The New England journal of medicine
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Denosumab in postmenopausal women with low bone mineral density.
Receptor activator of nuclear factor-kappaB ligand (RANKL) is essential for osteoclast differentiation, activation, and survival. The fully human monoclonal antibody denosumab (formerly known as AMG 162) binds RANKL with high affinity and specificity and inhibits RANKL action. ⋯ In postmenopausal women with low bone mass, denosumab increased bone mineral density and decreased bone resorption. These preliminary data suggest that denosumab might be an effective treatment for osteoporosis. (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00043186.).
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Adjuvant docetaxel or vinorelbine with or without trastuzumab for breast cancer.
We compared docetaxel with vinorelbine for the adjuvant treatment of early breast cancer. Women with tumors that overexpressed HER2/neu were also assigned to receive concomitant treatment with trastuzumab or no such treatment. ⋯ Adjuvant treatment with docetaxel, as compared with vinorelbine, improves recurrence-free survival in women with early breast cancer. A short course of trastuzumab administered concomitantly with docetaxel or vinorelbine is effective in women with breast cancer who have an amplified HER2/neu gene. (International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial number, ISRCTN76560285.).
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Calcium plus vitamin D supplementation and the risk of fractures.
The efficacy of calcium with vitamin D supplementation for preventing hip and other fractures in healthy postmenopausal women remains equivocal. ⋯ Among healthy postmenopausal women, calcium with vitamin D supplementation resulted in a small but significant improvement in hip bone density, did not significantly reduce hip fracture, and increased the risk of kidney stones. (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00000611.).
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The illness of a spouse can affect the health of a caregiving partner. We examined the association between the hospitalization of a spouse and a partner's risk of death among elderly people. ⋯ Among elderly people hospitalization of a spouse is associated with an increased risk of death, and the effect of the illness of a spouse varies among diagnoses. Such interpersonal health effects have clinical and policy implications for the care of patients and their families.