Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have developed a genetic test that can accurately predict whether the most common form of eye cancer will spread to other parts of the body, particularly the liver. In 459 patients with ocular melanoma at 12 centers in the United States and Canada, the researchers found the test could successfully classify tumors more than 97 pe... (read more)
An over-the-counter natural remedy derived from honeybee hives arrests the growth of prostate cancer cells and tumors in mice, according to a new paper from researchers at the University of Chicago Medicine Caffeic acid phenethyl ester, or CAPE, is a compound isolated from honeybee hive propolis, the resin used by bees to patch up holes in hives. Propolis has been used for centuries as a natura... (read more)
A new technique to treat early prostate cancer may have far fewer side-effects than existing therapies, say experts. A 41-patient study in the journal Lancet Oncology suggests targeted ultrasound treatment could reduce the risk of impotence and incontinence. Researchers say it could transform future treatment if the findings are repeated in larger studies. The Medical Research Council (MRC), whi... (read more)
Making ultrasound or MRI part of the annual mammography regimen boosts breast cancer detection in women with dense breasts who are at elevated risk, but also increases false positives, a clinical trial affirmed. After the initial dual screening looking for prevalent cancers, incidence screening with ultrasound found an additional 3.7 cancers per 1,000 screens (P<0.001 ), Wendie A. Berg, MD, PhD, of Magee-Women... (read more)
Blocking "don't destroy me" signals that normally sit on the surface of tumor cells and render them resistant to immune-cell attack slows the growth of a broad range of human cancers when they're implanted in mice, researchers have found. The approach, reported by immunologists at the Stanford University School of Medicine, was effective against ovarian, breast, colon, bladder, liver, prostate and brai... (read more)
In a finding that strengthens the link between environmental pollutants and rising rates of breast cancer, new research finds that women whose diets contain higher levels of cadmium are at greater risk of developing breast cancer than those who ingest less of the industrial chemical in their food. Cadmium, a heavy metal long identified as a carcinogen, leaches into crops from fertilizers and when rai... (read more)
Increasing consumption of both processed and unprocessed red meat was associated with a greater risk of dying during the study period, data from two large, prospective studies showed. Through up to 28 years of follow-up, each additional serving of red meat per day was associated with a relative 13% to 20% increased risk of all-cause mortality, with the higher risk attributed to processed meats, according to Fra... (read more)
Coke and PepsiCo Inc. are adjusting the formula of their caramel colour across the U.S so they don’t have to label their products with a cancer warning to comply with California regulations. However, Coca Cola are not changing the drink ingredients in the UK because the manufacturing process complies with European safety rules. Pepsi have yet to comment. The changes ha... (read more)
A provocative new study finds that people who take prescription sleeping pills -- even once in a while -- have a higher death risk than non-users. The top third of sleeping-pill users had a 5.3-fold higher death risk. They also had a 35% higher risk of cancer, the study found. "We are not certain. But it looks like sleeping pills could be as risky as smoking cigarettes. It looks much more dangerous to ... (read more)
A new treatment for advanced skin cancer almost doubles survival times, according to an international study. Doctors say 132 patients in the US and Australia who were given the drug vemurafenib gained several extra months of life. Research in the New England Journal of Medicine found those in the study lived an average of 16 months, compared with nine months on conventional treatment. Vemurafenib (Zelboraf) ha... (read more)
A new study provides what independent researchers call the best evidence yet that colonoscopy — perhaps the most unloved cancer screening test — prevents deaths. Although many people have assumed that colonoscopy must save lives because it is so often recommended, strong evidence has been lacking until now. In patients tracked for as long as 20 years, the death rate from colorectal cancer was cut by 53 perce... (read more)
The Mediterranean diet has been linked to a host of health benefits, including a lower risk of heart disease, cancer and diabetes. A study finds that the diet may also be associated with a decreased chance of small vessel damage in the brain. The diet, popular in Mediterranean countries, includes little red meat but lots of fresh vegetables and fruit, lean proteins, whole grains and healthy monosaturate... (read more)
To solve a mystery, sometimes a great detective need only study the clues in front of him. Like Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot and Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes, Tomomi Kiyomitsu used his keen powers of observation to solve a puzzle that had mystified researchers for years: in a cell undergoing mitotic cell division, what internal signals cause its chromosomes to align on a... (read more)
A controversial radiation treatment for patients who've had lung cancer surgery may not help elderly people live longer, U.S. researchers have found. Postoperative radiotherapy, or PORT, is thought to cut the chances that a tumor will return. But it can damage the heart and lungs, which might cancel out any potential benefits -- particularly in seniors. "Thus, these patients may be exposed to the sid... (read more)
Patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) had a four times greater risk of malignancy than did matched control groups without the disease, investigators reported. After adjustment for multiple variables, JIA conferred a standard incidence ratio (SIR) of 4.4 for malignancy compared with patients who had asthma or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), but not JIA. However, JIA treatment, includi... (read more)
Man may not live by bread alone, but cancer in animals appears less resilient, according to a study that found chemotherapy drugs work better when combined with cycles of short, severe fasting. Even fasting on its own effectively treated a majority of cancers tested in animals, including cancers from human cells. The study in Science Translational Medicine, part of the Science family of journals, found that five out of e... (read more)
Scientists from The Scripps Research Institute, Scripps Health, and collaborating cancer physicians have successfully demonstrated the effectiveness of an advanced blood test for detecting and analyzing circulating tumor cells (CTCs) -- breakaway cells from patients' solid tumors -- from cancer patients. The findings, reported in five new papers, show that the highly sensitive blood analysis provides information t... (read more)
Exercise has been touted as a good way to help prevent certain diseases and conditions, but can it be useful after the fact? Yes, says a study, which suggests that a fitness regimen can enhance the health of patients following treatment. The paper analyzed 34 studies that looked at the effect of exercise on patients who had breast cancer, as well as other types of cancer, such as prost... (read more)
Scientists in Trinity College Dublin, Ireland, have developed a new vaccine to treat cancer at the pre-clinical level. The research team led by Professor Kingston Mills, Professor of Experimental Immunology at Trinity College Dublin discovered a new approach for treating the disease based on manipulating the immune response to malignant tumours. The discovery has been patented and there are plans to ... (read more)
An international team of researchers has discovered 13 new regions of the genome associated with the timing of menopause. These genes shed light on the biological pathways involved in reproductive lifespan and will provide insights into conditions connected to menopause, such as breast cancer and heart disease. Menopause is a major hormonal change that affects most women when they are in their early ... (read more)
Scientists working at the Medical Research Council have identified changes in the patterns of sugar molecules that line pre-cancerous cells in the esophagus, a condition called Barrett's dysplasia, making it much easier to detect and remove these cells before they develop into esophageal cancer. These findings, reported in the journal Nature Medicine, have important implications for patients and ... (read more)
They said eating an extra 50g of processed meat, approximately one sausage, every day would increase a person's risk by 19%. But the chance of developing the rare cancer remains low. The World Cancer Research Fund suggested the link may be down to obesity. Eating red and processed meat has already been linked to bowel cancer. As a result the UK government recommended in 2011 that people eat no more than 70... (read more)
A few hits on the bong now and then don't seem to have any detrimental effects on lung health, suggests a new study. Researchers found that multiple measures of lung function actually improved slightly as young people reported using more marijuana -- at least up to a couple thousand lifetime joints. "There's no doubt, if you've watched a Harold & Kumar movie, marijuana triggers a cough," said... (read more)
Honing chemotherapy delivery to cancer cells is a challenge for many researchers. Getting the cancer cells to take the chemotherapy "bait" is a greater challenge. But perhaps such a challenge has not been met with greater success than by the nanotechnology research team of Omid Farokhzad, MD, Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) Department of Anesthesiology Perioperative and Pain Medicine and Research. In th... (read more)
Find prostate cancer early, save a life. That message has been pervasive since 1986, when a blood test for prostate cancer first hit the market. But more evidence suggests that, in many or even most cases, the message is wrong. The latest blow against prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing came Friday from a large, long-term study that found routine testing in men ages 55 to 74 did not preve... (read more)
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