Tag Archive for: obesity

Notable News – June 2019

/in , /by
Bookmark (0)

No account yet? Register

It’s official! The nation’s cancer mortality rate continues to decline, says cancer.gov. The finding was revealed in this year’s annual report regarding the status of cancer in the country. The report shows that cancer death rates have continued to decline in men, women, and children from 1999 to 2016. Specifically, lung, bladder, and larynx cancers are decreasing, which is attributed to the decline in tobacco use. Conversely, cancers related to obesity are increasing. The highest overall cancer incidence rates occurred in black men and white women. The lowest rates were among Asian/Pacific Islander men and women. In addition, researchers looked specifically at cancer trends among those aged 20 to 49. In this group women had higher cancer and death rates than men, which is the opposite of the data among all age groups. Breast cancer, thyroid cancer, and melanoma were identified as the most common cancers on the rise among 20 to 49 year old women. The report, published last month in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, is put together by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the American Cancer Society (ACS), and the North American Association of Central Registries (NAACCR). Find more detailed information about the annual report here.

The decline in cancer deaths just may have a lot to do with the amazing strides being made in understanding cancer and its risk factors, ways to diagnose it, and ways to treat it. Researchers at Yale have made a discovery about how metastasis, the spread of cancer, occurs on the molecular level that could lead to new ways of treating cancer, reports medicalexpress.com. While the study focused on renal cancer, understanding metastasis on the molecular level could lead to new testing and treatment for all types of cancer. Find more information about the study and the metastasis process here.

It’s important to know if you are at risk for certain cancers and having children through IVF may be one of them, reports thesun.co.uk. A 21-year study analyzing over 600,000 Danish women suggests that women who have had children using IVF are more likely to develop breast cancer. In addition, women who had their first child through IVF when they were 40 or older, were 65 percent more likely to develop breast cancer than women of the same age who conceived naturally. The drugs given to women during IVF to stimulate the ovaries may be the culprit. They increase levels of estrogen, a known factor in the occurrence of breast cancer. Make sure you are staying on top of your breast cancer screenings if you had children using IVF, and learn more about the study here.

Also reported by thesun.co.uk, is good news about early detection, specifically for prostate cancer. Scientists have developed a simple urine test that could show signs of prostate cancer five years early. The test, which could be available in as few as five years, looks for changes in specific genes. If the changes are noted, further testing is done. The process would mean that some men would not have to have invasive testing procedures and others would know of their prostate cancer risk earlier. Learn more about the promising new test here.

Finally, of interest this month is an article by theatlantic.com regarding the two technologies that are changing the future of cancer treatment, and the way in which oncologists are looking at treating the disease. The article points to immunotherapy and CAR T-cell therapy as kindler, gentler approaches to cancer treatment. Chemotherapy, which is the most successful treatment to date, as the article points out, can make the treatment process brutal. Oncologists are turning to the new therapies to treat cancer without the harsh side effects that come with chemo. The article is a quick read and it provides hope for anyone who is or may be affected by cancer. That means all of us. Check it out here.

Notable News: September 2018

/in , /by
Bookmark (0)

No account yet? Register

Since smoking is the leading cause of preventable disease and death worldwide, reports about it don’t usually contain good news, but this month they do. The International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) is convening in Toronto, Canada this week for the 19th World Conference on Lung Cancer #WCLC2018, and the importance of screening is being emphasized. Data coming out of the conference shows that CT screening reduces lung cancer deaths by 39% in women and 24% in men. Cdc.gov says the only recommended screening for lung cancer is low-dose computed tomography (also, low-dose CT scan or LDCT). Yearly lung cancer screenings are recommended for people who have a history of heavy smoking, smoke now or have quit in the past 15 years, and are between 55 and 80 years old. So, if you are at risk, make sure you are getting screened! Also, you can find the cdc.gov fact sheet about smoking here.

Another study shows that smoking might not remain the leading cause of preventable disease and death, but something else is going to take it’s place. Right now smoking is the leading cause of preventable cancer among women in the United Kingdom, but that is set to change, reports cnn.com. Thanks to a reduction in smoking and an increase in body weight, obesity will be the leading cause of cancer in women by 2043 if current trends continue. The news is particularly alarming because obesity can also cause some cancers, including breast cancer, to spread. Data collected between 1979 and 2014 was analyzed to determine the projections. Campaigns highlighting smoking risks are credited with the reduction in smoking-related cancers, and researchers are suggesting similar campaigns about the risk of obesity be implemented. More information can be found here. These findings aren’t unique to the UK; this report from November 2017 shows similar trends in the United States.

Obese or not, the quality of your food can increase your risk for cancer, reports medicalnewstoday.com. A study done in Paris shows that regular consumption of food low in nutritional value increases cancer risk. Of the 471,495 participants in the study, 49,794 had been diagnosed with cancer. More specifically, the findings showed men had an increased risk for colorectal cancer, cancer of the upper aerodigestive tract and stomach, and lung cancer. Women showed an increased risk for liver cancer and postmenopausal breast cancer. The research is being used to support the enforcement of a food-labeling system that would clearly state nutritional value of products. Learn more about the study and the food-labeling system here.

More good news comes this month in the form of new information. A study reported in cancer.gov reveals that cancer of the appendix, while usually given the same chemotherapy treatments, is actually quite different from colorectal cancer and other gastrointestinal cancers. The study also showed that the type of gene mutations present in appendiceal cancers could serve as an indicator for a patient’s prognosis. While the study isn’t likely to change practice yet, the information does provide helpful information about a rare cancer, and it indicates a need to develop treatments based on each specific cancer subtype. Much more detailed and technical information about the study findings and appendiceal cancers can be found here.

Finally, there are a couple of stories that happened this month that are worth sharing because they emphasize the poignancy of National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month in a way that little else could. The first is a love story about a couple that recently got married on the grounds of St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital. The bride and groom are both childhood cancer survivors who met at St. Jude’s while undergoing treatment 25 years ago. They lost touch over the years, but they were reunited when they both accepted jobs at St. Jude’s, and they rekindled their childhood friendship. Their friendship blossomed into love, and this couple of survivors chose September 1, the first day of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, as their special day. Read more about the couple’s big day here. Bonus: there’s a video!

The second story is a different kind of love story. It’s about two-year-old Brody Allen. Brody has terminal brain cancer, and he loves Christmas. Brody isn’t expected to make it to Christmas this year so his parents decided to celebrate Christmas early. They put up a tree, and they put up outdoor decorations. Then, their neighbors started to decorate, too. Soon, the whole town was in on it and, earlier this week, Brody’s hometown put on a full-on, life-size Christmas parade in his honor, complete with super heroes and Santa Claus. You can read more about Brody here and see clips from his parade here. Merry Christmas, Brody.