St. Francis, Tuskegee Univ. to combat prostate cancer
St. Francis Hospital has signed a memorandum of understanding with Tuskegee University to establish a joint partnership for research on prostate cancer and its disproportionate mortality rates among African-American men.
The collaboration will include scientific research, testing and discovery towards finding a cure for prostate cancer.
As part of the new partnership Alabama-based Tuskegee University will receive tissue samples from prostate surgeries of African-American men performed at St. Francis’s Curtis D. Robinson Men’s Health Institute.
Researchers at Tuskegee University in Alabama will use the randomly selected tissue to study why black men are plagued with prostate cancer at such alarming rates.
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CT health officials want input on insurance exchange
State officials will be holding five public forums across Connecticut over the next few weeks to get input on how the state should develop its health insurance exchange.
The federal health care reform law requires states to set up, no later than Jan. 1 2014, insurance exchanges where individuals or small businesses can obtain coverage from an array of insurers competing for consumers.
There have been several different bills that outlined the framework of the exchange, including one measure that calls for the creation of a quasi-public agency known as the Connecticut Health Insurance Exchange, which would consist of a seven-member board of directors-chosen by state lawmakers-who would have voting rights.
The centerpiece of the exchange would be the creation of a web site that allows prospective enrollees to obtain standardized comparative information on insurance plans as well as quality and price rating information. The site would also allow enrollees to access information on a health plan’s premiums, cost sharing requirements-including deductibles-copayments and coinsurance, and coverage limitations.
The public forums will be held: April 25 at 6:30 p.m. in Danbury City Hall, 155 Deer Hill Ave.; April 27 at 6:30 in the New London Public Library, 63 Huntington St.; May 5 at 7 p.m. in New Haven City Hall, 165 Church St.; May 9 at 6 p.m. in Downtown Hartford Public Library, 500 Main St.; May 17 at 6:30 p.m. at Windham Middle School, 123 Quarry St.
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Test results a boost for Amarin omega-3 pill
Amarin Corp. plc, the Irish drug developer with research operations based in Stonington, says latest testing of its omega-3 pill for lowering heart-damaging compounds has done just that without simultaneously raising so-called “bad’’ cholesterol in test patients.
Amarin announced its “Anchor’’ trial of the treatment for lowering harmful triglycerides using omega-3 fatty acids, the same heart-healthy compounds found in fish oil, mirrors successful results of its ongoing “Marine’’ trial aired last November.
The company says it plans to seek Federal Drug Administration approval to market its AMR101 treatment before the close of the third quarter.
According to Thestreet.com, AMR101 has the potential to be a blockbuster drug generating well over $1 billion in annual sales. Amarin said among the test patients for AMR101 are ones already taking commercially available treatments for dangerously high cholesterol levels.
