Of Mice, Moisturizers, Skin Cancer: Controversy Afoot

Albino mice in a Rutgers University laboratory that were pre-treated with ultraviolet (UV) light to simulate the lifelong effect of a human’s sun exposure developed skin cancer when a number of common moisturizing creams were applied to their skins.  The creams were meant to be the vehicle by which caffeine would be administered to the mice in an effort to prove the theory that caffeine might prevent skin cancer.  The finding that the creams themselves caused cancer was a surprise to the research team. Read more

Risk of Breast Cancer Recurrence Lingers Many Years

There is a general understanding that an absence of cancerous cells five years after treatment means the fear of recurrence has passed and the patient can claim a cure from cancer.  New research, however, reveals that the risk of developing a recurrence of breast cancer lingers many years, even when systemic therapies to prevent recurrence have been undertaken. Read more

Joy of Smoking Begins in the Genes

People who catch a buzz off their first cigarette are more likely to develop an addiction to nicotine, than are people who do not feel any sense of pleasure from the experience, according to a new study conducted at the University of Michigan (UM) Medical School.  Habitual smokers report a buzz from their first cigarette eight times more often than nonsmokers who’ve tried cigarettes. Read more

Young Men at Risk Not Getting PSA Screenings

Duke University Medical Center’s Prostate Center has just released the outcome of their survey that explored the prevalence of PSA screening tests in men younger than 50.  A recent study suggesting men who are not expected to live 10 more years should not get routine PSA tests has led to an update of generally accepted guidelines that call for an annual screening for every man age 50 or older and beginning at age 40 for men who fall in high-risk categories. Read more

New Procedure Freezes Damaged Esophageal Cells, Stopping Cancer in its Tracks

The summer sun is scorching hot in Texas these days but Dr. Jayaprakash Sreenarasimhaiah is keeping things cool inside the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, where he is actually using liquid nitrogen to freeze damaged esophageal cells to kill them before they transform into cancer. The specialized equipment needed for this life-saving procedure is available in only a few facilities nationwide but the therapeutic relief the procedure brings is sure to interest millions of Americans. Read more

Do Cell Phones Pose Health Risks?

Nobody knows for sure, but caution is recommended, according to a report released this week by the Pittsburgh Cancer Institute.
While the jury is still out, some recent studies have suggested a possible link between certain types of benign tumors and brain cancers which develop on the side the device is used. Most of the studies focused on people have used cell phones for at least 10 years. Read more

Americans Still Not Getting Colorectal Cancer Exams

Men and women age 50 and over are urged to get tests that screen for colorectal cancer but only about half of them have done so as of 2005.  Testing has proven to be highly effective in reducing the number of deaths attributed to this widespread form of cancer and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) would like to see many more Americans of this age group getting screened.  Only lung cancer kills more Americans that colorectal cancer does. Read more

Magnolia Extract Targets Cancer Cells’ Survival Signals

Almost one-third of all cases of cancer in humans involve a mutated version of a family of genes called Ras that stimulate the growth of cancer and have thus far been considered undruggable, due to their resistance to previous attempts to chemically manipulate them.  Ras activates an enzyme, phospholipase D, which allows cancer cells to stay alive in the face of traditional anti-cancer therapies when most cells would otherwise die, earning it the reputation for being a survival signal within the cells of a specific group of cancerous tumors.  Researchers at the Emory University School of Medicine, however, have been studying the use of a compound called honokiol, which is proving to be successful at blocking the pathway to cellular growth in even Ras-related cancers.

Honokiol, a compound derived from magnolia cones, has long been used in Chinese and Japanese herbal medicine applications.  It was found to successfully inhibit the growth of tumors in laboratory mice in 2003.  The Emory research team, led by Jack Arbiser, MD, PhD, and associate professor of dermatology, believes knowing exactly how honokiol works will help the medical community know which forms of cancer it is most beneficial in treating.  Although honokiol has shown promise in treating a wide variety of cancers, it is proving to be the most effective when treating tumors activated by the Ras family of genes.  The research team says that when used in conjunction with other anti-cancer treatments, honokiol may make cancerous tumors more sensitive to traditional treatments.

When applied to breast cancer tumors, the compound seems to prevent Ras genes from turning on phospholipase D.  Similar action has been discovered in laboratory tests of bladder and lung cancers.

The National Institutes of Health funded the research and Emory University has begun the process of licensing honokiol and similar compounds so they can be used in human tests.  The university has approved the financial interest expected by Arbiser as inventor of the technology.

Source: Emory University

Genetic test for breast cancer approved

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has just announced approval of a genetic test that will help determine which breast cancer patients will be best served by taking the drug Herceptin (trastuzumab) for treatment.  The new test, SPOT-Light HER2 CISH, measures the number of the HER2 gene in cancerous breast tissue. Read more

Young American Women Getting Tanned to Death

The most lethal form of skin cancer is on the rise in American women aged 15 to 39, according to data provided by the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) program, operated by the National Cancer Institute.  The number of cases of melanoma, the form of skin cancer in question, has risen in young women by as much as 50% between 1980 and 2004.  Authorities suggest the increasing popularity of tanning salons may be one reason for the dramatic increase in this cancer. Read more

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