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A new vaccine showed promise at protecting young children from malaria, offering a potential new weapon against a disease that kills at least one million people each year, US researchers said.
 In a study of 100 West African children aged one to six, the experimental vaccine produced immune responses similar to or even higher than those of adults infected by malaria all their lives.
The vaccine, which uses an immune system booster called an adjuvant from British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline Plc, targets the malaria parasite as it is actively infecting red blood cells and causing fever and illness.
This so-called blood stage vaccine acts at a later stage in the malaria parasite’s life cycle than Glaxo’s experimental vaccine Mosquirix.
‘What jumps out to me about this vaccine is the antibody response,’ said Christopher Plowe of the University of Maryland in Baltimore and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator whose study appears in PLoS ONE, a journal of the Public Library of Science.
‘When you just look at the antibodies before you immunize anybody, the adults in Mali who have been exposed to malaria life-long, they don’t get sick from malaria any more. They get infected but they don’t get sick,’ Plowe said in a telephone interview.
‘That is exactly what you want a blood stage vaccine to do.’
Second round of testing
Plowe said children start out with fewer antibodies — the immune system proteins that recognize invaders such as viruses or parasites. But after they were vaccinated, the children’s antibody levels were just as high, or even a bit higher, than adults in their community.
The results were strong enough to start a second round of testing in 400 children to see if the vaccine can blunt the infection.
The new vaccine targets the malaria parasite after it has made its way though the bloodstream and into the liver, where it transforms into a new form called a merozoite, which can infect new red blood cells and cause fever and illness.
Plowe said he thinks the adjuvant from Glaxo, the same one used in Mosquirix, is priming the children’s immune system to develop such a robust response.
‘The hope would be that you could get two or more such first-generation vaccines, especially when you have the same adjuvant, and be able to come up with a multi-stage vaccine,’ he said.
Last month, Glaxo said Mosquirix is expected to complete late-stage testing in 2011 and, if proven effective, the company will seek regulatory approval by 2012.
Plowe’s study was funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the US Agency for International Development. The vaccine was invented and made by the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research and formulated with an adjuvant by GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals.
Most of the one million or more people killed every year by malaria are young children and most live in Africa. The World Health Organization says a child dies of malaria every 30 seconds.
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A 24-hour surge of 50 people critically injured in accidents swamped emergency teams at Salmaniya Medical Complex.
It meant bumping other patients off the operations schedule, an official admitted yesterday.
 However, no life threatening situations were ignored, said Health Ministry hospital affairs assistant under-secretary Dr Ameen Al Sa’ati.
‘There were more than 50 people who needed urgent critical care from 7am last Wednesday to 7am last Thursday, and we were overwhelmed as a result,’ he told the GDN.
‘These people were critically injured from road accidents, falls, work mishaps and needed urgent attention.
‘As a result of this situation, some of the elective surgeries had to be put off.’ Dr Al Sa’ati admitted that some of the postponed surgeries were major operations, but claims that were not life-threatening situations.
‘There is talk that life-threatening situations were ignored. That is not true,’ he said.
‘Our priority is to save lives and that is what we have done. None of the surgeries that were postponed fall into a life-threatening category.’ Dr Al Sa’ati said the trauma cases were not the result of an increase in road accidents.
‘The numbers of road accidents were the usual. However, other trauma cases were high. We do not know why there were so many cases, but we have dealt with them,’ he said.
Over the last few days, many of the postponed surgeries have been re-scheduled, said Dr Al Sa’ati.
During the sudden surge in admissions, the hospital’s maternity unit was still trying to deal with a surge of patients coming for childbirth.
‘We are constantly referring them to the Jidhafs Maternity Hospital as well as to the facility in Muharraq,’ said Dr Al Sa’ati.
‘While the SMC is facing an overload, the facilities at Jidhafs and Muharraq are being underused,’ he said.
Dr Al Sa’ati said that the hospital’s Accident and Emergency department has also been overwhelmed with patients, with between 900 and 1,000 being seen every day for the last week.
‘This has led to people waiting to be accommodated in wards because the numbers of people leaving are less than those coming in,’ he said.
Dr Al Sa’ati said there were now no ‘waiting lists’ because all those requiring admission were being admitted immediately and cared for at the Accident and Emergency Department before being sent to wards as space became available.
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Saudi German Hospital Group, one of the largest private healthcare providers in the Middle East and African region, has successfully participated recently in the Arab Health 2010 as ‘Gold Sponsor’.
 SGH Group vision is to “To design, finance, construct and operate 30 world-class hospitals and create 50,000 jobs by the year 2015.
Through its external technical German associations over the last 20 years the group has developed unmatched core competencies in the healthcare management and clinical areas, which enable the group to provide in international standards and quality healthcare service.
All the Saudi hospitals of the Group have JCI accreditation which is the highest accreditation worldwide. In addition to this Saudi German Hospitals are the first hospitals to implement Balanced scorecard management tool in the hospital industry in the region. SGH is having latest Hospital Information System and IT infrastructure which supports its professional staff of over 5000 people to provide international standards of patient care.
Currently SGH Group is having five operating hospitals out of which four hospitals are in Jeddah, Aseer, Riyadh, Madinah in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and One in Sana’a , Yemen. The hospital projects in Hail-KSA, Dubai-UAE, Cairo – Egypt, Addis Ababa – Ethiopia are in different stages of progress.
The Group has the largest private medical college in the region which started its operation in 2006 under the brand name Batterjee Medical College at Jeddah and its vision is to design, construct and operate a total of 5 medical colleges by 2020 to the highest international standards, thus providing the region with well trained qualified healthcare professionals to serve the increasing demand for quality healthcare professionals. In addition to the above the group is the master franchisee for the Gold’s Gym in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Gold’s Gym in Jeddah is the largest gym in the world in terms of facility and membership. As part of corporate social responsibility the group is also engaged in many not for profit business like Jeddah Charity Blood Bank, HMRTI, SEDI, FBA. SGH Group is also developing many Not-for-Profit Hospitals (Known as Al-Sabeel Hospitals) in countries like Sudan, Bangladesh, KSA, UAE, Egypt for the poor in associations with Prof. Yunus (Nobel Peace Prize Winner 2006), Grameen Bank, Islamic Development Bank (IDB), General Electrical (GE) and Consolidated Contacting Company (CCC).
The Group’s dedication and effort has been recognized through various awards which include Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Award for Arab Management 2006 in category of ‘Best Arab Management Personality’, Healthcare Industry CEO Award 2008, National Medal of Cedar – Grade Knight, Ernst & Young (E&Y)’s Entrepreneur of the year Award for 2008 which received by President & CEO of the Engr. Sobhi Batterjee.
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Cairo Khalid Salah, 35, remembers the first day he picked the habit more than 20 years ago. “It started as a challenge from my friends, who said that smoking makes one look like a real man,” Salah, a taxi driver in Cairo, recalls. “I believed them, and have been a smoker of around two packets of cigarettes a day ever since.”
 He said that as a taxi driver, he spends most of his smoking hours while doing his job. “I cannot quit smoking especially as I drive my taxi on traffic-clogged streets. Smoking helps me keep concentrated and calm while haggling with clients over fares,” he told Gulf News. “Sometimes, clients refuse to continue their journeys with me when they see me smoking.”
The habit costs Salah, a father of three, around 300 Egyptian pounds (Dh200) every month. According to a recent survey released by the World Health Organization (WHO), an average Egyptian family spends six per cent of their monthly income on tobacco — perhaps more than on education and health.
Experts estimate that smoking in Egypt costs around 8 million pounds annually as around 85 billion cigarettes are smoked per year. Salah is one of nearly 13 million Egyptian smokers, who have been the target of a high-profile anti-smoking campaign launched over recent years.
More than two years ago, the health authorities made it obligatory for tobacco manufacturers to print an image of a sickly man living on an artificial ventilation machine, on packets of cigarettes.
But soon, the warning image became a funny public issue as the man in the picture sued the authorities for “tampering” with his features without his consent.
Last month, another controversy erupted when a new illustration was printed on tobacco products linking smoking to male impotency.
The image was considered offensive in this conservative society, and the health authorities were taken to court again.
Around 439,000 children in Egypt under the age of 15 smoke, according to the Ministry of Health. Some 74,000 of them are less than 10 years of age.
Meanwhile, WHO blames smoking for around 90 per cent of cancer cases in Egypt, a country of 80 million. Many sufferers of heart disease in the country are smokers too, said WHO.
Not eligible
In June 2007, Egypt passed a law banning smoking at work places and at health centres, schools and social clubs. A ban on underage smokers was also issued. But neither is strictly enforced.
“Egypt is still one of the cheapest countries when it comes to tobacco purchases,” Mushira Khattab, Egypt’s Minister of Family and Planning said. “Prices of cigarettes are available and affordable at shops and kiosks even for children,” she added. Health professionals, meanwhile, blame the spread of smoking culture in Egypt on movies and wrong perceptions.
“When an actor puffs on the screen, the message received by millions of the audience is that smoking is fine,” Mahmoud Chaker, a pulmonary disease specialist said. “Popular celebrities, who smoke, also help glamorise this habit for youngsters in particular.”
Dr Chaker urges authorities to strictly ban smoking in movies and TV dramas.
“The tobacco industry has popularised a misleading image of smoking as being cool, attractive and rebellious. Many young people, including girls recently, start smoking with the aim of projecting a certain social image.
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Dubai The slogan of the International Union against Cancer this year is: “If you love someone, tell them they stink”.
You can click on a heart-shaped button on the Union’s website and send that message to someone who smokes.
 The World Health Organization (Who) believes tobacco is the single largest preventable cause of cancer in the world today. Smoking causes 80 per cent of all lung cancer deaths, including deaths from cancer of the oral cavity, larynx, oesophagus and stomach.
The Who theme for World Cancer Day, which is today, is: “Cancer Can Be Prevented Too.”
Dr Sawsan Al Madhi, secretary-general of the Friends of the Cancer Society, Sharjah, reiterates that if people take some simple measures, they can live better and fuller lives.
“Cancer is no longer a killer disease if you catch it in the early stages,” she says. The Society is offering HPV (human papillomavirus ) at reduced prices to girls and women. She recommends girls ages 12 to 13 take the vaccine to guard against the cancer. The vaccine is offered free to girls between the ages of 15 and 17 in Abu Dhabi
Negative reaction
Parents however, frown on this offer.
“There’s a law in our society about women having sex before marriage,” explains Dr Sa’ad Aswad, head of division and gynaecologist-oncologist at Al Tawam Hospital.
But he notes in the UK there has been a 50 per cent drop in cervical cancer after girls were given the vaccine.
Al Madhi recommends screening for breast cancer at the age of 30 and for prostrate cancer at the age of 30 for men if there is a family history of that cancer.
But the number of cancer cases in the UAE is increasing. The cause is attributed to prolonged exposure to pollution and other carcinogens, says Dr Falah Al Khatib, consultant clinic oncologist at the Gulf International Cancer Centre.
Education campaigns against smoking and screening for breast cancer are not working as desired, he said.
He however, expects the recent anti-smoking law to have an impact in the coming years.
Al Khatib bemoans the fact most campaigns are seasonal and not well planned and efforts are fragmented between emirates and various organizations.
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Dubai She wastes no fresh tears. There is no ‘what if’ she can beat cancer. Analiza Muval is a survivor firm in belief that her ongoing battle will be a memory of the past.
 She has no family to turn to but prayer is her anchor, her truth. Diagnosed with breast cancer nearly two years ago, the Filipina faced a disease that rapidly invaded other organs.
In December 2007, the 34 year old was first rushed to Rashid Hospital by her friends as she struggled to breathe.
“They told me that it was metastasis from breast cancer … it had spread to my neck and damaged two bones,” she said.
In January 2008, she received her full diagnosis — breast cancer in ‘Advanced Stage 2′. The cells had spread to her neck and rib cage down to the right femur or thigh bone. Muval had a year to live.
She underwent surgery and was placed on intensive chemotherapy.
Muval spoke to Gulf News in October 2009 — she had gone back to work and was healing slowly, but doctors were worried about the metastasis in her bones. Four months later, she feels “much better” and has also started doing night shifts at her job.
“My next scan is scheduled for March 2 to detect the extent of the cancer in the breast … I couldn’t have a mastectomy earlier because of the metastasis. But my tests are looking good now … I can beat cancer with God’s grace.”
Her faith makes sure Muval lives each day as “the greatest” she has ever known, “everything is temporary, and it will heal”.
She channels the same outlook when it comes to paying for her treatment. Currently her chemotherapy injection, costing Dh4,000, is covered by the UAE’s public health care system. However, she pays for the tablets, which cost Dh120 every month and has to pay Dh1,000 for the forthcoming scan, along with Dh5,000 for the mastectomy.
“Cancer has made me strong; you realise that you have to depend on yourself, people turn away because they do not want be responsible for you.”
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Corporate wellness programs are not a new trend, but they certainly are picking up speed as more employers recognize that prevention and interventions that reduce employees’ health risk factors may be the key to not only a healthier and more productive work force, but also lower health care costs. In fact, studies have shown that for every dollar spent on a corporate wellness program, a company can save as much as $6 in insurance costs. To convince employees to take a personal interest in their own health, America’s employers offer everything from vending machines with healthier foods, such as juices and granola bars instead of chips and soda, to reduced fitness club rates and walking trails. Some companies even forbid the hiring of smokers. But Whole Foods Markets has taken a different approach—offering additional employee discounts for those who meet certain health standards.
 Currently, Whole Foods employees receive a 20 percent discount on store purchases, but under the new voluntary Team Member Healthy Discount Incentive Program, they would be eligible to receive up to a 10 percent increase on their discount by meeting requirements based on their body mass index (BMI), blood pressure, cholesterol, and nicotine use. Those who choose to participate would undergo free biometric screening and, based on their test scores, be assigned to one of four categories with corresponding discount rates: bronze (22 percent), silver (25 percent), gold (27 percent), and platinum (30 percent).
In order to qualify for the bronze level, an employee must be a non-smoker with blood pressure less than 140/90, cholesterol less than 195 and a BMI of less than 30, while the platinum level is for non-smokers with blood pressure of less than 110/70, cholesterol less than 140 and a BMI of less than 24. “Vitality and health is what a lot of people are looking for. (Employees) like the incentive aspect of it and the opportunity to get an extra discount out of it is helpful as well,” Margaret Wittenberg, global vice president of quality standards for Whole Foods Market, told ABCNews.com. “We have tiers because we’re trying to have it very achievable for people,” she said. “Every small step is huge and really makes an impact on one’s health.”
John Mackey, president of Whole Foods, said the company spent $150 million on health care for their team members last year and that the goals of the new program are to encourage and reward employees for making healthy, positive lifestyle changes and to reduce health care costs, noting that achieving the discounts will be “empowering and fun for employees who enjoy a challenge.”
Dr. Steve Berkowitz with St. David’s HealthCare says incentive programs like the one being offered by Whole Foods are precisely what some people need to encourage them to get healthy. “Obesity, smoking, cholesterol problems are some of the biggest problems we have in Texas right now,” he said. “So I applaud any effort that’s going to help motivate each individual person to make the changes.” Berkowitz worries, however, that the plan doesn’t provide much incentive for those who have medical conditions or other factors that make blood pressure and cholesterol levels difficult to control. “My only concern with a program like this is perhaps effort should be rewarded too,” he said, something Whole Foods management says they may consider for the future.
Dr. Michael Benedict, a physician in Richland, Washington who has studied the effectiveness of health incentives programs, noted that in order for this type of program to work, it requires education, recruitment and follow-up; steps Whole Foods says it is taking. “Along with this program, we have a tremendous amount of educational opportunities for our team members,” Wittenberg said, explaining that cooking classes and programs with doctors would be offered.
Some team members already have plans for the extra discount. Kathleen Seymour says she’s hoping to put hers toward her birthday present. “Everybody was really excited about it (the program), especially the younger people,” she said. “There’s a big bike scene here in Austin and all of the bikers were pretty gung-ho from the beginning.” Another Austin team member, Ann Fairfield, said “it’s really inspiring because you end up wanting to eat better and exercise.”
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A Kuwaiti official has unveiled ambitious programs to develop information systems in the Ministry of Health to keep up with the latest international standards in all sectors of the ministry, in recognition of the importance of using modern systems to develop work and performance.
 Director of Management Information Systems in the Ministry of Health Salah Baqer said in a statement to Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) on the sidelines of the 68th meeting of the Council of Ministers of Health that the use of information technology is one of the most important components of the work of the ministry to develop health services.
Baqer said the Ministry of Health was keen to develop and update all its regulations in order to perform the role required efficiently and effectively using the best technologies available as the Ministry has started working on a project of health information system to link the facilities of the Ministry’s hospitals and health centers to achieve a unified system of electronic communication allowing for rapid medical diagnosis and treatment.
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Al Ain Hospital today announced the start of a renovation and expansion program of its Emergency Department, which will lead to the creation of a better, more efficient and reinforced modern 24/7 critical services centre.
 The hospital, managed by VAMED and the Medical University of Vienna, owned and operated by SEHA, said in a statement that it anticipated reduced operational efficiency on February 4th and 5th 2010, when the department will be moved to a temporary location. During these two days, patients are requested to consider other emergency facilities for treatment.
Mr. George Jepson – Al Ain Hospital CEO said, ” the redevelopment of the Emergency Medicine Department was being undertaken as part of the healthcare entity’s vision to provide better and efficient services in critical care to the community.”
Commenting on the expansion, Professor Wilhelm Behringer, the Head of Emergency Department said: “The refurbishment of the existing department will lead to enhanced capacity and the centre will be made capable to handle cases with reinforced efficiency. The expansion program is extensive and in its entirety will take six to eight months to complete.”
Commenting on the project, Professor Gerhard Schwab – Medical Director of Al Ain Hospital aid “During the first two days of renovation, we anticipate reduced operational efficacy of emergency services, as the department will be moved to a temporary location. We request the patients to seek emergency medical care in other hospitals for the two days. The emergency services at Al Ain Hospital will resume as usual on the 6th of February. ”
“Our aim in redesigning the Emergency Department is to ensure improved patient flow and provide improvement treatment procedures,” added Prof. Schwab.
Al Ain’s Emergency Department handles approximately 370 patients a day (130,000 patients a year). It has 27 emergency treatment beds, providing 24/7 care to the critically ill and injured. It treats patients from all the surrounding areas.
Cases treated at the Emergency Department include: pain management, cardiovascular, respiratory, gastrointestinal, orthopedic, genitourinary, gynecological, eye, ENT, metabolic, neurological, psychiatric, toxicological, trauma and burns cases.
The department also provides a fast track service for the treatment of less serious injuries.
The Emergency Department has a triage area, a minor trauma room, a cardiopulmonary resuscitation room, a paediatrics emergency area and a plaster room.
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Thousands of cancer patients across the Middle East are set to benefit from the knowledge of a world-expert in bone health, in the wake of a regional tour to educate cancer specialists on the latest research on managing bone complications brought about by the disease.
 More than 150 oncologists attended the lectures given by UK-based Professor Robert Coleman, Professor of Medical Oncology at the Cancer Research Centre in Weston Park Hospital, Sheffield, who visited Dubai, Kuwait, and Syria from 27-29 January – just days ahead of World Cancer Day on February 4.
The main messages of the lecture was the need to monitor, diagnose, and treat bone tumors, which occur when cancer migrates from its original site to the skeleton, and to prevent bone complications that can develop as a result of radio and chemotherapy.
“Bone health is a key component of overall cancer care due to the problem of bone metastases. It is a complication of cancer that can happen before, and after treatment, and leads to an increased risk of death,” explained Dr. Mohammed Jaloudi, Chief of Medical Oncology at Tawam Johns Hopkins Hospital in Al Ain, co-chair of the lecture tour.
“Bone metastases are most common in patients diagnosed with breast, lung, prostate, thyroid, and kidney cancer. And the best way to ensure that the risk of this complication is reduced, is to educate oncologists about the most up-to-date research on how best to manage bone health,” he added.
Among the research papers presented during the tour was a landmark study, published in The New England Journal of Medicine last year, which found that zoledronic acid – that prevents bone metastases in advanced-stage cancers – may also stop cancer recurrence at the original site in early-stage disease.
Findings from the study, of more than 1,800 pre-menopausal women with early breast cancer, show that giving zoledronic acid, in combination with traditional hormone therapy following surgery to remove breast tumors, reduces the risk of the cancer returning by 35 percent, compared with using hormone treatment alone.
“This study shows that there may be added benefits to taking medications to prevent bone metastases. In the case of these women, with early-stage breast cancer, zoledronic acid was found to prevent the recurrence of disease in the breast, as well as protect against bone metastases,” explained Dr. Farid Khalifa, Head of the Medical Oncology Department at Dubai Hospital, who also acted as a co-chair of the lecture tour.
“The possibility that breast cancer will return is a major concern among women who have undergone surgery to remove tumors, and so this study represents a significant step towards improving their survival,” he added.
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