Disclaimer: I do not have a background in finance. I do have a background in medicine. I’m writing about CAR-T cell therapy because it’s been something I’ve been interested in for a while. I am not sure what impact it will have on biotech stocks or company valuations, but I believe it could be significant….
Paper: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5959807 This was a 2018 review of the literature out there for intermittent fasting. They reviewed clinical trials and performed a literature search looking for anything related to intermittent fasting starting from 1970 to 2018. Similar to the paper previously summarized the previous day, they concluded a variety of benefits for intermittent fasting. These…
Link to the article: https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMra1905136 This is a review paper where they reviewed the available literature concerning intermittent fasting. Going straight to the conclusion, preclinical and clinical trials show positive effects on patients, specifically those with obesity, diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and neurologic disorder. Animal models have shown to have positive results involving their health. Most…
Link to the article: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30099000 There’s a link between exercise and improved physical health. However, there has not been literature that has strongly supported the link between exercise and improved mental health. Using survey data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, the researchers analyzed patient mental health in a population of over a million. People who…
Link to the article: https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1817073 There is a standard of care in the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), a blood cancer common in the older population. The standard of care is the usage of fludarabine, cyclophosphamide, and rituximab; however there is a new treatment that may improve outcomes. This study looks at the usage of ibrutinib-rituximab….
Link to the article: https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1803185 This study revolves around the usage of a point of care test to guide antibiotic usage in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). They tested C-reactive protein (CRP) in patients with COPD. CRP is a inflammatory marker and increased levels are associated with worsening COPD. The study had two groups…
Link to the article: https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1900100?query=featured_home Similar to the last article, it’s been known that the WHO has specific transfusion guidelines which parts of Africa follows. In patients with severe anemia, red blood cells are transfused at a flat rate of 20 ml per kilogram of body weight. Although this transfusion rate is not in line with…
Link to the paper: https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1900105 The World Health Organization, WHO, has specific guidelines for transfusion in African countries due to the scarcity of blood products. Patients with extreme anemia do not necessarily receive transfusion unless fitting specific guidelines. The WHO guideline cutoff values are substantially less than values used in other areas of the world. This…
Link to the paper: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31367040 Systemic inflammation from cancer is linked to a poor outcome for cancer patients. Inflammation is a biochemical response in the body where white blood cells and other cells secrete substances to protect the body from infections, diseases, and injuries. However, this does not always necessarily turn out well for the…
Link to the paper: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4206485/ HIV viruses are difficult to treat partly due to their ability to mutate. This makes it difficult for scientists and your body to target and destroy viruses. With the advent of DNA vaccines, it gives us another way we can possibly target HIV viruses. What are DNA vaccines? DNA vaccines are a…
