Cancer News and Research

Latest Cancer News and Research

SIRT1 gene suppresses longevity

Researchers have determined that a gene present in mouse cells limits the number of times that a cell can divide. The gene is involved in a process, called senescence, which is thought to ensure that aging cells do not pass on harmful mutations.

20 Jul 2005

Older-style antidepressants, as well as anticonvulsant drugs, can help ease the disabling pain caused by nerve tissue damage

For many years antidepressants, which are believed to work by dampening pain signals, have been the first-line drugs for neuropathic pain. "It is usual to start with an antidepressant like amitriptyline, and if this fails then try an anticonvulsant," says Phil Wiffen, a researcher at Churchill Hospital in Oxford, England. "The results of these meta-analyses suggest this is probably still the best approach to take."

19 Jul 2005

Camera-guided surgery through small incisions works better than conventional surgery for colon cancer

Camera-guided surgery through small incisions works better than conventional surgery for colon cancer and related diseases, at least in the short term recovery, a new review of previous studies confirms. In the long term, researchers found no difference between the two.

19 Jul 2005

$New protective drugs called bisphosphonates reduce pain and fractures in metastatic breast cancer$

New protective drugs called bisphosphonates reduce pain and fractures in metastatic breast cancer

When breast cancer spreads to bones, relatively new protective drugs called bisphosphonates can reduce skeletal damage, says a new systematic review of previous studies. While the new treatment approach does not improve survival rates, it can minimize disabling fractures, spinal cord compression and pain.

19 Jul 2005

Calcium may prevent polyps, but effect on colorectal cancer unclear

Although calcium supplements might prevent development of polyps that sometimes lead to colon cancer, there is not enough evidence that the mineral can prevent colorectal cancer itself, according to a new study.

19 Jul 2005

Combination of ribavirin and interferon is more effective in treating hepatitis C than using interferon alone

The researchers reviewed 72 randomized trials and 9,991 patients who had chronic hepatitis C for more than six months and were previously untreated, who had relapsed after treatment or who had not responded to other treatment.

19 Jul 2005

Study provides evidence that hormone treatments can be beneficial to limiting cardiovascular ailments

UC Irvine School of Medicine researchers have identified how estrogen helps prevents a cardiac ailment often seen in women who have heart attacks. This research provides further evidence that hormone replacement therapy after menopause can help prevent certain forms of cardiovascular disease in women.

19 Jul 2005

Americans need to eat more fish

The sooner people start eating more fish rich in omega-3 fatty acids like salmon and tuna the better. Having fallen out of favor due to past mercury warnings aimed at pregnant women, new data show that consumers are doing their bodies a disservice if they continue to avoid this food.

19 Jul 2005

No single PSA level ensures safety from prostate cancer risk

Ian M. Thompson Jr., M.D., professor and chair of urology at the U T Health Science Center, is looking for a better test - or set of tests - to diagnose prostate cancer and to distinguish between cancers that will kill men if left untreated and those that will not threaten health and do not need treatment.

19 Jul 2005

Pineapple stems that show anti-tumour activity

Scientists at the Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR) have discovered two molecules from pineapple stems that show anti-tumour activity in laboratory studies. One molecule called CCS blocks a protein called Ras, which is defective in approximately 30% of all cancers. The other molecule called CCZ, stimulates the body's own immune system to target and kill cancer cells.

19 Jul 2005

Cancer patients are being forced to bear the massive financial burden of changes in NHS treatment

The side effects of cancer treatment mean patients often have to give up work, and may have to live on a low income; forcing many patients to make a choice between finding the money for travel to hospital and basic necessities such as food, children's clothes and household bills.

19 Jul 2005

Removing warts without scarring

If burning and freezing warts hasn't worked, ask your dermatologist about getting a shot.

19 Jul 2005

New way to fight antibiotic-resistant Staphylococcus infections

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and Children’s Hospital and Health Center, San Diego have discovered that "Staph" bacteria use a protective golden armor to ward off the immune system, a finding with the potential to lead to new treatments for serious infections now increasingly resistant to standard antibiotics.

19 Jul 2005

People who drink alcohol have a lower risk of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma

People who drink alcohol have a lower risk of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL) than non-drinkers, researchers at Yale’s Department of Epidemiology and Public Health (EPH) wrote recently in an article published in Lancet Oncology.

19 Jul 2005

Quit smoking to heal that gum disease and live longer!

According to a new study, smokers are at least 6 times more likely to develop gum disease than non-smokers.

19 Jul 2005

Smokers believe light or herbal cigarettes are less harmful

Nearly one-fourth of cigarette smokers believe that so-called reduced-exposure tobacco products - such as "light," herbal or reduced nicotine cigarettes - are less harmful to their health than conventional cigarettes, a new study finds. However, such beliefs are not backed up by existing evidence, according to the study's authors.

19 Jul 2005

The more a man sits at his desk, the more likely he is to be overweight

...says a new Australian study suggesting that the workplace may play an important role in the growing obesity epidemic.

19 Jul 2005

Innovative new brachytherapy planning tool

The Vitesse system is being used in more than 25 hospitals worldwide to speed up planning and enable treatments to take place within a day, avoiding the need for patients to stay in a hospital overnight.

19 Jul 2005

New and more efficient target for antiangiogenic therapy

Scientists now have a more complete understanding of how cancer cells send signals to surrounding tissues to promote development of the blood supply needed to support tumor growth.

19 Jul 2005

Minimally invasive colorectal surgery may have a less pronounced inflammatory response

Minimally invasive colorectal surgery may have a less pronounced inflammatory response and less of a suppressing effect on the immune system than conventional surgery, resulting in a possible reduction in post-operative complications, according to a study in the July issue of Archives of Surgery.

19 Jul 2005