Bianca Nogrady

TNF inhibitors reduce coronary artery disease risk in rheumatoid arthritis

March 7, 2014No Comments

From Cardiology News, 27 February 2014: Use of tumor necrosis factor–alpha inhibitors was associated with a significant reduction in the risk of coronary artery disease in patients with rheumatoid arthritis, particularly with longer term use of the drugs, in a retrospective cohort study. The study of 2,101 patients with incident RA diagnosed during 2001-2011 showed … Continue reading TNF inhibitors reduce coronary artery disease risk in rheumatoid arthritis

Aggressive secondary squamous carcinoma appeared during BRAF inhibitor targeted therapy

March 7, 2014No Comments

From Skin and Allergy News, 26 February 2014: A woman undergoing BRAF inhibitor targeted therapy for advanced melanoma has presented with invasive spindle cell squamous carcinoma masquerading as a secondary cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, highlighting the importance of histologic evaluation of these lesions. “Secondary cutaneous squamous cell carcinomas (cSCCs) are adverse effects of BRAF inhibitor … Continue reading Aggressive secondary squamous carcinoma appeared during BRAF inhibitor targeted therapy

Increased mortality persists in drug-resistant epilepsy

March 4, 2014No Comments

From Clinical Neurology News, 24 February 2014: Drug-resistant epilepsy is associated with a significant increase in mortality that persists for decades after diagnosis, particularly among individuals with a known etiology, according to data from a retrospective, multicenter cohort study. Dr. Brian Callaghan of the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and his colleagues identified 433 patients … Continue reading Increased mortality persists in drug-resistant epilepsy

Postsurgical withdrawal of antiepileptic drugs raises only short-term seizure risk

March 4, 2014No Comments

From Clinical Neurology News, 24 February 2014: Withdrawing antiepileptic medication after temporal lobe epilepsy surgery may increase the risk of breakthrough seizures in the short term but does not alter long-term remission rates, a retrospective, observational cohort study found. Two years after surgery, 69% of patients whose medication was discontinued at 1 year were completely … Continue reading Postsurgical withdrawal of antiepileptic drugs raises only short-term seizure risk

Stem cell transplantation effective in aggressive relapsing-remitting MS

March 4, 2014No Comments

From Clinical Neurology News, 27 February 2014: Autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation was an effective treatment option for aggressive multiple sclerosis, particularly in patients with inflammatory activity at baseline, in a study of the Swedish experience with the procedure since it was first performed there in 2004. A prospective, observational study of 41 patients with … Continue reading Stem cell transplantation effective in aggressive relapsing-remitting MS

Desert cane toads no longer nocturnal

February 26, 2014No Comments

From ABC News in Science, 26 February 2014: Once creatures of the night, cane toads are now becoming active during the day to adapt as they move into semi-arid regions of Australia. Australian researchers used acoustic tags normally used to track fish movements and discovered that cane toads were accessing a dam during daylight hours, … Continue reading Desert cane toads no longer nocturnal

Diversify or perish?

February 25, 2014No Comments

I’m writing an article about diversification in farming. WAKE UP! It’s not as boring as it sounds. It’s about a farmer who started out in egg production, then in an attempt to cut down overly high costs in one area of his business, he ended up developing a separate business in that area. Then his … Continue reading Diversify or perish?

Plotting or pantsing?

February 16, 2014No Comments

When I first heard the term ‘pantsing’ I thought it was cutesy Gollum-speak (“yessssss, we is pantsing, my precioussssss”). But no. Turns out it’s writer-speak for ‘flying by the seat of your pants’, also known as discovery writing, also known as driving without TomTom, also known as writing without an outline. What is an outline? … Continue reading Plotting or pantsing?

Do you need a science background to write about science?

February 10, 2014No Comments

I wrote my first astronomy story recently. It was one of those stories where the journal/research organisation press release sounds amazing and you think, ‘wow, this story is going to write itself’. Then you look at the actual paper and you can’t even understand what the title means. Reading the abstract makes your brain leak … Continue reading Do you need a science background to write about science?

Oldest known star discovered

February 10, 2014No Comments

From ABC Science News Online, 10 February 2014: Astronomers have discovered the oldest known star, born in the fiery wake of a first generation supernova after the Big Bang. The star, with the catchy name SMSS J031300.362670839.3, came to the attention of an international team of astronomers because of its unique chemical fingerprint showing it … Continue reading Oldest known star discovered