►January 12, 2004 - Is Signed Consent for Influenza or Pneumococcal Polysaccharide Vaccination Required? - journal article (Archives of Internal Medicine) - "Obtaining signed consent prior to administering the vaccines represents an obstacle to achieving the Healthy People 2010 goals for vaccinating individuals against influenza and pneumococcal disease. Signed consent is neither legally mandated nor a guarantee that the patient (or proxy) has given informed consent...The authors have no relevant financial interest in this article." 

Comment:  Wouldn't want to let a little thing like informed consent interfere with achieving our goals, now would we?  And what exactly is an irrelevant financial interest?

►January 12, 2004 - Science getting to roots of autism - USA Today - "High on the list of priorities is finding the genes associated with autism. At the meeting, the private autism research alliance and the public National Institutes of Health announced a partnership to do just that. The NIH is contributing $2.5 million, and the alliance is contributing $2 million to start the project, which will help to link the work of 170 researchers around the world, Shih says."

Comment from Professor Jon Kabara, BS, MS, PhD (link to references): "A seductive notion, but not to the point.  In research if you don't ask the right question you'll never get the right answer. If genetics were most important then why has autism gone from one in thousands to one in hundreds, maybe even one in less than a hundred?  I don't think that the gene pool has changed that drastically to account for this pandemic rise in diagnoses. If medicine/government would look in the mirror, it might find that over and inappropriate vaccine/drug use could be the main problem. Parents with autistic children have enough to deal with without the burden of genetic guilt."

►January 13, 2004 - Action call on Gulf War Syndrome - The Advertiser, Australia - "AUSTRALIAN veterans today called on the Department of Defence to acknowledge and provide treatment for Gulf War Syndrome, after a top British defence doctor linked vaccines to the troops' severe health problems."

►January 13, 2004 - UK call for inquiry into Gulf War illness after medical report - www.abc.net.au - "British military veterans of the 1991 Gulf War have called for an inquiry into what they claim are illnesses many thousands of them have suffered since the conflict...Mr Izett says he wants his case to benefit the 9,933 British Gulf War veterans who share his symptoms."

►January 12, 2004 - SARS Vaccination is Economically Inexpedient - Academician Vorobyev - Russian Information Agency Novosti

►January 13, 2004 - Animal and human DNA link may give AIDS clue - The Sydney Morning Herald - "Human and animal DNA can combine naturally in a living body, a new study has shown...The dramatic discovery, in which pigs developed human and hybrid cells in their blood and organs, could help explain the origin of AIDS."

Comment:  It's certainly looking more and more like using animal cell cultures for human drugs and biological products may have been a dangerously misguided venture.  For more on their use go to Scandals: On "mad cows" and sick monkeys: From the people who brought you SV40 in vaccines....  Perhaps it's time to take seriously the notion that what we don't know can hurt us.

►January 13, 2004 - Merck Researcher Joins HIV Vaccine Group Fulltime - Reuters, UK

►January 13, 2004 - FluMist Prices May Be Reduced - Winter Sales Were Lower Than Expected for MedImmune - Washington Post

Comment:  What's the sound of one hand clapping?

►January 13, 2004 - New MMR jab scare - www.femail.co.uk - "Safety fears over MMR have been increased still further by a study which detected signs of a chronic viral infection in the bowels of children who became autistic after the jab...The virus - feared to come from the measles component of the injection - appears to have sparked an abnormal response of the immune system similar to that in patients with HIV...In October last year his former colleague Dr Simon Murch insisted that he had always supported the vaccine...However, he is a co-author with Dr Wakefield of the latest paper which concludes there is further evidence of a new form of bowel disease in children with 'regressive autism' - losing the power of speech and becoming autistic."

Comment:  What's the deal with Dr. Murch?

►October 2003 - Lymphocytic vasculitis associated with the anthrax vaccine: case report and review of anthrax vaccination. - journal article (J Emerg Med)

►January 12, 2004 - Nicotine Vaccine - Health Center via http://www2.abc27.com 

►January 13, 2004 - Australian Defence Force defends pre-Gulf War vaccinations - Radio Australia via www.abc.net.au - "The Australian Defence Force has defended its vaccination program after British findings of a possible link between pre-Gulf War vaccinations and serious health issues...The ADF does not recognise any link between its vaccination program and the so-called Gulf War Syndrome, reports Alicia Gorey."

Comment:  They do not "recognise any link" because, just like someone who has chosen to put a paper bag over their head, they are refusing to see what is happening.

►January 13, 2004 - Doctors Answer Questions About Children's Health - Supervaccines Could Cut Number Of Shots - www.nbc4.com - "Because pediatricians are tired of making their patients "human pincushions", researchers are now working on a number of supervaccines that would combine existing inoculations into one shot...The most recent supervaccine takes the MMR vaccine, which already combines mumps, measles and rubella and adds chickenpox, polio, whooping cough, tetanus, diphtheria, hepatitis B and meningitis."

Comment:  Given the potential for antigens in vaccines to recombine and form new, more lethal pathogens, is this really such a good idea?  For this reason, are any combined vaccines a good idea?

►January 13, 2004 - A New Weapon in the Battle Against Cancer - Aventis Pasteur opts for Ontario as the research and production center for cancer vaccine - PRNewswire via Yahoo!

Comment:  As seems to be the norm, the long-term consequences of vaccination are being compared to the mere incidence of disease.  Except in those cases where there are long term consequences of disease, there may be little reason to avoid a disease, and some considerable reason to experience it.  (For more on this, see, for instance, Scandals: Prescription For Disaster - Is Vaccine Policy A "House of Cards"?)  Either the incidence of vaccination should be compared to the incidence of disease, in which case the incidence of vaccination might win out, but would, of course, be meaningless; or the long-term consequences of vaccination needs to be compared to the long-term consequences of disease.  About that we know little since we have never compared the two in any meaningful way (see, for instance, comments re: No solid evidence links vaccines, autism below).

►January 13, 2004 - Granville soldier still embroiled in anthrax dispute - The Newark Advocate - "As a battle over the safety of anthrax vaccines heats up, Spec. Kurt Hickman of Granville is left with few clues on how his refusal to take the vaccine will affect his military future...'I think it is only a matter of time before he is asked to take it again,' said Hickman's attorney Kenneth Levine. And if Hickman again refuses -- and Levine would expect him to -- he could face a second court martial hearing, this time by the Army."

►January 13, 2004 - No solid evidence links vaccines, autism  - www.nwitimes.com - "I've been a physician for more than 30 years, and ever since I can remember, vaccines have been accused of causing a multitude of diseases such as diabetes and hepatitis. I continue to be amazed by the rapidity with which unfounded postulations spread and take on a life of their own. Yet, when objective studies using the best current scientific methods and data examine each claim, evidence has never been found to validate these assertions. It is important to realize that no single study has ever been perfect or irrefutable."

Comment:  Including the many apparently designed to vindicate (as opposed to study objectively) vaccines.  Were they designed to objectively study vaccines, they would have, just for starters, always included "never vaccinated" children as controls.  For more on this go to e.g., Scandals: Thank You, Congressman Shays; Out of Control; Scandals: - Shoot First, Don't Ask Questions Later; Scandals: Infant Vaccine Deaths - But Who's Counting? (No news is NOT good news.); Scandals: Why We Won't Take No* For An Answer (*No relationship between MMR and autism)

►January 13, 2004 - VaxGen gets big boost - Government gives firm $80.3 million anthrax contract - www.sfgate.com

►January 13, 2004 - Grid computing volunteers aim to end deadly diseases -  search390.com - "Deadly diseases like cancer and smallpox just might have found a powerful new foe in the form of a global grid computing initiative launched by Austin, Texas-based United Devices Inc."

►January 12, 2004 - Childhood Seizures - Ivanhoe

►January 10, 2004 - Toxic drug causes lasting damage to brain - The Globe and Mail

►January 9, 2004 - Gene Essential For Development Of Normal Brain Connections Resulting From Sensory Input Discovered - University of California via ScienceDaily

►January 13, 2004 - Autism Drug Works - (registration or subscription required) - The New York Times

►January 13, 2004 - World Health Body Confirms New Polio Cases - Reuters, UK

►January 13, 2004 - VIETNAM: 10 Dead in Human Cases of Bird Flu (requires registration or subscription) - The New York Times

Comment:  Will this be described as the likely beginning of a pandemic?

►January 12, 2004 - WHO links Hanoi dead to bird flu - The World Health Organisation (WHO) has said there appears to be a link between the deaths of three children in Vietnam and an outbreak of bird flu - BBC

►January 13, 2004 - Fighting flu season - China Daily - "With the peak of cold and flu season upon us, Xu Wei explores the best methods to battle winter's sniffly, sneezy scourge. Surprise: It doesn't involve antibiotics...Chilly winds, poor indoor ventilation and less exercise all contribute to the weakening of the body's immune system to make winter a peak season for cold and flu."

►January 13, 2004 - Frequently Asked Meningitis Questions -  www.wftv.com

►January 13, 2004 - Two more meningitis cases found in Upstate - AP via www.thestate.com

►January 2004 - Possible High Rate of Transmission of Nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae, Including ß-Lactamase-Negative Ampicillin-Resistant Strains, between Children and Their Parents - journal article (Journal of Clinical Microbiology)

►January 13, 2004 - Nonfood use of cow parts faces review - www.sacbee.com - "Now that the United States has mad cow disease, federal regulators are reconsidering long-held policies aimed at prohibiting importation of products or ingredients with bovine tissue or blood from countries with documented cases of the illness...The products include vaccines, nutritional supplements and cosmetics, all of which can contain ingredients derived from cows."

Comment:  For more on the presence of bovine products in vaccines, go to Scandals: On "mad cows" and sick monkeys: From the people who brought you SV40 in vaccines....

►January 12, 2004 - Orphan Medical Discusses Xyrem Growth at JP Morgan Healthcare Conference - JPMorgan 22nd Annual Healthcare Conference - Business Wire - "The Company also reiterated its plans to initiate a proof-of-principle trial to evaluate Xyrem in the treatment of fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) in early 2004 with patient enrollment expected in the second quarter of the year. The Company expects this first trial to be completed with initial data available in the first half of 2005...Fibromyalgia syndrome is characterized by widespread muscle pain and stiffness. Its incidence in women is three times that of men. Other symptoms include persistent fatigue, headaches, cognitive or memory impairment, morning stiffness and non-restorative sleep. Fibromyalgia is a chronic condition that is estimated to affect as many as four million individuals in the United States and represents a market opportunity in excess of a billion dollars per year."

Comment:  For a preliminary look at reports to VAERS of vaccine-associated fibromyalgia, click here.

►January 12, 2004 - CSIRO brings home the bacon - www.innovations-report.com - "'While the potential value of pig meat is substantial, keeping pigs healthy is costly. Pigs tend to be raised intensively and are subject to things like dust, bacteria and "pig-to-pig" tensions. This can affect the pig’s ability to fight disease and grow.'...By learning more about the pig immune system and modulating its responses, antibiotics and chemicals currently used to control disease may be reduced or replaced with the added benefit of improving health and increasing resistance to disease. Dr Strom’s team is studying about 40 natural immune-system regulators - molecules called cytokines...'Trials under commercial conditions showed that cytokines could be natural alternatives to antibiotics as pigs given cytokines gained equal to or more weight than those pigs provided in-feed antibiotics. In another experiment, pigs given cytokines gained another ten per cent in weight over those given antibiotics,' Dr Strom says."

►January 12, 2004 - Pitt researchers pursue SARS - The Pitt News

►January 12, 2004 - Substance for the Treatment of Sepsis Discovered by Domestic Researchers - http://english.donga.com

►January 13, 2004 - Scientists restore crucial myelin in brains of mice - University of Rochester Medical Center via www.eurekalert.org - "Scientists for the first time have restored a crucial substance known as myelin in a widespread area of an animal's brain, opening the door toward new ways to improve treatment of an assortment of "demyelinating" diseases as well as the side effects of such common conditions as high blood pressure and heart disease."

Comment:  Maybe making people hysterical about diseases and their health isn't particularly health promoting. 

►January 13, 2004 - New SARS Reports, New Questions on Tracking (requires registration or subscription) - The New York Times

►January 12, 2004 - Taking vitamin D supplements lowers risk of multiple sclerosis - American Academy of Neurology via www.eurekalert.org

►January 12, 2004 - Possible Relief For Fibromyalgia Sufferers - Study Shows Mystery Of Disease Lies In Brain, Not Muscles - www.cbs2chicago.com - "'We have found out that in patients with fibromyalgia, norepinephrine and serotonin are reduced in these patients,' Dr. Cutler said...And that reduction -- in theory -- makes the body more sensitive to pain. That's why Dr. Cutler is investigating a drug that raises the levels of both neurotransmitters, hoping it can help those with the disease."

►January 13, 2004 - Stress, Personality Weaken Resistance to Illness - Washington Post via The Ledger Online

►January 13, 2004 - Coley Pharmaceutical Group Initiates Phase I Clinical Trials of Actilon(TM) for Chronic Hepatitis C Infection - Third Coley TLR9 Agonist Product to Advance into Clinic - PRNeswire via Yahoo!

►January 13, 2004 - Meeting addresses advances in tuberous sclerosis - Genetic disease now easier to treat, Montreal conference told - www.medicalpost.com

►January 13, 2004 - An Ecodetective's Journey Into the Center of Neurodegenerative Disease - by RFD Columnist, Mark Purdey in the Online Mad Cow Disease Conference at www.redflagsdaily.com

►January 2004 - Reduced Etiological Role for Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli in Cases of Diarrhea in Brazilian Infants - journal article (Journal of Clinical Microbiology)

►January 2004 - Dynamics of Streptococcus agalactiae Colonization in Women during and after Pregnancy and in Their Infants - journal article (Journal of Clinical Microbiology)

►January 2004 - Typical Enteroaggregative Escherichia coli Is the Most Prevalent Pathotype among E. coli Strains Causing Diarrhea in Mongolian Children - (Journal of Clinical Microbiology)

►January 2004 - Prevalence and Genetic Diversity of Human Astroviruses in Mexican Children with Symptomatic and Asymptomatic Infections - journal article (Journal of Clinical Microbiology)

►January 2004 - Infant Feeding Practices of Women in a Perinatal HIV-1 Prevention Study in Nairobi, Kenya - journal article (Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes)

►January 9, 2004 - Inadequate water and sanitation adversely effects child growth - Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health via www.eurekalert.org

►January 12, 2004 - Different Types of Asthma - Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology via Ivanhoe

►January 2004 - Early physiological development of infants with intrauterine growth retardation - journal article (Archives of Diseases in Childhood Fetal and Neonatal Edition)

►January 12, 2004 - Mad cow illness in people is scary but 'very, very, very rare' - The Sacramento Bee

►January 12, 2004 - SDSU biologist to lead U.S. microbiology group - The San Diego Union-Tribune

►January 13, 2004 - Scientists meet to discuss health implications of nanoparticles - Institute of Physics

►January 11, 2004 - 78,000 cases of HIV/AIDS in Pakistan - www.dawn.com

►January 12, 2004 - Disease lab makes timely debut - The Western Producer - "The centre will become the hub of a new testing regime being developed to ensure BSE-afflicted animals cannot get into the human food chain."

►January 13, 2004 - New SARS Reports, New Questions on Tracking - (registration required) - New York Times

►January 12, 2004 - Fallout from 'mad cow' disease FM Excel plant sees 150 layoffs - The Fort Morgan Times

►January 12, 2004 - Crackdown on GPs who tout bogus cures - www.smh.com.au

Comment:  And when will there be a crackdown on the false claims of the drug companies and their merchants, the medical profession?  Even they know their drugs often do not work, yet where is the outrage, the clamping down, over that?  For a recent article on this, go to The drugs don't work.

►January 13, 2004 - Putting a Price on a Good Night's Sleep (requires registration or subscription) - The New York Times - "Americans are about to be reminded again how much they need sleep — and sleeping pills...A new effort appears to be developing to expand the use of sleeping pills, which because of their potential for abuse have long had a reputation as being in some ways more dangerous than the insomnia they are meant to treat."

►January 13, 2004 - FDA Advances Consumer Health and Safety in 2003 - PharmaLive - "At the heart of the Pharmaceutical Industry" - "The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today released a white paper highlighting some of FDA's priorities and major initiatives to protect and advance consumer health and safety in 2003, and describing how the agency intends to build on many of these initiatives in 2004...The major consumer achievements noted in the paper, "Protecting and Advancing Consumer Health and Safety," include efforts to: bolster consumer safety through major industry regulations and risk communications; combat new forms of terrorism and emerging diseases; crack down on false products and false claims; reduce preventable medical errors; speed access to safe and affordable medicines; and help consumers improve their health through better information and greater 'health literacy.'"

►January 12, 2004 - XOMA Executives to Enter Into Rule 10b5-1 Selling Plans - Business Wire

►January 12, 2004 - Human Genome Sciences Updates Progress of Six Drugs in Clinical Trials at JPMorgan Conference - PRNewswire-FirstCall via Yahoo!

►January 12, 2004 - U.K. Biotech Company Wins Competition for Corporate Office In Fairfax County BioAccelerator; Fairfax Information Security Company Wins Space in U.K. Incubator - Business Wire

►January 13, 2004 - India News: Natural Remedies to market herbal products in US - Indo-Asian News Service via www.keralanext.com

►January 12, 2004 - Pediatrician's Corner - Common pediatric myths - Family Channel Front Page via www.richmond.com

►January 13, 2004 - Blood test may predict miscarriage - Vanguard Online

►January 13, 2004 - Your health, your responsibility: Consumers' responsibility grows with health-care options - St. Cloud Times

►January 13, 2004 - Council votes down fluoridation - Lancaster Eagle-Gazette

►January 2004 - Parental concern and distress about infant pain - journal article (Archives of Disease in Childhood Fetal and Neonatal Edition)

►January 12, 2004 - Onslow initiative brings health services to Hispanic newcomers - The Daily News

►January 13, 2004 - Scanner measures antioxidants - Body defense score - Fairmont Sentinel

►January 12, 2004 - Morning headaches associated with depression, anxiety disorders - JAMA via www.eurekalert.org

►January 12, 2004 - Specialty practice offers 'psychosocial' assessments - The Business Journal Phoenix

►January 12, 2004 - Protection Agency - Public health risk questioned - Neighbors want public hearing - Sun Herald - "Through Tuesday, the public is invited to provide comment on DuPont's request to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to fill in wetlands."