KEY TAKEAWAY: As many as 40 percent of cancer cases, and half of cancer deaths, come down to things people could easily change, researchers said Thursday. What does this say about “empowered patients”? Continue reading
POST SUMMARY: When it comes to managing your health no digital tool, app, website, is going to replace the knowledge and skill of your doctor. It’s therefore essential that physicians learn to reach out to patients and treat the whole person at a time when our health care system is in the midst of a new era. Continue reading
U.S. regulators and the drug industry want to extend by two months the deadline for the Food and Drug Administration to approve or reject new drugs. The FDA said it would need an extra 60-day “filing date” before the clock starts ticking on its 10-month deadline to review new drugs, or six months for a priority review. This means even less time on the market to recoup costs and is one of the reasons why new drug prices are going to continue to climb. Continue reading
There is a lot, and I mean a lot, of health information on the Internet. Unfortunately there is also a lot of bad health information on the Internet and consumers have to pretty much figure out for themselves which sites offer credible and good health information, that they can understand, and which ones are full of garbage. What we should be worried about however is not all the health information that’s out there but what decisions consumers are making with information in hand. Continue reading
There is a misconception within marketing that just because people are using a certain technology or going to a certain website that they want marketers to follow them there. The rule seems to be for startups “build it, get a mass audience & then intrude and interrupt consumers when they are there”. For pharma marketers agencies are trying tell them to “get into mobile marketing” because “mobile marketing is growing rapidly and is where the eyeballs are”. This is far from reality and far from the truth. Continue reading
There are a lot of advertisements on TV for testosterone treatments and for an aging population they seem to promise vitality. However clinical research indicated that older men who use testosterone gel may see small improvements in their muscle-to-fat ratio but are unlikely to glean any benefits in flexibility, endurance and general ability to get around, new research suggests. Are the DTC ads a marketers view of testosterone treatments or do they really convey the facts about these treatments ? Continue reading