New technique predicts which melanoma patients are at risk for cancer recurrence, spread

For most patients, melanoma begins with a small, pigmented spot on their skin that they notice starts to change. Many primary melanomas can be cured by having this lesion removed, but melanoma can also recur and spread; an analysis of the removed lesion can offer some information on the likelihood that the cancer will come back. Today, lesions are analyzed […]

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Specialist technique used to study drugs completed for first time during Ebola outbreak

A specialist technique used to study drugs has been completed for the first time during an outbreak of Ebola virus disease. The study published today in eBiomedicine was a collaboration of researchers from Sierra Leone and the University’s of Glasgow, Oxford, Cambridge and the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine. It used pharmacokinetics—the measurement of the change in drug concentration in […]

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Diattenuation imaging—a promising imaging technique for brain research

A new imaging method provides structural information about brain tissue that was previously difficult to access. Diattenuation Imaging (DI), developed by scientists at Forschungszentrum Jülich and the University of Groningen, allows researchers to differentiate regions with many thin nerve fibres from regions with few thick nerve fibres. With current imaging methods, these tissue types cannot easily be distinguished. The DI […]

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Scientists develop new technique to heal large ulcers by reprogramming wound cells into skin cells

Plastic surgery to treat large cutaneous ulcers, including those seen in people with severe burns, bedsores or chronic diseases such as diabetes, may someday be a thing of the past. Scientists at the Salk Institute have developed a technique to directly convert the cells in an open wound into new skin cells. The approach relies on reprogramming the cells to […]

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New technique fine-tunes treatment for severe epilepsy cases

One of three epilepsy patients experience no relief from drugs and are candidates for surgery. An advance by researchers at Yale and the Cleveland Clinic will enable surgeons to more precisely target areas of the brain causing debilitating symptoms in a subset of these patients. The technology called magnetoencephalography or MEG measures small amounts of magnetic-electrical activity on the surface […]

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Surgical technique improves sensation, control of prosthetic limb

Humans can accurately sense the position, speed, and torque of their limbs, even with their eyes shut. This sense, known as proprioception, allows humans to precisely control their body movements. Despite significant improvements to prosthetic devices in recent years, researchers have been unable to provide this essential sensation to people with artificial limbs, limiting their ability to accurately control their […]

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New technique makes heart valve replacement safer for some high-risk patients

Scientists have developed a novel technique that prevents coronary artery obstruction during transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR), a rare but often fatal complication. The method, called Bioprosthetic Aortic Scallop Intentional Laceration to prevent Iatrogenic Coronary Artery obstruction (BASILICA), will increase treatment options for high-risk patients who need heart valve procedures. The findings by researchers at the National Institutes of Health […]

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