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Week Ending: September 1st , 2007
Alan Franciscus
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August 26th, 2007
Capital man's prison death probed by federal watchdog
http://www.sacbee.com/
By Andy Furillo - Bee Capitol Bureau
Fatalities bring scrutiny of medical care provided to inmates at Avenal facility.
Esther Trillo begins to cry at her south Sacramento home as she pulls out photos of her husband, Manuel, who died of gastrointestinal bleeding last October while an inmate at Avenal State Prison. His death certificate cites renal failure, cirrhosis and hepatitis C as contributing factors, but his wife questions his medical care the day before he died.
Manuel Trillo was supposed to be released from Avenal State Prison on Sept. 6, but the upcoming parole date now is nothing but another reminder of grief for his south Sacramento family.
A longtime thief and heroin addict diagnosed with hepatitis C, Trillo, 53, died of gastrointestinal bleeding while in prison last October. His wife believes the death resulted from medical neglect, and the case is now under investigation by the federal medical care receiver's office.
"People have their own opinions, but the way it was, he was a good person," said his wife, Esther Trillo. "He always tried to take care of his family. He was a good, loving person."
Trillo's Oct. 10 death came just before three inmate fatalities later in the year prompted a virtual medical takeover of Avenal by federal receiver Robert Sillen's office.
Sillen visited the prison in February and then dispatched a team of doctors from the University of California, San Francisco and dozens of medical staff to stem what he characterized as a "medical delivery crisis" at Avenal. The deployment made Avenal a key focus of Sillen's effort to fix a statewide prison medical system that the federal courts found to be unconstitutional.
The receiver's office declined to discuss the Trillo case in detail, saying only that it is under investigation. A spokesman for Avenal State Prison also declined to discuss the death, referring questions to the receiver's office.
According to his death certificate, the underlying causes of Trillo's gastrointestinal bleeding were acute renal failure, cirrhosis of the liver and hepatitis C, the products of a lifestyle that included heavy drinking as well as his heroin addiction.
His wife said he had seen a doctor before he was imprisoned for the last time in September 2005. She said it was then that he had been diagnosed with the hepatitis C and that doctors told him he should quit drinking.
"He stopped for a while, then he started again," Esther Trillo said of her husband, a construction worker and handyman by trade.
A few months before Trillo died, the Avenal medical staff conducted some lab work on his liver. They also sought to refer him to a neurosurgeon for a painful condition in his neck, his prison records showed, although it is not clear if he was treated.
Trillo's wife questioned the care he got the day before he died. She said Trillo's fellow inmates told her that her husband tried to see a doctor for a painful stomach ache but was rebuffed initially.
One of the inmates, Alvaro Orozco, serving time on a grand theft conviction out of Los Angeles County, said in a telephone interview with The Bee that Trillo looked bad Oct. 9 and that he helped walk Trillo to the medical office that day.
"I heard in the night they brought him back," Orozco said. "I said, 'You should have stayed in the infirmary.' He said, 'No, they brought me back.' "
Orozco said said Trillo's "eyes were yellow," that "you could tell his liver was shutting down." He described his fellow inmate as being weak and in pain.
"That night," Orozco said, "he got real sick. He started coughing up blood."
Another trip to the infirmary resulted in prison officials transporting him out to the Coalinga Regional Medical Center, where he died the next day at 10:15 a.m., his Fresno County death certificate shows.
Esther Trillo said she knows "it wasn't a perfect lifestyle" that her husband lived. He was in prison on a conviction for drug possession for sale. He also had previously been convicted of assault with a firearm, being an ex-felon in possession of a gun (twice), possession of a controlled substance, forgery and second-degree burglary.
Altogether, Trillo was sentenced to more than 13 years in prison on four separate cases dating back to 1983, according to California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation records.
Such backgrounds do little to add to the sympathy quotient for inmates such as Trillo, and the fact that alcohol and drug abuse contributes to the deaths of some also detracts from their public standing.
"The people who come to prison normally have abused their bodies a great deal," said Robert Borg, a retired, 32-year corrections veteran and former warden at Folsom State Prison who now testifies on occasion as a defense expert on behalf of the correctional system. "They're not doing things to take care of themselves. They don't eat right, they don't sleep right, and they put a bunch of stuff into their bodies."
"But that doesn't relieve anybody of anything," Borg added, in regards to the medical responsibilities of prison officials. "If they decide to give up and let somebody die, that's wrong, and I wouldn't be upset if (Trillo's family) sued. If they did everything they could and it was his lifestyle that killed him, it would be ridiculous to bring a lawsuit."
Trillo's wife said she wants to sue the state but can't find a lawyer to take the case.
Mark Ravis, a Beverly Hills attorney who has filed "eight to twelve" such wrongful death lawsuits, said the Trillo family is facing long odds in the legal arena. Ravis, for one, filed a suit in the highly publicized case of a Solano State Prison inmate who died in 2004 after prison officials failed to get him proper treatment for an abscessed tooth. That case has since been dismissed.
"There is medical neglect, there is failure to give prisoners critical medication, and they die," Ravis said. "But the (inmate families) have to live with, 'Who cares? It's just an inmate.' I think the state, frankly, depends on that sort of thinking to defend their cases. They believe the jurors are not going to be terribly sympathetic to the inmates."
In her south area home, Esther Trillo has a cabinet filled with pictures of her late husband surrounding an urn that contains his ashes. The cabinet is decorated with a blue and purple ribbon that remembers Manuel Trillo as a "beloved husband, father and grandpa."
She supports two grown sons on her $3,000 monthly salary as a receptionist for an air conditioning company.
Compounding her grief is another upcoming anniversary: the 2001 home invasion murder of her oldest son.
"Honestly, we're all trying to stay as strong as we can be," Esther Trillo said of her family. "The boys see how I stress and cry. I try not to, but it's not easy, especially in that it's getting close to a year coming up."
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August 27th, 2007
Nexavar Significantly Improved Overall Survival in Phase 3 Asia-Pacific Liver Cancer Trial
http://pharmalive.com
Trial to be Stopped Early to Allow All Patients Access to Nexavar
WAYNE, N.J. and EMERYVILLE, Calif., August 27, 2007 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals and Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that a planned review by an independent data monitoring committee (DMC) found that Nexavar(R) (sorafenib) tablets significantly improved overall survival, progression free survival, and time to progression in an Asia-Pacific regional Phase 3 trial of patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the most common form of liver cancer. Based on the DMC's recommendation, the trial will be stopped to allow all patients to receive treatment with Nexavar. Data from this study will be submitted for presentation at an upcoming scientific meeting.
The Asia-Pacific liver cancer study was conducted at the request of Asian health authorities in order to provide supplemental information on Nexavar's efficacy and safety in Asia-Pacific patient populations. Supplemental regulatory filings have been completed in several countries/regions including Europe, China and the United States for Nexavar in the treatment of liver cancer. These filings were based on positive data from the pivotal Phase 3 SHARP study announced earlier this year. Additional regulatory submissions for Nexavar in liver cancer are being finalized.
"Liver cancer incidence continues to rise in the Asia-Pacific region, due to the high prevalence of hepatitis B virus infection," said Dr. Ann-Lii Cheng, principal investigator and professor of medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital. "These study results confirm that Nexavar's efficacy and tolerability in liver cancer extends across ethnic groups and geographies and suggest that Nexavar could meet a tremendous unmet need for patients and families impacted by this devastating disease."
HCC, the most common form of liver cancer, is responsible for about 90 percent of the primary malignant liver tumors in adults.(1,2) Liver cancer is the sixth most common cancer in the world and the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths globally.(3) Over 600,000 cases of liver cancer are diagnosed globally each year.(3) In 2002, approximately 600,000 people died of liver cancer including approximately 360,000 in China, Korea and Japan, 57,000 in Europe and 13,000 in the United States.(4) Risk factors for liver cancer include ongoing (chronic) infection with hepatitis B virus (HBV) and/or hepatitis C virus (HCV).(5)
About the Asia-Pacific Liver Cancer Study
This double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled Phase 3 trial was designed to evaluate Nexavar in patients with advanced HCC, or primary liver cancer, who had no prior systemic therapy. The study enrolled 226 patients from sites in China, Korea and Taiwan. The primary objectives of the study were to compare overall survival, time to progression (TTP) and progression free survival (PFS) in patients administered Nexavar 400 mg twice daily versus patients administered placebo.
Nexavar's Differentiated Mechanism
Nexavar targets both the tumor cell and tumor vasculature. In preclinical studies, Nexavar has been shown to target members of two classes of kinases known to be involved in both cell proliferation (growth) and angiogenesis (blood supply) -- two important processes that enable cancer growth. These kinases included Raf kinase, VEGFR-1, VEGFR-2, VEGFR-3, PDGFR-B, KIT, FLT-3 and RET. Preclinical models have also demonstrated that Raf/MEK/ERK has a role in HCC; therefore blocking signaling through Raf-1 may offer therapeutic benefits in HCC.
Nexavar is currently approved in more than 50 countries, including the United States and those in the European Union, for the treatment of patients with advanced kidney cancer. Nexavar is also being evaluated by the companies, international study groups, government agencies or individual investigators as a single agent or combination treatment in a wide range of other cancers, including adjuvant therapy for kidney cancers, metastatic melanoma, breast cancer and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). In addition, the companies recently confirmed that they are going to conduct a company-sponsored Phase 3 study of Nexavar in the adjuvant treatment of HCC following the complete removal of early stage liver cancer.
Important Safety Considerations for U.S. Patients Taking Nexavar
Based on the currently approved package insert for the treatment of patients with advanced kidney cancer, hypertension may occur early in the course of therapy and blood pressure should be monitored weekly during the first six weeks of therapy and treated as needed. Incidence of bleeding regardless of causality was 15% for Nexavar vs. 8% for placebo and the incidence of treatment-emergent cardiac ischemia/infarction was 2.9% for Nexavar vs. 0.4% for placebo. Most common treatment-emergent adverse events with Nexavar in patients with advanced kidney cancer were diarrhea, rash/desquamation, fatigue, hand-foot skin reaction, alopecia, and nausea. Grade 3/4 adverse events were 38% for Nexavar vs. 28% for placebo. Women of child-bearing potential should be advised to avoid becoming pregnant and advised against breast-feeding. In cases of any severe or persistent side effects, temporary treatment interruption, dose modification or permanent discontinuation should be considered.
For U.S. Nexavar prescribing information, visit www.nexavar.com or call 1.866.NEXAVAR (1.866.639.2827).
About Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company developing innovative therapies that target the molecular mechanisms that cause cancer. The company is developing Nexavar(R), a small molecule drug, with Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals. For more information about Onyx's pipeline and activities, visit the company's web site at: www.onyx-pharm.com.
About Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals
Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals Inc. is the U.S.-based pharmaceuticals unit of Bayer HealthCare LLC, a division of Bayer AG. Its research and business activities are focused on the following areas: Diagnostic Imaging, Hematology/Cardiology, Oncology, Primary Care, Specialized Therapeutics and Women's Healthcare. The company's aim is to discover and manufacture products that will improve human health worldwide by diagnosing, preventing and treating diseases.
Forward Looking Statements
This news release contains forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by Bayer Group management. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and the estimates given here. These factors include those discussed in Bayer's public reports filed with the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (including its Form 20-F). Bayer assumes no liability whatsoever to update these forward-looking statements or to conform them to future events or developments.
This news release also contains "forward-looking statements" of Onyx within the meaning of the federal securities laws. These forward-looking statements include without limitation, statements regarding the timing, progress and results of the clinical development, regulatory processes, and commercialization efforts of Nexavar. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those anticipated. Reference should be made to Onyx's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2006, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission under the heading "Risk Factors" and Onyx's Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for a more detailed description of such factors. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward- looking statements that speak only as of the date of this release. Onyx undertakes no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements to reflect new information, events, or circumstances after the date of this release except as required by law.
Nexavar(R) (sorafenib) tablets is a registered trademark of Bayer Pharmaceuticals Corporation.
References
1. World Health Organization. Hepatitis B. Available at:
http://www.who.int/csr/disease/hepatitis/
whocdscsrlyo20022/en/. Accessed April 10, 2007.
2. Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center College of Medicine.
Malignant Hepatoma. Available at:
http://www.hmc.psu.edu/healthinfo/m/
malignanthepatoma.htm. Accessed April 10, 2007.
3. International Agency for Cancer Research. GLOBOCAN 2002. Available at:
http://www-dep.iarc.fr. Accessed April 23, 2007.
4. Ferlay J, et al., GLOBOCAN 2002. Cancer Incidence, Mortality and Prevalence Worldwide. IARC CancerBase No.5, Version 2.0. IARCPress, Lyon, 2004. Available at: http://www-dep.iarc.fr. Accessed April 10, 2007.
5. American Cancer Society. What is Liver Cancer? Available at: http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/content/
CRI_2_2_1X_What_is_liver_cancer_25.asp. Accessed April 10, 2007.
CONTACT: Mark Bennett, Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals, +1-203-314-5556;Julie Wood, Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc., +1-510-597-6505; Media Contacts:Catey Laube, GCI Group, +1-212-537-8247; Hala Mirza, WeissComm Partners,+1-212-301-7205, both for Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals and OnyxPharmaceuticals, Inc.
Web site: http://www.nexavar.com/ http://www.onyx-pharm.com/
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Toray Progress in Development of Hepatitis C Virus Vaccine
http://www.japancorp.net
Tokyo, Aug 27, 2007 (JCN) - Toray Industries <3402> announced on August 22 that the company confirmed for the first time in the world that hepatitis C virus (HCV) particles produced using a novel HCV culture system inactivated have the potential for practical use as an HCV vaccine in experiments using mice.
The culture system was established through the company's joint research on the development of an HCV vaccine with the National Institute of Infectious Diseases (NIID) and the Tokyo Metropolitan Institute for Neuroscience (TMIN), Tokyo Metropolitan Organization for Medical Research.
Since its 2005 world-first in vitro cultivation of HCV with TMIN, Toray has been seeking the potential of HCV particlest for use as an HCV vaccine in collaboration with NIID.
Based on the research it has conducted, the company has successfully increased the efficiency of HCV production by 10,000 times through the research by preparing and using a human liver cell line which produces more HCV particles than conventional cells producing HCV particles.
Moreover, the company confirmed that the HCV infection of cultured human hepatocytes was suppressed by the serum which was obtained from the mice injected with inactivated HCV particles.
Based on the confirmation of the possibility of using these inactivated HCV particles as a HCV vaccine, the company will continue to work with NIID for further research and development to optimize the HCV particles for a vaccine and establish a culture method appropriate for industrial production.
The HCV vaccine is expected to not only become a new prophylactic drug to prevent new HCV infection, but also serve as a therapeutic drug for HCV-infected people. The company hopes that this HCV vaccine will be very good news for millions of patients suffering from hepatitis C worldwide.
By JCN Newsdesk
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Hepaconda Gains Recognition as a Promising Drug
www.pharmalive.com
SYDNEY, Australia. 27 August 2007. Giaconda Limited (ASX: GIA) today announced that Hepaconda®, its product for the treatment of Hepatitis C virus (HCV), was listed in Thomson Scientific’s quarterly publication “The Ones To Watch”* as one of “The Five Most Promising Drugs Entering Phase II Trials”. Hepaconda® was the only gastrointestinal therapy noted in the report which covers new drug approvals and promising candidates entering Phase II and Phase III clinical trials.
The Company announced the commencement of the Phase IIa clinical trial of Hepaconda® for the treatment of Hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype 1 refractory to current therapy on 25 June. Giaconda expects to report on the trial results in Q1 CY 2008.
Genotype 1 Hepatitis C virus has the lowest response rate to standard treatment compared to other genotypes and carries a higher risk of post-treatment relapses and progression to liver cirrhosis and liver cancer. The current standard treatment for chronic HCV has limited efficacy, especially in genotype 1 and poor tolerability with the result that many patients cease treatment.
“The cost of Hepatitis C to the Australian healthcare system was $156 million in 2004/5 and in 2006, 197,000 Australians were estimated to have chronic Hepatitis C. The cost to the healthcare system in the USA is currently estimated at US$600 million,” said Patrick McLean, Chief Executive Officer of Giaconda.
“We are delighted that a prestigious institution like Thomson Scientific recognizes the potential value of our product. Hepatitis C is a significant health issue across the globe and a significant number of patients fail conventional treatment. We are committed to developing an alternative for these patients and we believe that Hepaconda® may offer such an alternative,” he added.
***
About Giaconda Limited
Giaconda Limited is a biotechnology company involved in developing and licensing innovative and cost effective medical therapies in the field of gastroenterology. Giaconda’s products are targeted towards the treatment of serious conditions that are not adequately addressed by any existing therapy. In this way, Giaconda’s products are intended to satisfy these significant unmet medical needs of the gastrointestinal market. The Giaconda portfolio consists of five products, all of which are novel combinations of known compounds. Giaconda has two lead products, Myoconda® for the treatment of MAP (Mycobacterium avium paratuberculosis) infection in Crohn’s Disease and Heliconda® for the treatment of resistant Helicobacter pylori infection.
For more information please visit www.giacondalimited.com
About Hepaconda® – A combination therapy for the treatment of Hepatitis C Virus
Hepaconda® is a combination of bezafibrate and chenodeoxycholic acid. It has been demonstrated in clinical trials that chenodeoxycholic acid, when used as a single compound, reduced Hepatitis C infection (HCV) and improved liver function in patients who have failed existing therapy. Bezafibrate has been shown to eliminate HCV, therefore the combination of bezafibrate and chenodeoxycholic acid appears to offer an advantage over current treatment. A Phase IIa clinical trial on Hepaconda® is now in progress.
About Hepatitis C Virus
Hepatitis C Virus affects 3.1% of the world’s population and is currently the number one cause for liver transplantation in the United States. In Australia, current numbers of individuals diagnosed with newly acquired HCV infections have been estimated to be in excess of 242,000 with over 50% of cases located in NSW alone. There are six primary genotypes of HCV and studies show that 70-75% of all infections are of the genotype one variety. Currently the most effective treatment for chronic HCV includes a combination of the drugs interferon alpha and ribavirin. This treatment is associated with a number of side effects and is only effective for 42 – 46% of patients, leaving a large portion with no effective therapy.
Except for historical information, this news release may contain forward-looking statements that reflect the Company’s current expectation regarding future events. These forward looking statements involve risk and uncertainties, which may cause but are not limited to, changing market conditions, the successful and timely completion of clinical studies, the establishment of corporate alliances, the impact of competitive products and pricing, new product development, uncertainties related to the regulatory approval process, and other risks detailed from time to time in the Company’s ongoing quarterly and annual reporting.
CONTACTS:
Company
Media & Investor Relations
Patrick McLean – Chief Executive Officer
T: +61 2 9370 0069
T: +61 422 206 036
pmclean@giacondalimited.com
Fay Weston
Director
Talk Biotech
T: +61 (0)2 8812 5030
M: +61 (0)422 206036
fayweston@talkbiotech.com.au
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Campaign helps state agency get out message on testing
http://www.examiner.com
by Dave Carey, The Examiner
This design will be used in the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene’s campaign to raise awareness for hepatitis C testing.
Me? That’s what the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene wants residents asking themselves when it comes to hepatitis C virus testing. Launching a billboard-based campaign in Baltimore City and Baltimore County that started last week, the health department is trying to encourage testing for hepatitis C.
An estimated 100,000 people in Maryland have hepatitis C, with a majority of those infected unaware they are a carrier of the virus, said Dr. John Krick, the health department’s director of epidemiology and disease control.
“We hope this will increase people’s interest [in getting themselves tested],” Krick said. “The billboards are pretty catchy.”
Designed with help from Clear Channel Outdoor, the ad on the billboard has various pictures of people set on a bright-yellow background. The text is red and black and says “Me?” followed by “Hep C. Find Out — HepCMaryland.org.”
Hepatitis C infection is four times more prevalent than HIV infection and is the most common blood-borne infection in America, according to a health department news release.
“We have been asked by the state legislature to raise public awareness, and that has been [the] goal for several years,” said Robin Decker, nurse consultant for the state Center for Immunization.
Searching for a way to get the message out, Decker found a similar billboard design in Missouri. She reached out to area advertising companies and came together with Clear Channel Outdoor, an advertising firm that specializes in billboards that had an office in Laurel.
Working with Clear Channel and the state, Decker was able to secure a donation from the Maryland Partnership for Prevention and grant funding from GlaxoSmithKline to pay for the printed materials.
Qualifying its message as a public service announcement, the health department plans on having the billboards up for nearly a month, at virtually no cost to it.
“You want to make sure it’s clean and appropriate,” said Ryan Wilson, an account executive with Clear Channel. “The colors are great, and it’s so bright that you definitely can’t miss it.”
dcarey@baltimoreexaminer.com
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New center represents shift to more specialized liver care
http://www.shreveporttimes.com
By Mary Jimenez
maryjimenez@gannett.com
Connie Wall remembers the day Dr. David Dies told her she wouldn't need a liver transplant.
"It was the best news that you can possibly imagine," said the Shreveporter, who in 2004 was placed on the transplant list after a gastroenterologist diagnosed her with severe cirrhosis of the liver.
Relatives and an internist's diligence led her to the door of The Liver Center at GastroIntestinal Specialists in Shreveport, where she met Dies.
The specialized liver center, the only one like it in the state, recently opened in Shreveport within the GIS facility on 3217 Mabel St.
The GIS partnership of physicians includes 12 gastroenterologists. The Liver Center will be under the direction of two of its physicians, Dies and Dr. Humberto Aguilar, both fellowship-trained and board-certified liver specialists. The partnership GIS also has the only physician in the area who is fellowship trained in state-of-the-art endoscopic ultrasound, Dr. James Hobley.
Wall credits the expertise of the center for getting and keeping her off the transplant list.
"I have to see my doctor on a regular basis, but it's nothing compared to what a liver transplant would have been," said Wall whose recovery began immediately after the real cause of her liver disease was discovered, almost a year after being placed on the transplant list.
Doctors had diagnosed her liver disease in 2004 when Wall was rushed to the emergency room, bleeding from esophageal varices (extremely dilated veins). She'd lost eight pints of blood before doctors were able to stop it.
Esophageal varices are a common consequence of cirrhosis of the liver.
"When they asked me if I drank alcohol and I said yes they just assumed that's what caused the cirrhosis," Wall said. "But that's where they stopped."
Wall had one young internist who told her he felt they needed to do one more test. The test showed unusually high elevations of iron in the blood and he recommended she go to Dies for a second opinion.
Dies told her the good and the bad news. She wouldn't need a transplant if she responded to treatment, but she had hemochromatosis, a genetic iron overload disease that causes the body to absorb too much iron. Overtime the organs are affected, including the liver, heart, pancreas and pituitary.
Generally, early hemochromatosis is cared for by a hematologist, said Dies, but once they get to cirrhosis of the liver, care should be transferred to a liver specialist.
Dies begin Wall's treatment by lifting off 17,000 cc (cubic centimeters) of fluid off her abdomen and placing her on a lifetime maintenance of her iron stores.
"My hope is to get her through the rest of her life with her own liver," Dies said.
The liver, the largest organ in the body, serves a variety of functions including keeping the blood clean, aiding in metabolism, and it produces more proteins than any other organ in the body.
"If your liver dies, you die pretty quickly," said Dies, who along with Aguilar is trained to care for everything from mild elevation of liver function tests all the way up to liver transplantation.
The new center represents not only advanced care for area residents, but also a shift in the medical field as well.
"Liver medicine is a very small niche, and it's only recently been accepted as a separate specialty by the American Board of Internal Medicine," said Dies, who has practiced in the area since 1994 and served during that time as the medical director of the liver transplant program at the Regional Transplant Center.
"Treatment of liver disease has always existed under gastroenterology, but most gastroenterologists have not actually done the additional training for a liver specialist. The (board) finally allowed separate boards last year."
According to the national board's records, only 195 physicians passed those 2006 boards, including three in Louisiana. Only Dies and Aguilar have a private practice.
Several reasons spurred the evolution of liver medicine as a separate field, which started as a subspecialty under gastroenterology with the discovery of the hepatitis C virus in 1989.
Since that time, increases in the number of liver transplants and prevalence of liver disease, such as nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and cancer of the liver, have further necessitated the need for the specialty, reports the American Association for the Study of Liver Disease.
A statement from the American Liver Foundation that millions of Americans have liver disease and don't even know it furthers the argument that it's about time.
"One in 10 Americans has abnormal liver functions on screenings," Dies said. "But because there was nowhere to send patients, most of the time those elevations went unchecked. We want to detect these diseases earlier; the whole thing in liver medicine is to keep you from needing a liver transplant."
Wall is a perfect example of how an early screening test could have changed her health dramatically. Certain blood tests are good screening for hemochromatosis, which is present at birth but rarely shows up in symptoms before mid-life.
"Now looking back we all wondered why my brother died relatively young at the age of 52. We lived in a rural town and didn't know anything about diseases like this," said Wall, who realizes she also had signs of a health anomaly. "I went through menopause early and my platelets were constantly low. If you look at the disease those are both signs."
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August 28th, 2007
Human Genome Sciences moves forward on hepatitis drug test
http://biz.yahoo.com
Human Genome Sciences Inc. has enrolled patients earlier than expected in the first of two advanced trials of its drug for chronic hepatitis C.
The Rockville company also expects to bank $40 million in payments next month from its pharmaceutical partner for finishing the drug's second phase of trials earlier this year.
Human Genome Sciences can now speed toward late-stage clinical trial results for its Albuferon drug by the spring of 2009 -- and apply that fall to begin selling the drug worldwide.
Human Genome Sciences originally expected to finish enrollment by the end of this year for two Phase III trials for Albuferon, its hepatitis C drug, but has already signed up 1,331 patients at 150 sites in 12 countries in the first of those trials.
The second trial, which is still getting volunteers, will finish enrolling its 918 patients later this year, the company said.
Novartis AG, the local company's pharmaceutical partner for developing and selling Albuferon, will pay Human Genome Sciences $40 million for completing a Phase II trial, whose results were reported in April. The new money increases Novartis' total payments to Human Genome Sciences to $132.5 million.
Under a deal the two companies signed in June 2006, they are splitting clinical costs and U.S. sales costs equally. Novartis would sell Albuferon outside the U.S., paying royalties to Human Genome Sciences, which said the deal could yield as much as $507.5 million in payments.
Human Genome Sciences (NASDAQ: HGSI - News) does not yet have drugs on the market but has a second lead drug in late-stage trials to treat lupus.
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Philanthropist donates $300,000 to VGH for liver diseases program
http://www.canada.com
Vancouver Sun
A local philanthropist has donated $300,000 to Vancouver General Hospital's liver diseases program.
Yau Yu's generous donation will help advance the program which assists people with viral hepatitis and liver disease, the hospital foundation stated in a written release.
Yu said he was personally grateful for the care he received at the hospital.
"In 2002, I was admitted to Vancouver General Hospital with a liver tumour," Yu stated in the release.
"The care I received from Dr. Yoshida and his team saved my life. This gift to VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation in support of the Viral Hepatitis and Liver Disease Care Development Fund expresses my gratitude for the patient care the professionals at VGH provide."
There are over 100 different forms of liver disease, with chronic hepatitis B and C being the most common in B.C. It's estimated that 40,000 to 60,000 British Columbians have chronic hepatitis B, and approximately 60,000 to 100,000 suffer from chronic hepatitis C.
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August 29th, 2007
Who Will Recover Spontaneously From Hepatitis C Virus Infection?
http://www.sciencedaily.com
Science Daily — More than 3% of world population is infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV). The outcome of HCV infections is either self recovery or chronic hepatitis, and many of the chronic infections will develop into liver cirrhosis or liver cancer. Since there is no cure for chronic hepatitis C, nor is there any approved vaccine for this virus, hepatitis C is currently a major health problem worldwide.
Twenty to fifty percent of HCV infected patients recovers spontaneously. The hepatitis C patients and their relatives like to know if his/her infection would fall into the category for self recovery.
A research article to be published on August 21 in the World Journal of Gastroenterology addresses this question.
The research team led by Dr. Mihm from Georg-August-Universität spent more than 8 years working with a cohort of 67 patients who spontaneously recovered from HCV infection. In addition to these, the researchers included a similar number of patients with chronic HCV infection. Large sample size allowed these investigators to obtain results with great statistical significance, and to draw very reliable conclusions.
One conclusion reported by the investigators is, patients who self recovered usually have lower levels of HCV antibody. Thus patients with lower HCV antibody titer may have a brighter clinical outcome. However, for a practical standard to be established to define a low HCV antibody titer, more effort is needed by investigators in the future.
Another interesting conclusion reached by these investigators is, co-infection by hepatitis B virus (HBV) is associated with a higher possibility of self recovery. The investigators suggested that the infection of HBV interferes with the HCV replication, which would finally lead to virus eradication.. HCV patients co-infected by hepatitis A virus also have a better chance of self recovery, possibly by a similar mechanism.
Active IV drug users are less likely to self recover, for a couple of reasons: 1, they have a higher incidence of re-infection; 2, drugs have been shown to inhibit the expression of antiviral cytokines such as IFN-a and IFN-g; 3, HCV replication has been shown to be enhanced both by morphine use and morphine withdrawal.
Several different genotypes of HCV were discovered. The HCV genotype studied by Dr. Mihm’s group is type 1b, which is the prevalent genotype in Germany, and in China.
Note: This story has been adapted from a news release issued by World Journal of Gastroenterology.
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A biotech pioneer takes on Big Pharma
http://money.cnn.com
John Heilemann, Business 2.0 Magazine columnist
(Business 2.0 Magazine) -- The power went out at Hammersmith Hospital just a few minutes after I started chatting with Sunil Shaunak, a professor who specializes in drug discovery for infectious diseases.
Since it was a bright, cool morning in London, the absence of lights and air-conditioning didn't strike me as problematic. Shaunak's graduate students looked alarmed, however, and it suddenly occurred to me why: The team had live cells growing in the refrigerators nearby. Yet Shaunak maintained the calm of a man accustomed to toiling in suboptimal conditions. "Remember," Shaunak said with a smile, "I'm an academic."
In truth, it's impossible to forget that Shaunak isn't your ordinary entrepreneur. Far from singing the praises of high-tech capitalism, he rails against the disparities in the health care it delivers to the First and Third Worlds. He cheerfully admits to being naive about all things commercial. "I didn't know what an IPO was until five years ago," he says. "And I still can't read a spreadsheet."
Nevertheless, Shaunak is the co-founder of one of the most exciting startups I've ever encountered - a biotech outfit that not only holds the promise of saving millions of lives but could undermine the business model that sustains Big Pharma to the detriment of medical innovation.
At 49, Shaunak is, as he puts it, "a child of the British empire." Born in Kenya to Indian parents, he trained as a medic in England, Africa, and America, witnessing the devastation wrought by the AIDS pandemic. After earning his Ph.D. and joining the faculty at London's Imperial College, Shaunak saw signs of another epidemic on the horizon: hepatitis C.
He feared a replay of the AIDS scenario, where miracle drugs were introduced that were far too costly for patients in the developing world - those who need them the most. (Of the 170 million who have hepatitis C, 150 million live in poor countries.) So Shaunak got together with a colleague, Steve Brocchini, from the London School of Pharmacy. "We drank lots of beer and did lots of brainstorming," Shaunak recalls. "We said, 'There's a very expensive drug that cures hepatitis C. We're gonna create a new technology to make that drug cheaper.'"
That was six years ago. Since then Shaunak and Brocchini have done what they set out to do: modify the molecular structure of the best existing hepatitis C drug to make it more cost-effective and stable in hot climates. They have published three major scientific papers on this work and taken out patents. And they've done an outsourcing deal with an Indian company in Hyderabad called Shanta Biotechnics, which will handle clinical trials, production, and sales - for about $3 a shot. The current drug costs $200 a pop.
The vehicle for all of this is the startup I mentioned earlier: PolyTherics, a company spun out by Shaunak and Brocchini. Backed initially by grants from the British government and the Wellcome Trust, PolyTherics closed its second round of private funding in June. A professional CEO has been hired to pursue purely commercial opportunities, and Shaunak and Brocchini have left the board - though not the picture.
Instead the academics are tackling another Third World malady: visceral leishmaniasis, a fatal disease, transmitted by the sand fly, for which the current treatment costs roughly $800. Shaunak recently received $2.4 million in funding from the National Institutes of Health to create a visceral leishmaniasis treatment that costs only $70.
Shaunak argues that there's more than altruism behind the PolyTherics approach. "What you conventionally do, at the moment, is you make the medicine and test it in Europe and North America, where you have high profit margins, and as prices come down it eventually becomes available in poorer parts of the world," he says. "We've turned the model upside down and said, 'Let's make it available first to the masses and then optimize what we've learned for the rich.'"
The advantages of this model for PolyTherics are apparent. First, all the money for development and clinical testing is coming from the U.S. government and from Doctors Without Borders; PolyTherics just has to kick in a royalty-free license to Shaunak and Brocchini for the technology.
Second, the trials, again in India, will occur on an accelerated timetable because, as Shaunak says, "there's such an urgent need out there."
Finally, if the trials determine that the new technology is safe and effective, PolyTherics can turn around and apply it to lucrative First World drugs, such as advanced antibodies. "A very effective win-win," Shaunak says.
The drug companies, fiercely protective of their patents, are unlikely to see it that way. They haven't yet hassled Shaunak and Brocchini for their modifications of existing medicines, but that might change as soon as PolyTherics's new hepatitis C drug makes its way from poor countries to rich. (The British National Health Service is eager to get its hands on the cheaper alternative.) "Big Pharma is worried that we'll make an impact on their First World profits," Shaunak says. "They're worried that eventually there will be leakage - and, of course, there will be."
But Shaunak offers no apologies. He points out that the patent system, with its exorbitant costs and complexity, is designed to protect established drug companies - and that anyone who finds a way around it is summarily accused of patent-busting. He notes that the breakthrough work on treating countless diseases (including hepatitis C), later commercialized by the drug industry, was conducted by academics.
Many contend that Big Pharma exaggerates the expense of developing new drugs, concealing from the public the details of how the industry spends its money. That it sometimes purchases and then buries promising technologies that would undercut its existing franchises. That the industry's failure rate is, as Shaunak puts it, "phenomenal," and that the model on which it was built "doesn't work anymore. It just isn't delivering."
Shaunak's critique of the existing system is unexceptional. And it's equally clear that the best cure for what ails that system is greater competition. The result would be a more dynamic industry, in which firms such as PolyTherics could thrive alongside the Pfizers (Charts, Fortune 500) and Roches. Or, as Shaunak puts it, "Big Pharma makes Rolls-Royce medicines for a small part of the world. What we're saying is that we could make Coca-Cola medicines, where the profit on each item is quite modest but the penetration will be so large that it would end up being much more valuable."
Which is why, of course, a clash between Big Pharma and PolyTherics is probably inevitable. But Shaunak seems as unbothered by this as he was by the power failure. "If the pharmaceutical companies are so threatened by a couple of academics such that they want to try to throw us in jail, I'll be flattered," he says. "We can have this David and Goliath battle - that's just fine with me."
Me too.
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Sunnyvale, Saratoga teens educating peers about Hepatitis B virus
http://www.mercurynews.com
By Cynthia Law
MediaNews
Hepatitis B is known as the silent killer because an infected individual doesn't show any symptoms. In fact, an individual can appear perfectly healthy, says Jameson Lam, 20, of Sunnyvale, who is a summer intern at Stanford's Asian Liver Center.
However, the Hepatitis B virus is 10 times more prevalent and 100 times more infectious than AIDS. It also causes 80 percent of liver cancer if left untreated, according to Lam. But unlike AIDS and other well-known epidemics, nobody seemed to be talking about the lethal virus, its impact and how to take preventive measures until now.
Catherine Chiu, 17, of Saratoga, and Cupertino residents Daniel Kim, 16, and Alina Wong, 16, utilized their knowledge, resources and multi-media experience to reach out and educate their schools and communities - where the population is predominantly Asian and Asian-American - about this "silent killer."
The youths felt the need to create awareness about Hepatitis B because it is more prevalent among Asians than other ethnicities.
"You read about AIDS in textbooks, but what about Hepatitis B?" Daniel says. "This disease is more dominant among Asians, so I feel passionate telling people about it."
According to Alina, statistics show one in 10 Asians and Pacific Islanders is infected with Hepatitis B, in contrast to one in 1,000 among the general population. Seventy-five percent of the 400 million infected individuals live in Asia, with China as the country with the most carriers.
"That truly makes it an Asian disparity," Alina says.
Lam says it's exciting to see these youth in action and spreading awareness about this little-known but deadly virus.
"Since Hepatitis B is more endemic among Asians as opposed to other ethnicities, people just don't talk about it, so knowledge doesn't spread," Lam says.
These students' hard work and dedication haven't gone unnoticed. On Aug. 12, Daniel, Catherine and Alina were each awarded a $500 scholarship for their outreach projects by the ALC, the only nonprofit in the United States that addresses the high incidences of Hepatitis B and liver cancer among Asians and Asian-Americans, according to its Web site. The recipients were recognized at the organization's fifth annual Youth Leadership Conference, an event to educate high school students about the virus. The recipients plan to use the scholarship money to further fund their outreach projects.
"It feels good to set an example for the high school students because this tells them that outreach is possible," Daniel says.
The three are also members of the Jade Ribbon Youth Council, an organization that strives to increase awareness about the virus in Asian communities, with a focus on outreach to high school students.
Participating in the youth council gave these students the knowledge and resources needed to inform their communities. Daniel and Catherine, who are students at The Harker School, teamed up to educate their classmates during their school's Global Awareness Month, when clubs could promote a cause during a designated week in March 2006. Alina decided to target students and parents at her Chinese school.
"I wanted to do something big in my own city and school," says Catherine, who will be a senior this fall. "We don't have many causes we back up as a community, such as breast cancer. It's a great opportunity for Asians to get together and help out."
Growing up in a technology-savvy era, Daniel and Alina used media such as YouTube and e-mail to reach out to their peers. Daniel created a video, End of the World: Hepatitis B, and showed it during a weekly student body meeting. Alina sent fliers through e-mail to parents telling about an awareness night she had organized.
Daniel and Catherine plastered posters with statistical information on their school's walls, and enticed their fellow classmates with incentives: free jade-colored lanyards were awarded to students who correctly answered statistical survey questions. The duo also collaborated with biology teachers to give extra credit to students who watched the documentary video Another Life, which shows how Hepatitis B is affecting the lives of Asians and Asian-Americans.
Due to some logistical issues, Daniel and Catherine had a few days instead of a full week, but agree their outreach efforts made an impact on their peers.
Alina, a senior at Monta Vista High School, had a different approach. She spoke to parents in Cantonese and English about Hepatitis B and showed the documentary video at her awareness night on April 28, 2006.
All three students share a common goal of continuing to raise awareness in their communities.
"After all, that's what I'm here to do: to outreach to those who have no idea about it," Alina says.
"I hope people can see how big this disease is among Asians and Asian-Americans," Daniel says.."
For more information about the Asian Liver Center or Jade Ribbon Youth Council, visit http://liver.stanford.edu.
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Clearance of hepatitis C viral infection after liver transplantation
http://www.eurekalert.org
Touching stories of living donor transplantation are continuously happening in hospitals. One of these stories is reported recently in the August 14 issue of the World Journal of Gastroenterology because of its shining significance in hepatology. This article is going to bring comfort to many families.
It is about a desperate patient brought to Dr. Tatsuki Ichikawa in the Nagasaki University Hospital, Japan in 2004. This patient was quite a challenge for Dr Ichikawa. She was 60 years old with liver cirrhosis (LC) and liver cancer caused by hepatitis C virus (HCV); she had been diagnosed diabetic since 1995; and previous chemotherapies aiming to remove cancer did not bring any satisfactory result.
To free the patient from the severely damaged liver, liver transplantation (LT) was considered by Dr. Ichikawa when a loving daughter of the patient decided to donate part of her liver to her mother. However, one possibility that concerned Dr. Ichikawa most was that the explanted liver would get re-infected and progress rapidly to LC, since previous data indicated that complete clearance of HCV is the prerequisite for patients to have a good outcome. To minimize this possibility, patients were traditionally treated with interferon (IFN) and/or ribavirin before LT.
Trying to save the life of the patient, Dr Ichikawa decided to introduce the more powerful medicine, PEGylated IFN, in the treatment before liver transplantation. PEGylation is a chemical modification incurring higher water-solubility and higher stability to the modified polypeptide medicine. Five weeks after the PEG-IFN treatment, HCV antigen was no longer detectable from the patient serum, but HCV-RNA persisted. Even after the long treatment for 18 weeks, HCV RNA was still detectable. Since the complete clearance of HCV RNA seemed impossible, the liver transplantation was performed.
Unexpectedly and excitingly, clearance of HCV RNA was achieved just one month after the successful liver transplantation and HCV was never detected in this patient thereafter. Thus, this is the first reported case in which a complete recovery from HCV infection was achieved after LT, with a patient who was diagnosed positive in HCV-RNA and negative in HCV core antigen before LT. Dr. Ichikawa suggested that the long acting of PEG-IFN might bring good outcome to similar patients awaiting liver transplantation.
This case no doubt brings promising future for many LC patients. Due to the high percentage of HCV infected population in the world and unavailability of commercial vaccine against HCV, the case reported by Dr Ichikawa surely worth the attention of both doctors and common people.
###
Reference:
World J Gastroenterol 2007, August 14; 13(30): 4149-4151 http://www.wjgnet.com/1007-9327/13/4149.asp
Correspondence to: Tatsuki Ichikawa, M.D., The First Department of Internal Medicine, Graduate School of Biomedical Science, Nagasaki University, 1-7-1 Sakamoto, Nagasaki 852-8501, Japan. ichikawa@net.nagasaki-u.ac.jp Telephone: +81-95-8497260 Fax: +81-95-8497270
About World Journal of Gastroenterology
World Journal of Gastroenterology (WJG), a leading international journal in gastroenterology and hepatology, has established a reputation for publishing first class research on esophageal cancer, gastric cancer, liver cancer, viral hepatitis, colorectal cancer, and H pylori infection for providing a forum for both clinicians and scientists. WJG has been indexed and abstracted in Current Contents/Clinical Medicine, Science Citation Index Expanded (also known as SciSearch) and Journal Citation Reports/Science Edition, Index Medicus, MEDLINE and PubMed, Chemical Abstracts, EMBASE/Excerpta Medica, Abstracts Journals, Nature Clinical Practice Gastroenterology and Hepatology, CAB Abstracts and Global Health. ISI JCR 2003-2000 IF: 3.318, 2.532, 1.445 and 0.993. WJG is a weekly journal published by WJG Press. The publication date is 7th, 14th, 21st, and 28th day of every month. The WJG is supported by The National Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 30224801 and No.30424812, and was founded with a name of China National Journal of New Gastroenterology on October 1, 1995, and renamed as WJG on January 25, 1998.
About The WJG Press
The WJG Press mainly publishes World Journal of Gastroenterology.
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Injection infections on the rise in Hamburg
http://www.wkbw.com
By Melanie Pritchard
Cases of hepatitis C weren't really tracked up until a few years ago. Erie County's been running the numbers and plotting them on a map. Health Commissioner Dr. Anthony Billittier says 23 cases of Hepatitis C have turned up in Hamburg alone in the past year. The one thing many of them have in common? "A lot of the hepatitis C cases are really stem from IV drug abuse." This recent discovery doesn't really come as a surprise to Dr. Billittier. What does come as a surprise is the age of the hepatitis C patients. "A significant portion of these individuals were adolescent young adult range not just in Hamburg but in many parts of the county."
"It's unfortunate that our children are doing these things and being exposed but I'm really happy that it's come out to the light," says Lourdes Iglesias, Executive Director of Hispanics United of Buffalo. The organization is located on Buffalo's lower west side in the heart of where the heroin trail leads young addicts from the suburbs to purchase points in the city. New billboards on Niagara Street are aimed at getting IV drug users to dispose of their needles safely, with a drop off location at Hispanics United. "Where individuals that use can drop their needles off in the red box. We encourage that because we don't want them to discard them in the street where our children are playing."
The Erie County Health Department is also looking for funding to start up a needle exchange program. "What we're attempting to do is to convince people that sharing needles is bad, using drugs is bad," says Dr. Billittier. "But if you're going to that at least use clean needles."
Unless something is done to deal with this problem now, Dr. Billittier worries about other diseases spread by sharing needles. "I think if we don't begin to get our arms around this our HIV problem is only going to get worse."
The Health Commissioner has met with school and police officials in Hamburg as they begin to try to find ways to curb the IV drug abuse problem there. But he does stress it's not just a problem in one community...that it's something this entire area has to deal with.
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August 30th, 2007
Women offered Hepatitis C tests
http://news.bbc.co.uk
A Lincolnshire hospital is contacting 62 women operated on by a gynaecologist who was carrying the Hepatitis C virus.
Boston's Pilgrim Hospital will tell the women the risk of infection was remote, and offer them blood tests.
The specialist, unaware he had the virus when he treated them a few years ago, passed it on to several patients, one of whom later died.
South Holland and Deepings MP John Hayes called for all doctors to be screened for Hepatitis C.
He said: "It does seem almost that consultants are a law unto themselves. Now that's not acceptable.
"I shall certainly be calling on the relevant authorities to ensure that all consultants that are involved in these kinds of procedures are screened."
Precautionary tests
The women in question have been offered the blood tests amid fears the gynaecologist in question may not have followed guidelines to minimise the risk of infection.
Lincolnshire's hospitals trust has managed to speak to 56 of the women so far, but emphasises the risk of infection is low.
The hospital trust's medical director Dr David Boldy said: "The risk of any patient being infected during a surgical procedure is remote.
"That risk has not increased because this gynaecologist has passed on the infection previously."
He added that there was a duty to contact women operated on by this specialist so they could be offered advice and blood tests as a precaution.
The trust said the gynaecologist had now been stopped from working at the hospital, a full investigation was under way and the General Medical Council had been contacted for professional advice.
Hepatitis C is an extremely infectious disease that attacks the liver.
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Possibly 500 Dutch patients infected with HIV, hepatitis B or C
http://www.earthtimes.org
Amsterdam - Some 500 patients of hospitals in Oss and Veghel in the southern Netherlands have possibly been infected with the HIV virus or hepatitis B or C, Dutch press reports said Friday city hospital and health authorities. It concerns patients who were treated in the hospitals between early July and Tuesday. The two hospitals will invite the patients for blood tests next week.
It will take until late September before it is known if, and if so how many, patients got infected.
On Thursday the regional daily newspaper Brabants Dagblad reported the possible infection took place due to inadequate disinfection machines.
Both hospitals were the first in the Netherlands to purchase a new type of washing machine used to disinfect medical equipment.
Tests indicated the washing machines were unable to properly disinfect tubes used for exploratory surgery of the stomach, lungs and intestines.
The hospital stressed the mistake was related to the equipment and was not caused by human error.
A spokesman for one of the hospitals said it holds the producer, Sanamij from Rotterdam, liable.
Rene Peters, president of the board of directors of the Bernhoven hospital affected by the problems, said the chances of infection were "extremely slight, but we want to be sure."
The hospitals have informed family physicians in the area and have informed the Dutch health authorities.
A spokesperson for the Dutch Health Inspection said "these things regrettably happen, even though we warn hospitals all the time."
"Fixed cleaning protocols do not prevent these incidents. The only way to reduce them is to check and double check. The reasons why disinfection equipment does not clean properly vary constantly," he said.
In other health news on Thursday, Roland Berger Strategy Consultants reported the quality of health care in the Netherlands continued to increase. Quality gaps between hospitals reduced in 2006.
The consultancy company also noted smaller hospitals rank higher when it comes to the quality of health care provided.
Many Dutch hospitals merged in the 1980s and 1990s, resulting in larger hospitals.
Roland Berger's report said in France, Germany, Belgium and Switzerland, each group of 82,000 people has between two to four hospitals to chose from.
In the Netherlands, there is only one hospital for each group of 82,000 people, significantly reducing the level of provided care.
The consultancy company also noted it has so far not been proven that merging several small hospitals into one big hospital results in more cost-effective management.
"Hospitals are complex organizations. Smaller hospitals are often better capable of directing this complexity," Roland Berger's report said.
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August 31st, 2007
Oroville Hospital offers first Hepatitis B vaccine in county for newborns
http://www.orovillemr.com
By David C. Neilsen II/Chief Photographer
Beginning September 15, Oroville Hospital will become the first hospital in Butte County to offer a Hepatitis B vaccine for newborns and one of the first hospitals in Northern California to participate in an immunization registry which prevents children from being over-immunized.
"Oroville Hospital is the first hospital in the county to offer an additional life saving tool for infants, the Birth Dose Hepatitis B Vaccination Program. This program protects babies against hepatitis B immediately from birth," said Jeannie Maes, PHN, Butte County Public Health.
Twenty five percent of babies who become chronically infected with Hepatitis B will die of liver disease in their lifetime. Hepatitis B is also a major cause of cirrhosis and liver cancer in the United States. Hepatitis B is preventable with a safe and effective vaccine, according to Maes.
"At Oroville Hospital's Small Miracles Mother Baby Center, our goal is to ensure babies get quality care from the best doctors, nurses and staff anywhere. By offering the Hepatitis B vaccine to newborns, we're doing all we can to protect infants from a deadly disease. We are delighted to be the first hospital in Butte County to offer this vaccine," said Oroville Hospital CEO Robert Wentz.
"The birth dose, along with two additional infant doses, will eliminate this risk to newborns," said Maes.
"This vaccine will help save lives," said Dr. Alice Alino, Oroville Hospital pediatrician, adding, "it is wonderful protection against a dangerous disease."
According to Vicky Landes, Oroville Hospital Mother Baby Center's perinatal nurse manager, Oroville Hospital has implemented policies and procedures to begin offering immunizations to all newborns beginning September 15.
Along with the immunization, all infants with the consent of the parent, will be entered into an immunization registry, which allows parents and caregivers the ability to ensure their child's immunization record is up to date, wherever they are, said Maes.
"This registry also prevents infants and children from being over-immunized," said Dr. Lourdes Valdez, another Oroville Hospital pediatrician. "Even if a family moves, the vaccine record is always available, which is an added benefit to our patients."
Oroville Hospital pediatrician Dr. Eric Neal agreed that the immunization registry is another tool to protect infants and children. He said the registry "plays a vital role in helping parents protect their children."
According to Maes, Oroville Hospital is one of two Northern California hospitals participating in the Immunization Network of Northern California which includes 15 counties north of Sacramento.
"With Oroville Hospital's participation in the immunization registry, it shows the staff is truly dedicated to offering state-of-the-art services for their patients," said Maes.
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