This article on the placebo effect first appeared in Cosmos Weekly on 1 October 2021. For more stories like this, subscribe to Cosmos Weekly. The website for Zeebo Relief tablets reads like any other suspiciously vague alternative health treatment. “Help you tap into the power of your mind and body,” the site enthuses. The pills have …Continue readingWhat’s the deal with placebo pills? | Cosmos Weekly Taster
Tag:clinical trials
Placebo effect
The website for Zeebo Relief tablets reads like any other suspiciously vague alternative health treatment. “Help you tap into the power of your mind and body,” the site enthuses. The pills have been “used in published clinical trials”(it’s always “used” with these things, not “shown to be effective”) for “chronic pain, stress, and performance”. They …Continue readingPlacebo effect
Could a nasal spray protect you from COVID-19?
Researchers from the University of Melbourne have observed that spraying heparin on epithelial cells stops SARS-CoV-2 to infect them, at least in vitro (that is, in a petri dish). If the heparin spray had the same effect in humans, a simple, cheap nasal spray could help prevent COVID-19 infection. The research team is setting up …Continue readingCould a nasal spray protect you from COVID-19?
Stopwatches set for modern clinical trials
世界大流行才熟悉这些the concept of a clinical trial, but even COVID couldn’t make them sexy. Fundamental to getting a drug or device to market, the process is expensive, complicated, drawn out, and prone to fail. But well before COVID-19 was a nightly news feature, researchers around the world …Continue readingStopwatches set for modern clinical trials
The fascinating history of clinical trials
Clinical trials are under way around the world, including in Australia, testing COVID-19 vaccines and treatments. These clinical trials largely fall into two groups. With observational studies, researchers follow a group of people to see what happens to them. With experimental studies, people are assigned to treatments, then followed. These study designs have come about …Continue readingThe fascinating history of clinical trials
Blood test could see some skip chemo
Trials in Australia and the US find liquid biopsies can predict cancer relapse risk. Samantha Page reports.
问题机汇er ethics of TB trial involving 2800 babies
Major medical journal slams Oxford University team for allegedly burying unfavourable animal test results ahead of a human clinical trial. Andrew Masterson reports.
Regulators need to protect stem cell promise
Disasters arising from an untested stem cell procedures highlight the need for better regulation and oversight, writeMegan MunsieandClaire Tanner.
Stem cell treatment blinds three people
Three elderly women have been blinded after they agreed to undergo a stem cell treatment listed on a US government website.Andrew Mastersonreports.
Benefits of HIV vaccine limited by resistance
As a major South African HIV vaccination trial gets underway a new study suggests its benefits could be undercut by vaccine-resistant strains.Paul Bieglerreports.
Drug scrubs toxic clumps from Alzheimer’s brains
Aducanumabbreaks down the harmful protein plaques that are thought to cause the neurodegenerative disease, but there’s still a long way to go before it’s found on the pharmacist’s shelf. Belinda Smith reports.
Bad pharma and the canary in the coalmine
Activist doctor Ben Goldacreis determined to reform how clinical trials are conducted and reported. He explained his plan toAndrew Masterson.