Cryoablation has been shown to be an effective form of treatment for ovarian cancer, and this freeze and destroy technique could offer an alternative to surgery or chemotherapy for patients whose disease is in the late stages and oligometastatic, according to research published in the Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology and presented at the 2012 International Symposium on Endovascular Therapy in Miami in January.

Men with localized prostate cancer may not be receiving curative therapy (CTx) in accordance with potential clinical benefit, as patients with a low likelihood to benefit have received increasingly aggressive treatment in recent years while patients in groups that are likely to benefit from CTx have not seen comparable increases in treatment, according to a research letter published in the Feb. 27 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine.

The American College of Cardiology (ACC) recently testified at the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health during a special hearing to explore how private sector payors are rewarding physicians who deliver high quality and efficient care. ACC CEO Jack Lewin, MD, discussed several of the quality improvement collaborations underway in cardiology and what lessons can be applied across the healthcare system to simultaneously reduce unnecessary readmissions, complications, testing, and ineffective spending.

If California Rep. Brian Bilbray has his way, state inspections will no longer be required for drugs and medical devices that have already been scrutinized at the federal level.

Computer-aided detection (CAD) increased radiologist sensitivity for breast cancer 10 percent and produced a concomitant increase in the recall rate, according to an article published in the March issue of American Journal of Roentgenology.

The FDA's Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee recommended Vivus' Qnexa (phentermine and topiramate) be granted marketing approval by the FDA for the treatment of obesity in adults. The committee voted 20 to two, on the recommendation for an approval based on a favorable benefit-risk profile.

Nuance Communications has selected the SparrowEDIS emergency department information system, developed by Ashland, Ore.-based startup Montrue Technologies, as the winner of the 2012 Mobile Clinician Voice Challenge.

Multiple heparin-producing factories in China may be subject to Detention without Physical Examination by the FDA, after the agency found that some firms may not conform to current good manufacturing practice and may be inadequate in terms of safely preventing contamination.