►March 1, 2004 - Chair in adolescent cancer for UK - A UK cancer charity is calling for government action on teenage cancer. - BBC Health News

►March 1, 2004 - Topical adrenaline and cocaine gel for anaesthetising children’s lacerations. - An audit of acceptability and safety - journal article (Emergency Medicine Journal)

►March 2004 - Innate immunity and mucosal bacterial interactions in the intestine - journal article (Current Opinion in Gastroenterology)

►March 2004 - Carbohydrate intolerance - journal article (Current Opinion in Gastroenterology)

►March 2004 - Food allergy and the gastrointestinal tract. - journal article (Current Opinion in Gastroenterology)

►March 2004 - Probiotics and prebiotics in gastrointestinal disorders. - journal article (Current Opinion in Gastroenterology)

►March 2004 - Dietary regulation of gene expression. - journal article (Current Opinion in Gastroenterology)

►March 2004 - Cell and molecular biology of the small intestine: new insights into differentiation, growth and repair. - journal article (Current Opinion in Gastroenterology)

►March 2004 - Nutrient absorption. - journal article (Current Opinion in Gastroenterology)

►March 2004 - Parenteral nutrition: new advances and observations - journal article (Current Opinion in Gastroenterology)

►March 1, 2004 - Study shows United States may have more pediatricians than it needs for the next 20 years - OHSU study published in March issue of Pediatrics journal - Oregon Health & Science University via www.eurekalert.org

►March 1, 2004 - Cancer vaccine testing gets green light - North County Times

►March 1, 2004 - Fat cells may help fight disease - UPI via The Washington Times

►March 1, 2004 - NIH Researchers Discover Promising Therapy for Vision Loss - National Eye Institute via www.abilitymagazine.com

►March 1, 2004 - Texas Meeting To Push for Foot-and-Mouth Eradication from the Americas -  www.paho.org

►March 1, 2004 - Report: Heart disease No. 1 killer of West Virginia seniors - AP via The Charleston Gazette

►March 1, 2004 - JCI table of contents - www.eurekalert.org

►March 1, 2004 - Scientists discover increased benefits of Vitamin D - Chicago Tribune via www.kentucky.com

►March 2, 2004 - DNA-boosted sunscreen may fight cancer - Therapy fools cells into protecting themselves from sun. - journal article (Nature)

►March 2, 2004 - Asthma Study: Waiting to Exhale - 40 percent of homeless children in shelters in New York City have the respiratory disease, but many are not getting help, authors say - Newsday

►March 1, 2004 - Human H5N1 vaccine to come out in six months: WHO - Xinhuanet via China View 

►March 1, 2004 - Latest bird flu case in Japan is deadly strain - No reports of virus infecting humans in the country - Reuters via MSNBC News 

►March 1, 2004 - Infectious disease conference opens in Atlanta - AP via www.wlox.com 

►March 1, 2004 - Verification committee okays polio vaccine - Vanguard 

►March 1, 2004 - MedImmune Plans to Keep FluMist Alive - MedImmune to Keep FluMist Alive Despite Dismal Sales, Lowering Outlook for the Coming Year - AP via ABC News 

►March 1, 2004 - Injecting New Life into the Vaccine Industry - Harvard Business School - "Vaccines for preventable diseases save millions of lives every year, yet as an industry, the vaccine business suffers a host of ailments, the CEO of Merck & Co. contends...Speaking at a Harvard Business School forum recently, Raymond V. Gilmartin (HBS MBA '68) said the vaccine industry needs to overcome hurdles that include a feeble distribution infrastructure, a thin pipeline of competition to inspire more innovation, and a poor diet of incentives for the development of vaccines for which there is no natural market such as vaccinations against anthrax or ricin." 

►March 2, 2004 - Study: U.S. May Get Pediatrician Surplus - AP via The Herald-Sun 

►March 2, 2004 - Study: Anti-Bacterial Soaps Don't Deliver - AP via The Herald-Sun 

►March 2, 2004 - DEA Approves Trial Use Of Ecstasy in Trauma Cases (requires registration) - Washington Post

►March 2004 - Investigation of Neuroanatomical Differences Between Autism and Asperger Syndrome - journal article (Archives of General Psychiatry)

►March 1, 2004 - HRT Risks Could Have Been Found Earlier - British Medical Journal via Ivanhoe Newswire

►March 1, 2004 - Antibacterial Soap Doesn't Prevent Viral Infection  - Reuters, UK

►March 1, 2004 - Greek Scientists Find Way to Weaken Cancer Cells - Reuters

►March 2, 2004 - Researchers Halt Hormone Therapy Trial - Reuters - "The National Institutes of Health said on Tuesday it had stopped a trial of women taking estrogen replacement therapy after finding the pills not only failed to improve their health but also may have slightly raised the risk of strokes...It was the second broad trial of hormone replacement therapy to have been halted in two years."

►March 2, 2004 - Should parents with philosophical objections to vaccinations be able to get exemptions for their kids? - online poll alert

►March 1, 2004 - Military Vaccine Flattens GI, 17 - CBS News - "Amid all the war stories that have come out of the conflict with Iraq, Tyran Duncan's hasn't been widely told. The willing soldier became an unwitting victim to the vaccinations he was required to take to deploy. And as CBS News Correspondent Sharyl Attkisson reports, he's not the only one."

►March 2, 2004 - Doctor's diary: a jab in the dark - The truth about MMR must be revealed, says Dr James Le Fanu - "The Government finds itself in an invidious situation over the MMR/autism controversy, having painted itself into a corner by denying parents the option of the single measles vaccine. They, thus, have no alternative other than to insist the MMR is totally safe - irrespective of evidence that might emerge to suggest the contrary."

►March 1, 2004 - Polio Vaccine: Agent of Life Or Death? - analysis - This Day via www.allafrica.com - "Over the last 20 years, the world has witnessed miraculous developments in child survival. First, smallpox was eradicated in 1979. Then during the 1980s, infant mortality fell by more than five per cent each year. This means that in one generation, the number of childhood deaths fell by half - an astounding achievement...But 11 million children are still slipping through the safety net each year that many children die from preventable diseases or malnutrition. Today an estimated 1.2 million children are infected with HIV and 10 per cent of new infections occur in children under the age of five. Imagine the fear that a parent in sub-Saharan Africa lives with every day, knowing that their child has a one in 10 chance of dying before reaching their first birthday, and a one in five chance of not seeing their fifth birthday."

►March 1, 2004 - Polio in Ivory Coast Started in Nigeria, Tests Confirm (requires registration or subscription) - The New York Times

►March 1, 2004 - Verification Committee Okays Polio Vaccine - Vanguard via www.allafrica.com

►March 1, 2004 - Hundreds Line Up For Shots After Hepatitis Scare - Patrons Of Derry Taco Bell At Risk Of Infection - www.thechamplainchannel.com

►March 1, 2004 - Vaekstfonden Increases Shareholding in Symphogen A/S - PRNewswire via Silicon Valley Biz Ink

►March 1, 2004 - Breathing easier - New medication shows promise for severe allergic asthmatics - The Flint Journal via www.mlive.com

►March 1, 2004 - 8 Million South Africans Suffer From Type 2 Diabetes - Bua News via www.allafrica.com

►March 1, 2004-  Five million Americans have diabetes and don't know it (requires registration) - www.wvec.com

►March 1, 2004 - Blinding Eye Disease Promising New Therapy - Medical News Today

►March 1, 2004 - Bill calls for state to pay bounty for mercury switches - AP via www.in-forum.com

►March 1, 2004 - Anthrax Jabs Blamed for Baby Deaths - PA News via The Scotsman

►March 1, 2004 -  Soldiers link baby deaths to jabs - Some UK Soldiers who served in Iraq have expressed fears for their unborn babies after claiming a number of child deaths are linked to anthrax jabs. - BBC

►March 1, 2004 - Anthrax jabs blamed for baby deaths - http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk

►March 1, 2004 - BioPort to sell anthrax vaccine to Taiwanese government - AP via The Detroit Free Press

►March 1, 2004 -  Troubled FluMist Vaccine to Remain in Production - Status of Saatchi on $40 Million Account Still Unknown - www.adage.com - "MedImmune today said it will continue producing troubled nasal flu vaccine FluMist, despite slumping sales and the possibility of a $75 million write-off if Wyeth bows out of a co-marketing agreement on the drug."

►March 1, 2004 -  MedImmune to stick with FluMist, lowers outlook - AP via The Detroit Free Press

►March 1, 2004 - FluMist Flop Dogs MedImmune - www.thestreet.com - "Medimmune said Monday that it would stick with FluMist, its inhaled flu vaccine, conceding that the product wouldn't produce meaningful financial results until the 2007-2008 flu season. FluMist has been a flop, but the company insisted that an improved version of the drug launched in September could eventually produce annual U.S. sales of $500 million."

►March 1, 2004 - MedImmune Implements Plan to Achieve $2 Billion In Revenues By 2009 -  New Data from Two Phase 3 Studies Show MedImmune's Intranasal Influenza Vaccine had Statistically Superior Efficacy Over Traditional Flu Shot in Head-to-Head Comparisons - Company Expects Four Phase 3 Programs in 2005 and Launch of Two New Products between 2007 and 2009 - Targeting Three New Investigational New Drug Applications Annually for Next Three Years - press release - MedImmune, Inc. via PRNewswire-FirstCall via Yahoo!

►March 1, 2004 - New Aids Vaccine Coming for Trials - The Monitor via www.allafrica.com

►March 1, 2004 - Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae Bacterin - For vaccination of healthy swine to aid in the prevention of pneumonia caused by Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae infection. - Schering-Plough Animal Health (UK) via www.thepigsite.com

►March 1, 2004 -  Bird flu virus in Japan same as deadly Asian strain - AP via The Hindu

►March 1, 2004 - Japan says third bird flu outbreak was H5N1 strain - Reuters AlertNet

►March 1, 2004 - Human H5N1 vaccine to come out in six months: WHO - Xinhuanet via China View

►March 2, 2004 - Bird-flu shot ready for trials - The Standard - "A vaccine for the deadly H5N1 virus is ready for testing on humans and is expected to be available in six months, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said yesterday...The United Nations health agency had said in January that a vaccine may not be available until next winter...The new vaccine was developed by using a technology that involves genetic modification of the virus."

Comment:  It may sound great on the surface, but what are the risks?  For instance, it was recently reported that genetic modification of vaccines may may pose considerable problems: "Genetically engineered pox viruses in cell cultures recombined with natural viruses to create new hybrid viruses with unpredictable and potentially dangerous characteristics".  Dr. Bonnie Dunbar, a vaccine researcher, testified that the recombinant hepatitis B vaccine causes serious side effects.

►March 1, 2004 - Scientist: Factory slaughtering of chickens to minimise bird flu risks - AP via www.thestar.com.my

►March 1, 2004 - Russian Far East takes precautions against bird flu - Vietnam News Agency

►March 1, 2004 - Vietnam reports one more suspected flu type A infection - Vietnam detected a new suspected case of flu type A infection on Monday, raising the total number of infections and suspects to 299 so far. - Xinhua via People's Daily

►March 1, 2004 - An end to bird flu outbreaks - Vietnam News Agency

►February 29, 2004 - One of largest ever genetic studies of autism launched - Arizona Republic via www.awares.org

►March 2, 2004 - The case against the case against - Questions are being raised about some influential research that suggested there could be dangerous side effects from vaccinating children, reports Julie Robotham. - www.smh.com.au - "It was probably inevitable that Andrew Wakefield would become a martyr. The British gastroenterologist claimed in 1998 to have found a link between the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) childhood vaccine and the development of autism. And since then his reputation has been in limbo as survey after survey cast doubt on the connection...But last week he was finally cut loose."

►March 1, 2004 - Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in the US - This is a report via OIE on the recent outbreak of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in the US. - Date of previous outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza in the United States of America reported to the OIE: 1984. - Poultry News via www.thepoultrysite.com

►March 1, 2004 - Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in Thailand - This is a Follow-up report (No. 4) via OIE on the recent outbreak of Avian Influenza in Thailand. - Poultry News via www.thepoultrysite.com

►March 1, 2004 - KNHA Support Polio Suspension - Weekly Trust via www.allafrica.com

►March 1, 2004 - Confusion Trails FG/JNI Polio Investigation - Weekly Trust via www.allafrica.com

►March 1, 2004 - Central African Republic: Anti-Polio Drive Begins in Six Provinces - IRIN via www.allafrica.com

►March 1, 2004 - Health Check: 'Any publicity about MMR - even that which undermines the author of the scare - deters people from vaccination' - www.independent.co.uk - "I wonder whether the latest twist in the MMR saga will have any impact on vaccination rates. To most people, I suspect, the claims and counter-claims about conflicts of interest and research ethics will seem utterly irrelevant to the fundamental question of whether MMR is safe."

►March 1, 2004 - Chiron's role in hepatitis C research under microscope - AP via The Mercury News - "Industry scientists have complained for years that Chiron has hindered the fight against hepatitis by creating a virtual commercial monopoly over drug research...Now, federal health officials are reviewing the 14-year-old government agreement that gave Chiron so much control over research that seeks to help the 170 million people afflicted with the disease."

►March 1, 2004 - Patients become educators - Portland Press Herald

►March 1, 2004 - Rania champions children's cause in London - Hello! Magazine

►March 1, 2004 - Antioxidants: A radical departure - Are the millions spent on antioxidants wasted, as a new study suggests? - Times Online, UK

►March 1, 2004 - Gluten may trigger schizophrenia - More evidence of that wheat and gluten sensitivity may be a factor in the development of schizophrenia - Times Online, UK

►March 1, 2004 - CU Researchers Advance Quest To Find HIV Vaccine - Columbia Daily Spectator

►March 1, 2004 - SciClone's ZADAXIN Demonstrates Significant Anti-Fungal Efficacy in Invasive Aspergillosis Animal Study - SciClone Pharmaceuticals via Business Wire

►March 1, 2004 - Chiron and XOMA Form Collaboration for Development and Commercialization of Therapeutic Antibodies for Cancer - Chiron Corporation via Business Wire

►March 1, 2004 - Lung virus invited all its little friends - The Mercury News

►March 1, 2004 - More exercise equals less pain - The Register Citizen

►March 1, 2004 - Chickenpox flare in Lake Oswego indicates vaccine may wear off - AP via www.kgw.com

►March 1, 2004 - Unexpected lessons learned this flu season - New influenza strain reminds the public that influenza is not harmless while making health officials aware of the vaccine program's shortcomings. (requires registration) - The Los Angeles Times - "As it turns out, the 2003-04 flu season appears to have been no worse than many other seasons. Even though it peaked extremely early — in December — the numbers of people who became sick or died weren't unusual...The season did have an impact, however. As health officials prepare for a new season, they're paying special attention to the last season's legacy — both in public awareness and in their strategies to deal with new outbreaks."

►March 1, 2004 - Lab on Front Line in War Vs. Avian Flu - AP via The Mercury News

►March 1, 2004 - Cutting-edge lab fights spread of avian flu - Unprecedented testing program zips through hundreds of samples - The News Journal via www.delawareonline.com

►March 1, 2004 - Parents: Autism curable - San Mateo Daily Journal

►March 1, 2004 - MMR uptake causes worry - www.edp24.co.uk

►March 1, 2004 - Gates Foundation spends $1.5bn on AIDS, polio war worldwide - Daily Times of Nigeria

►March 1, 2004 - Hepatitis case to go to Europe - The Guardian, UK

►March 1, 2004 - HR Zeitgeist - lower costs in 100 attoseconds - HR Gateway, UK

►March 1, 2004 - Governor tours Christian Clinic - The Baxter Bulletin

►March 1, 2004 - Hepatitis patients take matter in own hands - AP via www.wmtw.com

►March 1, 2004 - Daiichi Pharmaceutical Corporation Announces FDA Approval of Once-Daily FLOXIN(R) Otic (ofloxacin otic solution) 0.3% for Treatment of a Common Ear Infection - Cure Rates of Greater Than 90 Percent Seen in Patients Treated Once Daily for Otitis Externa - press release - Daiichi Pharmaceutical Corporation via PRNewswire via Yahoo!

►March 1, 2004 - Ahmadiyya head calls on Muslims to support polio immunisation - GNA via www.ghanaweb.com

►March 1, 2004 - Researchers' goal: Stopping diabetes before kids get it - AP via The Wall Street Journal via www.sfgate.com

►March 1, 2004 - Mason Coach Sets the Record Straight - The Ledger Independent via www.maysville-online.com

►March 1, 2004 - City Council Member Kay Everett to Announce Kidney Ailment at City Meeting - Everett and National Kidney Foundation of Michigan urge Detroiters to attend free screening during National Kidney Month - press release - National Kidney Foundation of Michigan via PRNewswire via Yahoo!

►March 1, 2004 - New AHRQ Tool for PDAs Helps Clinicians Treat Community-Acquired Pneumonia - Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality via U.S. Newswire

►March 1, 2004 - Easing mercury standards not life-affirming - letter - The Advocate Messenger

►February 10, 2002 - Dogma on MMR does not work - Parents need information and choice - The Observer via The Guardian, UK - "The MMR debate goes to the heart of the relationship between the individual and society. This is an age in which people expect to exercise choice; but there are times when the collective good must prevail. The great programmes against cholera, polio and smallpox could never have taken place had they not been enforced. Yet here we have the makings of a public health disaster, with drift, fear and confusion. The unconfirmed findings of maverick scientists such as Dr Andrew Wakefield prey upon a public which has grown at once more consumerist and more sceptical of authority, with good reason after the BSE and foot and mouth fiascos."

►Expert Advice - Dr. Henry Bernstein - www.familyeducation.com - "Q. My newborn had her first hepatitis shot in the nursery, but now her doctor said that there's too much mercury in the vaccine to give it to her until she's a little older. How can it be OK in the nursery, but not when she is two months older?"

►Bio-Terrorism Countermeasures – Requirements & Funding - King Publishing Group - conference alert - March 9-10, 2004 at The George Washington University in Washington, DC

►Ensuring the Safety and Security of the U.S. Medicine Supply - King Publishing Group - conference alert - April 13-14, 2004 at The George Washington University in Washington, DC

►The Origin Of Aids - A Scientific Controversy - Tuesday March 2nd at 7.30pm - Special Broadcasting Service Television via www.sbs.com.au - "In his 1999 book The River, author Edward Hooper, a former BBC journalist, charts a remarkable journey to the possible origins of AIDS. He presents strong circumstantial evidence that points to the inadvertent contamination of an experimental oral polio vaccine administered in Africa in the late 1950’s. Hooper argues that this vaccine most likely became the vehicle by which a simian precursor of HIV/AIDS carried by chimpanzees was able to jump the species barrier into humans. If his conclusions are correct it would indicate that the very people who were working to save lives were themselves responsible for unleashing this terrible disease."

►September 25, 1999 - A controversial HIV/AIDS hypothesis - The River - A Journey Back to the Source of HIV and AIDS (requires registration) - journal article (The Lancet)

►2003 - Dephlogistication, Imperial Display, Apes, Angels, and the Return of Monsieur Émile Zola - New developments in the origins of AIDS controversy, including some observations about ways in which the scientific establishment may seek to limit open debate and flow of information on "difficult" issues. (pdf) - The Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei and Edward Hooper

►March 1, 2004 - Money sought for autism center at UWT  - The News Tribune via www.tribnet.com

►Military Vaccine Dangers - CBS News Video

►February 27, 2004 - Parents gather at State Capitol to protest autism-treatment cuts - Green Bay Press-Gazette

►Voyages In Autism:  Behaviors and Advocacy (pdf) - conference alert - March 20, 2004 in San Pablo, CA

►March 1, 2004 - Studying Hyperlexia May Unlock How Brains Read - Children With Rare Disorder Have Heightened Reading, Learning Skills (requires registration) - The Washington Post

►February 20, 2004 - Belgium to recognise autism as a separate handicap - Le Soir via www.awares.org

►February 23, 2004 - Termites, Crayfish and Autism - www.about.com

►February 29, 2004 - Unfair hounding of MMR researcher - letters - Scotland on Sunday via The Scotsman

►January 2004 - Seroprevalence of measles, mumps and rubella antibodies in Luxembourg: results from a national cross-sectional study. - journal article (Epidemiol Infect.)

►March 1, 2004 -How Mild Hepatitis C Unfolds -  One in three people with mild hepatitis C infection will experience rapid worsening of the condition, says a study in the current issue of Gut. - Pak Tribune

►New Treatment For Hepatitis C - More Cures, Less Side Effects With Pagylated Interferon - www.about.com

►March 1, 2004 - Chronic Fatigue, Irritable Bowel Mistaken For Celiac Disease - Celiac Disease Often Considered Child's Ailment - www.wbalchannel.com

►March 1, 2004 - Funeral for 7-year-old Meningitis Victim - www.10nbc.com

►March 1, 2004 - U.S. Says Flu Activity Has Declined Dramatically - Reuters

►February 29, 2004 - Farm Scene: Delaware lab on front line in war against avian flu - AP via www.sfgate.com

►March 1, 2004 - Booster May Be Needed For Failing Chicken Pox Shot - Researchers Study Lake Oswego Outbreak - www.koin.com - "In 2001, 18 children at Forest Hills Elementary School in Lake Oswego developed the illness -- despite previous chicken pox vaccinations...Researchers who studied the outbreak found that the big jump in cases came five years after vaccination. Now they believe that a booster shot may be needed after five years."

Comment:  Maybe it would be better to let children get the chickenpox.  For more on this, go to Scandals: When is an oops not really an oops?  When you get to solve the problems you cause, and make money doing both!, Scandals: Playing With Fire - It's Not EASY To Fool Mother Nature, and Scandals: Prescription For Disaster - Is Vaccine Policy A "House of Cards"?

►March 1, 2004 - Chickenpox flare indicates vaccine may wear off - www.katu.com

►March 1, 2004 - Parents of Vaccine Injured Children Support West Virginia Religious Exemption - press release - National Vaccine Information Center via PRNewswire via Yahoo!

►March 2, 2004 - Noise pollution causes hearing impairment - Speakers say at a seminar - The Daily Star

►March 1, 2004 - Big blot UP turns around, polio down to record low - From 1600, national polio cases fall to 224, work cut out in south - The Indian Express

►March 2, 2004 - Vaccinated GIs spread infections - Fayetteville (N.C.) Observer - "Thirty people in the military have transferred infections to other people after being vaccinated for smallpox, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention."

►March 1, 2004 - Anthrax Vaccine Paralyzes Soldier - WVLT via www.volunteertv.com

►March 2, 2004 - Poultry farms plan for post-bird flu - Vietnam News via Vietnam Economic Times

►March 1, 2004 - Autism research falls behind - The Western Mail via http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk

►March 2, 2004 - 'I had to become an autism expert' - As experts call for more UK research into the causes and treatment of autism, BBC News Online talks to the mother of a nine-year-old autistic boy. - BBC - "Anna Parton, from Bromley, Kent, had to spend £12,000 and devise her own care plan to give her son Robert the help she felt he needed."

Comment:  It is a disgrace that so much of the cost of research and care falls so squarely on the shoulders of parents already over-burdened by the needs of their precious children.
 
►March 2, 2004 - Flu Season Seems Over, Officials Say (requires registration or subscription) - The New York Times - "The flu season appears to have ended early and as abruptly as it started, and was not much more severe than usual seasonal outbreaks, federal health officials said here on Monday...'The influenza season has wound down very dramatically, declining to levels lower than we often expect at this time of year,' said Dr. Keiji Fukuda, a top influenza expert at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention."

Comment:  So much for the benefits of creating hysteria (unless you consider vaccine manufacturer profits a benefit of vaccination).  For more on this, go to How the Mass Media in the U.S. Created Flu Hysteria and Helped Drive the Vaccine Markets for the Makers of FluMist And Fluzone. - by RFD columnist Sherri Tenpenny, DO in the Online Vaccines Conference @ www.redflagsdaily.com

►March 2, 2004 - Flu threatens world, experts say - Pandemic risk at 30-year high, scientists report - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

►March 1, 2004 - CDC warns of pandemic dangers posed by avian flu - USA Today - "The flu season is fading away, but experts warn that a far greater menace may be on the horizon: The avian flu galloping across Asia poses "the most serious pandemic threat since 1968," Keiji Fukuda said Monday at the International Conference on Emerging Infectious Diseases...A pandemic caused by a flu strain that is new, deadly to humans and highly contagious "is inevitable," he said, but no one knows when it may strike."

Comment:  From the people who just brought you the 2003-2004 flu season hysteria and who apparently believe you just can't have too much hysteria (warranted or not).

►March 1, 2004 - Screening removes West Nile from blood supply - American Society for Microbiology via www.eurekalert.org

►March 1, 2004 - Vaccine Could Stop Breast Cancer in its Tracks - Primes the body to fight altered cells that precede disease - Journal of Clinical Investigation via www.betterhumans.com

►March 2, 2004 - Troops ‘gagged’ over anthrax jab concerns - The Herald, UK - "SOLDIERS calling for an inquiry into the possible effects of Iraq war anthrax vaccinations on the health of their unborn children have accused the Ministry of Defence of attempting to gag them."

►March 2, 2004 - Parents urge more autism research - Manchester Online

►March 1, 2004 - Dr.Wakefield and the MMR crisis (requires subscription) - Times Online, UK

►March 2, 2004 - Regulations on practice of herbal medicine - The Scotsman

►March 2, 2004 - Even With Vaccination, the 'Whoop' Is Back (requires registration or subscription) - The New York Times - "Get used to it. Pertussis, better known as whooping cough, is here to stay...So are pertussis-related deaths among vulnerable infants, unless steps are taken to stem the increasing number of cases of the highly contagious disease."

►March 1, 2004 - CDC Searches for Cause to Mystery Deaths - AP via Yahoo! - "In a project resembling something out of the X Files, federal health officials say the causes of a quarter of the deaths that have stumped coroners in recent years appear to be from ordinary, treatable conditions."

►March 1, 2004 - Study: Asthma Rampant Among Homeless NY Children - Reuters

►March 2, 2004 -  In Upstate New York, a Winter Hunt for Crows, and West Nile (requires registration or subscription) - The New York Times

►March 1, 2004 - No more cases of bird flu in South Texas - AP via The Dallas Morning News

►March 2, 2004 - Processor offered dying birds - Flu-hit farm tried to unload all chickens - The Japan Times

►March 1, 2004 - Asia's avian flu battle likely to be long, costly - CIDRAP News

►March 2, 2004 - Mad cow disease, bird flu spark concerns about food safety - Japan Today

►March 2, 2004 - Commission restocks waterways with trout, warns fishermen of mercury levels - The Collegian via www.collegian.psu.edu

►March 2, 2004 - Asian officials warn against relaxing vigilance against bird flu - AP via www.thestar.com.my

►March 1, 2004 - Autism Goes Public (requires registration) - The Washington Post - "Last year an employee of a Fairfax movie theater asked the Ortega family to leave a matinee of 'Finding Nemo.' The problem: Every time characters in the movie screamed, so did 4-year-old Nicholas Ortega...While some members of the audience found the cries objectionable, the child's behavior wasn't all that startling for his parents, Fidel and Gretchen Ortega. The Fairfax couple understood such outbursts to be fairly common for Nicholas, as they are for other children with autism."

►March 2, 2004 - Conference on Autism launched - Borneo Bulletin via www.brunei-online.com

►March 2, 2004 - Harrowing tale of one father's struggle against autism - Borneo Bulletin via www.brunei-online.com

►March 2, 2004 - Good Health: The world unites against the pain of polio - Vanguard, Nigeria

►March 2, 2004  - Good Health: Polio and the era of fear - Vanguard, Nigeria

►March 2, 2004 - 1,700 get hepatitis shots after Derry diagnoses - The Union Leader