|
Trovagene Using Bio-Rad Digital PCR System for Trans-Renal Pancreatic Cancer MDx - GenomeWeb |
 |
 |
|
Brain-dead trader's kidney saves life of 55-year-old - Times of India |
|
|
|
KOLKATA: After 16 years of making inroads into other parts of the country, cadaver transplant is gradually becoming a reality in the state. Following two successful cadaver transplants for kidneys at the SSKM Hospital in February, a private clinic in the city has recently achieved the feat by performing the critical surgery on two patients who were on dialysis and needed transplants to survive.
Though, only one of the patients survived, the medical fraternity is happy with the beginning of the new clinical chapter in the state. The survivor is a 55-year-old man who got a fresh lease of life after he was transplanted with the kidney of a Nadia-based trader, who was declared brain-dead. The donor, Shravan Agarwal (47) from Nadia's Karimpur, had slipped into coma after suffering a brain haemorrhage. Agarwal was first brought to Woodlands Nursing Home on March 18 and stayed there on life support for seven days. Thereafter he was shifted to Bellevue Clinic.
Lalit Agarwal, a senior nephrologist of the Woodlands Nursing Home, convinced the family members of Shravan that since the patient was brain-dead, his organs could be used to save others' lives. The nephrologist then contacted his counterpart V V Lakshminarayan at Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals (AGH) proposing the organ transplant. The family members were ready to donate two kidneys of the deceased. While a patient from Woodlands Hospital was one of the recipients, the other one was a renal failure patient undergoing treatment at Apollo Gleneagles Hospital.
"After getting Dr Agarwal's call in late March, we immediately swung into action. It was a rare situation. We hardly come across families of brain-dead patients who are ready to donate the organs of the deceased. We did not want to let the opportunity go," said Dr Lakshminarayan.
After finalizing the two recipients, AGH approached the state health department. After completing all the formalities for the transplant, the team began the marathon surgery on the fateful day in April at around 6.30pm. The surgery continued till midnight.
"It just takes four doctors to certify brain-dead. Even as the Transplantation of Human Organ Act 1994 was adopted in the state in 1995, the health department had been dragging its feet on issuing license to hospitals to start cadaveric transplants. Even the panel of doctors who can certify brain-dead was drawn up in 2006, only to be cancelled again. Such dilly-dallying acted as a major hurdle. Now, we can look forward to many more such organ transplants," said Brojo Roy of Ganadarpan, an organization that coordinates body donation.
After the life saving surgery, Ramesh Menon, one of the recipients, is suddenly feeling more energetic and happy.and nothing of his 52 years at all.
The first time he got to know about his failing kidney was about seven years ago, which could be treated with medication and a special diet. But a motor bike accident about a year back changed everything. Ramesh had to be put on a routine dialysis.
The only option left to him was a kidney transplant and the family started looking for a donor. A matching donor was hard to find and Menon's condition started deteriorating. This is when the miracle happened. Menon's nephrologists were networking among themselves for a possible deceased donor whose kidneys might match.
"I don't know what to say whenever I remember that day. I won't be able to give the details, of how the doctors and the family of the deceased connected but it happened within hours and almost immediately I was taken to the operation theatre in the dead of the night," said an emotional Menon.
He returned from the hospital on Monday, nearly a month after the operation and the post operative care. "Even if the operation is successful, the risk of infection is always there. So, patients are kept under observation. However, I am fine now. Though, I will have to go to the hospital for observation and tests twice a week for next six months," said Menon, a manager of indirect taxes at ABB.
Though it is more than 16 years too late and we lag behind the rest of the country, it's a relief that cadaver transplant is gradually becoming a reality in the state. After two successful cadaver transplants for kidneys at the SSKM hospital in February, this time a private clinic performed the critical surgery on two patients who were on dialysis and needed a transplant to survive. Only one patient survived this time but the medical fraternity is happy at the beginning of this new clinical chapter in the state.
|
|
|
Researchers identify promising biomarkers and new therapeutic targets for ... - Medical Xpress |
|
|
|
In a paper just published online in the journal Cancer Research, the researchers found high concentrations of specific proteins that point to alterations in three sequences of chemical reactions known as biochemical pathways of mice implanted with human kidney cancer cells. The findings suggest that cancerous tumors modulate the pathways, which in turn makes these pathways potential therapeutic targets.
Nicotinamide and cinnamoylglycine, which were altered as a signature of one of the pathways, are just two of approximately 2,000 chemicals, or metabolites, that the human body produces. Metabolites, referring to any substance produced by metabolism, are a reflection of the body's processes in real time. The field of study, known as metabolomics, enables researchers to discover biomarkers and to identify novel therapeutic targets.
The study used metabolomics techniques and instrumentation to simultaneously examine chemicals in two biofluids (urine and serum, or blood) as well as tissue from kidney cancer mice models. Seeking to describe the utility of these fluids as tumor indicators, they found that serum metabolomics analysis is the most accurate proxy of chemical changes that are related to kidney cancer.
"It's exciting to report that our identification of several important metabolic processes may well result in the discovery of diagnostic markers and new therapeutic targets for kidney cancers," said lead author Robert H. Weiss, a professor in the UC Davis Division of Nephrology, Department of Internal Medicine. Currently, there are no tests to easily identify kidney cancer and current treatments are not always successful, so these markers will be important tools for detection and new treatments of the disease.
For the study, researchers transplanted human kidney cancer cells into a mouse model capable of growing human tumors. Researchers compared the metabolites identified in the implanted mice against those in a control group of mice that had surgery, but no cancer cells implanted.
If further research with mouse models demonstrates that inhibition of the newly identified targets works in therapy, then preparation for human trials will be a next step.
"This research represents collaboration among many kinds of experts, all of whom are concerned that kidney cancer patients have too few treatment options, which often have debilitating side effects," said Weiss, who serves as chief of nephrology at the Sacramento Veterans' Administration Medical Center in addition to his work at UC Davis.
Journal reference: Cancer Research
Provided by Queen's University Belfast
|
|
Intensive Glucose Control Helps Surrogate Renal End Points - Doctors Lounge |
|
|
|
Intensive glucose therapy significantly reduces microalbuminuria and macroalbuminuria in adults with type 2 diabetes, but does not improve clinical renal outcomes, according to a study published in the May 28 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.
THURSDAY, May 31 (HealthDay News) -- Intensive glucose therapy significantly reduces microalbuminuria and macroalbuminuria in adults with type 2 diabetes, but does not improve clinical renal outcomes, according to a study published in the May 28 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.
To compare kidney-related outcomes associated with glucose control, Steven G. Coca, D.O., from the Yale University School of Medicine in New Haven, Conn., and colleagues conducted a systematic literature review and meta-analysis of randomized trials of patients with type 2 diabetes receiving intensive versus conventional glucose control. Surrogate renal end points (microalbuminuria and macroalbuminuria) and clinical renal end points (doubling of the serum creatinine level, end-stage renal disease [ESRD], and death from renal disease) were assessed in seven trials involving 28,065 adults.
The researchers found that intensive glucose control correlated with a significantly reduced risk for microalbuminuria (risk ratio [RR], 0.86; 95 percent confidence interval [CI], 0.76 to 0.96) and macroalbuminuria (RR, 0.74; 95 percent CI, 0.65 to 0.85), compared to conventional control, but did not result in a significantly reduced risk of doubling of the serum creatinine level (RR, 1.06; 95 percent CI, 0.92 to 1.22), ESRD (RR, 0.69; 95 percent CI, 0.46 to 1.05), or death from renal disease (RR, 0.99; 95 percent CI, 0.55 to 1.79). Larger between-group differences in glycated hemoglobin at the study level correlated with greater benefit for microalbuminuria and macroalbuminuria. The pooled cumulative incidence of clinical end points (doubling of the serum creatinine level, <4 percent; ESRD, <1.5 percent; and death from renal disease, <0.5 percent) was low compared with the surrogate renal end points of microalbuminuria (23 percent) and macroalbuminuria (5 percent).
"Intensive glycemic control reduces albuminuria, but evidence is lacking that it prevents clinically meaningful renal outcomes," the authors write.
One author disclosed financial ties to United Healthcare and Medtronic.
Abstract
Full Text
Editorial
 Copyright © 2012 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Submit your opinion:
|
|
Log in to explore the world's most comprehensive database of dialysis centres for free! 
Professional dialysis recruitment
Current ratings for:
