For May 25 - 27, 2011

AUDIO / VIDEO

This Week in Virology Episode 134

May 22, 2011

Meet Ralph, your cruise director: Vincent, Rich, Alan, and Dickson review noroviruses with Stephanie Karst, PhD.

Dealing with HIV/ AIDS in Ukraine - Part 1/2

Tve.org (2004, 5:48)

Studies in Eastern Europe show that in no other country has the spread of the HIV virus so drug fueled as in Ukraine. Many drug addicts share their needles and this causes the spread of the HIV virus. (For Part 2/2)

CANADA

Proper sex ed key to battling STD numbers

SunMedia May 25, 2011

The province plans to spend more than $14 million over five years to battle shockingly high rates of sexually transmitted infections. But it's ignoring the cheapest remedy of all.

World Health Organization reforms forthcoming
CMAJ May 26, 2011

Consensus on the need to reform World Health Organization operations and financing, a new strategy to combat HIV and approval of a comprehensive influenza preparedness plan were among developments emerging from the 64th World Health Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland.

INTERNATIONAL

Vatican convenes AIDS experts amid condom flap

Associated Press May 27, 2011

The Vatican has invited AIDS experts from around the world to a two-day symposium on preventing HIV and caring for people with the virus, just months after the pope made international headlines with his comments about condoms and AIDS.

30 years of AIDS – An interview with Helen Epstein

Science Speaks Blog 24 May 2011

Helen Epstein is a freelance writer and independent consultant in public health. Her articles have appeared in The New York Review of Books, The New York Times Magazine, Granta and elsewhere. Her book The Invisible Cure: Why we are Losing the Fight against AIDS in Africa was a New York Times notable book of 2007.

Early in the AIDS epidemic: “Taking them through to their death”

Science Speaks 26 May 2011 John Donnelly reports on some important memories revealed by Dr. Eric Goosby of the Office of the Global AIDS Coordinator, responsible for running the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) program.

Public health: Polio clings on in Pakistan
Nature News 25 May 2011

Fears grow that health-service reforms may let virus flourish, just as the global eradication effort reaches its endgame.

Lessons from polio eradication

Nature News 25 May 2011

Ridding the world of polio requires a global initiative that tailors strategies to communities, say Heidi J. Larson and Isaac Ghinai.

Doctors, nurses 'tipping point' in vaccine scares
Australian Broadcasting Corp. May 26, 2011

Childhood immunization campaigns should better target doctors and nurses to head off the next vaccine scare, says one expert.

UK PROPOSED NEW FLU AND VACCINE PURCHASE PLAN

Strengthening our defences against flu

Health Protection Agency (UK) (News Release) May 25, 2011

Related Media

More swine flu deaths last winter than during pandemic

The Telegraph May 25, 2011

More people died after contracting swine flu in Britain last winter than during the previous year’s pandemic.

GPs may be stripped of flu vaccine ordering duties

GP Magazine, 25 May 2011

GPs will lose responsibility for ordering seasonal flu vaccines and instead place orders centrally for stocks procured and held by the DoH under new plans under consultation.

Winter flu death toll topped 600

BBC May 25, 2011

Last winter's flu outbreak claimed 602 lives in the UK, with more than 70% of the deaths among 15- to 64-year-olds, Health Protection Agency figures show.

NATURE SPECIAL EDITION: VACCINES

Vaccines

Nature 473, 26 May 2011  

Vaccines are responsible for some of the world's greatest public health triumphs. In the past decade, vaccines against leading killer diseases have been introduced, and more are on the way. But funding is tight, and unfounded doubts about the safety of vaccines persist. Nature explores the social and scientific challenges facing this key weapon in the twenty-first century's medical armoury.

For May 21 - 25, 2011

CANADA

Conference: Community and Hospital Infection Control Association (CHICA-Canada)

May 29 to June 2, 2011, Toronto

Brings together Infection Prevention and Control Professionals (ICPs), Medical Microbiologists, Epidemiologists, and Infectious Disease specialists from all areas involved in the prevention of healthcare-acquired infections.

The computer will see you now: Telehealth programs catch on

The Globe and Mail, 23 May 2011

Internet-based programs may be as effective as face-to-face follow-ups, says Scott Lear, a researcher at St. Paul’s Hospital and Simon Fraser University.

CBC Tamiflu probe sparks drug policy review

CBC News, May 23, 2011

The Public Health Agency of Canada is looking to make public any potential conflict of interest involving its expert advisers following a months-long CBC/Radio-Canada probe into the anti-viral drug Tamiflu.

INTERNATIONAL

US measles surge this year is biggest since 1996

CIDRAP News May 24, 2011

The United States has had 118 measles cases so far this year, the most for this date since 1996, and close to 90% of them are linked to cases in other countries, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported today.

Russia revitalizes science

Nature.com May 23, 2011

Researchers drawn by 'mega-grants' find rewards and frustrations in equal measure.

The Rise of Backyard Biotech

The Atlantic June 2011 Edition

Powered by social networking, file sharing, and e-mail, a new cottage industry is bringing niche drugs to market

Malaria test success drives up antibiotic use

SciDev.net 20 May 2011
Fevers once misdiagnosed as malaria are now being erroneously treated with antibiotics, due to the success of rapid diagnostic tests.

Combating the C. diff Terrorists on the Loose in Hospitals

ICT May 20, 2011

Just like intelligence agents watching for the real terrorists threatening to attack, monitoring healthcare worker adherence to mandatory handwashing protocols via handwashing squads in hospitals can go a long way to stop outbreaks of the opportunistic C. diff bacteria

Google search patterns can predict MRSA hospitalizations

May 19 Emerg Infect Dis
Researchers have successfully used Google search patterns to conduct flu surveillance, and a new study suggests the same method could work for identifying trends in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) hospitalizations.

HPV

Nobel laureate: Cancer vaccine too expensive

‎JoongAng Daily (Korea) May 24, 2011

Although zur Hausen saw the necessity of a vaccine against these viruses early on, his initial attempts to approach pharmaceutical companies to devise a vaccine in 1984 were shot down due to questions of profitability.

ASCO 2011: Large-Scale Study Shows Effectiveness of HPV Testing

‎Cancer Network May 24, 2011

One of the highlights from the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) is a large-scale study that showed the effectiveness of human papillomavirus (HPV) testing alone or in combination with cytology testing for identifying women at high-risk for cervical cancer development.

HIV / AIDS

Progress in the Fight Against AIDS and HIV

The Root May 24, 2011

Nearly 30 years after the first report of AIDS, there's plenty of news about efforts to create vaccines that protect against HIV infection and boost the immune systems of people already infected.

Drugs Stop AIDS. Take Your Medicine.

The New York Times (  Donald. McNeil Jr.) May 21, 2011

THERE is now, for the first time, hard clinical evidence of an effect that AIDS doctors have suspected for years: If you are H.I.V.-positive, being on antiretroviral drugs will probably save not only your life, but also the lives of your sexual partners.

PEPFAR releases long-awaited guidance for men who have sex with men

20 May 2011 Science Speaks (Blog)

The U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) program released a technical guidance document addressing prevention programs for men who have sex with men (MSM) as part of PEPFAR’s overall prevention strategy

H1N1 PANDEMIC STUDIES

Complications and Outcomes of Pandemic 2009 Influenza A (H1N1) Virus Infection in Hospitalized Adults: How Do They Differ From Those in Seasonal Influenza?

Journal of Infectious Diseases, Volume203, Issue12

Community vaccinators in the workplace

Letter from Emerg Infect Dis, published online May 19

Social distancing effective in stopping disease spread in pandemics: Study Social distancing interventions can be implemented during unusual infectious disease outbreaks and include school closing, closure of movie theatres and restaurants and the cancellation of large public gatherings.

WORLD HEALTH ASSEMBLY OUTCOMES

Smallpox-Destruction Deadline Gets Delayed

Wall Street Journal May 25, 2011

Global health officials Tuesday delayed setting a deadline for the destruction of the last known stocks of smallpox for at least three more years, a compromise that will enable scientists in the U.S. and Russia to continue researching medicines to counter a potential bioterror attack using smallpox.

WHA Participants Discuss Smallpox, Hear Draft Plan On Maternal And Child Health, Endorse Resolutions on AIDS, NCDs

Kaiser Foundation May 24, 2011

WHA passes pandemic review, tweaks virus-sharing framework

CIDRAP News May 20, 2011

At the World Health Assembly (WHA) in Geneva today, the full group adopted a review of the World Health Organization's (WHO's) performance during the 2009 H1N1 pandemic, while a committee made some last-minute changes to a framework for sharing flu viruses.

For May 18 - 20, 2011

UPCOMING CONFERENCE & WEBSITE

2011 UN General Assembly High-Level Meeting on AIDS

June 8-10, 2011 in New York City.

In advance of the meeting a website has been set up with program info, background material etc.

CANADIAN NEWS

If a drug policy works, Harper wants nothing to do with it

‎Ottawa Citizen May 18, 2011

A long list of scientific research papers published in prestigious peer-reviewed medical journals showed that Insite had done exactly what it was designed to do. Overdose deaths down. Rates of HIV and hepatitis C infection down.

Drug-injection clinic faces long wait for decision from Supreme Court

The Vancouver Province May 18, 2011

Advocates anxiously awaiting a court ruling that will decide the future of Vancouver's supervised drug-injection site could be on tenterhooks for up to a year, legal experts say.

Can Biosecurity Go Global?

Miller McCune April 27, 2011 (Includes the CSCHAH and Stefan)

Outside the U.S., biological labs follow few if any security regulations. A Sandia National Laboratory team works to help those labs prevent deadly microbe releases, accidental and deliberate.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

WHO Reform Mandate, Pandemic Report Clear Hurdles

Intellectual Property Watch 20 May 2011

A committee of member governments of the World Health Organization this week adopted a resolution on the future financing of the organisation and a broad set of reforms, as well as a resolution on the WHO’s management of a recent influenza pandemic showing no evidence of wrongdoing.

Regulatory issues are main reason for keeping smallpox virus

CIDRAP May 18, 2011

When the World Health Assembly (WHA) considers the fate of the remaining stocks of smallpox virus this week, the debate is likely to be framed in part by a report from a group of independent experts that says the only strong reason for keeping the virus is to satisfy strict regulatory requirements for new vaccines and antivirals.

UGANDA: UN assists local health officials after deadly case of Ebola fever

UN News Service 18 May 2011

The United Nations World Health Organization (WHO) is helping Ugandan authorities to investigate a case of Ebola haemorrhagic fever which killed a 12-year-old girl in the East African nation earlier this month.

CDC Advises on Zombie Apocalypse … and Other Emergencies

Wall Street Journal May 18, 2011

Uncle Sam wants YOU to be prepared for a zombie apocalypse. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, known best for stamping out health threats like Ebola and E. coli, is now advising people how to prepare for a zombie invasion.

World not prepared for health emergency: flu experts

The Associated Press Wednesday May. 18, 2011

The world is not ready to deal with a lengthy public health emergency, a panel of international experts said Wednesday, basing its conclusions on the swine flu outbreak.

AFGHANISTAN: Afghan health minister seeks backing for vaccines

Reuters May 17, 2011

Afghanistan's acting health minister will seek international funding on Tuesday for immunisation, which she sees as key to reducing child mortality in a country where the average life expectancy is only 48 years.

Generics deal cuts cost of AIDS drugs for poor

Reuters May 17, 2011

A global health development partnership said on Tuesday it had secured price reductions on key AIDS drugs for HIV-positive patients in poorer countries.

HIV / AIDS

CHINA: AIDS Fight Misses Drug Users, Sex Cases

Bloomberg May 18, 2011 5:30 PM CT

Drug users and those infected with HIV through sex in China are more than twice as likely to die than those who got the virus from a blood transfusion, according to the nation’s first report on the death toll from AIDS.

CHINA: China Reports AIDS Mortality Is Cut by Two-Thirds

The New York Times May 18, 2011

China has slashed AIDS mortality by nearly two-thirds since it began distributing free antiretroviral drugs in 2002, Chinese government scientists are reporting.

AFRICA: Split in AIDS and family planning fails girls 

Deutsche Welle May 19, 2011

By ignoring the family planning side of HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment, the international community is failing girls in developing countries. Young women should instead receive more holistic treatment, activists say.

KENYA: Plan to cut reliance on donor cash in AIDS war

Daily Nation May 18 2011 

Plans are under way to set up a local fund for HIV/Aids treatment in a bid to stem dependence on donor aid. Special Programmes Minister Esther Murugi said on Wednesday that the government was seeking partnerships with the private sector to finance HIV care and research by establishing a trust fund.

HPV / CERVICAL CANCER

How do you choose the best vaccination against cervical cancer?
The Guardian (blog)
Débora Miranda unravels the complex cultural, financial and scientific factors that influence governments' decisions to adopt particular drugs

HPV test beats Pap as cervical cancer screen
Associated Press May 19, 2011

Two big studies suggest possible new ways to screen healthy people for cervical or prostate cancers, but a third disappointed those hoping for a way to detect early signs of deadly ovarian tumours.

Advancing Cervical Cancer Prevention Initiatives in Resource-Constrained Settings: Insights from the Cervical Cancer Prevention Program in Zambia

PloS Medicine May 17, 2011

LAB / BIOSAFETY 

New high-tech facility to aid fight against global spread of disease

‎The Examiner  May 19, 2011

The new high-tech automated facility, which will aid in the fight against the global spread of infectious diseases, will be unveiled Friday, May 20.

Can Biosecurity Go Global?

Miller McCune April 27, 2011

Outside the U.S., biological labs follow few if any security regulations. A Sandia National Laboratory team works to help those labs prevent deadly microbe releases, accidental and deliberate.

WORLD AIDS VACCINE DAY

HIV treatment as prevention—it works

The Lancet (Editorial) Volume 377, Issue 9779 21 May 2011

Last week any doubts around treatment as an approach to halt the spread of the HIV epidemic were allayed. An international study showed that antiretroviral treatment can prevent the sexual transmission of HIV among heterosexual couples in whom one partner is HIV-infected and the other is not. UNAIDS described the result as a “serious game changer” for HIV prevention.

HIV Vaccine Awareness Day

VOA News May 18, 2011

On HIV Vaccine Awareness Day Wednesday, vaccine advocates said the world is at the “dawn of a prevention revolution that could finally turn the tide of the AIDS epidemic.

World AIDS Vaccine Day: Igniting the prevention revolution

The Congress (blog) May 18, 2011

Op Ed by Seth Berkley: There’s one bromide any decent physician endorses — the one about an ounce of prevention being worth a pound of cure. When it comes to ending the AIDS pandemic, U.S. policymakers from both sides of the aisle have embraced this notion as well, providing unwavering, bipartisan support for the global effort to end AIDS, which has already claimed nearly 30 million lives and left another 33 million infected.

Drawing inspiration from Kenya on World AIDS Vaccine Day

ONE Partners May 18th, 2011 11:36 AM UTC
Philip Bergin, a research scientist at the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative, talks about how we can make a world without AIDS a reality

A major step in HIV vaccine research, but much more to do

Science Speaks Blog  18 May 2011 09:26 AM PDT

An interview with Louis Picker, MD, associate director of the Oregon Health & Science University’s Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute.

Anthony Fauci reflects on 30 years of AIDS

Science Speaks Blog  17 May 2011 09:04 AM PDT

John Donnelly interviewed Dr. Fauci for Science Speaks’ series on the 30th anniversary since the discovery of a virus that would turn out to be HIV, and he talked about everything from how he first learned of the disease, to his surprise in President George W. Bush’s commitment, to the unmet needs today to fight the pandemic.

WHO 2011 World Health Statistics report

The WHO’s 2011 World Health Statistics report is now out. It includes data on more than 100 indicators – such as life expectancy, mother and child mortality, disease prevalence and health expenditures – from the agency's 193 member states.

Related Media

Iraq, South Africa buck trend of rising life expectancy

‎Associated Press May 16, 2011

Average life expectancies are increasing steadily in most of the world, but men in Iraq and women in South Africa are bucking that trend with notable drops in their time on Earth, according to new figures from the World Health Organization.

Countries facing double burden with chronic and infectious disease

‎UN News Centre May 13, 2011

An increasing number of countries face a double burden of disease as the prevalence of risk factors for chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart diseases and cancers increase and many nations still struggle to reduce maternal and child deaths caused by infectious diseases, according to a United Nations statistical health report released today.

Infant deaths fall, life expectancy rises: WHO

‎Reuters May 13, 2011

Infant deaths fell across the world during the first decade of the century, dropping twice as fast as they did in the 1990s, partly thanks to higher spending, the World Health Organization said on Friday.

May 12 – 17, 2011

AUDIO / VIDEO

This week in Virology

Episode 133: The HIV Hideoout May 15, 2011

Vincent, Rich, Alan, and Dickson discuss the cellular reservoir of HIV-1 with Kathleen Collins, MD, PhD.

CANADA

Young adults may need mumps booster vaccine

Canadian Press May 17, 2011

Doctors are questioning whether the standard early-childhood, two-dose inoculation for measles, mumps and rubella, known as the MMR vaccine, is enough to provide lasting immunity against the virus

Disease, parasites among post-flood dangers

Canadian Press May 14 2011

Residents in southern Manitoba and Quebec not only have to worry about water-damaged homes, but diseases, parasites and the psychological stress that can follow flooding, medical experts say.

INTERNATIONAL

CDC officials: New pill regiment drastically shortens TB treatment

‎Washington Post – 17 May 2011

Health officials on Monday celebrated a faster treatment for people who have tuberculosis but aren’t infectious, after investigators found a new combination of pills knocks out the disease in three months instead of nine.

South Africa: Ten years of HIV treatment

PlusNews 17 May 2011

Ten years ago, Khayelitsha, in Cape Town, was the first place to make antiretroviral drugs available to the public sector, marking a milestone in the beginning of the end of AIDS denialism and the fight for treatment in South Africa

Drug-Resistant Germs Lure Biotechs to Antibiotics

‎Bloomberg May 17, 2011

The biotechnology industry is starting to fill a critical public-health niche being mostly shunned by larger drugmakers. Since 2006, only three of 111 drugs cleared in the U.S. were antibiotics.

Bill Gates Calls For Greater Immunization Efforts In World Health Assembly Address

Kaiser  May 17, 2011

Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, on Tuesday called for a "Decade of Vaccines" in a keynote address at the World Health Assembly in Geneva, saying strengthening immunization programs against infectious diseases worldwide could save 10 million lives by 2020,

The HIV/AIDS gamechanger

ForeignPolicy blog May 16, 2011

During its short but painful existence in humans, HIV/AIDS has thwarted efforts at prevention. Vaccines have proven elusive; changing human behaviors that spread the disease is never as easy as we'd like. HIV in particular is wrapped in a complicated web of women's rights, sexual mores, and a fraught debate over family planning.

Researchers Manipulate Drug's Chemistry in Bid to Lower Treatment Cost

Wall Street Journal May 13, 2011

The Clinton Health Access Initiative, founded by former President Bill Clinton, is spearheading this push, with funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the U.K. government. The Clinton team hired former pharmaceutical-company chemists to work on the project. And a key step in the new recipe for making tenofovir was contributed by a student at Howard University in Washington, D.C.

GSK to reveal prices it charges UNICEF for drugs

The Telegraph (UK) May 14, 2011

Drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has agreed to publish the prices it charges UNICEF for vaccines given to the world's poorest children amid pressure for more transparency over the cost of immunisations.

Pakistan polio levels rise, despite vaccine activities

Associated Press of Pakistan May 14 2011
During a visit to one of the most affected areas of Karachi to determine how the two UN agencies could help revitalize efforts to stem cases of this debilitating disease WHO Pakistan Representative, Dr Guido Sabatinelli and UNICEF Pakistan Representative, Dan Rohrmann witnessed ongoing polio eradication drive.

Gates leads $23.4M in funding for HIV/AIDS vaccine
Fierce Vaccines May 12, 2011
"IHV's unique and promising HIV/AIDS vaccine candidate is designed to bind to the virus at the moment of infection, when many of the different strains of HIV found around the world can be neutralized," explained Gallo in an article published by IHV.

Pediatric HIV may be hindering measles eradication efforts

Scientific American May 12, 2011

Studies show that infants with HIV do not respond well to the measles vaccine even when given a second dose at nine months, as the World Health Organization (WHO) currently recommends.

UN agencies hail trial results showing anti-HIV drugs prevent sexual transmission

UN News Service May 12, 2011

The trial found that the risk of transmission from an HIV-positive person to an uninfected sexual partner fell by 96 per cent if the appropriate anti-retroviral treatment was followed.

Haiti: Continuing Cholera Outbreak

The New York Times (editorial)  May 10, 2011

A United Nations report on the cholera outbreak that has sickened 300,000 Haitians since last fall, killing nearly 5,000, finds evidence to suggest that the disease may have originated at a United Nations military camp north of the capital, which spilled raw sewage into a tributary of the Artibonite River.

Ukraine: Ukraine Struggles to Curb HIV Epidemic Amid Drug Shortages, Political Hurdles

PBS NewsHour May 11, 2011

Ukraine has the highest HIV infection rate in Europe and now there are fears its epidemic could spread to neighboring countries. Special correspondent Kira Kay reports from Ukraine on the health issue.

Experimental AIDS vaccine shows promise in monkeys

Reuters May 11, 2011

Dr. Louis Picker of the Oregon National Primate Research Center, whose study appear in the journal Nature, said he thinks it will be possible to have a vaccine ready to test in people within three years.

WORLD HEALTH ASSEMBLY 64th SESSION

Delegates from 193 countries met today in Geneva at the start of the World Health Assembly (WHA), which will address several infectious disease topics, including a report from an independent pandemic review committee, a virus-sharing agreement, and the fate of the world's remaining smallpox virus stocks.

Session homepage

NIH STUDY ON EARLY DRUG THERAPY

Treating HIV-infected People with Antiretrovirals Protects Partners from Infection

National Institutes of Health Media Release  May 12, 2011

Related Media:

Early HIV Treatment Can Reduce Transmission Risk By 96%, Study Results Show

Kaiser Fondation Friday, May 13, 2011 (Links to numerous media articles)

Results from a multicountry clinical trial, sponsored by the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), show that HIV-positive people who take combination antiretroviral therapy (ART) can reduce the risk of transmitting the virus to their HIV-negative partners by 96 percent, U.S. researchers announced on Thursday.

AIDS: At last, the good news

The Economist (Babbage blog) May 12th 2011

The trial in question, organised by an international body called the HIV Prevention Trials Network, and paid for by America’s National Institutes of Health, asked whether treating an infected individual with drugs that suppress his level of HIV also stops him passing the virus on. It turns out that it does.

New hope against HIV/AIDS

San Francisco Chronicle Editorial May 14, 2011

A silver bullet to defeat HIV/AIDS still doesn't exist, but the world is getting closer. An international study released this week found that transmission of the virus can be nearly eliminated if patients are simply given drug therapy as early as possible.

Study: Early HIV treatment prevents new infections, preserves health

Science Speaks blog May 12, 2011

Study results announced this morning unequivocally link early antiretroviral therapy (ART) for HIV-infected persons with a 96.3% less chance of transmitting the virus to an uninfected partner, as well as a decreased risk of contracting tuberculosis (TB), the number one killer of people living with HIV/AIDS

ARVs as prevention must move quickly "from science to action"

PlusNews  13 May 2011

A landmark study showing major reductions in HIV transmission among discordant couples due to early treatment may fail to have a significant impact on HIV prevention unl ess governments and donors are willing to turn the science into action, HIV advocates say.

For May 6 - 11, 2011

VIDEO

Advancing global health through new technologies – a Kenyan perspective

Science Speaks blog 09 May 2011

The following Q & A with Kenyan Ob/Gyn Dr. Elizabeth Anne Bukusi, chief research officer and deputy director of research and training at the Kenya Medical Research Institute, covers topics from microbicide trials and challenges to roll-out and medical male circumcision to condom stock-outs and PEPFAR funding.

CANADA

B.C.: Bedbugs with drug-resistant bacteria found
CBC May 11, 2011

Residents of Vancouver's Downtown Eastside were infested with bedbugs carrying antibiotic-resistant bacteria, say researchers who warn doctors to watch out for the potential problem.

Vaccine compensation program overdue: experts

CTV.ca May 10, 2011

Experts at the University of Toronto say Canada should join the U.S., the U.K. and other nations in developing a fund to compensate those who have been injured by vaccinations.

Supervised injection for the sake of public health

Globe and Mail Editorial May 11, 2011

Vancouver's supervised drug-injection clinic, Insite, saves lives and prevents human misery. Providing addicts with a safe, sterile place to inject heroin and other drugs is a pragmatic and effective way to curb the spread of infectious disease, including HIV/AIDs and hepatitis B and C, and to reduce substance abuse and overdoses.

Researchers pay more attention to HPV

‎The Canadian Press May 9, 2011

More and more researchers have cast their microscopes on the mysteries of HPV-caused oral cancers, including McGill University, which received a big fundraising boost last week with the help of Douglas.

P.E.I. Considering new cervical cancer test

CBC News Posted: May 10, 2011

The new tests are known as liquid-based cytology. While the method is more expensive than pap tests, it has advantages. It is easier to read and it can be used to test for human papillomarvirus as well, a sexually-transmitted disease known to cause up to 70 per cent of cervical cancers.

INTERNATIONAL

Opinion: Progress toward an HIV/AIDS vaccine
The Scientist May 11, 2011
A week from today (May 18) marks HIV Vaccine Awareness Day, an occasion designed to salute individuals on the front lines of efforts to develop a preventative vaccine against HIV. The drive to eradicate global AIDS is facing unprecedented challenges, with a report in The New York Times last year describing it as a war we are losing due to financial and technical roadblocks.

No biotech too large to buy?

Reuters May 10, 2011

No biotech company is too big to be bought, at least according to one veteran healthcare executive. David Snow, chief executive of Medco Health Solutions sees major drugmakers needing the growth potential of biotech more than ever. So expect more large deals like Sanofi's $20.1 billion purchase of Genzyme, he says.

Community-based testing increased rates of HIV testing and detection in resource-limited settings

AIDSMap, May  10, 2011

HIV testing rates in rural areas of resource-limited countries can be substantially increased using an intervention that involves community-based testing, mobilising targeted communities, and the provision of post-testing support, investigators report in The Lancet Infectious Diseases.

Where’s George?

UPI May 9, 2011

It may not buy much, but the $1 bill is forging friendships, reigniting romances and scouting the spread of infectious disease. More than $800 billion of U.S. currency is in circulation. The vast majority of these bills go untraced as they travel from person to person, but a select $189 billion are being followed at WheresGeorge.com (the Canadian version is Where’s Willy)

Antibiotic Resistance: One Mother's Fight

‎Huffington Post (blog) May 8, 2011

At the time of Simon's death, no one -- really, no one, including the highly competent University of Chicago health care providers -- knew why Simon had died. We learned only after an autopsy that Simon had contracted an antibiotic-resistant bacterium called, MRSA, or methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

UGANDA: Sex workers pay the price for HIV prevention gaps

IRIN Plus News May 9, 2011

Multiple factors caused cholera outbreak in Haiti
CMAJ May 10, 2011

A “confluence of circumstances,” rather than the deliberate actions of an individual or group, caused the recent cholera outbreak in Haiti which has killed over 4500 people and sickened nearly 300 000 others, a United Nations expert panel has concluded.

A Shot of India: The Vaccine Market

Forbes India May 9, 2011

Big pharma is looking for immunity from a fall in revenues as blockbuster drugs go off patent. They are finding it in Indian vaccine makers.

WHO decries global burden of healthcare-related infections

CIDRAP News May 5, 2011

Calling for more effort to prevent healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), the World Health Organization (WHO) said today that untold millions of people suffer from them every year, with the burden falling most heavily on developing countries.

Epidemics breed public disorder and the breakdown of trust

The Guardian May 7, 2011

In the wake of major outbreaks of diseases like cholera and Aids comes violent mistrust of scientists and politicians. Historian Richard Evans looks at possible lessons for the future

FluPhone app 'helps track spread of infectious diseases'

BBC News 4 May 2011

A mobile phone application could help monitor the way infectious diseases such as flu are spread.

Pan-African parliamentary science forum launched

SciDev.net 4 May 2011

An Africa-wide forum for parliamentarians which aims to give science, technology and innovation a more central role in the policy-making process was launched this week.