PROFESSIONNews in brief - Jan. 23, 2006Illinois court dismisses $10.1 billion verdict against cigarette company - More questions surrounding South Korean researcher's work - Match offers more specialty options - Harvard Medical School releases curriculum for MP3 players - Physician receives CMA Foundation's Ethnic Physician Leadership Award Illinois court dismisses $10.1 billion verdict against cigarette companyThe Illinois Supreme Court tossed out a $10.1 billion jury verdict against Philip Morris USA, reversing a trial court finding that the company had made misleading claims about the risks of light cigarettes. The Illinois high court in December 2005 ruled that Philip Morris may not be held liable under the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Practices Act because the Federal Trade Commission authorized the use of terms such as "light" for the company's Marlboro Lights brand. Doctors and attorneys backing the plaintiffs said they were "disappointed," adding that the court incorrectly had interpreted the FTC agreement. The court strictly interpreted state law and did not deal with the company's deceptive marketing practices. The American Medical Association/State Medical Societies Litigation Center, along with several public health organizations, filed a friend-of-the-court brief that supported the plaintiffs. The brief said the company's advertising poses "devastating" public health risks. Attorneys on both sides of the issue agree, however, that the Illinois Supreme Court ruling was a narrow decision in an unusual case that did not claim any damages for cigarettes' negative health effects. They also said they don't expect the opinion to set a precedent for lawsuits in other states. The ruling could be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. Stephen Tillary, lead plaintiff attorney, could not be reached for comment. More questions surrounding South Korean researcher's workWhat began as a relatively minor scrape over rumors that South Korean stem cell researcher Hwang Woo-Suk, PhD, used egg cells donated by junior lab scientists and women who were paid as much as $1,400 has mushroomed into a major case of scientific fraud. Dr. Hwang's May 2005 paper in Science was hailed as the world's first successful colony of stem cells developed from a cloned embryo. But in December 2005, a nine-member Seoul National University panel reported that all of the 11 stem cell lines discussed in the paper were faked. The stem cells were not cloned, but obtained from fertilized embryos. Dr. Hwang's team fooled the world by merely splitting cells from one patient into two test tubes to make the DNA match, the panel said. Dr. Hwang claims his work has been sabotaged. The panel is now turning its attention to a 2004 paper in which Dr. Hwang claimed to have cloned the world's first embryo. Also, Nature announced that it is reviewing an August 2005 paper in which Dr. Hwang unveiled the world's first dog clone, Snuppy. Dr. Hwang has resigned from his post at Seoul National University and was stripped of the honorary title of South Korea's "No. 1 supreme scientist," according to The Korea Times. Match offers more specialty optionsFor the first time, the National Resident Matching Program will include otolaryngology training programs in the 2006 main residency match. Otolaryngology applicants also will be able to use the NRMP's couples' matching service and the electronic application service. In addition, clinical and research gastroenterology programs have joined the Medical Specialties Matching Program, the fellowship match for internal medicine subspecialties. Registration began Jan. 4, 2006 for students applying for positions that begin in July 2007. Hematology, clinical oncology, and combined hematology/oncology programs also joined the 2006 MSMP for 2007 appointments. Harvard Medical School releases curriculum for MP3 playersGrab that headset. Harvard Medical School is making lectures available for students to download onto iPod or other MP3 players. "This is the first time any medical school, to my knowledge, has used an iPod as an educational tool to distribute the entire curriculum," said John Halamka, MD, an associate professor at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston and chief information officer at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Halamka estimates that 68% of Harvard's medical students have MP3 devices. Videos of every course lecture also are being added to Harvard's intranet daily. Students, faculty and staff can search archived lectures for a specific word or phrase. The system allows them to search across disciplines and courses for segments of lectures that deal specifically with their area of interest. Search results show users what portion of the audio file contains a discussion of their search term, allowing them to skip directly to the relevant section of the lecture to review it. Physician receives CMA Foundation's Ethnic Physician Leadership AwardRolland C. Lowe, MD, past president of the California Medical Assn., received the CMA Foundation's first Ethnic Physician Leadership Award during the foundation's annual Ethnic Physician's Leadership Summit held in San Mateo, Calif., in November 2005. Dr. Lowe was selected from a list of 11 ethnic physician nominees. He was honored for serving as a teacher, role model and trailblazer for ethnic physicians. He helped create the CMA's Ethnic Medical Organization Section and the foundation's Network of Ethnic Physician Organizations. Dr. Lowe, who is Asian-American, is past chair of the CMA Foundation. The surgeon has practiced in San Francisco for 43 years. Copyright 2006 American Medical Association. All rights reserved. |
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