New Pill for Lung Cancer Patients

There is a new pill called Iressa for advanced lung cancer patients that can be a replacement for chemotherapy. The drug has less negative side effects even though it is more expensive. It works by attacking specific growth receptors on cancer cells and is less harmful. The drug costs thousands of dollars each month.

Iressa is currently available in the United States, but it is not licensed in Europe. It is also approved for use in patients that failed chemotherapy. The common side effects are rash, acne, and diarrhea. Cancer patients have shown to live nearly as long on the drug as with chemotherapy.

Medicare Won’t Pay for Hospital Errors

It is reported that in a policy change, the Bush administration officials say that from now on Medicare will no longer pay the extra costs of treating preventable errors, injuries, and infections that happen in hospitals. That includes bedsores, pressure ulcers, injuries caused by falls, and infections resulting from the prolonged use of catheters in blood vessels or the bladder. They also plan not to pay for things like leaving a sponge or other object in a patient during surgery and giving a patient incompatible blood or blood products. Private insurers are thinking about making the same changes. It suppose to force hospitals to be more careful about the care of their patients and save millions of dollars.