|
  
|
|
|
| |
Breaking News
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Unveils About Herbs Mobile Application
About Herbs, presented by Memorial Sloan-Kettering’s Integrative Medicine Service, gives mobile device users a comprehensive guide to botanicals, supplements, complementary therapies, and more.
 Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center has debuted About Herbs, a mobile application presented by the Integrative Medicine Service. The app, compatible with iPad®, iPhone®, and iPod touch® devices, gives users quick access to comprehensive information about herbs, botanicals, dietary supplements, complementary therapies, and more.
About Herbs, Memorial Sloan-Kettering’s first mobile app, draws from our About Herbs webpages. Users can explore evidence-based details about more than 260 products and services in the integrative medicine arena -- from purported uses and chemical structure to adverse reactions and side effects. Each listing can be viewed in two formats: one written for consumers and the other for healthcare professionals. Updates and additions are provided automatically on a weekly basis.
“About Herbs draws from the robust content available on Memorial Sloan-Kettering’s website and makes it accessible on-the-go for healthcare practitioners and members of the general public alike,” explains Barrie Cassileth, Chief of the Integrative Medicine Service.
Additional features of the app include the ability to
• Search by product name, service name, or medical condition
• Save your favorite listings
• Browse listings without an Internet connection after the app has been downloaded
• Share content with friends and colleagues by e-mailing the link to the page on our website
We invite you to download the Memorial Sloan-Kettering About Herbs app from the App StoreSM.
Integrative Medicine at MSKCC
Analysis of Clinical Trials Finds Acupuncture Effective
for Treating Chronic Pain
In the most rigorous analysis of its kind to date, Memorial Sloan-Kettering researchers find acupuncture to be an effective therapy for several types of pain.
Although acupuncture has long been used to treat chronic pain, its effectiveness remains a controversial topic among physicians and scientists. This is largely because no biological mechanism has been identified to explain how the insertion of and stimulation by specialized needles at specific points on the body generates lasting effects, such as decreased pain many months after a treatment.
Now, in an extensive analysis of data from nearly 18,000 individuals involved in 29 high-quality clinical trials, Memorial Sloan-Kettering health outcomes researcher Andrew Vickers and colleagues have determined that acupuncture is an effective treatment for chronic back and neck pain, osteoarthritis, shoulder pain, and headaches. READ MORE >>
Herb of the Month
ACAI BERRY
Acai is the fruit of a palm found mainly in South America. It is consumed as food and used in traditional medicine. The berries and seeds contain compounds called flavonoids that have antioxidant effects. Some laboratory studies suggest acai may reduce cholesterol, prevent diseases of the heart and blood vessels, and cause programmed cell death in leukemia cells. However, studies in humans are needed to confirm these effects. READ MORE >>
Essential Updates
 |
|
Garlic
Contrary to existing data, new observations from a study involving over 3,000 subjects reveal that long-term supplementation with garlic failed to significantly reduce gastric cancer incidence or mortality.
READ MORE >>
|
 |
|
Ginkgo
Although widely consumed to boost memory, a ginkgo extract was not significantly better than placebo in preventing the onset of Alzheimer's disease in a study of subjects age 70 or older. READ MORE >>
|
 |
|
Omega-3
Contrary to the belief that omega-3 fatty acids promote a healthy heart, a meta-analysis of 20 studies including over 68,000 patients suggests that supplementation with omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) is not associated with reduced risk of major cardiovascular disease. READ MORE >>
|
Spotlight On
CESIUM CHLORIDE
Also known as "high pH therapy," cesium chloride is widely promoted as an "alternative" cancer treatment. Proponents claim that this agent exerts anti-tumor effects by increasing the intracellular pH of tumor cells. The resulting alkaline environment is said to prevent cancer cells from dividing, ultimately depleting cellular mass. None of these claims is substantiated by scientific investigation.
Serious adverse effects, including life-threatening electrolyte imbalances, seizures, and irregular heartbeat have been reported in cancer patients following use of cesium chloride.
Patients should avoid this product. READ MORE >>
Around Memorial Sloan-Kettering
Cancer Genomics: Improved Understanding of Molecular Changes in Tumors Produces More-Specialized Treatments
For much of the history of cancer, tumors were characterized mainly by where they arose in the body. With the genomics revolution of recent years, scientists and physicians have increasingly been able to peer at the inner workings of tumor cells and pinpoint the specific genetic changes that transform them from their cells of origin into cancer.
What these investigators are learning answers questions that have long puzzled oncologists: Why do some patients with a certain type of cancer do well with treatment, while others receiving the same treatment do poorly? READ MORE >>
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
