Doctors Learn How To Talk To Patients About Dying
Clinicians can be so focused on fixing problems and saving lives that they often avoid talking to patients about their prognosis.
Cancer
161 - 180 of 226 Results
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Inside The Global Race To Deliver A Vital Radioactive Isotope Used To Detect Cancer
Moly-99, as it’s called, is created in just six government-owned nuclear research reactors — none in North America — raising concerns about the reliability of the supply.
By Sarah Varney -
When You Need A Breast Screening, Should You Get A 3-D Mammogram?
The newer images are more expensive, but it’s not yet clear if they are more effective in catching cancers that will kill.
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Doing More Harm Than Good? Epidemic of Screening Burdens Nation’s Older Patients
Patients are often aggressively screened for cancer, even if they won’t live long enough to benefit.
By Liz Szabo -
Study Gives Mixed Reviews On Laws To Equalize Cancer Patients’ Out-Of-Pocket Costs
Most states have laws that require that cancer patients who get their treatment orally rather than by infusion in a doctor’s office not pay more out-of-pocket. A new study finds that the impact of those laws is mixed.
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California Cracks Down On Weed Killer As Lawsuits Abound
California has listed the active ingredient in Monsanto’s Roundup as a cancer-causing agent and will require warning labels on it starting next year. The company says that the listing is unjustified and that science is on its side.
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The Painful Side Of Positive Health Care Marketing
Advertising for hospitals, unlike pharmaceutical companies, doesn't have to be backed up by data or facts. Cheerful messages of hope can feel like a slap in the face to a dying patient.
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Treatment Overkill
So Much Care It Hurts: Unneeded Scans, Therapy, Surgery Only Add To Patients’ Ills
Overtreatment of breast cancer and other diseases is pervasive, burdening patients and the health care system with enormous costs and needless suffering.
By Liz Szabo -
Cascade of Costs Could Push New Gene Therapy Above $1 Million Per Patient
The costs of using a new class of cancer treatments include far more than the drug’s sticker price.
By Liz Szabo -
As Care Shifts From Hospital To Home, Guarding Against Infection Falls To Families
Despite a lack of medical training, relatives increasingly are assigned complex, risky medical tasks at home, such as maintaining catheters. If done incorrectly, blood clots, infections, even death can result.
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Prevention Experts Propose Easing Advice On Number Of Cervical Cancer Screenings
A draft recommendation from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force says women between ages 30 and 65 should get a Pap test every three years or an HPV screening every five years, but they don’t need to do both.
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Some Thyroid Cancer Patients Can Safely Delay Surgery
Study suggests that many small tumors are sleepy, not deadly.
By Liz Szabo -
Pioneering Cancer Gene Therapy Gets Green Light — And $475,000 Price Tag
The USA's first approved gene therapy — to be used to fight leukemia that resists standard therapies — will cost $475,000 for a one-time treatment.
By Liz Szabo -
Writing Your Way Through Cancer
A breast cancer survivor and author has helped numerous patients explore the feelings awakened by their disease — and feel better.
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‘Breakthrough’ Leukemia Drug Also Portends ‘Quantum Leap’ In Cost
A genetically altered cancer drug, based on CAR T-cell therapies, could be a big success with leukemia patients but at a staggering cost.
By Liz Szabo -
Colon Cancer Rates Rising Among Younger White Adults — And Falling Among Blacks
Although deaths from colorectal cancer are declining, researchers find rates of the disease among white men and women younger than 55 have spiked since the mid-1990s.
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Repeal & Replace Watch
Safe Under The ACA, Patients With Preexisting Conditions Now Fear Bias
Thinking they were protected from insurance discrimination, many people got tested to see if they were likely to develop serious diseases. Legislation pushed by Republican leaders in Congress would leave them vulnerable.
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NAVIGATING AGING
Seniors Miss Out On Clinical Trials
Among hurdles: Older adults may have multiple illnesses that could complicate research or they might be unable to manage the commute.
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Take Our Quiz To Test Your Wits On Aging
As we get older, it helps to tickle the noggin with trivia. Here's a pop quiz to see what you have learned as a regular reader of Kaiser Health News.
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‘How Long Have I Got, Doc?’ Why Many Cancer Patients Don’t Have Answers
Due to poor doctor-patient communication, most people with advanced cancer don’t know enough about their disease to make vital decisions.
By Liz Szabo