Trending News Today: AHA Warns of Serious Heart Disease Risks From Breast Cancer Chemotherapy

A recently proposed Louisiana law that aims to educate physicians about drug costs was met with significant scrutiny by pharmaceutical lobbyists, according to Kaiser Health News. The bill would require sales reps to disclose medication prices to physicians. Kaiser reported that 10 lobbyists met with the sponsoring legislator to fight the bill, which was unprecedented. As drug prices continue to climb, the implementation of cost-controlling laws are increasingly falling to the states, according to the article.

The resignation of CDC Director Brenda Fitzgerald, MD, comes at a time when public health officials are scrambling to fight the influenza outbreak, according to The Hill. The CDC has been in overdrive this year as the death toll from the flu reaches an all-time high. Although Dr Fitzgerald’s abrupt resignation was inopportune, public health experts say the CDC staff will be able to competently run the agency, according to the article.

The American Heart Association (AHA) recently warned that breast cancer survivors may be at a higher risk of developing heart failure and other heart-related conditions, STAT reported. The AHA statement also advised oncologists that the cardiovascular risks of certain classes of chemotherapies outweigh the benefits for women with cancer. Previous research has shown that chemotherapy weakens the heart, but the AHA is concerned that the link to cancer drugs may be missed if cardiovascular symptoms are experienced years after treatment, according to the article.