japan and sweden are warning their citizens to be extra vinl lant. five militants reportedly were killed. bob orr in washington is following this story. bob, clearly, authorities are going on the assumption that this is a very real threat. >> reporter: absolutely,icatey. officialofficials have very, vey worried with the threat, that they remain active. as one official put it, we're turning over every rock to stop the plot. across europe security forces are on alert trying to protect landmarks, tourist center cented transportation hubs against vague tryst threats officials still don't understand.

officials fear some trained operatives have already been dispatched. but it's not clear how many terrorists may be involved or where they are. and while security officials called the threats credible, there is still no hard information about timing or targets. >> we're in the middle sequence of this plot, but we know it's under way. we know it's been directed by al qaeda, but we don't know when it may be executed and we don't know who is going to perpetrate it. >> reporter: but the u.s. state department had enough information to issue an extraordinary alert for all of europe warning u.s. travelers al qaeda and affiliated organizations continue to plan terrorist attacks and may elect to use a variety of means and weapons to target public transportation systems and other tourist infrastructure. americans in london today seemed to take the warning in stride. >> you really can't give in to these threat. you have to stick to your plans, run your course. otherwise, they win, don't they? >> reporter: and the terror fears have not stopped travelers from heading overseas. >> i don't think people should be scared. you should just keep going, keep

traveling. >> reporter: japan joined the u.s. in alerting its citizens to the european threat and great britain warned of possible attacks in france and germany the german interior minister downplayed the danger, saying there's no need to be alarmist. u.s. attorney general eric holder, said the threat, even if vague are, very real. >> i wouldn't say we have specific information about a particular place, a particular time, and yet we have, i think, sufficient information that justified issuing the alert. >> reporter: now, officials say the current plot do not directly threaten america, but in a wider sense, terrorists from al qaeda and the franchises are still planning to hit the u.s. when they can, katie. >> couric: bob, what about the missile strikes? how are they related? >> we're not 100% sure. u.s. and european officials are still working to determine to what extent it might connect to the plots. they know they have been

trainintrainalong the afghan-pai border. some of those killed could be german and that could be important because we believe radicalized germans are at the center of these plots. >> couric: meanwhile, the pack taken taliban claimed responsibility for yet another attack on a nato convoy. of it the fourth in four days and it happened just outside pakistan's capital. militant torched 20 fuel trucks headed to afghanistan to supply coalition troops. four drivers were killed. in washington on this first monday in october, the supreme court began a new term, and for the first time ever, one-third of the nine justices are women. among the kays they'll be considering, does the first amendment protect the right to protest at military funerals? and can california ban the sale of violent video games to minors? the newest member of the court, elena kagan, will participate in those cases and 24 more this term, but she's recusing herself

in 25 others because she worked on them as solicitor general. the attorney who represents the u.s. in kays before the supreme court. if any case winds up in a 4-4 deadlock, the lower court decision will stand. meanwhile, in health news, treating an aggressive type of brain cancer. it's called a glioblastoma, and there are 10,000 new cases in this country every year. that makes it the most common form of brain cancer. the same cancer that claimed the life of senator ted kennedy last year. but tonight, cnn's dr. sanjay gupta, a neurosurgeon, and cbs news contributor, shows us a new treatment that's helping to extend lives. >> reporter: lee sullivan remembers the day when a game of golf became a struggle for life. >> during my backswing the light went out. >> reporter: he had a seizure, and he passed out. the diagnosis-- an aggressive form of brain cancer called glioblastoma. >> whenever you get a diagnosis

for brain cancer you're not really expecting a long-term survival. >> reporter: and the statistics are particularly grim for glioblastoma. on average, patients live about 14 months after diagnosis. dr. john sampson and others have been working on a vaccine that could help about a third of these patients, those whose tumor has a gene mutation that fuels the aggressive growth. >> it educate the immune system to produce antibodies or magic bullets that really go and find the tumor and help the immune system attack the tumor very specifically. >> reporter: in results released today, patients who received the vaccine in addition to the standard therapy of surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy extended their survival for 26 months. dr. sampson says he has patients who have lived five years on the vaccine. lee sullivan is hoping to do better than that. >> there's no evidence of recurrence at this time. >> i'm almost 12 months into my treatments now feeling great, doing very well.

>> reporter: i can tell you, katie, this is promising stuff. it's a small study so far, just 18 patients in this first trial, but this is how it works. they're going to go to a phase three trial next, more patients, they're going to expand it, and hopefully see some of the same results. >> couric: and, sanjay, a lot of people of course think of vaccines for preventing disease but they're being usinged increasingly to treat cancer and what's really exciting about this vaccine is the protein it's targeting is actually present in other kinds of cancer. >> reporter: that's right. there's a protein on these cancer cells. it's not present in any other normal tissue in the body. that's what makes it so important. that's what makes it a target, potentially, for these immediates and not only in brain cancer but also lung, breast, and various head and neck cancers as well. so this type of therapy could be promising for other cancers as well down the road, katie. >> couric: all right, dr. sanjay gupta. sanjay, as always, thanks so much. the other big health story today involves the first major survey on sex in america in 16 years and the results may surprise

you. for example, 84% of teenaged boys who engaged in casual sex used condoms, but that number plummeted among older men. dr. jennifer ashton is the cbs news medical correspondent and practicing ob-gyn. we should mention one in three ninth graders, male and female are sexually active. nearly 60% of teenagers who are sexually active pie the time they reach 18. so while parents may prefer their kids to wait, is this good news, a positive development that at least kids are being responsible? >> reporter: well, it's not all good news, katie. in fact, the study did show nearly half of teenagers used cobdoms incorrectly, and that's a huge problem, because we know that one out of four sexually tmp teens has a sexually transmitted disease or an s.t.d. >> couric: what about older people? why aren't they using condoms for casual sex? >> reporter: well, i think the awareness is different in that age group, katie. they haven't had the same formal education, if you will, about

the prevention of s.t.d.s, and we know that's an age group particularly at risk because your risk of an s.t.d. goes up with the more sexual partners you've had. >> couric: this is a very detailed look at the sex lives of americans, and yet, there's still a lot of discomfort when it comes to discussing these things, even between patients and doctors. >> reporter: that needs to change, katie, even in the medical community. the study found that 30% of 80-year-olds are still sexually active. we do need to mention the study was funded by a condom company but it underscores we need to continue this discussion across all ages. >> couric: all right, dr. jennifer ashson, thanks so much. if you'd like more information you can go to our partner in health news webbed d..com and search sexual health. turning now to politics and campaign 10. there are 29 days until the midterm elections. and there are dozens of contests that could go either way. in the senate republicans need 10 seats to take control.

according to the latest analysis by our cbs news election team they have the edge and are likely to win four see the held by want democrats and the republicans have at least a chance at eight other democratic see the still in play. but taking back control of the senate is a long shot at best. the republicans have a better chance in the house. they need a net gain of 39 seats there. and our cbs news analysis finds 77 see the now held by democrats could go republicans. and while the odds seem to favor the g.o.p. in the house, the democrats from speaker nancy pelosi on down still believe they can hold on. here's senior political correspondent jeff greenfield. >> reporter: after months of pessimism about their chances this fall, beleaguered dems are detecting faint signs of hope. some polls show democrats drawing even among republicans. improved prospects for senate candidates in california and washington state, in governor races in illinois, ohio, and california. >> have a good day, everybody. >> reporter: so how could democrats prevent or at least

minimize their losses? there are three keys: first, turn out the base. polls still show republicans much more enthusiastic about voting than democrats. that's why president obama is out trying to persuade his core backers-- blarkz hispanics, the young-- not to stay home in november. >> we need you to place your vote. we need you to knock on doors. we need you to talk to neighbors. >> if they can get an uptick among those constituents you could see some candidates survive who are looking a little more in trouble right now. >> reporter: second: convince the voters this election is a choice. with ads that argue the republicans are just too extreme. >> sharon angle and she's just too extreme. >> reporter: says republican strategist david winston, that's what we tried four years ago and it didn't work. >> ultimately, when you're talking about your opponent, it's because you don't have anything to say about yourself, and the electorate get that. >> reporter: third, declare your independence. across the crimean incumbent democrats are expressing how they oppose the president and

how speakier nancy pelosi. >> i don't work for nancy pelosi or harry reid. >> reporter: but it is still uphill for democrats. independents were the key to the republican takeover of congress in '94 and the democratic takeover in '06. right now they're leaning heavily republican. >> if republicans are going to get a majority that's where it's going to occur. >> nobody's saying we're going to pick up see the. people are saying let's just hold down as many democrats as we can. >> reporter: and in this climate, less bad seems to be about the best democrats can hope for. katie. >> couric: all right, jeff greenfield, jeff, thanks. and still ahead here on the cbs evening news, everybody in the world has a story. steve hartman way bag lady who is making a small fortune. but uppings in, fallen heroes. they were friends in life. now their families find peace knowing they're together again.

>> couric: all too often, american deaths in iraq and afghanistan get reported simply as numbers. but as we know, they're so much more than that. each and every casualty is a unique individual with a family and a story. today, an extraordinary service at arlington reminded us of th that. david martin has the story of two fallen heroes, one from pennsylvania, the other maryla maryland, and a friendship that will never die. >> reporter: travis manion and

brendan looney-- roommates at the naval academy. close as brothers. one became a marine and went to iraq. the other a navy seal in afghanistan. today, they were reunited, side by side, in arlington national cemetery. >> that's what kind of gets me by is just knowing that they're going to be together. >> reporter: the grief is still raw for brendan alon brenn looney's wife amy and mother maureen. eat been less that two weeks since his body came home from afghanistan where he was killed in a helicopter crash. >> after we knot the call and everything, mrs. manion of the first person i called because she was like brendan's other mom. >> and she just said, "janet." and i said, "maureen." and she started crying. and i said, "brendan." and she said,"yes." >> reporter: travis manion's parents have been living with their grief for more than three years. he was shot by a sniper in iraq in 2007. six months later, brendan was

still overcome talking about what travis meant to him. >> i was lucky enough to room with travis at the naval academy for two years. in a very short time he became another brother to me. he was a great friend and i'll never forget him and i miss him. >> reporter: travis had been laid to death in the family cemetery, but when brendan died, both families instantly knew what had to be done. >> it was the first thing out of my mouth, that they had to be together. >> i'll be at peace knowing that he's with his brother and together. i know that's where he wants to be. >> reporter: on friday, travis was moved to arlington. both families were there, the two mothers holding tight to each other. today, they gathered again to bury brendan right next to travis. >> they're together now. we've got two angels looking out after us. >> reporter: travis' father, himself a former marine, spoke their epitet.

>> first lieutenant travis manion, usmc, lieutenant brendan looney, united states navy. warriors for free, brothers forever.

>> couric: robert edwards got an overdue father's day gift today, the british biologist who pioneered in vitro fertilization was awarded the nobel prize in medicine. for decades, edwards work on the idea of fertilizing an egg

outside a woman's body and implanting the embryo in her womb. then in 1978, with the birth of louise brown, the dream became a reality. more than four million so-called test tube babies would follow. many, like brown are, now grown and have children of their own. here's a question-- what is the most diverse region in the world? turns out, it's the ocean. scientists just completed the first marine census. they identified 250,000 different species, including some pretty strange ones, like the vampire squid, or how about the kiwa, which looks like a furry crab. and this one, a microscopic creature found off the australian coast?

>> couric: we end with our modern day magellan, steve hartman, circumnavigating the world in search of interesting people and stories. in the past few weeks he's taken us to south america and australia. tonight, another continent for the latest chapter in his serie "everybody in the world has a story." >> lifted off. >> reporter: as we continue our mission, to boldly go where no news network has gone before, to bring back stories of our universal humanity, we once again turn to space station commander jeff williams. this time, jeff's random stab at

the globe sends us to china. the tip of his finger fell on the city of chengdu. they don't have any white pages in chengdu, so we're going to have to use yellow pages this time. we'll make it work, though. of course the bake idea was the still the same-- there! to profile whoever picks up. it's like purses. what went through your head when you first got our phone call? >> ( translated ): at first i thought it was a prank call. >> reporter: 24-year-old xiao hua yu works at the lucky bag company. the company actual he makes reusable shopping bags. in china you have to pay for bags at the store so people often bring their own. you can use them over and over. i cowl tell right away she likes her job. it wasn't until she started on her story that i began to appreciate why. growing up her family was about as poor as they come in china. >> ( translated ): poverty back then is something you cannot describe in words.

>> reporter: are you surprised how your life has changed? >> ( translated ): i'm not surprised. it has taken me one grueling step at a time. >> reporter: like so many chinese, after high school, xiao hua yu moved from the countries side, where she was born, to the city where the money is. she started as a secretary, then moved into sales, an impassioned capitalist, she networks with everyone she met, read everything she could on business and saved everything she made, living on nothing but instant noodles for months on end. >> ( translated ): so now when i see noodles i'm terrified. >> reporter: her sacrifice paid off. she's now the first person in her company to own a car and a company. >> ( translated ): this is my factory. >> reporter: four years ago, she started the lucky bag company. it's now a million-dollar-a-year business. and, again, she's 24 and a woman running the show in a traditionally very male-dominated society. she says it's been her

experience that in china today it's perfectly acceptable for the woman to wear the pant at the office, just as long as she changes before she goes home. >> ( translated ): in other words, men are like, "i am god," or "i am the emperor. you're supposed to do everything for me." >> reporter: she speaks from experience. after getting married in 2007, she says she and her husband started battling over gender roles. it all came to a head last march. there's a secret that even your family doesn't know, right? >> yes. >> ( translated ): about my divorce. all of my family and relatives don't know. i don't want them to know. >> reporter: although divorce is rising sharply in china, there's still a huge stigma, especially for women, especially if the woman initiatives it like xiao hua yu did. of course, she can't keep her twors a secret-- divorce a secret forever and she'd even like to remarry some day but not if it means playing the role of

submissive housewife. she said if her story proves anything, once women anywhere discover what it feels like to be independent, they're hooked for life. >> ( translated ): it's like america-- it's very powerful. i can decide what i want. >> reporter: kind of a political risky thing to say, but she speaks her mind. >> couric: wow, that was fascinating story. and tell us about next week. >> reporter: next week we go to bali. we have a guy who makes bamboo furniture and all he really wanted to talk about was his sex life with his wife. >> couric: okay, well, looking forward to that, i think. >> reporter: i'm looking forward to putting it together. >> couric: thanks, steve. sp that is the cbs evening news. i'm katie couric. i'll see you tomorrow. good night. captioning sponsored by cbs captioned by

now, "entertainment tonight," the most-watched entertainment news magazine in the world. jennifer grey's tragic accident. >> it survive a trash, where a mother and daughter were killed -- >> the "dancing" star on the fatal crash that nearly left her paralyzed and severely injured her then boyfriend, matthew broderick. >> she fell apart. >> will bruno apologize to bolton? >> the stars take sides. >> plus will tony go through with his u