Cancer Research
Researchers say they have found another potential risk factor for breast cancer--Grandma's diet.
Georgetown University scientists say that pregnant rats that ate a high fat diet not only increased breast cancer risk in their female daughters but also in that daughter's offspring – the "granddaughters." Details of the study will be presented at the AACR Annual Meeting 2010.
Why the risk is passed on through two generations is unknown, but experts believe it occurs through as-yet unknown "epigenetic" changes that result in an increase in terminal end buds in the breast tissue – an increase that…
There is ongoing concern about the potential toxicity of nanoparticles of various materials, and a new study in Chemical Research in Toxicology reports that certain sunscreens that contain zinc oxide nanoparticles may be toxic if ingested.
The research found that particle size affects the toxicity of zinc oxide. Particles smaller than 100 nanometers were slightly more toxic to colon cells than conventional zinc oxide and solid zinc oxide was more toxic than equivalent amounts of soluble zinc. Direct particle to cell contact was required to cause cell death, according to the study.
"Unintended…
Although beneficial for health in general, a diet high in fruits and vegetables probably won't reduce your risk of cancer, according to a study led by researchers at Mt Sinai Hospital.
The analysis, published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, looked at over eight years of dietary data from more than 400,000 people and found that the relationship between high consumption of fruits and vegetables and a reduced risk of cancer is not nearly as strong as previously reported.
Many studies have tested the idea and the results have been mixed; but none of the research so far has been…
Tumors mimic key features of lymph nodes in order to create a tolerant microenviroment and escape attack from the immune system, say researchers from Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne in Switzerland.
The discovery, published in Science underscores the role of the lymphatic system in cancer and may open up new possibilities for cancer treatment.
Researchers studied a protein called CCL21 that is normally present in healthy lymph nodes to attract T cells and program them to perform vital immune functions. They found that some tumors can secrete this protein to transform the outer layer…
The 'war on cancer' has led to a reduction in the rate of cancer deaths whether measured against baseline rates in 1970 or in 1990, reports a new study by the American Cancer Society.
According to the study, the downturn in cancer deaths since 1990 is due mostly to reductions in tobacco use, increased screening allowing early detection of several cancers, and modest to large improvements in treatment for specific cancers. The study was published today in PLoS One.
Researchers used nationwide cancer mortality data for the years 1970 through 2006 from the SEER*Stat database, which defines…
A survey of parents who have lost children to cancer found that one in eight considered hastening their child's death, a consideration influenced by the amount of pain the child experienced during the last month of life, according to a new survey in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.
Researchers say the findings underscore the importance of managing patients' pain, and of communicating with parents about the tools available for easing progressive pain.
141 parents of children who had died of cancer were questioned about their behaviors and feelings leading up to their child'…
University of Pennsylvania scientists have found that mixed lineage leukemia (MLL), has an unusual way to keep the molecular motors running. The cancer cells rely on the normal version of an associated protein to stay alive.
MLL happens when a piece of chromosome 11 breaks off at the normal MLL-associated gene. The broken gene attaches itself to another chromosome, resulting in a fusion protein that eventually causes uncontrolled growth of blood cells.
Researchers discovered that this runaway growth triggered by the fusion protein is blocked when the gene for the normal protein is deleted…
Can a differential equation cure cancer?
A fascinating article in Forbes suggests that using mathematics may be able to create drug combinations that are far more effective than the ones now in use.1 "I have a suspicion that we are using almost all the cancer drugs in the wrong way," Larry Norton, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center deputy physician-in-chief for breast cancer, says. "For all I know, we may be able to cure cancer with existing agents."2
Norton says that current researchers tend to focus on "identifying cancer-causing genes rather than writing differential equations to…
In order to determine if there is cancer in the lymph nodes, pathologists must currently perform several detailed, time-consuming tests. But University of Missouri researchers have developed a laser-induced ultrasound, called the photoacoustic method, that may help doctors locate the general area of the lymph node where melanoma cells are residing with much more efficiency than is currently possible. The new approach is detailed in the Journal of Biomedical Engineering.
In the photoacoustic method, a tabletop device scans a lymph node biopsy with laser pulses. About 95 percent of…
Researchers have found a new oncogenic signaling pathway by which arsenic exposure may lead to adverse health effects, including bladder cancer. The results appear in Cancer Research.
While the correlation between arsenic exposure and cancer tumors such as those derived from bladder, lung and skin is well established, the molecular mechanisms driving this connection has remained unclear.
Using experimental data from cell cultures and results of epidemiologic studies, the researchers found that arsenic activates the Hedgehog signaling by decreasing the stability of the repressor form of GLI3,…