Laterlife Healthwise - 46          
Jan 2004

The drugs don’t work a whole of the time

Dr Allen Roses, worldwide vice-president of genetics at GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), has told a conference that over 90 per cent of all drugs work for only between 30 per cent and 50 per cent of patients.

Chemotherapy for cancer works on only 25 per cent of patients. Alzheimer's drugs work on 30 per cent of people. Drugs for rheumatoid arthritis, migraine, incontinence, hepatitis C and diabetes work on only half the patients, at best. The most effective drugs are painkillers, which work for to 80 per cent of those who take them.

This sorry state of affairs has never been acknowledged before by the pharmaceutical industry, and the reason we know it now is that the next big break will be a genetic test that should predict whether a medicine will work for the individual concerned. 

Dr Roses predicts that this will happen in a few years’ time. He also says that generic testing will lead to a whole range of new drugs aimed at the 50 per cent who don’t respond to the current ones.
 

Whatever happened to ‘type A’ personalities?

There was much concern some 30 years ago about personality and risk of heart disease. Those old enough to remember, will recall a major study that  exposed 'type A' people - anxious, aggressive high-achievers  - as twice as likely to develop a heart condition as  'type B', who are easy-going and passive.

Now the Journal of the American Medical Association reports that  researchers from Northwestern University in Chicago decided to test the theory with a group of 3,308 young adults, aged from 18 to 30. They tested to see how impatience, competitiveness, hostility, depression and anxiety in the group affected their chances of developing high blood pressure.

The answer: yes for hostility – it was the only behavioural trait that could dramatically influence blood pressure, the researchers found. Depression had a slight influence, while impatience had none.

A subsequent survey suggested that another type was prone to heart disease, this time the under managers who had to deal with the stress of working with hyper bosses and also, for some reason, bored bus drivers. A revisit on these findings would be equally interesting.

 

More evidence in favour of soya beans

There is increasing interest in finding treatments as an alternative to Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) or to compliment HRT in the management of menopausal symptoms and menopause ageing related disease. Soya beans are a natural dietary source of isoflavones which have oestrogen like properties. The number of over-the-counter isoflavone supplements aimed specifically at menopausal women has grown in recent years.

Latest evidence from the North American Menopause Society confirms that isoflavones can improve some menopausal symptoms such as hot flushes, and that they can have a positive effect on plasma lipid profiles and even on bone mineral density.

Eleven studies conclude that women taking 30-100mg of isoflavones per day see an improvement in menopausal symptoms. In Eastern populations where soya consumption is much greater than in the West, hot flushes are reported in only 10-18 per cent of menopausal women while in the West this is as high as 80 per cent. This has been attributed to the greater soya intake in the East.

There is another benefit from isoflavones. Oestrogen is protective of cholesterol levels, but during the menopause oestrogen levels drop and therefore a reduction in this hormone results in raised cholesterol. A daily intake of 25g of soya protein is widely recognised for its cholesterol-lowering properties^.

Ring in the new

Not quite yet, actually. But there is about to be a cultural revolution in the National Health Service. The Government’s white paper on the future of the NHS, published last month, promises a host of improvements:

• We’ll be able to choose a GP near our workplace and another out-of-hours near home

• Repeat prescriptions won’t need a doctor’s signature, so we can go direct to the pharmacist

• Hospitals to send correspondence to the patient first, not the GP

• Discussion and agreement with patient over treatment plan for chronic illness

• Electronic records to state patients’ wishes regarding diet, form of address, religion

• Fast track diagnostic centres for X-rays and blood tests

• Those with progressive diseases to be allowed to appoint a healthcare proxy

• Right to die at home with appropriate support

Understanding Female Sexual Dysfunction

There has been some controversy recently about whether this syndrome actually exists. But there is little doubt that some women seek help for loss of sexual desire, arousal difficulties, inability to achieve orgasm, painful intercourse.

A new booklet called Understanding Female Sexual Dysfunction addresses these issues in a clear, user-friendly style. It is available free with an A5 stamped, addressed envelope from: The Sexual Dysfunction Association, Windmill Place Business Centre, 2-4 Windmill Lane , Southall, Middlesex UB2 4NJ.

There is also a helpline: 0870 7743571, and a website: www.sda.uk.net.  The Sexual Dysfunction Association publishes a quarterly newsletter full of excellent information on male and female sexual issues. At present, the Association is conducting trials on treatment with Cialis and Viagra for erectile problems and is looking for people in London to take part.   

 
If in any doubt about any of the information covered in healthwise articles and it's relevance for you, consult your GP.

In edition 45:-      

Aspirin - good or not?

Who benefits from daily doses of aspirin to prevent heart disease and stroke?

What`s best for neck pain?

Neither special exercises or even relaxation

Red wine without hangover

A special red wine extract in capsule form!

Exercise for Breast cancer

prevention?

A brisk walk several times a week could reduce the risk of breast cancer

Latest on arthritis

The damp and cold weather might  not make osteoarthritis worse

HRT and heart disease

The final results

Drinking fluids and exercise

We`re told to drink lots of fluid before, during and after exercise, but new thinking flies in the face of this advice

Index to all previous Healthwise editions

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