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Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by editors of HealthDay:

China's SARS Tally Seems to Grow by the Day

Almost before Chinese officials could digest Sunday's announcement of a third suspected victim of SARS, there's word there may be yet another case, The New York Times reports.

The fourth possible case is sparking fears of a new outbreak of the sometimes deadly, highly contagious respiratory virus. Unconfirmed reports say the fourth possible case has just been discovered in the province of Shenzhen on the Hong Kong border. The three earlier cases -- either confirmed or suspected -- were reported in Guangzhou, 80 miles to the north.

The third suspected case involves a 35-year-old man with no history of travel to possible hotspots and no apparent contact with wild animals that might harbor SARS -- like the civet cat.

That has left Chinese and international health officials scratching their heads about the source of the new cases. The only confirmed instance of SARS since the summer has been a 32-year-old TV producer, who has since been pronounced cured and released from the hospital.

Officials from the World Health Organization spent the weekend combing the producer's apartment building, searching for a possible source of infection. He, too, has denied eating civet cat or coming in contact with other possible carriers.

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Colon Cancer Drug Approved for Wider Use

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the anti-cancer drug Eloxatin (oxaliplatin) for wider use in treatment of advanced colon cancer, manufacturer Sanofi-Synthelabo says.

Previously sanctioned when other forms of chemotherapy had failed, the drug is now approved for what's called "first-line" use. The drug, when combined with angiogenesis inhibitors that prohibit blood vessel growth inside tumors, has proven successful in slowing tumor growth and spread.

The company says worldwide clinical trials are under way to see if the drug could be used to combat other forms of cancer, including those of the gastric tract and pancreas.

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Discovery of Mucus Blocker Could Aid Asthma Fight

An international team of researchers has discovered a compound that blocks the production of excessive mucus, which could point the way to better treatments for asthma, chronic bronchitis, cystic fibrosis and other diseases.

Scientists working with asthmatic mice found that excess mucus production could be sharply reduced or eliminated using a peptide called MANS. It blocks the protein that causes the excess secretion, the Associated Press reports. Mucus is a thick fluid produced by mucus membranes, which moistens and protects such areas as the digestive and nasal canals. Excess production of it in diseases such as asthma can block airways.

The findings were reported Sunday in the February online issue of the journal Nature Medicine. The research team was led by Kenneth B. Adler of North Carolina State University and included scientists from Pasteur Institute in Paris, the University of Sao Paulo in Brazil, and the School of Veterinary Medicine in Hannover, Germany.

"These findings could be very important as far as providing direction to eventually lead to therapeutic treatment" of certain respiratory diseases, Adler told the wire service in an e-mail interview.

No side effects were noted in the mice, Adler said, but they were treated for less than an hour. Longer-term studies would be needed to assess the safety of the compound, he added. Nevertheless, depending on the dose, the chemical was effective in reducing excess mucus production in different types of mice, the research showed.

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Tacoma Tops Stressed-City List

Tacoma, Washington, which markets itself as "America's No. 1 Wired City," now has a dubious new title: "America's Most Stressed-Out City."

Beating out better-known cities like New York and Miami, the Northwest city of 195,000 topped the list of 100 large metro areas surveyed by ranking firm BestPlaces, according to the Seattle Times.

BestPlaces based the rankings on a "stress index" of factors that jangle nerves: unemployment rate, divorce rate, commute time, crimes, suicide rate, alcohol consumption, self-reported "poor mental health" and cloudy days.

Tacoma beat the rest mostly because of high rates of divorce, suicide and unemployment, the Times reports. With 12.4 percent of people over age 16 divorced, Tacoma's divorce rate falls in the 95th percentile. Its suicide rate is in the 92nd percentile. And its unemployment rate was 7.7 percent in the fall, well over the survey's average rate of 5.8 percent.

Rounding out the top 10 most stressful cities, in order, were Miami; New Orleans; Las Vegas; New York; Portland; Mobile, Ala.; Stockton-Lodi, Calif; Detroit, and Dallas.

The surveyors also offered up the least stressful cities. Tri-city areas Albany-Schenectady-Troy in New York and Harrisburg-Lebanon-Carlisle in Pennsylvania tied for best. High on the list also were Orange County, Calif.; Nassau-Suffolk, N.Y.; and Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.

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Calif. Woman Survives Losing All Her Skin

A San Diego woman whose entire skin peeled off after a rare reaction to a common drug has apparently made a miraculous recovery.

Sarah Yeargain developed the often-fatal condition after taking the antibiotic Bactrim, also known as trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, for a nasal infection. She developed blisters and swelling on her face and within days, her skin was coming off "in sheets," the BBC reports.

Yeargain experienced a rare severe allergic reaction called toxic epidermal necrolysis, where the body's immune system malfunctions after it is exposed to a drug. She first noticed some minor swelling and discoloration in her face, then blistering on her lips and swelling on her eyes. Soon, her face, chest and arms were covered in blisters and skin all over her body began to fall off. Even the skin on her internal organs and the membranes covering her mouth, throat and eyes came away.

Doctors at the University of California Regional Burn Center in San Diego saved her life by covering her entire body with a skin substitute, called TransCyte. They also gave her drugs to prevent internal bleeding, and her own skin started to grow back.

Meredith Frank, a nurse in the burns unit, said the woman's recovery was a miracle. "With the magnitude of the skin loss she had, there was a divine hand in her recovery."

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