The American Cancer Society - the nation’s leading voluntary health organization - will present its highest honor, the Medal of Honor, to three Americans who have made outstanding contributions to the fight against cancer. This year’s winners, who will receive their awards at a ceremony during the American Cancer Society’s annual meeting in Atlanta are: Matthew L. Myers for Cancer Control; Douglas R. Lowy, M.D., for Basic Research; and Mark Schiffman, M.D., M.P.H., for Clinical Research. [click link for full article]

Although smoking rates in teenagers has been down for years, researchers have found that girls are starting to smoke in the hope of losing weight.According to a recent study by the American Journal of Health Promotion teenage girls dieting during the two-year study were almost twice as likely to take up smoking than those not dieting. Conversely, the study found that teenage boys turned to cigarettes after attempting and failing at dieting. [click link for full article]

The BC Cancer Agency, an agency of the Provincial Health Services Authority, has developed a revolutionary technology that will enable cancer patients to receive faster and more precise radiation therapy. Gordon Wright, a 72 year old retired commercial fisherman diagnosed with prostate cancer this July, is the first patient in the world treated with this technology. [click link for full article]

Two new reports intended to help pediatricians identify and help families manage autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are being unveiled today at the 2007 National Conference and Exhibition (NCE) of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). The first report, titled “Identification and Evaluation of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders” gives details on early signs and symptoms of ASDs and guidance on how to assess them. [click link for full article]

The Brazilian government on Wednesday launched a program that aims to reduce mother-to-child transmission of viruses such as HIV and syphilis, Xinhua/People’s Daily reports. According to a recently released report by the government, about 530 mother-to-child HIV transmissions were reported in 2005, compared with 1,091 transmissions in 1996. [click link for full article]

A panel of immunization experts has voted to expand the recommendation for the nasal spray influenza vaccine, FluMist (MedImmune Vaccines, Inc., Gaithersburg, Md.), to include healthy children from 2 to 5 years of age who are healthy and don’t have a history of asthma or wheezing. [click link for full article]

Last week, FDA was notified that a Canadian research group stopped a study on Trasylol because the drug appeared to increase the risk for death compared to the other antifibrinolytic drugs used in the study. Antifibrinolytic drugs help slow the breakdown of blood clots and subsequent excessive bleeding. The data also suggested that fewer patients receiving the drug experienced serious bleeding events. [click link for full article]

Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) on Thursday said he is “much more comfortable” with former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s (R) position on abortion after meeting with him in Washington, D.C., the AP/CBS News reports. [click link for full article]

Nearly two-thirds of women (63%) mistakenly believe that if a typical woman has no family history of cancer, then she is at low risk for developing the disease, according to a survey conducted by Harris Interactive® on behalf of The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). In fact, most cancers occur in people with no family history of the disease. [click link for full article]

Volunteers who guide low-income and minority cancer patients through cancer treatment, called lay patient navigators (LPN), help them to overcome major obstacles that prevent them from receiving quality care and achieving better outcomes, according to a study presented at the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology’s 49th Annual Meeting in Los Angeles. [click link for full article]