Retraction Watch files a complaint, Ed Yong on chemotherapy and gut bacteria, reports on end of life care (both on in practice trends, and public opinion) are just some items that have caught my eye so far this month…

• Retraction Watch and WordPress’ parent company are suing to fight against the false copyright violation charges that forced the blog to be censored (removing a number of posts for two weeks) earlier this year.
• In yet another great post that translates new science for the non-scientist, Ed Yong’s Three Cancer Drugs Don’t Work Properly Without Gut Bacteria, explains two recent studies in mice that have recently hit the news, and why they offer new complexity rather than any immediate answers for doctors or patients.
• Pew has released a report on American’s views about end of life medical treatment. The report includes sections on general views about the subject and personal views in certain cases and shows changes in similar surveys over time for many sections.
• On the 15th the ASCO Post discussed a recent brief on trends in end of life care in cancer patients from the Dartmouth Atlas Project. The ASCO Post item quotes Clifford Hudis saying “we’ve seen data that show that patients who talk about these issues with their clinicians early in the course of treatment are more likely to receive the type of care they prefer. These important discussions lead to greater use of palliative and hospice care, and can improve a patient’s quality of life, sense of control, and satisfaction with their care and choices.”
• At The Incidental Economist, Aaron Carrol has a chart showing life expectancy and the healthcare spending per capita by country. His post offers some very interesting points about where the US in in relation to other countries and links to a number of earlier posts refuting certain arguments about how the data is distorted.