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Tai Chi Boosts Immunity to Shingles

Tai chi, a traditional Chinese form of exercise, may help prevent older adults from getting shingles by increasing immunity to varicella-zoster virus (VZV) and boosting the immune response to varicella vaccine in older adults, according to a new study published in the April 2007 issue of the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

 

The randomized, controlled clinical trial included 112 healthy adults ages 59 to 86 years (average age of 70 years). Each person took part in a 16-week program of either tai chi or a health education program that provided 120 minutes of instruction weekly. Tai chi combines aerobic activity, relaxation, and meditation, which the researchers note have been reported to boost immune responses. The health education intervention involved classes about a variety of health-related topics.

 

After the 16-week tai chi and health education programs, participants in both groups received a single injection of varicella virus vaccine live subcutaneous injection (VARIVAX), the chickenpox vaccine that was approved in 1995. Nine weeks later, the investigators did blood tests to assess each participant's level of VZV immunity, comparing it to immunity at the start of the study. All of the participants had chickenpox earlier in life, and therefore were already immune to the disease.

 

Tai chi alone was found to increase immunity to varicella as much as the vaccine in 30- to 40-year-old adults. Tai chi combined with the vaccine produced a significantly higher level of immunity, about a 40% increase, over that produced by the vaccine alone. Study findings further indicated that the tai chi group's rate of increase in immunity over the course of the study was double that of the health education (control) group. The tai chi and health education groups' VZV immunity had been similar when the study began.

 

In addition, the tai chi group reported significant improvements in physical functioning, bodily pain, vitality, and mental health. Both groups showed significant declines in the severity of depressive symptoms.

 

Software Reduces Mammogram Accuracy

Computer-aided detection (CAD) that uses software designed to improve how radiologists interpret mammograms may instead make readings less accurate, according to new research. Use of CAD did not clearly improve the detection of breast cancer. The research was conducted by investigators at the University of California Davis Health System, Sacramento, Calif., and colleagues in the Breast Cancer Surveillance Consortium, which is sponsored by the National Cancer Institute (NCI).

 

The results of the study show that women who got screening mammograms at centers using CAD devices were more likely to be told their mammogram was abnormal, and thus undergo a biopsy to rule out breast cancer. Findings appear in the April 5, 2007 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine and were funded by NCI, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and the American Cancer Society.

 

Combined Treatment Prolongs Multiple Myeloma Survival

Preliminary results from a large, randomized clinical trial for patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma, a cancer typically found in bone marrow, has shown that the use of a low dose of the steroid dexamethasone (Decadron), in combination with lenalidomide (Revlimid) is associated with improved survival when compared to a treatment regimen with lenalidomide and a higher, standard dose of dexamethasone.

 

The data monitoring committee overseeing the trial (known as E4A03) recommended that the survival results from a recent interim analysis be made public because of early differences in overall survival rates. Researchers found that patients in the study who received low-dose dexamethasone and lenalidomide had a 1-year survival of 96% compared to 86% for patients treated with the standard dose of dexamethasone and lenalidomide. In addition, there were fewer side effects associated with the low-dose dexamethasone and lenalidomide. Detailed results from this trial will be presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting in Chicago, Ill., from June 1 to 5, 2007.