Hard News by Russell Brown

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Hard News: I hope she does something interesting

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  • Scott Common,

    In regards to the cheap and un-patented potential cancer drug I saw this a fair while ago and though it looks promising there could be a catch...

    http://science.slashdot.org/science/07/01/17/1913210.shtml
    "But there's a catch: the drug isn't patented, and pharmaceutical companies may not be interested in funding further research if the treatment won't make them a profit. In findings that 'astounded' the researchers, the molecule known as DCA was shown to shrink lung, breast and brain tumors in both animal and human tissue experiments."

    How ironic would it be if the cure for cancer was never developed because there was no money in it for the pharacs.

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 62 posts Report Reply

  • andrew,

    is there going to be a virtual super 14 comp this year? if so, i intend on being out of the bottom 10.

    sydney • Since Dec 2006 • 7 posts Report Reply

  • Rogan Polkinghorne,

    How good is a real-time, daily Daily Show? I used to watch this religiously in the U.S, and it's been sorely missed since returning home. I think C4 is going to have a cracker this year, they've made some really strong programming changes. Watch this space!

    A-town • Since Nov 2006 • 105 posts Report Reply

  • andrew llewellyn,

    "gait disturbances"?

    Since Nov 2006 • 2075 posts Report Reply

  • Tony Kennedy,

    is there going to be a virtual super 14 comp this year?

    I am working on the assumption that the answer is YES and that Russell will publish the details when he has time. In the mean time getyour picks in.

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 225 posts Report Reply

  • Mr Black,

    Since Nov 2006 • 11 posts Report Reply

  • Mr Black,

    whoops, onviously didnt follow the original link.

    Since Nov 2006 • 11 posts Report Reply

  • dyan campbell,

    "A US study may have identified a cheap, safe drug that kills most cancers. And it's not under patent."

    Er, This comes from the University of Alberta Russell - you mean a Canadian study.

    auckland • Since Dec 2006 • 595 posts Report Reply

  • Nais,

    Andrew from Sydney, you need to urgently register at www.telecomvirtualrugby.co.nz before 5pm NZ time tonight otherwise you'll be a game down!

    Bluies vs Crusaders at Eden Park at 7.30 - go the Blues!

    Auckland • Since Dec 2006 • 22 posts Report Reply

  • Sharon Topliss,

    Maybe Pharmac should fund its own study - think of the long term cost savings if it proved effective.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 6 posts Report Reply

  • Peter Martin,

    How good is a real-time, daily Daily Show?

    Looks as if it is one ...mebbe two days in arrears.

    Pretty good actually.......the worst part is the previewing of the Colbert Show,which we don't get to see...

    Dunedin • Since Nov 2006 • 187 posts Report Reply

  • Ben Gracewood,

    Not to be cynical, but some Big Pharma will just find another way of doing the same thing that DCA does with a new, patentable drug, so we'll have to wait another 10 years for a cancer cure.

    Either that or Bill Gates will get cancer and we'll have a cure inside of 12 months.

    Orkland • Since Nov 2006 • 168 posts Report Reply

  • Rogan Polkinghorne,

    I forgot to ask earlier Russell...what on earth were you and your friend doing discussing Teresa Gatting's future in your spare time? The holidays can't have been THAT boring, surely?

    A-town • Since Nov 2006 • 105 posts Report Reply

  • Kyle Matthews,

    How good is a real-time, daily Daily Show?

    Looks as if it is one ...mebbe two days in arrears.

    It's behind a calendar day, but only because we're 18 hours ahead of EST here in NZ, so when it plays on USA TV at 11pm EST Monday, it's 5pm Tuesday here. So we get it 5 hours after it's broadcast there.

    So it's about as good as we'll get. So yes, yay for C4.

    Since Nov 2006 • 6243 posts Report Reply

  • Robyn Gallagher,

    I'm off to Kiwi Foo for the next few days

    I'm really excited about this, so I expect that in the following week, there'll be lots of share both here and at the Great Blend!

    Since Nov 2006 • 1946 posts Report Reply

  • Rich of Observationz,

    I've heard it said that the most dangerous people in business are those with charm, charisma and bad decision making abilities. Because they're usually wrong, and use that charm and charisma to covince others to go along with their dumb ideas. CDMA, AAPT and deciding to try and staunch it out with the NZ Government on regulation do spring to mind.

    On the "turning a 10mln company to a 50mln one" point, it does remind me of the jibe that was current in Australia in the 80s:
    "How does a New Zealander start a small business?
    Buys a large one!"

    Back in Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 5550 posts Report Reply

  • izogi,

    If the drug is truly worth future research and has a reasonable chance of paying off, there's a huge incentive for governments around the world to fund it. Something that can be manufactured cheaply and kill most cancers would probably save hundreds of billions of dollars of public and private money on a global scale (although I'm guessing), just through people and governments not having to pay for excessive amounts of healthcare and cancer treatment.

    Wellington • Since Jan 2007 • 1142 posts Report Reply

  • Stephen Judd,

    Oh Rich, those are my thoughts exactly. Gattung: great leader, poor manager. And I thought of that joke too, except if you're a Telecom shareholder, there is more than a little truth in it.

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 3122 posts Report Reply

  • Simon Grigg,

    "How does a New Zealander start a small business?
    Buys a large one!"

    taken to an extreme in the case of Ansett

    Just another klong... • Since Nov 2006 • 3284 posts Report Reply

  • Zippy Gonzales,

    A US study may have identified a cheap, safe drug that kills most cancers. And it's not under patent.

    Perhaps y'all could suggest a few more …

    Well yes I can, Russell. One does readily spring to mind. People who use it have a lower incidence of cancer than non-users. It can, for example, shrink brain cancers and has been shown to be beneficial to liver cancer treatment. It also helps protect against Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, hardening arteries, glaucoma, migraine, epilepsy, schizophrenia, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, alcoholism, chemotherapy appetite loss, and well, lots of other things.

    It has been tested on humans for at least 10,000 years without one recorded fatality. It is a near relative of hops, that goes into beer. New Zealanders are very good at growing it. An export business could print a lot of money for both the private and public coffers, a bit like Tasmania does growing opium.

    Yet even if you are 67 with terminal cancer, it is illegal for your doctor to prescribe it. They can give you morphine but not cannabis. The Minister of Health has the power to grant medicinal cannabis permits. Not one has ever been issued. This, in an age when it's OK for doctors to give Ritalin to kids and Viagra to the impotent.

    Met Turei is putting New Zealand's first ever cannabis bill before the House in May this year. It is asking a simple thing; that doctors have the ability to prescribe cannabis, (here's a medical sheet for it) just like they do already in Canada, Switzerland, Alaska, Arizona, Hawaii, Nevada, New Mexico, Washington State, California and Oregon.

    I know it's rather short notice, but if you'd like to do something to support this, now's the time. The select committee is open to ideas, and a petition in support of medpot is available from me, NORML, or Billy at GreenCross. Tell your story to the select committee, or tell us your story and we'll pass it on.

    We call out for members of the medical profession to write in support. Grass roots is all good, but the aura of experts lends bonus credibility for our lawmakers' consciences. We call on supporters from all political persuasions to lobby MPs to support at least a First Reading. Let's at least look at this.

    Cheers,

    Will

    PS. If Teresa Gattung was feeling especially bitchy, she could always take Annette Presley's place at Slingshot and wipe the floor with her.

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 186 posts Report Reply

  • reece palmer,

    She'd probably give bob a run as a dragon too.

    the terraces • Since Nov 2006 • 298 posts Report Reply

  • Cushla McKinney,

    regarding DCA, ORAC (a doctor and oncology researcher) has an interesting article on his blog Respectful Insolence regarding the hype surrounding this issue. He is cautiously hopeful about the drug's potential, but also points out that several other drugs which showed great promise in cell culture and animal trials are ineffective in humans. Although no fan of big pharma, he also debunks some of the conspiacy-mongering by poointing out that the cost of a clinical trial is only a fraction of the development of a new de-novo treatmenttreatment de-novo, and that it *is* possible to patent a new application of a drug approved for other purposes. There have also been papers published showing DCA induces apoptosis in tissues other than tumours (Dichloroacetate Prevents and Reverses Pulmonary Hypertension by Inducing Pulmonary Artery Smooth Muscle Cell Apoptosis
    M. Sean McMurtry, Sebastien Bonnet, Xichen Wu, Jason R.B. Dyck, Alois Haromy, Kyoko Hashimoto, Evangelos D. Michelakis
    Circ Res. 2004 Oct 15;95(8):830-40) and that it may itself be carcinogenic (Carter JH, Carter HW, Deddens JA, Hurst BM, George MH, DeAngelo AB. A 2-year dose-response study of lesion sequences during hepatocellular carcinogenesis in the male B6C3F(1) mouse given the drinking water chemical dichloroacetic acid. Environ Health Perspect. 2003 Jan;111(1):53-64., Bull RJ, Sasser LB, Lei XC. Interactions in the tumor-promoting activity of carbon tetrachloride, trichloroacetate, and dichloroacetate in the liver of male B6C3F1 mice. Toxicology. 2004 Jul 1;199(2-3):169-8). I hope money *is* forthcoming for a good, lage-scale clinical trial, but until this is done I think it is too early to hail victory over cancer.

    Dunedin • Since Nov 2006 • 14 posts Report Reply

  • Robyn Gallagher,

    While Russell and others are away at Baa Camp/Kiwi Foo Camp, those of us who are back here can keep in touch with goings-on through the magic of blogs.

    These are all the Baa attendees rockin' a keyboard that I've been able to find so far, but I'm sure there are more, and will be more written when it's all over.

    Laura Thomson
    http://laurat.blogs.com/

    Rachel Cunliffe
    http://www.cre8d-design.com/blog/

    Mark Derricutt
    http://www.talios.com/
    And photos! http://flickr.com/photos/talios/tags/baacamp

    Juha Saarinen
    http://www.geekzone.co.nz/juha/

    Rod Drury
    http://www.drury.net.nz/

    Since Nov 2006 • 1946 posts Report Reply

  • andrew,

    Andrew from Sydney, you need to urgently register at www.telecomvirtualrugby.co.nz before 5pm NZ time tonight otherwise you'll be a game down!

    Bluies vs Crusaders at Eden Park at 7.30 - go the Blues!

    yeah, 16 points for me. i can never pick the south african games.

    sydney • Since Dec 2006 • 7 posts Report Reply

  • Adrian Wills,

    In telecom related issues (aren't they all) found this on Stuff this morning....
    http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3949271a28,00.html

    a sensible move for them to let this go public after this story ran on friday....
    http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/3947635a28.html

    given that Telecom's most recent "Unleashing" of their services was decidely AVERAGE, I can't seem to get too excited about ADSL2 just yet. I play a bit of Xbox 360 online so I really notice up/download speeds and their changes and I'm pretty sure it's worse since the unleash. I WOULD want to try out ADSL2 when it's released if I was convinced it'd be faster - but at this stage, I'm just not. Sort out your ADSL1 before you go leaping ahead again and leaving the last technology redundant.

    Parnell, Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 45 posts Report Reply

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