By Tom Ulrich
Brain tumors can be very difficult to treat, but at least we know what to do about them. For years, a mix of surgery, radiation and chemotherapy has been used to treat brain tumors like medulloblastoma.
The Medical Device Business Journal — Medical Device News & Articles | MassDevice
By Tom Ulrich
Brain tumors can be very difficult to treat, but at least we know what to do about them. For years, a mix of surgery, radiation and chemotherapy has been used to treat brain tumors like medulloblastoma.
MASSDEVICE ON CALL — It was the death of a 21-year-old patient whose implanted cardiac defibrillator failed to shock his heart back to normal rhythm that started Dr. Robert Hauser on the path to becoming a vocal advocate for change at the FDA.
Joshua Oukrop, just a teenager when he received a Guidant ICD for a congenital heart condition, died when the implant shorted out instead of providing the necessary shock to his heart.
MASSDEVICE ON CALL — The U.S. Government accused 2 Florida radiation oncologists and a group of treatment centers of defrauding state and government health programs for more than $3.5 million by conducting unnecessary procedures and lying about them.
Since at least December 2007 and continuing through October 2011 the defendants allegedly billed Medicare and other health services for "unreasonable, unnecessary, or medically improper radiation diagnosis treatments provided to patients without complying with the regulations, protocols, and requirements for reimbursement."
MASSDEVICE ON CALL — Coronary artery bypass surgery beat out percutaneous stenting for mortality rates after 4 years in a large observational study of nearly 200,000 patients aged 65 and older, according to a new study unveiled at this week’s American College of Cardiology conference in Chicago.
The analysis was adjusted to control for factors such as age, sex, diabetes, renal function and lung disease, and researchers concluded that CABG patients lived longer, "even among patients whose propensity scores were most consistent with selection for PCI."
Mela Sciences (NSDQ:MELA) CEO Joe Gulfo tells MassDevice that he feels like a kid in a candy store as he takes the company back to market – and not even the ever-looming burden of the medical device tax can dampen his enthusiasm.
MASSDEVICE ON CALL — IBM’s Jeopardy-winning Watson supercomputer is taking a swing at oncology research in efforts to help hospitals more quickly diagnose and treat cancer.
Watson can cull through 200 million pages of information in less than 3 seconds, according to IBM, and the machine is getting an education in oncology at Manhattan’s Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.
Delcath Systems (NSDQ:DCTH) won a lot of Wall Street love today on news that it landed the 1st commercial order for its organ-targeting chemotherapy system, the ChemoSat device.
When Euan Thomson landed in the corner office at radiosurgery device maker Accuray (NSDQ:ARAY) in 2002, the company was just preparing to penetrate a very well-established market.
MASSDEVICE ON CALL — Doctors and researchers reaffirmed the important role that colonoscopies play in saving lives as studies show that even insured patients are skipping the procedure amid increasing co-pays and a lingering recession.
A new study of more than 2,600 patients found a 53% reduction in risk of death from colon cancer among patients undergoing colonoscopy and excise of intestinal polyps.
MASSDEVICE ON CALL — Incoming Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) CEO Alex Gorsky will have a full plate when he takes the corner office in April.
Amid ongoing recalls and related lawsuits, Gorsky has his work cut out for him in restoring consumer faith in health care giant.