An epidemic: HIV+ woman in Khutsong, South Africa
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DEFIBRILLATORS
Heart patients may rest easier knowing that the cardiac jump-start that might save their lives is in the next room. Agilent Technologies, based in Palo Alto, Calif., and CVS.com last year launched Heartstream, the first defibrillator available directly to consumers with a doctor's prescription.
DIABETES
It's getting easier for diabetics to keep tabs on the ups and downs of their glucose levels. The first fully automated monitoring device — one press of a button pricks, analyzes blood and provides results — has been approved by the FDA. Still in the works is an infrared system that measures glucose levels by scanning the tongue.
DNA
Want to join the genetic revolution?Fill out a questionnaire and provide a blood sample and you can donate your DNA for genetic-disease research at www.DNA.com. Run by DNA Sciences, the site has drawn 4,500 volunteers so far and is hoping for a total of 100,000 samples.
E
Estrogen
It still soothes hot flashes and protects your bones, but two major studies showed that taking estrogen long after menopause may not benefit the heart. In fact, the potent female hormone may slightly increase the risk of suffering a heart attack in some women. A long-term study is expected to produce a definitive answer sometime during the next five years or so. Until then, women with high cholesterol levels should get plenty of exercise, limit the amount of saturated fat in their diet and listen carefully if their physician suggests taking a cholesterol-lowering drug.
F
FastPack
As if undergoing treatment for prostate cancer weren't bad enough, men usually have to wait up to a week for blood tests to determine whether or not their tumor has returned. In June the FDA approved FastPack, an automated blood analyzer designed by Qualigen of Carlsbad, Calif., that measures in as little as 15 minutes the level of prostate-specific antigen found in a blood sample. The FDA concluded, however, that there weren't enough data to approve FastPack as a screening tool for the general population as well.
Fatty Fish
Remember good cholesterol and bad cholesterol? It turns out there are good fats and bad fats too — although all fats still contain nine calories per gram. Health experts are increasingly intrigued by a group of good fats called omega-3 fatty acids, and what's good about them is that they lower the level of triglycerides (one of the bad fats) and decrease the risk of suffering a blood clot. Salmon, sardines and tuna are so full of omega-3 fatty acids that the American Heart Association for the first time recommended that everyone eat two 3-oz. servings of fatty fish each week.
Fiber
Three big studies concluded that a diet rich in fiber — found in whole-grain cereals, fruits and vegetables — won't necessarily protect you against colon cancer. Study participants who consumed as much as 35 g of fiber a day were just as likely to develop precancerous growths in the intestines as those who were addicted to processed food. But fiber still has its benefits: it helps lower blood pressure, moderates cholesterol levels and combats type II (adult-onset) diabetes.
G
Gene Therapy
Programs in several medical centers were either put on hold or severely restricted following the 1999 death of Jesse Gelsinger, 18, the first American known to have died as a direct result of gene therapy, an attempt to replace defective genes with normal ones. Meanwhile, doctors in France successfully used gene therapy to treat four infants suffering from a congenital immune disorder.
Genetically Modified Foods
Millions of bushels of genetically modified corn, approved for animal feed but not for human consumption, turned up in Taco Bell taco shells and other food products. Though most of the food was recalled before it was eaten, the high-tech mix-up increased public skepticism about so-called Frankenfoods. In the meantime, public-health experts still have high hopes for golden rice, a strain that's genetically enriched with a precursor of vitamin A and that could help prevent blindness in hundreds of thousands of children in impoverished countries each year.
Genome
Five years ahead of schedule, scientists announced that they had sequenced the 3.1 billion pairs of biochemical "letters" of human DNA, the coded instructions for building and operating a fully functional human. Fierce rivalry between J. Craig Venter, the prickly head of a private genetics company, and Dr. Francis Collins, leader of a government consortium, fueled the lightning-fast pace.