The Latest News from Our Field

Hispanic patients with lung cancer tend to live longer than white or black patients with the disease, a new study suggests. Lower rates of tobacco use, or genetic factors, may help explain the findings, according to the researchers.

TV’s Dr. Mehmet Oz will join New York State Senator Jeffrey Klein to introduce a bill to ban psychedelic drugs that are legally sold online.

The Justice Department announced that Walgreens has agreed to pay the government $7.9 million to resolve allegations the company gave people enrolled in government-run health programs $25 gift cards if they moved their prescriptions over to the pharmacy chain.

A Federal appeals court appeared unmoved Friday by tobacco industry arguments that the court should overrule a judgment that requires corrective ads about the dangers of smoking.

Mock car crashes are a popular way of illustrating the dangers of drinking and distracted driving to teens during prom and graduation season. But in Palm Beach in southern Florida, there is disagreement about how effective these events really are.

Researchers are testing whether psychedelic drugs can help dying patients face their fear of death, The New York Times reports.

Over half of all high school age drinkers get their alcohol from an adult, according to SAMHSA’s National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Although adults can be part of the underage drinking problem, they can also be part of the solution, explains Jan Withers, Mothers Against Drunk Driving's National President.

A bill that aims to curb prescription drug abuse in Kentucky is stirring debate among politicians, physicians and law enforcement officials, The Wall Street Journal reports.

The Food and Drug Administration has issued a safety alert about fentanyl painkiller patches, warning that young children are at risk of death if they are accidentally exposed to the patches.

A potential cocaine overdose treatment has shown promise in a study of mice, according to the Los Angeles Times. The researchers said the findings could lead to human clinical trials.

Officials at the University of Colorado-Boulder are trying to prevent thousands of people from gathering on campus today for the annual 4/20 marijuana celebration. They have spread smelly fish-based fertilizer on campus as a deterrent.

A new study that links opium use with serious health problems, including cancer, circulatory diseases and respiratory problems, has implications for opium-derived painkillers such as morphine and codeine, CNN reports.

A survey of young adults recruited through social media finds more than half of those who smoke cigarettes say they also use marijuana. This is a higher percentage than has been reported in other surveys, suggesting young adults may be more comfortable reporting their substance use anonymously online.

A report by the General Accountability Office finds sales of pipe tobacco surged after the federal government imposed a 2,000 percent increase in taxes on roll-your-own tobacco and small cigars.

A new study links teenagers’ use of Ecstasy and speed (methamphetamine and/or amphetamine) with a higher risk of developing depression.

In a four-month period last year when Florida required welfare applicants to undergo drug testing, the program yielded no savings, caught few drug users, and did not affect the number of people who applied, The New York Times reports.

The Supreme Court heard arguments this week in two cases involving different sentencing rules for sellers of crack and powder cocaine.

Depression and anxiety are the top reasons older adults abuse drugs or alcohol, according to a study by a Florida drug and alcohol treatment and recovery center.

Teenagers in treatment for substance abuse can benefit from 12-step programs, a new study suggests.

Many were stunned by a recent report that students in one community had been depicted on YouTube drinking and taking other drugs. It’s not entirely clear what people were most shocked by – the realization that kids abuse drugs and alcohol, or that videos glorifying the use of drugs and alcohol appear on the Internet, says David Festinger, PhD at the Treatment Research Institute.

The Obama Administration’s 2012 Drug Control Strategy, released Tuesday, advocates diverting non-violent drug offenders into treatment.

Nominations are now being accepted for the 2012 Ramstad-Kennedy Annual Award for Outstanding Leadership by a Single State Authority. The deadline is June 1.

Poisoning deaths among teenagers rose 91 percent between 2000 and 2009, primarily due to prescription drug abuse, according to a new report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Teenagers who play a risky activity called the “choking game” to get high are more likely to engage in other kinds of high-risk behavior, such as drug abuse and sex, than their peers who do not play the game, a new study suggests.

A new survey finds U.S. teens think drinking and driving is riskier than texting and driving, despite research that indicates they can be equally dangerous.