Science

Birth-Control Pills Reduce Cancer, Lengthen Women's Lives in 40-Year Study Birth-control pills may lead to longer lives for women, according to a 40-year study that showed users were less likely to die of heart disease, cancer or a range of other medical ailments.

Unlocking Cancer Drug Mechanism May Avoid Birth Defect Risks, Study Says Scientists have uncovered how a drug used in blood cancer medicines leads to short or missing limbs in babies, moving closer to developing treatments without the risk of these birth defects.

Fat Surgery Urged for Obese Kids May Boost Allergan Sales, Trim Liability David Ludwig, director of the obesity program at Children’s Hospital Boston, was against weight-loss surgery for kids, he says, because it ignored the real problem, a “toxic environment” jammed with junk food.

Family DNA Maps May Speed Discoveries of Rare Disease Links, Doctors Say Fewer genetic mutations are inherited than scientists previously thought, according to two family-based studies that promise to speed the discovery of so- called disease genes.

Genzyme, Third Rock Bet $35 Million on Gene Therapy Developer Genetix Genzyme Corp.’s investment arm, Third Rock Ventures of Boston and three other venture capital firms are putting $35 million into closely held Genetix Pharmaceuticals, a gene therapy developer whose technology saved the lives of two French boys with a rare brain disease.

Heart Angiograms Show No Disease in Almost 40% of Patients, Research Shows Doctors may be sending patients too quickly for elective angiograms to detect heart disease, exposing them to radiation and driving up U.S. health-care costs, a study suggests.

Family Genome Sequence Shows Parents Pass Fewer Mutations to Children The gene sets of a four-member family were analyzed in research that suggested parents pass fewer gene mutations than thought to their offspring.

Personalized Genetic-Based Medicine Spurred by Medco's Cost-Saving Tests Medco Health Solutions Inc., the second-biggest U.S. manager of drug benefits, is encouraging doctors to use genetic tests to determine whether drugs will work for particular patients -- saving money and reducing harm caused when prescriptions are wrong.

Sex Life Ends at 70 for Most Americans Due to Poor Health, Researchers Say The average person’s sex life ends by the age of 70, according to a report published today in the British Medical Journal.

Kidney Donors Don't Shorten Their Lives by Giving Up Organ, Research Shows People who donate a kidney in the U.S. don’t die any faster than nondonors long term, according to a large study that looked at donors over 15 years.