The Timaru Herald has run an article on the website offtheradar.co.nz, who are calling for the removal of Gardasil from the vaccination regime because it causes 16 times more serious adverse events than it prevents cervical cancer fatalities. Like most of the websites “crusading” against vaccines, it destroys its own credibility by drawing non-scientific conclusions [...]

Not much time for blogging tonight but I could resist a quick comment on the low-hanging fruit offered by ScrubOne in this comment. The Yahoo “news” item reads:
I feed my son marijuana
While most parents are focussed on warning their children about the dangers of drugs, mum-of-three Mieko Hester-Perez is happily dishing up marijuana to her [...]

Apparently, John Key gave a speech today in parliament.
Must have slept through it.
Add a Comment

The Dominion Post writes yesterday about the looming shortage of oncologists. Four cancer doctors have resigned in a very short space of time. The article explores all the usual reasons why doctors leave, particularly the worrying ones of overwork,  which can only be fixed by employing more hard-to-get doctors. What struck me, though, was the [...]

The Lancet has finally withdrawn the paper on MMR and autism that it published 12 years ago. The study: “Ileal-lymphoid-nodular hyperplasia, non-specific colitis, and pervasive developmental disorder in children” consisted of a series of 12 children all of whom had been referred in to a paediatric gastroenterology unit with a triad of autism-like symptoms, abdominal [...]

Obama announces.
President Barack Obama sent Congress his new budget overnight, a plan that forecasts the government spending a record US$1.66 trillion ($2.37 trillion) more than it takes in through taxes.
1.66 TRILLION deficit in a single year…
If you laid every dollar bill end to end you could walk on them through the centre of the sun [...]

De Beers, the diamond merchants, and specialists in certain disciplines are wealthy for exactly the same reasons. They both have something that is rare. It De Beer’s case, it is diamonds. In the doctor’s case it is his skills as a physician. I earn a salary way above the average for no reason other than [...]

Dr Tim Parke, the clinical director of the adult emergency department at Auckland City Hospital, puts his concerns into an article in the Herald today. He writes that, in his opinion, the proposed use of public facilities for extra private procedures will produce a two tier system where, eventually, richer patients will have better medical [...]

Dr Chris Jackson is a brave man. He has suggested a scheme which would allow oncology patients access to privately funded services at public hospitals. It is, of course, an excellent idea. It is also an idea that will attract vilification from his colleagues (especially the doctors unions) and the Left (who hate the idea of [...]

If ever there was a good example of why health journalists should seek to gain a proper understanding of the material they are writing about it is this:
Study finds vitamins boost mental health
People with mental illness made “remarkable” improvements by taking a daily dose of nutritional supplements rather than conventional medicines, a trial has found.
The [...]