CDC Recommends People 60 and Older Receive the Shingles Vaccine

The Center’s for Disease Control has created guidelines that all citizens 60 years of age or older should receive the shingles vaccine ZOSTAVAX. Insurance companies should now reimburse the cost of the vaccinations.

One million cases of shingles are reported each year with half the cases occurring in people 60 years old or older. 50% of all people reaching the age of 85 will contract shingles. Shingles is caused by chickenpox virus, and its effects range from mild to debilitating.

ZOSTAVAX reduces the likelihood of getting shingles by 50%. The cost of the Merck vaccine is approximately $150.

Breast Cancer Vaccine Shows Promise Against Deadlier Form of Disease

A breast cancer vaccine in Phase II clinical testing significantly reduced reoccurrence and mortality in early stage patients with a high expression of protein HER2-neu. HER2-neu patients represent 25% of all breast cancer patients. The vaccine lowered mortality by 100 percent in women with breast cancer and low or intermediate expression of HER2/neu. Current treatments for HER2-neu expressing patients are limited to chemotherapy and surgery. Regrettably the study design was insufficiently powered to generate a statistically significant result, that is, the results maybe due to chance. Nonetheless, the vaccine is safe and well-tolerated. The vaccine is designed to stimulate the immune system to fight breast cancer. A Phase III trial is planned for 700 to 1000 patients for patients that are not eligible for Herceptin. The sponsor is Apthera. Please check with Clintrials if you would like to participate.