Credit: EASL
6 February: The IMbrave150 trial found median overall survival was 19.2 months in patients treated with atezo+bev vs 13.4 months for those treated with sorafenib alone, the current standard treatment (HR, 0.66 [95% CI, 0.52-0.85]; P=0.0009). Survival at 18 months was 52% with atezo+bev and 40% in patients treated with sorafenib.
All patients in the trial had nonresectable HCC - the most common form of liver cancer - and had not previously been treated with systemic therapy. A total of 501 patients were treated in the multicentre, open label, randomised controlled trial and the new follow-up figures confirm the superiority of the atezo+bev combination over sorafenib in this group of patients with HCC.
New research led by the University of Birmingham has revealed for the first time the extent to which frailty increases the risk of mortality in COVID-19 patients.
E-Mail
A new study has shown that, while there is limited evidence for overall increased mortality in patients with atopic eczema, those with severe atopic eczema may have a greater risk of dying from several health issues compared with those without eczema, according to a new study in the
Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.
The research team, led by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) and funded by the Wellcome Trust, compared the risk of dying in over 500,000 adults with atopic eczema with more than 2.5 million without eczema. Patients with severe atopic eczema had a 62% higher risk of dying compared to individuals without atopic eczema, due to several causes - the strongest links of which were seen for infections, lung problems and kidney or bladder disorders.
Researchers with the Fatty Acid Research Institute (FARI) and collaborators at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles and in Orange County, CA, have published the first direct evidence that higher omega-3 blood levels may reduce risk for death from COVID-19 infection. The report was published in the journal
E-Mail
Questions about why such affluent western societies are facing a reversal in life expectancy are sounding loud alarm bells for Professor Fran Baum, Matthew Flinders Distinguished Professor and Director of the Southgate Institute for Health, Society and Equity.
Professor Baum is lead author of a study that offers a new perspective on why women live longer than men - noting with concern that while women live longer, many of the recognised social determinants of health are worse for women than men.
The study serves an important reminder of why policy makers need to receive more carefully nuanced research that drills into specific gender data that can best inform public health policy initiatives.