Top Clinical News from June 2016

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This article includes a selection of the most interesting clinical news from the last month. Learn about a new consortium of lung cancer experts working on next-generation sequencing; read an interview on the very latest technology available for mass spectrometry sample preparation; and find out about a ground-breaking Myeloma study in Birmingham, UK.

1. QIAGEN forms Lung Cancer Expert Alliance

QIAGEN has announced the formation of a global consortium of international lung cancer experts. The experts will advise the company on the design of new next-generation sequencing (NGS) gene panels and associated workflows that target lung cancer-specific mutations.

2. Modern Sample Preparation Solutions Bring Mass Spec to the Clinical Research Lab

Nicholas Manicke is a mass spectrometry expert and Professor of Chemistry at the Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI), U.S. In this interview with SelectScience’s Associate Editor, Sonia Nicholas, Nicholas discusses the very latest, state-of-the-art technology available for mass spectrometry sample preparation.

3. Mobile Phones Used by Hospital Staff Harbor Pathogenic Viruses

In clinical settings, mobile phones benefit patients by placing useful data and information at the fingertips of health professionals during interactions on the ward. But are doctors and nurses unwittingly exposing vulnerable patients to a potential source of infection just by tapping their touch screen?

4. Unsafe Lead Levels in Children, Finds New Study in Journal of Pediatrics

Despite four decades of public health efforts to minimize children's exposure to lead, high percentages of unsafe blood lead levels are still found in children in numerous regions of the United States, according to a new study by researchers at Quest Diagnostics, a leading provider of diagnostic information services.

5. First Large-Scale Screening Trial to Identify Blood Cancer Before Disease Develops

The Binding Site has welcomed Dr Sigurdur Kristinsson, from the University of Iceland, to its head office in Birmingham, UK to progress a landmark, large-scale screening study aimed at preventing Myeloma before it develops. The ground-breaking study will test blood samples from adults over the age of 40 in Iceland, almost one third of the country’s population, for the earliest signs of Myeloma.

6. New Case Study Shows Increased Efficiency and Faster Viral Load Results with DxN VERIS Molecular Diagnostics System

A newly released case study describes the experiences of Niguarda Hospital’s Molecular Biology Laboratory, in the assessment of the DxN VERIS Molecular Diagnostics System. The study showed that the DxN VERIS increased laboratory efficiency and allowed faster turnaround of viral load results.