Diabetes

A study conducted in Denmark identified an inverse association between controlling diabetes, through diet or oral medications, and breast density.

It's no surprise that researchers were unable to come to firm conclusions about the cardiovascular safety of Contrave based on partial results. An accompanying editorial in JAMA finds that a repeat of the LIGHT saga could force FDA to demand full safety data before approval.

The LEADER trial is the latest in a recent wave of cardiovascular outcomes trials now required by FDA for diabetes and obesity therapies. Full results will be reported in June at the meeting of the American Diabetes Association.

The study, published in the journal Nature, found that mice fed a high-fat diet had more stem cells that behaved differently outside their natural environment, showing signs that would be associated with tumor growth.

The study is the most recent to suggest that obesity leads to alterations in brain function in the area that regulates memory.

The Diabetes Telehealth Network has a goal of enrolling 200 patients and providing remote care for 18 months. Results from the first 100 patients show not a single readmission; the project found 18 cases of diabetic retinopathy that would have otherwise been missed.

The authors said the incidence rates in type 1 diabetes compared with type 2 show that insulin treatment is not to blame for increased cancer rates.

Geisinger's all-or-none diabetes bundled system of care implemented in routine primary care settings was associated with sustained long-term total cost savings.

The results at 2 years show that aflibercept, marketed as Eylea, have benefits over bevacizumab for patients who start treatment with vision of 20/50 or worse.

The top stories in managed care this week include findings on cancer survival disparities, CVS Health claimed drug spending growth slowed in 2015, and Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey's OMNIA plan is interfering with existing patient-centered medical homes.

Mann spent $1 billion of his own money to bring Afrezza to market. The Los Angeles Times reported he died in Las Vegas.

A new proposal from researchers at MIT and Dana-Farber offers a remedy for patients to cover high healthcare costs: securitized consumer healthcare loans.

Unlike former Mayor Michael Bloomberg's attempt to limit soda portions, this rule gives consumers information and lets them make their own decisions. Such measures have had more support from the public and the courts.

A report from The Food Trust offers ideas and case studies on how to get fruits and vegetables to the customers who historically have had less access to them.

The full slides from the 2015 Patient-Centered Diabetes Care keynote speech, where Robert A. Gabbay, MD, PhD, discussed new care models being implemented to improve patient health in the long term.

BMJ's study found no link bewteen incretin-based drugs and pancreatic cancer but said because of the latency of the cancer, adverse effects would have to be watched.

Pollution is believed to create insulin resistance and chronic inflammation, which leads to obesity and diabetes.

The state's first-of-its-kind model for delivering Medicaid creates brings managed care concepts without commercial insurers to the one of the nation's poorest markets.

Adult obesity increased to 28% of the US population in 2015 and the diabetes rate also climbed to 11.4%. Adults who are obese are 4.7 times more likely to be diabetic compared with adults with a normal weight

This week's top managed care stories included the release of 7 core sets of quality measures, more evidence that value-based insurance design works to lower costs, and the FDA assigns breakthrough designation to AstraZeneca's PD-L1 inhibitor.

The scientists on the panel will advise JDRF on policy and research priorities as the organization supports major initiatives to cure type 1 diabetes or manage the disease.

FDA had halted work on the study drug after 2 deaths in an unrelated trial.

The clinical trial across 3 sites in California and Washington state will involve 300 participants and report results in 2017.

Individuals with more than one diagnosis are more likely to report to a primary care physician than to a subspecialty physician.

Deploying the algorithm in EHRs on a widepread basis could help find up to 400,000 Americans with undiagnosed diabetes, the researchers say.