Surprise finding: Pancreatic cancers progress to lethal stage slowly – Pancreatic cancer develops and spreads much more slowly than scientists have thought, according to new research from Johns Hopkins investigators.
Breast density linked to increased risk of subsequent breast cancer – Researchers at Kaiser Permanente have found that patients with a very early form of breast cancer (ductal carcinoma in situ or DCIS) who have higher mammographic density may be at increased risk for subsequent breast cancer, especially in the breast opposite to the one with the initial cancer.
For some women, preventive mastectomies pay off — Study shows women with BRCA1 and BRCA2 genetic mutations significantly reduce their risk of breast and ovarian cancer with preventive surgeries – A long-term study of women with a genetic predisposition for breast or ovarian cancer showed that those who elected major preventive surgeries had a significantly reduced risk of those cancers.
Preventive cancer surgeries save women’s lives — Genetic testing is critical for women with family history of ovarian and breast cancers – A new study underscores the importance for women with a family history of breast or ovarian cancer to get genetic counseling and testing for the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes that make them more likely to develop lethal breast or ovarian cancer, says a Northwestern Medicine oncologist.
Researchers found that a single dose of radiation during surgery is just as effective as a prolonged course of radiotherapy for breast cancer. – The researchers from an international TARGIT research group found a new method of radiotherapy for breast cancer in which the treatment can be reduced to a single radiation exposure.
Vaccine hope for skin cancer sufferers – Nottingham scientists have been given the green light to test a vaccine which they hope could reverse, and even cure malignant melanoma, the most deadly type of skin cancer.
Exercise may keep cancer patients healthier during, after treatment – Breast and prostate cancer patients who regularly exercise during and after cancer treatment report having a better quality of life and being less fatigued, according to researchers at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit.
Estrogen-lowering drugs minimize surgery in breast cancer patients – A US study has confirmed the benefit of giving estrogen-lowering drugs before surgery to breast cancer patients. The treatment increased the likelihood that women could undergo breast-conservation surgery, also called lumpectomy, instead of mastectomy.
Delaying post-surgical radiation increases risk of breast cancer recurrence in older women – Older women who have had breast cancer surgery have a greater risk of the cancer returning if they delay their post-surgical radiation treatment, report Dana-Farber Cancer Institute scientists.
Personalizing cancer: Creating biomarkers from tumor DNA – Researchers have developed a new technique for tracking cancer by identifying personalized biomarkers from tumor DNA, reports a new study in the 24 February 2010 issue of the journal Science Translational Medicine, published by AAAS, the nonprofit science society.
Genes found linked to breast cancer drug resistance could guide future treatment choices – Researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have discovered a gene activity signature that predicts a high risk of cancer recurrence in certain breast tumors that have been treated with commonly used chemotherapy drugs.
Mayo Clinic researchers say breast cancer survival improves Herceptin used with chemotherapy – Using Herceptin with chemotherapy clearly improves treatment of women with HER2+ breast cancer, and should be the new standard of care, says a Mayo Clinic researcher.
