Doctors prescribing anemia drugs for patients with kidney disease and cancer were urged by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Friday to carefully dispense of these drugs due to an increased risk of death and other serious problems, such as blood clots, strokes, and heart attacks in patients with chronic kidney failure and rapid tumor growth in patients with head and neck cancer who receive doses higher than recommended.

The potentially harmful drugs, sold under than brand names Procrit, Epogen, and Aranesp, are genetically engineered versions of a natural protein -- called erythropoietin -- that increases the number of red blood cells. The drugs, with combined 2006 U.S. sales of $10 billion, are commonly used for patients with certain forms of kidney disease and for those receiving chemotherapy for cancer.

The FDA is adding warnings to the drugs' labels that will strongly instruct doctors to use the lowest possible dose needed to help patients avoid blood transfusions.

The FDA will also take a close look at how the drugs are marketed, including claims the drugs can improve the quality of life.

A meeting of FDA officials to further discuss this issue, believed to stem from drug overuse by dialysis centers and oncologists who make more money by using more of the drugs. is scheduled for May 10. Recommendations could lead to additional revisions of the drugs' labels.

The American Journal of Preventive Medicine issued a report that stated American cigarette warning labels are the smallest and have the least detail printed, making them the least effective.

Other countries such as Canada, Australia, and Britain have warnings that are much larger and include more health information appearing on both sides of the packages. Some countries even have very graphic warning labels printed on their cigarettes.

A study was conducted to see if these larger, more informed labels could make a difference. The study included 15,000 adult smokers in the U.S., U.K, Canada, and Australia to test the effectiveness of the warning labels used in those four countries between 2002 - 2005.

The research did suggest that U.S. smokers might benefit from large graphic warnings on the packages. The U.S. smokers were least likely to notice their American labeling. The researchers also concluded that the U.S. warnings are poor compared to those in other countries.

It is suggested that the U.S. labels need a makeover and putting quit-smoking resources on cigarette packages might also help.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced a new warning labeling change regarding bevacizumab (Avastin) a cancer drug currently in use to treat colorectal cancer, that state an increased risk for a brain-bleeding condition and potential nasal septum perforation that can create a hole in the nose for those patients being treated with Avastin. The rare brain-capillary leak can trigger headache, seizure, blindness and other vision and neurological problems.

The FDA has published a letter sent by Genentec to healthcare providers notifying them of the new warnings, available as a pdf document.

In the meantime, Avastin's drug maker Genentech has asked for FDA approval for the drug in the treatment of advanced lung cancer and breast cancer.

Florida is a sunshine state and dermatologists are concerned about the misconceptions people have about sun safety that are putting them at greater risk for skin cancer. For sun worshippers everywhere, here is the truth about some of the myths:

• Skin cancer is not serious. Skin cancer is very serious and skin cancer diagnosis is reaching epidemic levels in this country. More than one million new cases of skin cancer are diagnosed each year.
• A base tan shields you from sun damage during the summer. Any darkening of skin from the sun is due to sun damage to the skin. Dermatologists state there is no such thing as a safe tan.
• Sunscreen is all the protection needed. According to dermatologists, while sunscreen does offer some protection from the sun, UV rays can defeat the strongest lotion and damage skin.
• Dark-skinned people are safe from sun damage and skin cancer risks. Brown skin with lots of melanin protects better against UV rays, but at the same time, dark-skinned people are more prone than others to have moles, and moles that become abnormal are a major risk factor for melanoma.
• Skin cancer is an age-related disease of the middle-aged and elderly. Yes, the chances of being diagnosed with cancer does increase as we age. But dermatologists say the number of young adults and even children with skin cancer appear to be rising faster than it is for adults now. The depletion of ozone in the atmosphere is letting in more UV rays.
• Tanning salons are safer than the sun. Tanning booths can be more damaging to the skin because they use pure ultraviolet light.
  

For information on how to practice sun safety, read skin cancer prevention kits for kids, shading kids from the sun, global warming skin cancer warning, and pediatricians need to educate parents about sun exposure risks.