Your Health: May 15, 2000

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GOOD NEWS

CANCER CARE It's not easy to say something positive when there's a diagnosis of advanced ovarian cancer. But researchers have found that women with the hereditary form of the disease may survive an average of two years longer than those with no genetic predisposition. The same defect on either the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene that makes women vulnerable to the cancer may also make them more responsive to chemotherapy. Once researchers figure out why, they may be able to develop more effective treatments for both forms of the disease.

EROS ENVY Tired of men having all the fun? The FDA has approved something that may be a remedy. Not for the squeamish, the Eros Clitoral Therapy Device consists of a soft plastic cup (placed over you know where) and a palm-size battery-operated pump. By drawing blood to the clitoris, the device causes engorgement, a key to sexual arousal. In trials 80% of women with female sexual-arousal disorder reported experiencing sexual satisfaction, and 55% said they could reach orgasm more easily. The price of pleasure: $350--and a doctor's RX.

BAD NEWS

RUN FOR YOUR LIFE We've all heard the bizarre reports of super-fit athletes suddenly dying during a competition. The culprit may not be a sudden heart attack after all. Doctors report at least six cases of marathon runners collapsing--and one dying--because of fluid accumulated in the lungs and brain, a syndrome known as hyponatremic encephalopathy. The problem, which may be linked to drinking too much water, is easily treatable as long as it is quickly diagnosed.

DRUG WARNING Since its debut in 1998, Herceptin has stemmed the growth of breast cancer in tens of thousands of women. But now its maker, Genentech, is alerting doctors to possible adverse reactions and even death in a small percentage of patients who have a history of lung problems and did not respond to chemotherapy. A new label in the works will help doctors select the patients best suited for the gene-spliced drug. --By Janice M. Horowitz

Sources: Good News: Journal of the American Medical Association (5/2/00), FDA; Bad News: Annals of Internal Medicine (5/2/00), Genentech