We've been saying it for nearly a decade now: Vaccinating infants and schoolchildren against the flu will result in major health benefits. Now the results of a new study led by Dr. John Brownstein of Children's Hospital Boston and published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal provide further evidence that herd immunity (protecting non-immunized populations by increasing overall rates of vaccination) is very effective.

In a new study comparing the difference in the age at breast cancer diagnosis between older and younger generations of women with the BRCA1 and BRCA2 breast cancer gene mutations, researchers from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center found that breast cancer is diagnosed about eight years earlier in the younger women.

The case for soy as a cure-all continues to be called into question. In August, we looked at a study that found no link between soy supplements and decreased menopausal symptoms. Now, a study published in Stroke has found that taking soy supplements did nothing to decrease hardening of the arteries in otherwise healthy post-menopausal women.

Does the proverbial apple a day really prevent stroke, as a Dutch study now in the journal Stroke suggests? Or is it just that the kind of people who eat more fruits and vegetables are more likely to lead healthier lifestyles in general? Who knows?

Nausea and vomiting, possibly the most unpleasant side effects of chemotherapy, have been treated for the past twenty years with a drug called ondansetron (Zofran). Now, though, the FDA has issued a warning that the drug may lead to dangerous heart arrythmias called prolonged QT intervals a disconcerting prospect for the cancer patients who rely on the drug to quell their chemo-induced nausea. As ACSH s Dr. Josh Bloom notes, Zofran revolutionized the field of chemotherapy.

And while Dr.

As we reported in yesterday's Dispatch, TV's Dr. Oz has been under fire for his season-opening publicity stunt, in which he claimed that the arsenic levels found in apple juice may be cause for concern. Almost immediately, however, the FDA came out against Dr.

Unfortunately, not all the news is good news: A recently proposed measure in the Russian Federation, much to our (and all others devoted to reducing the toll of smoking) chagrin, aims to ban the manufacture, sale, and importation of smokeless tobacco products.

As the nation works to curb smoking, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) presented some statistics on lung cancer rates that serve as inspiration for all who work in the trenches of public health: National lung cancer rates have declined, particularly among women, who witnessed a 2 percent decrease between 2006 and 2008. That decline in lung cancer incidence was even greater in the West, which experienced a 4 percent decline.

More good news on the anti-smoking front strikes closer to home, as the latest statistics reveal that adult smoking rates in New York fell to a record low of just 14 percent in 2010, compared to 22 percent in 2002. The declining trend was also present among high school students, since only 7 percent were smokers last year as opposed to 18 percent in 2001.