Test Driving Shiseido's New Interactive Foundation Finder

Summer! It's almost here, so I'm officially on the hunt for a new foundation formula and shade that suits my skin best in warmer weather. But...finding a new foundation is like the worst process ever. Whenever I go to a counter they basically upsell me until I'm buying diamond-infused, caviar-soaked stuff that I use once and toss because I look yellow or get a funky rash or something like that. You feel me, ladies?

So, I stick to this one formula from this one brand in one of two different shades (depending on the season and just how pasty I am), which gets super boring. So, when my editor Rachel introduced me to Shiseido's new Interactive Foundation Finder I had two thoughts: "Ooooh, fun technology!" and "Rachel, please, there's no way that's gonna find me an accurate formula."

But, when I actually gave it a try, the site proved me wrong. (Props to Rachel on this one.)

After logging on, I answer a series of questions. First up? The level of coverage I desired (medium), then it asked which benefits I'd like to reap from my formula, which are basically a toss-up between hydration and sun protection. Finally, you're asked to choose a woman's face that matches your own skin tone as close as possible, along with a few creams below that correspond to the woman whom is closest to your own skintone. 

And, then, ta-da! You find out the best formula for your face, plus essential application tips. My result was Advanced Hydro-Liquid Compact in O20 Natural Light Ochre, which was only $30 -- nearly half the price of my usual formula.

When I got a hold of the actual product a couple days later, I was amazed! This was totally not a formula I'd pick up in real life: I stay away from things that aren't super rich and creamy and the shade was a touch darker that I thought would work for me.

But, when I took seven seconds I swiped it all over my face -- minus the mirror, BTW -- I caught a quick glance and was super impressed at how naturally flawless my skin looked.

I did need an extra hit of moisture later in the day, but the coverage was still going strong 14 hours later.

SO impressed. Thanks, Rach!

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Baby Aspirin Recalled After Acetaminophen Discovery

More than 16,000 bottles of baby aspirin are being recalled by Advance Pharmaceutical Inc. after one of the bottles was found to be filled with acetaminophen pills.

The recall covers 120-pill bottles labeled to contain 81-milligram aspirin pills. The bottle discovered by a CVS pharmacist contained 500-mg acetaminophen pills, ABC News reported.

No injuries have been reported, according to Advance Pharmaceutical spokesman Abu Amanatullah.

Doctors said that unknowningly taking acetaminophen instead of baby aspirin could lead to an overdose that results in liver failure, the need for a liver transplant or death, ABC News reported.

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Hysterectomy May Not Raise Heart Risks After All: Study

Finding might reassure women considering the procedure, researcher says

By Steven Reinberg

HealthDay Reporter

TUESDAY, May 14 (HealthDay News) -- Women who have a hysterectomy are not in danger of increasing their risk of cardiovascular disease later in life, a new study says.

Although earlier research had found higher chances of cardiovascular disease in the years following a hysterectomy, different criteria were used in this latest study, the researchers noted.

"If women are contemplating hysterectomy, they don't need to be worried about increased cardiovascular risk," said study author Karen Matthews, a professor of epidemiology and psychology at the University of Pittsburgh.

A hysterectomy is a surgical procedure that removes the uterus; sometimes the ovaries are also removed, to lower the risk of cancer.

Previous studies found an increased risk for conditions such as coronary heart disease, stroke and heart failure in women who underwent a hysterectomy.

Unlike other studies, however, the new research included only women who had a hysterectomy in midlife and who didn't have their ovaries removed due to cancer, Matthews explained.

"It is possible that women who have a hysterectomy when they are young have an increase in cardiovascular risk," she noted.

The report was published May 14 in the online edition of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

To see if a hysterectomy actually increased a women's risk for cardiovascular disease, Matthews' team collected data on more than 3,300 premenopausal women who took part in a national study on women's health.

They compared cardiovascular risk factors before and after the women had elective hysterectomy with or without ovary removal with women who had a natural menopause.

These risk factors included cholesterol, blood pressure, inflammation, blood sugar and insulin resistance, Matthews said.

Matthews' group found there were changes in cardiovascular risk factors after a hysterectomy, compared to risk factor changes after natural menopause.

These changes, however, were not associated with an increase in the risk of cardiovascular disease. Women who had a hysterectomy with removal of ovaries did tend to gain weight, the researchers found.

These effects were similar in all ethnic groups.

It's not known why these findings differ from other studies. The researchers speculated that differences in their study -- such as excluding women who had a hysterectomy because of cancer and the older age of the women -- may have played a role.

The women in this study were middle-aged and it is possible that women who have a hysterectomy earlier may have more cardiovascular risk, they explained.

One expert agreed that the evidence on a possible association between a hysterectomy and an increased chance of heart trouble has been mixed.

"Prior studies have suggested that there may be increases in cardiovascular risk after women undergo hysterectomy, particularly if accompanied by removal of the ovaries," said Dr. Gregg Fonarow, a professor of cardiology at the University of California, Los Angeles.

However, other studies have not found elevated risk for cardiovascular events with hysterectomy with or without the removal of the ovaries, he added.

"These findings suggest that hysterectomy with or without removing the ovaries does not appear to play a major role in worsening cardiovascular risk factors in women compared to natural menopause," said Fonarow.

"Nevertheless, as cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death in women, women should closely assess, monitor and improve their cardiovascular health," he said.

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Health Tip: Keep Nails Trim and Clean

(HealthDay News) -- Nails collect dirt and may spread some infections, so keeping them neat and clean is important.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention mentions these suggestions for proper nail hygiene:

Trim nails frequently.Use soap and water and a nail brush to scrub under the nails when you wash your hands.Before each use, clean any tools you use to groom your nails; sterilize nail tools when at a public nail salon.Don't bite or chew your nails.Use a clean and sanitized nail clipper to cut a hangnail; never bite or rip it off.

-- Diana Kohnle
Copyright © 2013 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

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Hooray!!

I just want to share that this morning (at the gym) I had my blood pressure measured.  And for the very first time this year, it is 120/71!  Yay- I'm out of the red.  This is important to me because we have a history of heart disease in our family (my grandfather, uncle and father died of heart failure.)  Also, I lost 2,2 kgs this week (but that's secondary to the wonderful health benefits.)

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Simponi Approved for Ulcerative Colitis

Blocks process that contributes to abnormal inflammation

By Scott Roberts

HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, May 15 (HealthDay News) -- Simponi (golimumab) injection has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat adults with moderate-to-severe ulcerative colitis.

The drug is designed to block tumor necrosis factor, which has a key role in causing abnormal inflammation and immune system responses, the FDA said Wednesday in a news release.

The drug has already been approved to treat psoriatic arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis, the agency said.

Ulcerative colitis, affecting some 620,000 Americans, causes chronic inflammation and ulcers in the inner lining of the large intestine. Common symptoms include abdominal discomfort, gastrointestinal bleeding and diarrhea.

Simponi was clinically evaluated in two studies involving more than 800 people. The most common side effects reported were upper respiratory infection and redness at the injection site. People treated with the drug are at greater-than-average risk of contracting several types of infection, lymphoma, heart failure, nervous system disorders and allergic reactions, the FDA said.

The drug is marketed by Janssen Biotech Inc., based in Horsham, Pa.

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Hunger pangs every hour

I eat ~2200-2500 calories a day and I get hunger pangs every hour. My stats are 5'2", 106 pounds. It gets annoying. I get hungry even after a full meal and even when I eat protein. Anyone else have any insight into why and how to deal with it? 

PS: I don't have any medical conditions like an ED, etc

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Scientists Use Cloning Technique to Produce Human Stem Cells

WEDNESDAY, May 15 (HealthDay News) -- Scientists report they've used a cloning technique to reprogram an ordinary human skin cell to become an embryonic stem cell. In turn, the new stem cell has the potential to transform into any type of cell in the body.

Besides marking a breakthrough in stem cell technology, which has the potential to one day cure a myriad of illnesses, the achievement has some concerned that scientists are moving a step closer to human cloning.

That's because the new stem cell is genetically identical to cells from the person from whom it was derived. Stem cells can differentiate into cells for all of the tissue types that the body needs, such as nerves, muscle and bone.

While Dolly the Sheep was cloned in 1996, and other species have been cloned since, researchers have been unable to clone a primate such as a monkey, chimpanzee or human. However, the technological advances described in the new study are such that "it's a matter of time before they produce a cloned monkey," Jose Cibelli, a cloning expert at Michigan State University who wasn't involved in the study, told the Wall Street Journal.

The new research was published online May 15 in the journal Cell, and was led by Shoukhrat Mitalipov, a senior scientist at the Oregon National Primate Research Center, in partnership with researchers at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU).

The research involved a version of what's known as somatic cell nuclear transfer, where the cell's nucleus -- which contains all a person's genetic information -- is transferred into an egg cell that has had all of its DNA removed. Once the new nucleus is in place, the unfertilized egg cell proceeds to develop and produce stem cells, according to an OHSU news release.

"Stem cells derived through this technique demonstrated their ability to convert just like normal embryonic stem cells, into several different cell types, including nerve cells, liver cells and heart cells," Mitalipov said in the news release. "While there is much work to be done in developing safe and effective stem cell treatments, we believe this is a significant step forward in developing the cells that could be used in regenerative medicine."

Regenerative medicine is the term used to describe therapies where stem cells are used to regenerate tissues lost to illness or injury.

One key point in the new research: Creation of the new, functioning embryonic stem cell did not involve the use of fertilized embryos, the focus of heated debate over the past decade.

Mitalipov's team says the road to success was not easy, because human egg cells seem to be more fragile than those from other species. That meant that methods had to be tested in monkeys first, in a trial-and-error fashion, before moving to human eggs.

The researchers downplayed the notion that this research might somehow lead to human cloning.

"While the method might be considered a technique for cloning stem cells, commonly called therapeutic cloning, the same method would not likely be successful in producing human clones otherwise known as reproductive cloning," OHSU said in a university press release. Attempts over many years to create monkey clones have failed, the university noted, and human cells are even more fragile and less amenable to cloning.

"Our research is directed toward generating stem cells for use in future treatments to combat disease," Mitalipov added. "While nuclear transfer breakthroughs often lead to a public discussion about the ethics of human cloning, this is not our focus, nor do we believe our findings might be used by others to advance the possibility of human reproductive cloning."

Speaking to the Wall Street Journal, Cibelli said he believes the new achievement might encourage someone to attempt human cloning, "though that remains a distant and disturbing prospect."

-- E.J. Mundell
Copyright © 2013 HealthDay. All rights reserved. SOURCES: Oregon Health & Sciences University, news release, May 15, 2013; Wall Street Journal

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Cellphone Calls During Blood Pressure Readings May Skew Results

By Alan Mozes
HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, May 15 (HealthDay News) -- New Italian research offers some cautionary advice for patients with high blood pressure: The next time you take a blood pressure reading, turn off your cellphone.

The reason: Answering a cellphone call during a reading may cause a temporary but significant spike in blood pressure, rendering the results inaccurate and misleading.

"The cellular phone has burst into our everyday life, and is often an indispensable communication tool for business and social relations," said study author Dr. Giuseppe Crippa, head of the hypertension unit at Guglielmo da Saliceto Hospital in Piacenza, Italy. "[Now] we know that the radio-frequency field generated by mobile phones does not affect blood pressure, and should not increase blood pressure in subjects suffering from hypertension.

"But what is the effect of the noise generated by the phone ringing and of the intrusion into our life of an unscheduled phone conversation?" Crippa asked. "In our study, we have shown that blood pressure, particularly systolic blood pressure, increases quickly and significantly in this situation."

The study authors said one in three Americans (and 1 billion people worldwide) currently struggles with high blood pressure.

Those grappling with keeping their high blood pressure under control often are instructed to either come in for routine readings taken by a health care professional, or to use one of many at-home monitoring kits that give patients the option of taking their own readings on a regular basis.

To explore the question of how cellphones might affect such readings, the authors focused on 49 Italian women with an average age of 53, all of whom were taking medication to control high blood pressure.

After discussing their general cellphone usage habits, all underwent two sets of multiple blood pressure readings, each set registering six readings at one-minute intervals. All the readings took place in a physician's office, where patients were left alone (in what the researchers described as a "comfortable" setting) after the first reading.

During one of the two readings, an investigator disabled caller ID and anonymously called each patient's cellphone three times, with a patient's response to at least one of the calls being deemed sufficient for testing purposes.

The result: By comparing readings taken with and without incoming calls, the team found that patients' systolic numbers (the top figure in a blood pressure reading, indicating blood pressure as the heart contracts) went up "significantly" whenever the patients answered their phones.

Patients who had indicated relatively heavy routine cellphone usage (30 or more calls per day), however, experienced a less steep rise in their systolic numbers during incoming calls. Since heavy users tended to be younger, the team theorized that a greater cellphone comfort level among younger patients may protect them from the cellphone dynamic.

Incoming calls had no impact on patients' diastolic numbers (the bottom figure in a reading, indicating blood pressure while the heart is at rest), nor did patients' overall heart rates shift when the cellphone rang.

The team concluded that patients should be advised to turn off their cellphones whenever and wherever they have a blood pressure reading, to ensure accuracy.

"It is noteworthy that the great majority of the patients recruited for this survey were not used to turning off the mobile phone, even during a medical examination, and easily answered the calls even when an automated device was measuring blood pressure," Crippa said.

"Therefore, we believe that it is important to advise patients that the unnecessary and exaggerated use of cellphones can increase, at least temporarily, their blood pressure," he said.

Dr. Gary Schwartz, a professor of medicine at the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine in Rochester, Minn., said the issue is not the disturbance of a cellphone call, but rather any disturbance in general.

"I wouldn't look at this study and say cellphones are bad for you," Schwartz said. "But American Heart Association standards call for the need to be quiet, whether you're getting your blood pressure measured at a doctor's office or at home.

"Just engaging in conversation, whether or not it's on the phone, can raise the numbers and give an inaccurate reading," he said. "It's the same principle behind why we don't measure a person's blood pressure while they're playing tennis. What we want is for patients to be quiet and at rest."

Crippa and his colleagues are scheduled to present their findings Wednesday at the American Society of Hypertension annual meeting in San Francisco. Research presented at medical meetings should be viewed as preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.

Copyright © 2013 HealthDay. All rights reserved. SOURCES: Giuseppe Crippa, M.D., head, hypertension unit, Guglielmo da Saliceto Hospital, Piacenza, Italy; Gary Schwartz, M.D., professor, medicine, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, Rochester, Minn.; May 15, 2013, presentation, American Society of Hypertension annual meeting, San Francisco

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Migraine Doctors in Short Supply Across U.S.

Only 416 specialists available nationwide, study found

By Robert Preidt

HealthDay Reporter

FRIDAY, June 28 (HealthDay News) -- There are too few migraine headache specialists in the United States, a new study finds.

Migraines affect about 36 million Americans over age 12 (more than 11 percent of the population). That's more than the number affected by asthma and diabetes combined. However, only 416 specialists nationwide are certified by the United Council for Neurologic Subspecialties to diagnose and treat migraine, according to researchers.

States with the highest number of migraine specialists include New York (56), California and Ohio (29 each), Texas (25), Florida (24) and Pennsylvania (23). Six states have no migraine specialists, according to the study presented this week at the International Headache Congress meeting in Boston.

States with the worst specialist-to-patient ratios include Oregon, Mississippi, Arkansas and Kansas. The District of Columbia has the best ratio, followed by New Hampshire, New York and Nebraska.

"This is a troubling picture," study leader Dr. Noah Rosen, of the Pain and Headache Center of the North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System, said in a congress news release. "Migraine is a highly disabling disorder -- the seventh most disabling in the world and the fourth most disabling among women. It's clear that many more specialists need to be trained and certified to meet the need."

Because this study was presented at a medical meeting, the data and conclusions should be viewed as preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.

Migraine costs the United States more than $29 billion a year in direct medical expenses such as doctor visits and medications, and indirect expenses such as missed work and lost productivity, the release noted.

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3 Tricks to Make Your Bikini Wax Less Painful

TMI, I know, but I got my first Brazillian Bikini Wax last night for the first time in like...six months? So, I'm going to Mexico on Friday (Hell yes for vacation, amirite?!?!) and realized I needed to get my self together before I slip into a bikini. (Don't worry, my spray tan is scheduled for tomorrow.) And, since I dread Brazillians (and the ensuing pain, although my editor swears she finds them relaxing, not sure what's wrong with her), I made sure to pull out all the tips I knew to make it less painful. And you know what? They totally work.

First of all, though, make sure you visit a salon that uses hard wax (which is much gentler than traditional, soft wax) and trim any hair to a half inch long. Here are three more major tips to make that rip (or rips, rather) much less painful.

Skip your morning latte (or anything else that makes you puffy). Caffeine, salt, booze and anything that leaves you feeling even the tiniest bit bloated is a major no-no, as these agents make all of your skin extraordinarily sensitive. I didn't believe this one till I tried it (telling me to skip coffee is like asking me not to breath) but when I did, I started booking my bikini waxes early AM so I wouldn't crave the caffeine.Hydrate with diaper cream. Yep. That's straight from my favorite waxer's mouth, BTW. The day or two before you go, make sure the area you are getting waxed is super moisturized since hydrated skin can stand up to the trauma of waxing better. Why diaper cream? It's made for sensitive lil' butts and is super, super hydrating. (Do I need to explain why baby's butts and bikini waxes correlated here?) I am a huge fan of Orico Little Love Protecting Baby Skin Balm (I used it on my face, too), since it's got built-in skin calmers like shea butter and castor oil; plus it smells like Neroli, not baby powder.Get on the right cycle. Plan your bikini waxes for right after your period ends (or as close to as possible), since your pain threshold is higher just after that time of the month and gets lower the closer you get to your period. Sounds like more bother than it's worth, but trust, girls, it makes a major difference.

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Image Credit: Kyle Erickssen/WWD

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Suggestions of food I can buy w/ 35 dollars?

There's barely anything healthy in the house and so my mom said she'll give me 35 dollars to buy groceries until the next time she goes shopping for the whole house.

Now, Idk how I'm going to make this work... we already have wheat bread, brown rice, and some broccoli.

So what should/can I buy w/ that?

I plan on getting fruit either apples or green grapes (since that's the only fruit I like) possibly some other vegetables, some beans, and soups.

Any suggestions?

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FDA: Lower Ambien's Dose to Prevent Drowsy Driving

By Amanda Gardner
HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, May 15 (HealthDay News) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved new, lower-dose labeling for the popular sleep drug Ambien (zolpidem) in an effort to cut down on daytime drowsiness that could be a hazard while performing certain tasks such as driving.

The move follows the FDA's request to manufacturers in January that drugs containing zolpidem carry instructions that lower the recommended dose and provide more safety information to patients.

"FDA has approved these changes because of the known risk of next-morning impairment with these drugs," the agency said in a statement released Tuesday on its website.

Sleep medications containing zolpidem include Ambien, Ambien CR, Edluar and Zolpimist, as well as generic versions of Ambien and Ambien CR.

"The purpose of the lowering is to help decrease the risk of next-morning impairment of activities that require alertness," Dr. Ellis Unger, director of the Office of Drug Evaluation I at the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, said at the time of the agency's request to manufacturers. "We're particularly concerned about driving. A large fraction of the population drives and driving is an inherently dangerous activity."

Lowering the nighttime dose means there will be less residual drug in the blood by the time the person wakes up. Extended-release forms of the drugs tend to stay in the body longer, the FDA said.

The FDA has told manufacturers that recommended doses for women should be cut in half, from 10 milligrams to 5 milligrams for immediate-release products (Ambien, Edluar and Zolpimist) and from 12.5 mg to 6.25 mg for extended-release products (Ambien CR).

For men, the agency has asked manufacturers to change the labeling to recommend that doctors and other health-care professionals consider prescribing lower doses, meaning 5 mg for immediate-release products and 6.25 mg for extended-release products.

In explaining the different recommendations for men and women, Unger said that "women appear to be more susceptible to risk for next-morning impairment because they eliminate zolpidem from their bodies more slowly."

It's not clear why women eliminate the substance from their bodies more slowly than men.

Although there have been reports of adverse events, including motor vehicle accidents possibly related to zolpidem, the link has not and probably cannot be definitely established, Unger said.

The changes were spurred by new driving-simulation studies showing that currently prescribed levels of drugs containing zolpidem may be high enough to impair alertness the next day, he explained.

The FDA will be requiring driving-simulation studies for new sleep medications, and it is assessing other insomnia medications on the market. Eventually, Unger said, "we want driving data on all sleep medications."

Unger emphasized that next-day impairment is not limited to medications containing zolpidem but to all sleep medications.

"For all sleep medications, doctors should prescribe and patients should take the lowest dose," he said.

People taking any kind of sleep medication should not change their dose without first talking to their health-care professional, he stressed.

Copyright © 2013 HealthDay. All rights reserved. SOURCES: May 14, 2013, news release, U.S. Food and Drug Administration; Feb. 14, 2013, statement, FDA; Jan. 10, 2013, news conference with Ellis Unger, M.D., director, Office of Drug Evaluation I, Office of New Drugs, Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, U.S. Food and Drug Administration

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Acute Migraines More Apt to Turn Chronic With Poor Treatment

Study compared patients to see who made the jump to frequent headaches within year

By Robert Preidt

HealthDay Reporter

FRIDAY, June 28 (HealthDay News) -- People who receive inadequate treatment for acute migraine headaches are more likely to develop chronic migraines, according to a new study.

Researchers looked at data from more than 4,600 people with episodic migraines (14 or fewer migraine days per month) and found that 48 percent of them received poor or very poor treatment.

These patients were more likely to progress to having chronic migraines (15 or more migraine days a month) than those who received better treatment, according to the study, which was presented this week at the International Headache Congress meeting in Boston.

Within a year, about 8 percent of patients who received very poor treatment progressed to chronic migraine, compared with 4.4 percent of those who received poor treatment, 2.9 percent of those who received moderate treatment and 2.5 percent of those who received the best treatment.

Migraines are debilitating headaches involving intense pulsing or throbbing pain, and often nausea, vomiting and hypersensitivity to light and sound.

The study was conducted by a team from the Montefiore Medical Center and Albert Einstein College of Medicine, in New York City, and Vedanta Research, in Chapel Hill, N.C.

Because this study was presented at a medical meeting, the data and conclusions should be viewed as preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.

"These findings are exciting as they provide clinical targets for intervention. When we discover factors that increase the risk of progression, health care providers can focus their efforts in those areas to improve care and outcomes," study co-author Dawn Buse said in an International Headache Congress news release.

"In this case, we have found several factors in acute migraine treatment which may likely improve outcomes, including using medications that work quickly and maintain pain-free results, which allows and empowers people who live with migraines the freedom and confidence to make plans and fully engage in their lives," Buse said.

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HIV No Barrier to Getting Liver Transplant, Study Finds

Procedure recommended to treat aggressive liver cancer

By Mary Elizabeth Dallas

HealthDay Reporter

FRIDAY, May 17 (HealthDay News) -- Liver transplants to treat a common type of liver cancer are a viable option for people infected with HIV, according to new research.

The Italian study, published May 10 in the journal The Oncologist, found that the AIDS-causing virus doesn't affect survival rates and cancer recurrence after transplants among HIV patients with this particular type of liver cancer, called hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The study's authors noted, however, that HCC is more aggressive in people with HIV and it is becoming a major cause of death among these patients as antiretroviral treatment prolongs their lives.

"The key message of this study is that liver transplantation is a valid option for HCC treatment in HIV-infected patients," the study's authors wrote in a journal news release. "We suggest that HIV-infected patients must be offered the same liver transplant options for HCC treatment currently provided to HIV-uninfected subjects."

The study involved 30 HIV-positive patients and 125 patients not infected with HIV who received a liver transplant to treat HCC at three different hospitals in northern Italy between 2004 and 2009.

During a follow-up period of roughly 32 months, the researchers found a recurrence of HCC in 6.7 percent of the patients with HIV and 14.4 percent of the patients who were not HIV positive.

The study also revealed that survival was similar for all of the patients one year after surgery and three years post-surgery.

The researchers, led by Dr. Fabrizio Di Benedetto, associate professor of surgery at the University of Modena, said the HIV-positive patients were treated with antiretroviral therapy until they underwent the transplant. The therapy was not resumed until their liver function stabilized after surgery.

None of the HIV-positive patients developed AIDS during the post-surgery follow-up period. The study's authors suggested that this may be due to timely resumption of HIV therapy following the liver transplant.

New options in antiviral therapy for people with HIV could improve control of the HIV virus as well as outcomes following liver transplant for HCC, the researchers said.

Patients with HIV undergoing liver transplant for HCC would benefit most from a multidisciplinary approach to care, the study authors said, which would involve collaboration among oncologists, radiologists, gastroenterologists, liver surgeons and infectious disease specialists.

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