Israel Active

I reported about Israel’s Check-cap previously () that requires no prior preparation or hospital visit.  After 4 years, trials on 54 participants of its ingestible and disposable low-dose 3D imaging capsule proved safe and well tolerated and detected small and large polyps.

The BBC has just reported that the UK’s National Health Service has approved the funding of patients receiving the pioneering melanoma (skin cancer) treatment developed by Israeli Professor Jacob Schachter. The approval was one of the fastest in NHS history.  The anti-Israel BBC doesn’t mention the Israeli connection, so please read Sheba hospital’s article for details.

I reported previously about Israeli research into bio-ink that could potentially print human organs.  Now two Israeli companies, Nano Dimension and Accelta have successfully lab-tested a proof-of-concept 3D bio-printer.  It may even be able to print stem cells!

Surgeons at Mercy Medical Center at Cedar Rapids, Iowa, have reported that MarginProbe from Israel’s Dune Medical has reduced the number of repeat breast-cancer operations by 75%.  MarginProbe checks accurately that all cancerous tissue has been removed first time.

Israeli biotech Kitov has announced that it will be ready at the end of 2016 to launch its KIT-302 treatment for osteoarthritis pain and hypertension simultaneously.  Dexcel will mass-produce and market the treatment.

The supplement Cardiomato, from Israel’s Lycored, beat hundreds of high-quality competitor products to win the NutraIngredients Award for Best Finished Product of the Year – Heart Health.  Cardiomato reduces oxidized LDL cholesterol and lowers systolic blood pressure.

Microsoft’s Israeli Research & Development Center in Herzliya is the venue for the company’s first ever health analytics conference on Jun 22.  Subjects include Internet data, wearables, big data and IBM Watson.  

The Adelis Award for groundbreaking research by a young scientist has been presented to Dr. Yuval Nir of Tel Aviv University for his work in the field of sleep.  The $100,000 award aims to encourage excellence among young Israeli scientists performing brain research in Israel.

The day after the dreadful terrorist attack at Tel Aviv’s Sarona Market, I was privileged to be invited to the dedication of an ambulance to Magen David Adom in Netanya.  It was the tenth MDA ambulance to be donated thanks to the efforts of the Cockfosters and N. Southgate community of North London.

Friends of Israeli Professor Yoram Palti encouraged him to invent Novocure’s electrode treatment for aggressive brain tumors.  Now eight years after its first trials, two of Novocure’s original patients are still alive.  One of the trials was stopped as it was too successful.