JAMA Opinion Piece: The Short and Long Term Implications of Myriad Decision
On June 13, 2013, the Supreme Court ruled in Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics that a human gene removed from the body and unchanged from its natural form cannot be patented. Cancer advocates greeted the ruling with enthusiasm and also hoped that the ruling would have the impact ...
The Definition of “Cancer”: JAMA Opinion Piece Triggers Medical, Scientific, and Policy Debate
With the online publication of an opinion piece in the Journal of the American Medical Association, Drs. Laura J. Esserman, Ian M. Thompson, and Brian Reid have triggered a medical, scientific, and policy debate about the definition of “cancer” and strategies for diagnosis and treating cancer. The authors wrote for ...
Washington Post Wonkblog Discusses Myriad and BRCA Tests
The United States Supreme Court ruled unanimously on June 13, 2013, that human genes cannot be patented. In the case of Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics, Inc., the Court found that Myriad had not created anything when it isolated the BRCA genes. However, the Court also ruled that ...
Announcements at the American Urological Association Address Screening and Management of Prostate Cancer
Several announcements at the American Urological Association (AUA) annual meeting addressed screening and management of prostate cancer. The AUA has narrowed the age range in which it advises that there be informed decision-making about prostate cancer. The professional society now recommends that men between 55 and 70 receive PSA tests ...
“Our Feel-Good War on Breast Cancer”
The New York Times Magazine of April 28, 2013, features a story by cancer survivor Peggy Orenstein entitled “Our Feel-Good War on Breast Cancer.” The cover story is available online in advance of its publication in the magazine. Orenstein concludes her lengthy story about breast cancer treatment and research with ...
Making sense of cancer screening updates
As experts alter course on guidelines for cancer screenings such as mammograms and the prostate-specific antigen test, the general public is understandably confused. Women at age 40 wonder if they should have a mammogram to look for breast cancer or wait until 50, as one U.S. organization suggests. Men of ...
