International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics

A new study has revealed a link between metastatic breast cancer and the number of circulating tumour cells that patients have in their blood.

This link can determine the survival rates of the breast cancer sufferer.

The research could help provide sufferers with more personalised therapy to combat the disease, scientists from MD Anderson Cancer Centre in Houston, US, said.

The key to reducing newborn mortality rates is providing better baby care, it has been claimed.

According to the United Nations (UN) health agency, death rates could be improved in developing countries if better care was provided for babies during the first month of their lives.

A simple genetic test that looks at just three genes is the most effective way to classify breast cancer into sub-types, it has been found.

According to US researchers at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, the findings of the test will make it easier to personalise breast cancer treatment.

Premature babies are more sensitive to pain later in life than those born on time, according to new study.

Researchers from the University College Hospital in London said that the weeks premature babies spend in hospital after birth undergoing painful medical procedures could leave a damaging impression on their brains, reports the Daily Mail.

The number of midwives in Bangladesh should be increased in order to reduce the rates of maternal and infant mortality, it has been reported.

Speakers at a seminar organised by the Bangladesh Nursing Council said that having a skilled nurse at the birth of a child is crucial to ensure safe delivery, reports the Daily Star in Bangladesh.

Scientists at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Centre in the US have found that broccoli could help prevent and treat breast cancer.

A chemical called sulforaphane is found in the vegetable and it targets the cells that fuel the growth of cancerous tumours.

According to a new study from Ghana in Africa, taking vitamin A supplements does not reduce maternal or infant mortality rates.

The results of the most recent study were published in the medical journal the Lancet but they contradict the research from an earlier study in Nepal that found a drop in deaths among women of child-bearing age taking the supplement.

Women who have repeat Caesarean sections are at an increased risk of needing a hysterectomy, it has been claimed.

The World Bank has approved new funding aimed at improving maternal and newborn healthcare in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.

A new central institution for newborn screening (NBS) needs to be established in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, experts have stated.

Summing up at the end of a conference on NBS hosted by the Hamad Medical Corporation, leading experts in the field within the region noted that more needs to be done to improve maternal and newborn health facilities.