Brain changes that lead to poor focus in golden years begin in mid-life:study

TORONTO (CP) - Researchers have identified changes in brain function that begin to creep in during middle age - and may explain why many older people have difficulty concentrating and are easily distracted....More

Online pharmacists hope to make fresh start with new Tory government

WINNIPEG (CP) - After spending more than a year in fear of a Liberal crackdown on their industry, online pharmacists are welcoming the incoming federal Conservative government as a chance to make a fresh start....More

Canadian company helping to get 200 bikes to African aid workers to fight HIV

TORONTO (CP) - A Canadian bicycle company is helping to get 200 bikes to African aid workers in a bid to prevent the spread of HIV and AIDS....More

Health Canada going after medical pot users for almost $170,000 in bad debts

OTTAWA (CP) - Like any dope dealer, Health Canada has its share of marijuana customers who just don't pay their bills. But unlike street pushers, the department avoids tire irons and switchblades to recover its bad debts in favour of stern letters and collection agencies....More

New PM's health raises questions about how much Canadians need to know

OTTAWA (CP) - Canadians traditionally treat the health of its leaders as a private matter, but Stephen Harper's enigmatic late-night visit to a hospital has some wondering if the public interest should now override confidentiality. Americans know that George W. Bush weighed 191....More

First partial face transplant patient: 'I now have a face like everyone else'

AMIENS, France (AP) - The woman who received the world's first partial face transplant appeared for the first time Monday before the media in northern France, saying: "I now have a face like everyone else....More

A rose by any other name smells as sweet - especially when sitting up: study

TORONTO (CP) - A surprising discovery about how humans perceive odours has researchers putting a new twist on an old adage: if you're going to stop and smell the roses, don't do it lying down....More

Killer likely to get released sooner from jail than mental institution: lawyer

TORONTO (CP) - The unusual predicament of Trinh Quach, who is facing a life sentence for murder rather than the mental-health treatment his lawyer says he needs, has cast a spotlight on the plight of the mentally ill in Canada's criminal justice system....More

Medical pot advocates angry over arrest of AIDS patient

OTTAWA (CP) - Medical marijuana advocates are angry over the treatment of a Regina AIDS patient who was arrested after his pot licence expired....More

Chicago patients told they may have gotten tissue snatched from NY cadavers

CHICAGO (AP) - At least five Chicago-area hospitals are advising dozens of people who received tissue transplants to undergo precautionary testing after learning some of the tissue may have been fraudulently obtained from cadavers in New York....More

Hong Kong tests 3 for avian flu, closes aviaries after deaths of 2 birds

HONG KONG (AP) - Three people in Hong Kong who came into contact with a avian-flu infected chicken smuggled in from mainland China tested negative for the virus but remained isolated at a hospital Thursday....More

Combining antipsychotic drugs has no benefit for severe schizophrenia: study

TORONTO (CP) - Prescribing more than one antipsychotic drug in an effort to help hard-to-treat schizophrenia appears to have no benefit and should be dropped from psychiatric practice, a Canadian-led international study concludes....More

Tobacco firm Rothmans Inc.'s Q3 profit dips to $23.3M from $25.4M

TORONTO (CP) - Tobacco company Rothmans Inc. (TSX:ROC) says its third-quarter profit dipped to $23.3 million from a year-earlier $25.4 million on lower sales of higher-priced cigarettes. Earnings for the quarter ended Dec....More

Avian flu now endemic in Hong Kong, according to health secretary

HONG KONG (AP) - Bird flu has become endemic in Hong Kong after its recent discovery in both local wild birds and chicken, the territory's health secretary said Friday....More

Conventional tests miss heart disease in millions of women, researchers say

WASHINGTON (AP) - Conventional tests won't uncover heart disease in as many as three million U.S. women - because instead of the usual bulky clogs in main arteries, these women have a hard-to-spot buildup in smaller blood vessels, researchers said Tuesday....More

Polio transmission halted in Egypt and Niger, only 4 endemic nations remain

TORONTO (CP) - The marathon effort to eradicate polio from the face of the globe chalked up a significant victory Wednesday with the announcement that transmission of the virus has been halted in Niger and Egypt....More

Lorus shares up 18% on Virulizin trial results; firm scouting research partner

TORONTO (CP) - Lorus Therapeutics Inc. (TSX:LOR) is in talks with many potential partners that could help fund more clinical trials of its Virulizin treatment for pancreatic cancer, its chief executive said Wednesday....More

Spotty access to new cancer drugs violates principles of medicare: report

TORONTO (CP) - A group that advocates for better cancer care in Canada says spotty access across the country to new, expensive cancer drugs violates the founding principles of the Canada Health Act....More

Haemacure says it's working on deficiencies noted in FDA warning letter

MONTREAL (CP) - Haemacure Corp. (TSX:HAE) says it's working to correct "document deficiencies" for two medical devices that prompted a warning letter from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration....More

B.C. top province with best health-care system, Manitoba ranks last: study

VANCOUVER (CP) - British Columbia has come out on top in an assessment of provincial health-care systems by the Conference Board of Canada that placed Manitoba in last place. The report by the Ottawa-based non-profit think tank was released Wednesday, the same day B.C....More

Hong Kong tests 3 for avian flu, closes aviaries after deaths of 2 birds

HONG KONG (AP) - Three people in Hong Kong who came into contact with a avian-flu infected chicken smuggled in from mainland China tested negative for the virus but remained isolated at a hospital Thursday....More

FDA approves drug to treat patients with chronic constipation

WASHINGTON (AP) - A drug to treat adult chronic constipation with no known cause won federal approval in the United States on Tuesday....More

Merck fourth-quarter earnings rise two per cent; Wyeth swings to a profit

NEW YORK (AP) - Merck & Co. said Tuesday its profit edged up two per cent in the fourth quarter as drug sales levelled off and it set aside an additional $295 million US for legal defence costs related to its withdrawn painkiller Vioxx....More

Alberta cabinet votes on health reforms that may violate Canada Health Act

EDMONTON (CP) - Alberta appears to be heading for a showdown over health care with Stephen Harper's new government as the province prepares to allow queue jumping by patients willing to pay cash for treatments....More

Don't overlook vitamin D for bone health

TORONTO (MRI) - Your best efforts to bone up on calcium may not be enough to prevent osteoporosis if you aren't getting enough vitamin D, new research shows....More

Merck's Genpharm to distribute Rockwell Medical dialysis products in Canada

TORONTO (CP) - Genpharm Inc., a unit of German-based Merck KGaA, has signed an agreement to distribute dialysis products made by Rockwell Medical Technologies Inc. (Nasdaq: RMTI) of Wixom, Mich....More

Medisys buys imaging clinics in St. Catharines, Montreal; total revenue $3.2M

MONTREAL (CP) - Medisys Health Group Income Fund (TSX: MHG.UN) said Tuesday it is purchasing medical imaging clinics in St. Catharines, Ont., and Montreal....More

Ginseng may prevent colds, ease symptoms

TORONTO (MRI) - Here's some news that's nothing to sneeze at: A team of Edmonton researchers have found that taking ginseng supplements can reduce your risk of contracting the common cold and reduce the severity and length of a cold if you do get one....More

Calgary football death report urges student athletes to be sure helmets fit

CALGARY (CP) - A fatality inquiry that followed a deadly head-to-dead collision in football practice has recommended high school athletes be aware of the risks of playing with an ill-fitting helmet....More

B.C. scientist's invention to boost world's supply of blood-clotting cells

VANCOUVER (CP) - A Vancouver scientist has invented a device to boost the world's supply of blood platelets, the life-saving cells that control bleeding....More