Decade of Advances in Medicine — 1998

Scientists find that new brain cells can grow after birth. Routine blood test (PSA) introduced to improve diagnosis of prostate cancer. First treatment found for breast cancer using monoclonal antibodies. Special cells (embryonic stem cells) that give rise to other cells are grown in a Petri dish. FDA approves first pill for sexual disorder known as impotence. Robert Furchott, Ferid Murad and Louis Ignarro (USA) share Nobel Prize in Medicine for showing how nitric oxide (NO) acts as a messenger between cells.

In an important year for the advancement of surgical techniques, an international team of surgeons in France succeeds in performing a successful hand and forearm transplant. To learn more about these pioneering operations, click here to read the full story.

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