Monthly Archives: August 2017

In this April 28, 2015 file photo, a patient has her blood drawn for a liquid biopsy during an appointment at a hospital in Philadelphia.

Jacqueline Larma / AP

Scientists have the first major evidence that blood tests called liquid biopsies hold promise for screening people for cancer. Hong Kong doctors tried it for a type of head and neck cancer, and boosted early detection and one measure of survival.

The tests detect DNA that tumors shed into the blood. Some are used now to monitor cancer patients, and many companies are trying to develop versions of these for screening, as possible alternatives to mammograms, colonoscopies and other such tests. The new study shows this approach can work, at least for this one form of cancer and in a country where it's common.

"This work is very exciting on the larger scale" because it gives a blueprint for how to make tests for other tumor types such as lung or breast, said Dr. Dennis Lo of Chinese University of Hong Kong. "We are brick by brick putting that technology into place."

He led the study, published Wednesday by the New England Journal of Medicine. Lo is best known for discovering that fetal DNA can be found in a mom's blood, which launched a new era of non-invasive testing for pregnant women.

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The study involved nasopharyngeal cancer, which forms at the top of the throat behind the nose. It's a good test case for DNA screening because it's an aggressive cancer where early detection matters a lot, and screening could be tried in a population where the cancer is most common -- middle-aged Chinese men.

Also, the Epstein-Barr virus is involved in most cases, so tests could hunt for viral DNA that tumors shed into the blood in large quantities, rather than rare bits of cancer cells themselves.

About 20,000 men were screened, and viral DNA was found in 1,112, or 5.5 percent. Of those, 309 also had the DNA on confirmatory tests a month later. After endoscope and MRI exams, 34 turned out to have cancer.

More cases were found at the earliest stage -- 71 percent versus only 20 percent of a comparison group of men who had been treated for nasopharyngeal cancer over the previous five years. That's important because early cases often are cured with radiation alone, but more advanced ones need chemotherapy and treatment is less successful.

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Screening also seemed to improve how many survived without worsening disease -- 97 percent at three years versus 70 percent of the comparison group.

Only one person who tested negative on screening developed nasopharyngeal cancer within a year.

The researchers estimate 593 people would need to be screened at a total cost of $28,600 to identify one cancer case. It may be worth it in Hong Kong, but maybe not in places like the U.S. where the disease is rare, and more people would have to be screened at a greater cost to find each case, said Dr. Richard Ambinder of Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, who wrote a commentary in the journal.

Still, "this is showing that liquid biopsies have great promise," he said. "This is an advance that will indeed save lives."

The study was sponsored by an Asian foundation and the Hong Kong government. Lo and some other authors founded Cirina, a Hong Kong-based company focused on early cancer detection, and get royalties related to DNA blood tests. In May, Cirina merged with Grail Inc., a California company working on cancer screening blood tests with more than $1 billion from drug companies and big-name investors such as Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates.

2017 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Scientists report progress on "liquid biopsies" for cancer screening - CBS News

Hertz's luck may be turning around, but investors will need to wait longer to see results.

Shares of the rental-car company soared nearly 20 percent on Wednesday after positive comments by CEO Kathryn Marinello.

"We have made significant progress in the first half of the year, executing on our operating turnaround plan," Marinello said in a press release Tuesday. "Admittedly, we still have a lot of work to do, but these early wins are evidence that we have the right plan in place to ultimately achieve best-in-class outcomes."

The CEO says the company is focusing on downsizing its fleet of depreciating cars by increasing spending to complete its "transformation" of its fleet.

"Of course, the hard work always comes before the pay off as reflected in our second quarter results, where increased spending to fix areas of weakness and invest in areas of opportunity were exacerbated by a challenging vehicle residual environment in the U.S.," Marinello wrote.

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Hertz shares skyrocket nearly 20% after CEO says there's been 'significant progress' in its turnaround plan - CNBC

GREEN BAY, Wisc (WBAY) Retired teamsters say they're making progress on efforts to keep their pensions from being cut.

Their two-year battle with the Central States Pension Fund is also gaining national attention.

We first met Brad Vaughn and Terry Black, both from Green Bay, in the fall of 2015.

They had just received notice from the Central States Pension Fund that their retirement checks would be cut by nearly 50-percent, along with 270,000 other retirees in 37 states, including 15,000 in Wisconsin.

"So we mobilized, we started having meetings, we got backing, went to Washington rallying in front of the House and saying no this isn't right," says Black.

Despite claims the multi-employer pension fund would be bankrupt by 2025, the U.S. Treasury Department told Central States it couldn't start reducing retirement checks.

But knowing that wouldn't solve the long-term problem, retired teamsters formed the National United Committee to Protect Pensions.

"We're just working to get this thing fixed for everybody so that we can move on with our lives in retirement and get what we have coming to us and what we deserve," says Vaughn.

Along with holding monthly informational meetings in more than 60 communities, committee leaders have also made several trips to Washington D.C.

Just last month, they met with U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and House Speaker Paul Ryan, who promised the country's growing pension crisis is on the agenda right behind healthcare and the country's budget.

"This pension issue is 3rd in line as far as getting this done cause it's going to collapse the economy if something doesn't get fixed," says Vaughn.

With bi-partisan support from Wisconsin Senators Tammy Baldwin and Ron Johnson, Vaughn and Black feel a legislative solution is around the corner.

"We're in this to win it and it's all the way to the end," says Black.

"We're confident, we're more confident that we ever have been that were going to get something done here," adds Vaughn.

The retired teamsters say they'll be back in Washington D.C. this fall with a proposed bill to solve the country's pension crisis.

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Making Progress to Save Pensions - WBAY

FOXBORO --If you were hoping for Jacoby Brissett to make a strong case at the start of training camp that he, not Jimmy Garoppolo, is the quarterback in waiting, sorry to disappoint. Brissetts camp has been more uneven than fourth-year man Garoppolo's . . .and as weve detailed with number 10, it hasnt exactly been smooth sailing for him, either.

How does Brissett feel hes performed to this point?

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"I don't do evaluations. You have to ask [coach Bill Belichick] that, he said following Wednesdays lengthy walkthrough with the Jaguars.

Well, we did do that, Jacoby. But unlike his radio appearance on SiriusXM last week, when Belichick called Brissetts situation both unique and interesting, this time the coach wasnt exactly expansive.

"Well, its a work in progress, he said. Well see. Were a little over a week into training camp -- 10, 11 practices --so weve got a long way to go. Well see.

What weve seen so far is a second-year quarterback showing some signs of improvement: Brissett now is willing to try and put the ball into tighter windows, and clearly has a better grasp of the system. However, the former North Carolina State standout still has a long delivery, a penchant for staring down his target and a reluctance to come off that target, a lack of touch and a propensity to deliver many of his throws high, sometimes endangering support staff and fans with his 107 mile-per-hour fastball.

Being in the NFL is a challenge, said Brissett. Every day, youre going against the best in the world.

Brissett did rise up to the challenge last year when thrown into the fire, subbing for the injured Garoppolo midway through the Dolphins game in Week 2, then holding down the fort in Week 3 versus the Texans before being exposed in his final outing of the year against the Bills. His stint on injured reserve following that game certainly took the wind out of the sails as Belichick noted on Sirius, but Brissett insists the mental gymnastics he subjected himself to were -- like they are now -- critical to his growth.

The most important part is the reps I dont get, he said. The times I get to sit down and watch and learn from those guys, so I think [being] able to sit back and watch helped me a lot.

Brissett believes it was those reps, even when he didnt know what I was doing, that helped him prepare for what life is like now, when there are many days where the young signal caller doesnt get much work in 11-on-11 situations until sometimes right at the very end of practice.

Its just like a game, he said when I asked him. Its like the Dolphins game. I wasnt playing the whole game then unfortunately the injury happened to Jimmy so you get thrown into the fire so you just gotta be ready to go whenever the time comes.

He wasnt all that ready at the end of Tuesdays joint practice with the Jags, leading to an amusing scenario in which the entire group he was working with had to do pushups. Even Belichick joined in.

I was impressed he did em, smiled Brissett. When he was asked if he had an idea of how many pushups Belichick could muster, Brissett did the smartest thing he could do:I dont want to say the wrong number to offend him so Im gonna leave that for him. He can tell you how many.

Then he was off, with a smile, presumably to get as many mental reps as possible and, hopefully, improve.

FOXBORO -- If you ever asked Vince Wilfork about his weight during the last few years of his Patriots career, he gave the same answer: 325 pounds. That's how he was listed on the Patriots roster, and no matter what kind of prodding you did, you got the same three digits. And, no, he wouldn't be stepping on a scale for you.

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In reporting a story on the Patriots nutritional approach back in 2014, Wilfork -- who was feeling as strong as ever late in the season due to what he said were some changes to his diet -- was anticipating my disbelief before he even had the chance to proudlyboast about his weight.

"Everybody always questions me because I got a big belly," Wilfork said with a smile. "I tell them all the time that I'm always gonna have a belly. I'm always gonna have a belly. That's my trademark. I'm gonna have a belly. But when you do body-fat tests and all that stuff, all my fat is in my stomach. Everywhere else, I mean, you cut my belly out you'd think I'm a linebacker or something. You know what I mean? Everyone always questions me about that, but there's no question. That's what it is. Just because I got a big belly, I'm proportioned a little bit differently than everybody else."

Proportioned differently, yes. But during Wilfork's retirement announcement on Wednesday, Bill Belichick said that Wilfork always made weight during his Patriots career, just as anybody else would be expected to.

Patriots owner Robert Kraft brought up Wilfork's "trademark" when herecalled a trip that the Wilforks andKrafts once madeto Florence, Italy.

"I remember Vince saying he had camp coming up, and he wanted to eat healthy and just eat protein," Kraft said. "This place was famous for pasta and they brought many pastas and meat and desserts. Vince was a full participant in every course, not wanting to make them feel bad. I'd check when he came back here, and he was able to pass his run, but I think he might have been a few pounds overweight and had to pay a fine --which Bill, I really should have paid because I brought him there."

Belichick made sure to double-checkwith Wilfork on stage, but he then made a quick correction to Kraft's story when he got his chance to speak.

"This is maybe surprising, but its true," Belichick started. "Vince never one time was fined for being overweight and never one time missed the conditioning test. The conditioning test honestly wasnt even close. Vince could run. That was never an issue. There were times when he would come in for the weigh-ins and we would say, like, 'Man,is he going to make it today?'But 11 years, never fined one time for being overweight.

Belichick paused. "Now Im not saying he was never overweight. Im not saying that," he said. "Im saying at weigh-in, he made every weigh-in."

Wilfork laughed before taking his turn at the podium to announce his retirement officially. "Yeah, I never missed a weigh-in," he said. "But catch me 30 minutes later and it might be a different story. Thats just being honest."

Wilfork is, after all, a man who broke the news of his own retirement with a video that featured him smoking ribs in his overalls.

Greg Bedard says that if Ezekiel Elliott were Tom Brady, he would already be suspended.

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Giardi: Brissett's development a work in progress - Comcast SportsNet New England

Pitt County has shown improvement in its battles against diabetes, infant mortality, HIV and heart disease, but has lost ground against cancer, prescription drug abuse and syphilis, according to the 2016 State of the County Health Report presented Tuesday to the county Board of Health.

Amy Hattem, the departments health education director, introduced the report and explained how it was compiled.

In 2015, thePitt County Health Department and Vidant MedicalCenter partnered to complete a requiredCommunity Health NeedsAssessment (CHNA) toexamine the health status ofthe community and to determine the countys health improvement prioritiesover the followingthree to four years.

Priorities chosen included access to care, chronic disease prevention; physical activity and nutrition; maternal and child health/infant mortality prevention; tobacco prevention and control; and sexually transmitted diseases.

The State of the CountyHealth Report is comprisedannually tohighlight activities that address the selected healthpriorities. The latest report wascompleted in March and reflects activities thatwere implemented in late2015 through 2016. It contains the most recent data on leading causes of death and contains updates on activities implemented to achieve the communitys top health goals.

In 2016, the leading cause of death in Pitt County for the second consecutive year was cancer, followed by heart disease, stroke, chronic respiratory disease; unintentional injuries, Alzheimers disease, diabetes, septicemia (blood infection), motor vehicle injuries, and chronic liver disease/cirrhosis.

Cancer rates in Pitt County climbed from 134.3 per 100,000 population in 2013 to 154.5 per 100,000 in 2014 and to 164.4 per 100,000 in2015, according to the data. Lung cancer lags behind breast cancer in the number of projected cases, but exceeds breast cancer in the number of projected deaths, Hattem said. Prostate cancer and colorectal cancer are the other leading types of cancer showing up in the county.

We hope weve made progress regarding diabetes, Hattem said.In 2013, the disease was ranked as the fifth leading cause of death, but dropped to seventh in 2014 and 2015. We hope that drop can be linked to programs we have in place, like the diabetes self-management program and other prevention programs weve had in place in the community since that time.

The rise in unintentional deaths the last two years could be connected to the increase in prescription drug abuse and misuse, Hattem said.

The report indicated that the health department and its numerous community partners have implemented many programs linking individuals with community health resources. Representatives of those partnerships reported on issues addressed in 2016.

Jennifer Hardee, the health departments coordinator of womens and childrens health education programs, said the countys goal is to continue reducing its infant mortality rate, currently 9.7 per 1,000 births in 2015, to the North Carolina rate of 7.2 per 1,000 births or lower, with emphasis placed on the countys low-income African-American women. Progress was made last year primarily because the mortality rate dropped among African-American women while it rose among white women, Hardee said.

Allyson Smith, the health departments tobacco prevention and control coordinator, reported on the countys efforts to reduce secondhand smoke in multi-unit housing by 10 percent annually and reduce smoking in community parks by the same amount.

In the area of sexually transmitted diseases, the county set a goal in 2016 to reduce the rising rate of Chlamydia. The rate climbed from918.3 per 100,000 populationto 968.5 per 100,000 representing a 4.23-percent increase. The increase incases could be due to an increase in the number of testsperformed, according to Kimberly Hardy, the health departments director of Nursing and Personal Health.

While HIV cases have trended downward in Pitt County the last two years, from 38 to 23, the numbers of cases of syphilis have steadily increased, from 22 in 2013 to 51 in 2015 and 2016.

Rates this high are very concerning for our community, Hardy said. Our needs for prevention and training are certainly confirmed by those numbers.

Robin Tant, the health department nutrition director and vice chairwoman of Pitt Partners for Health, reported on the partnerships Chronic Disease Committees West Greenville Health Initiative, designed to reduce chronic diseases and improve overall health in the area of the county where it is most challenged.

The initiative allowed the leaders in west Greenville to become deeply engaged in its design and implementation and allowed an opportunity to repair issues of trust they said had been weakened by other factors, including the lack of resources, presence of illegal drugs, unemployment, racism and profiling, and elderly isolation.

At the countywide level, Mary Tayloe Gaskins, a nutritionist and chairwoman of the Pitt Partners for Health Physical Activity and Nutrition Action Team, reported on initiatives aimed at health issues impacted by nutrition and physical activity.

The possibilities for improvement in conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, osteoporosis, hypertension and obesity are endless, Gaskins said.

The team hosted 12 Cooking Matters grocery store tours this year through a Vidant Health Foundation grant to teach healthier eating on a budget.

Who hasnt heard, It costs too much to eat healthy? We think it costs too much not to eat healthy, Gaskins said.

The nutrition team showed tour participants how to prepare a healthy family meal for as little as $10, she said.

The Pitt County Health Department will begin next year to collect new data for the next Community Health Needs Assessment, due in 2019.

For a copy of the 2016 SOTCH Report, email Amy Hattem at amy.hattem@pittcountync.govor visit the Pitt County Health Department website atwww.pittcountync.gov/368/Health-Statistics.

Contact Michael Abramowitz at mabramowitz@reflector.comor 252-329-9507.

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Report shows some progress, some setbacks in county health - Greenville Daily Reflector

Michael Kors Holdings (NYSE:KORS) has had to deal with a lot of turmoil lately. Not only has the entire retail industry gone through massive disruptions that have resulted in a lot of pressure for retailers generally, but Kors in particular has seen even bigger impacts in the luxury retail space and its particular niche. Yet with the recently announced acquisition of Jimmy Choo, Kors hopes to get shoppers excited about its fashions again.

Coming into Tuesday's fiscal first-quarter financial report, Kors investors expected to see earnings and revenue decline from year-ago levels, but they wanted to see signs that a turnaround was taking shape. Kors was able to do better than the low expectations that investors had, and that helped create some positive sentiment about the stock that could build up momentum going forward. The stock was up roughly 18% at 9:45 a.m. Tuesday. Let's take a closer look at Michael Kors and what its latest results mean to its recovery efforts.

Image source: Michael Kors.

Michael Kors' fiscal first-quarter results still reflect tough conditions, but they also showed the progress that the luxury retailer has made. Revenue was down almost 4% to $952.4 million, but that wasn't as bad as the 7% drop that most investors were expecting to see. Similarly, net income fell about 15% to $125.5 million, but a drop in share count limited the decline in per-share figures, and the $0.80 per share in earnings that Kors announced was far higher than the consensus analyst forecast for $0.62 per share.

Looking more closely at Kors' numbers, the retailer still had to deal with some ugly numbers from a fundamental perspective. Comparable sales were down 5.9%, although that was quite a bit better than the double-digit percentage drop Kors suffered in its previous quarter. Retail net sales rebounded sharply, climbing more than 10% on the strength of 67 new store openings and Kors' acquisition of its primary licensee partner in the Greater China region. The wholesale segment took the brunt of the hit to Kors' results, seeing net sales plunge 23%. Licensing revenue was down a more modest 6%.

Kors continued to see previous trends play out in terms of its geographical exposure. Asia was the best region for Kors, seeing a 60% revenue jump, although as we've seen in previous quarters, strategic activity was largely responsible for those gains. Elsewhere, Kors was weak, posting an 8% drop in total revenue in the Americas and a 10% sales decline in Europe.

Operationally, Kors made some progress. Operating margin fell due to one-time costs related to the China licensee acquisition, but when you adjust for those impacts, margin figures picked up by more than a full percentage point, climbing above the 20% mark.

CEO John Idol was pleased with the way the new fiscal year started. "Our first quarter performance exceeded our expectations," Idol said, "driven largely by better than anticipated retail comparable sales results in both North American and Europe."

Yet even more exciting in Kors' view is what's coming. Idol was careful to repeat his belief this fiscal 2018 will be a "transition year for our company as we focus on laying the foundation for the future by executing on our strategic plan, Runway 2020." Moves to enhance fashion assortments, deepen relationships with shoppers, and build up the luxury experience in its stores will be front and center over the next couple of years.

At the same time, the Jimmy Choo acquisition has a lot of promise, and Kors intends to make it part of a broader initiative to build up a global fashion luxury group. By diversifying its product lines, Kors hopes to take the strong reputation that Jimmy Choo has built up and use it both to enhance the Choo brand's results and to encourage cross-selling potential with existing Kors products.

Kors will still have to endure some sacrifices in the short run to get to a better endpoint. Second-quarter guidance included revenue estimates of $1.035 billion to $1.055 billion, with earnings of $0.80 to $0.84 per share. Those numbers would be down from year-ago levels, but are still better than the consensus forecast among analysts. Kors boosted its full-year revenue guidance by $25 million, to $4.275 billion, and it now expects only mid-single digit percentage declines in comps and earnings of $3.62 to $3.72 per share -- $0.05 higher than its previous guidance.

Shareholders were ecstatic about the news, and Kors stock quickly jumped Tuesday morning. The luxury retailer has seen fits and starts before, and there's still the potential for future disappointment. For now, though, Kors has shareholders excited about the future for the first time in a while, and that could help propel interest in the company both among luxury shoppers and as an investment.

Dan Caplinger has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of Michael Kors Holdings. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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Kors Sees Turnaround Progress - Motley Fool

Wisconsin Public Radio News

Cleanup Of Milwaukee Estuary Shows Progress, But Completion ... Wisconsin Public Radio News Pollution cleanup continues in the Milwaukee harbor, which is one of about 40 toxic hot spots around the Great Lakes. But the Wisconsin Department of Natural ... and more »

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Cleanup Of Milwaukee Estuary Shows Progress, But Completion ... - Wisconsin Public Radio News

Wall Street Journal (subscription)

Michael Kors, Ralph Lauren Make Progress on Turnaround Efforts Wall Street Journal (subscription) Two big U.S. apparel and accessories brands, Michael Kors Holdings Ltd. and Ralph Lauren Corp., showed some progress Tuesday on efforts to wean themselvesand shoppersoff heavy promotions. Both companies reported sharp sales declines in their ... Ralph Lauren Corporation - RL - Stock Price Today - ZacksZacks Investment Research all 180 news articles »

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Michael Kors, Ralph Lauren Make Progress on Turnaround Efforts - Wall Street Journal (subscription)