A growing threat: cancer.

AIDS: Malignant tumors, particularly Kaposi's sarcoma and certain cancers of the lymph system, have been common in AIDS patients since 1981. The array of cancers is broadening and researchers are looking for insight into the increases in frequency. An emerging theory is that most AIDS-related cancers are linked to viral infections; however, physicians do not know if HIV enhances the ability of other viruses to produce certain cancers. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) held a meeting to discuss the incidences, types, and treatments of cancers. These cancers include squamous cell cancer of the eye, in situ carcinomas of the cervix and anus, plasmacytoma, and leiomyosarcoma. The proportion of cancers that may be caused by the anti-HIV drugs are unknown and current techniques used to track cancer in AIDS patients need to be updated. If the frequency of AIDS-related cancers continues to increase or is linked to anti-HIV drugs, patients and their physicians need to be informed quickly.^ieng

The Ingelfinger rule, embargoes, and journal peer review--Part 1.

It is 27 years since Dr Franz Ingelfinger announced that a manuscript would be rejected by his journal, the New England Journal of Medicine, if it had been published elsewhere. Many other medical journals have since adopted this so-called Ingelfinger rule. The restrictions resulting from the rule have generated enormous controversy in medical journalism, as shown by the first of the two-part article The Ingelfinger rule, embargoes, and journal peer review. Critics say that the rule restricts the free flow of information, whereas proponents claim that information from a paper released early may be inaccurate because the paper has not been subjected to peer review. Yet peer review itself has also come under scrutiny, with its many limitations rarely being openly discussed.