistan and round the world. In today’s world of instant communications, Internet, U-Tube, SMS, emails, Twitter and private phone-videos, such a ban was nothing but sheer stupidity. Journalist Ansar Abbasi said the journalists community had fought similar bans throughout their careers, specially under dictators, and they had always won and they will again win this time. But he said the regrettable part was that the curbs had been imposed by a government which called itself democratically elected. Dr Shahid Masood in his statement revealed that he had been receiving threats to his life and the banning of his show in Dubai was a clear proof of the desperation and panic in thegovernment. He, however, expressed his determination to continue speaking the truth and exposing the corruption and wrongdoings of the government , without fear. Geo TV has always raised issues of public importance and had been in the vanguard of the movement for the restoration of the judges, against corruption of public money and for democracy and rule of law. These issues had resulted in a similar ban imposed by the former dictator General Musharraf for three months after the imposition of the Nov 3 emergency but Geo TV and its journalists and TV hosts stood their ground and finally saw the dictator disappear into the dustbin of history. Thegovernment action against Geo TV programme was immediately condemned by a wide spectrum of political leaders, media organisations and human rights bodies. Spokesman of the PML-N Ahsan Iqbal said it was an attack on the democratic freedom guaranteed under the Constitution and his party stronglycondemned it. Chairman of the Pakistan Human Rights Commission Iqbal Haider called it a crude attack on all democratic norms and a violation of constitution which will be fought with full force

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