The success of the National Lung Screening Trial (NLST) has not closed the book on lung cancer screening. Instead, it has spurred a host of questions related to overdiagnosis, costs and the potential for other screening methods, according to an article and editorial published Aug. 4 in New England Journal of Medicine. NLST researchers and the editorialist reached the same conclusion: screening CT is not ready for prime time.

18F-FDG uptake values measured by positron emission mammography (PEM) correlated with prognostic indicators that predict breast cancer survival and inform clinical management, including receptor status, tumor histology and tumor grade, according to a study published in the August issue of American Journal of Roentgenology.

To add to the slew of data that recently surfaced regarding Sanofi-Aventis dronedarone (Multaq) and its potential to cause cardiovascular events in permanent atrial fibrillation (AF) patients during the PALLAS trial, the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) says that it will update its AF guidelines.

The U.S. Supreme Court recently declared unconstitutional Vermonts law, which restricted detailing, the transferring and use of physician-identifiable prescribing data, that had been challenged by Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. Prescription drug intermediaries (PDIs) and a pharmaceutical manufacturers association challenged Vermonts law as a restriction to free speech on the basis of an expressed viewpoint. An article in the Aug. 3 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine shows that data mining reports created by PDIs and then later sold to pharmaceutical companies show a physicians prescribing behavior and whether the physician is an early or late medicine adopter.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced Aug. 4 that Medicare average prescription drug premiums will not increase in 2012.

The FDA has issued a Class I recall of GE Healthcare Vital Signs Hydroscopic Condenser Humidifier Passive Humidification devices (HCH), which are used with the Vital Signs Anesthesia Breathing Circuits.

The FDA has proposed requiring a premarket approval application for certain Class III pacemaker programmers.

Computer Vision Systems Laboratories has executed an agreement with Infrared Sciences to license the rights, title and interest in the intellectual property surrounding the Sentinel BreastScan.