Acting to avert an economic downturn, the Federal Reserve approved a half-percentage point cut in its discount rate on loans to banks, a move that sent stocks surging.
No area on the southern coast of Peru, which was struck by an earthquake that killed at least 510 people, appears to have been harder hit than the port city of Pisco.
A new study focusing on Asian-American men gives prostate cancer patients one more factor to ponder?on top of many well-established considerations?when selecting a treatment strategy. The data, which appear in the September issue of Cancer, highlight that the disease can follow significantly different courses in different ethnic groups.
For men, a diagnosis of prostate cancer prompts a thicket of difficult decisions. Aggressive action against these tumors extends life span for some patients, but side effects such as impotence and incontinence can take a heavy toll on their quality of life. Other men do best with no invasive treatment at all. In choosing from among myriad treatments, doctors and patients typically work collaboratively to weigh a man's age, his medical history, the tumor's severity, and other personal factors. The list continues to grow. This month, for example, research published in the online version of Cancer suggests it may behoove people to take their ethnicity into account as well.
AP - The No. 2 American commander in Iraq said Friday that coalition forces are planning "quick strike raids" aimed at smashing al-Qaida and other insurgents in far-flung parts of the country before the U.S. brings some of its buildup troops home.
AP - Hungry earthquake survivors ransacked a public market Friday, while other mobs looted a refrigerated trailer and blocked aid trucks, prompting Peru's president to appeal for calm. Aid finally arrived to the disaster zone after about 36 hours without much help.
Underground efforts to rescue six trapped Utah miners were halted indefinitely Friday after a collapsing tunnel wall killed three rescuers, including a federal mine safety officer. "We went from a tragedy to a catastrophe," Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. said.
White House press secretary Tony Snow will step down from his position as early as next month, sources inside and outside the Bush administration told CNN on Friday.
Five elderly nuns huddled early Friday outside the ruins of a church that had stood for centuries, their dark shawls tightly wrapped around their shoulders. The nuns were standing at the edge of the ruins of the San Clemente church in downtown Pisco, waiting for word on two of their sisters who were buried in the rubble.
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