Researchers Say Skin Cancer has Nearly Doubled Since 1994
The L.A. Times Booster Shots blog reports that a research paper in the Archives of Dermatology says there is an "epidemic of [non-melanoma skin cancer] in the United States." The Archives of Dermatology research also estimates that the incidence of skin cancer is nearly double what it was in 1994. The Archives of Dermatology estimated that in 2006, 2.1 million Americans were treated for 3.5 million cases of non-melanoma cancer.
Basically, more Americans are getting treated for skin cancer and more people are getting multiple skin cancers. In 2004, $1.5 billion was spent curing this type of cancer. You can read an abstract from the article here.
Despite the clear link between tanning beds and skin cancer there are still lots of teenager using tanning beds. A recent study found that tanning salons are as common as McDonald's in some towns.
Zac Efron gives cancer the bird with Emily Hobson, a young adult cancer survivor. Zac Efron is helping promote an organization called the I'm Too Young For This! Cancer Foundation. i[2]y exists to ensure that young adults affected by cancer are given access to the best age-appropriate support they are entitled to in order to get busy living at every stage of their survivorship. The organization also tries to raise awareness that young people do get cancer.
The non-profit organization sells Stupid Cancer wristbands to raise money. The wristbands can
be purchased here. Zac Efron has also been spotted wearing the wristband in paparazzi pics. i[2]y says, "Wear the band, give cancer the bird and know that 100% of your purchase goes directly to helping survivors regain their dignity and live their lives."
Study Links Sweetened Soft Drinks to Increased Pancreatic Cancer Risk
Reuters reports that a study of 60,000 people in Singapore found that people who drink two or more sweetened soft drinks a week have a significantly higher risk of pancreatic cancer.
People who drank mostly fruit juice instead of sodas did not have the same risk, the study of 60,000 people in Singapore found.
Sugar may be to blame but people who drink sweetened sodas regularly often have other poor health habits, said Mark Pereira of the University of Minnesota, who led the study.
"The high levels of sugar in soft drinks may be increasing the level of insulin in the body, which we think contributes to pancreatic cancer cell growth," Pereira said in a statement.
CTV News reports that the study found an 87% higher risk of developing cancer for those who drank two or more soft drinks per week. No higher risk was found for those drinking fruit juice. Pancreatic cancer kills about 34,290 in the U.S. each year on average.
The beautiful and talented British film star Jean Simmons has died of lung cancer at age 80. Some of Jean Simmons' films included Great Expectations, Hamlet, Guys and Dolls, The Thornbirds and Spartacus. You can read obits here, here and here. Take a look:
We just love these. A new article in the Archives of Internal Medicine links
coffee intake to a reduction in Alzheimer's disease, prostate cancer and type two diabetes.
This month alone, an analysis in the Archives of Internal Medicine found that people who drink three to four cups of java a day are 25% less likely to develop Type 2 diabetes than those who drink fewer than two cups. And a study presented at an American Association for Cancer Research meeting found that men who drink at least six cups a day have a 60% lower risk of developing advanced prostate cancer than those who didn't drink any.
Earlier studies also linked coffee consumption with a lower risk of getting colon, mouth, throat, esophageal and endometrial cancers. People who drink coffee are also less likely to have cavities, gallstones, cirrhosis of the liver, Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease, or to commit suicide, studies have found. Last year, researchers at Harvard University and the University of Madrid assessed data on more than 100,000 people over 20 years and concluded that the more coffee they drank, the less likely they were to die during that period from any cause.
The only people that should stay away from coffee are those that have high blood pressure, are prone to anxiety and pregnant women. Everyone else can enjoy their lattes.
Employees at Providence Health & Services, a hospital in Portland, Oregon, created a fun video to generate breast cancer awareness. The video has received over 3 million views. The song is the video is Jay Sean's "Down." Take a look:
CNN says the video, which features over 200 of the hospital's employees, has gone viral. Take a look:
United Airlines and American Cancer Society Introduce Holden Hugyou
United Airlines and the American Cancer Society are teaming up for the third consecutive year. Holden Hugyou - a huggable, limited-edition 14-inch Gund teddy bear - was designed for this year's money raising effort. Holden is the cuddly younger brother of Maye I. Hugyou and Kenny Hugyou, who delivered smiles to nearly 18,000 children in 2008 and 2007.
For each contribution of at least 7,500 Mileage Plus miles or of a minimum of $50, volunteers - including United employees - will deliver a Holden Hugyou teddy bear to a child with cancer at hospitals throughout the country in February 2010. Contributions can be made through December 31 by visiting united.com/bearhug. Individuals who contribute $250 to the American Cancer Society through this initiative will also receive their own Holden Hugyou bear.
"The expressions of the faces of children receiving a teddy bear is worth a million miles," said Sonya Jackson, president of the United Airlines Foundation. "We are so grateful for the overwhelming response from our customers and colleagues, who together have raised more than 100 million Mileage Plus miles and more than $360,000 for the American Cancer Society for this program since it began in 2007."
Report: Women More Likely to Be Abandoned by Spouses When Serious Illness Strikes
A new report published in the journal Cancer has some very disturbing findings. Women who received a diagnosis of cancer are seven times more likely to get divorced than men who receive a similar diagnosis. The study focused on brain cancer patients: the oncologists had noticed a disturbing trend in their practices. Most of the men who had a brain tumor got full support from their wives. But many of their female patients were undergoing treatment alone.
When Dr. Marc Chamberlain, a Seattle oncologist, was treating his brain cancer patients, he noticed an alarming pattern. His male patients were typically receiving much-needed support from their wives. But a number of his female patients were going it alone, ending up separated or divorced after receiving a brain tumor diagnosis.
Dr. Chamberlain, chief of the neuro-oncology division at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, had heard similar stories from his colleagues. To find out if these observations were based in fact, he embarked on a study with Dr. Michael J. Glantz of the University of Utah Huntsman Cancer Institute and colleagues from three other institutions who began to collect data on 515 patients who received diagnoses of brain tumors or multiple sclerosis from 2001 through 2006.
The results were surprising. Women in the study who were told they had a serious illness were seven times as likely to become separated or divorced as men with similar health problems, according to the report published in the journal Cancer.
Over all, about 12 percent of the patients in the study ended up separated or divorced, a rate that was similar to that found in the general American population during that time period. (Lifetime divorce rates in the United States are higher.) But the pattern changed when the researchers looked at the patient-divorce breakdown by sex. When the man became ill, only 3 percent experienced the end of a marriage. But among women, about 21 percent ended up separated or divorced. Among couples who split up, divorce occurred, on average, about six months after the diagnosis, although there was wide variability in the timing.
There was no data as to who initiated the divorce proceedings but it seems most unlikely that the women were more likely to demand a divorce just because they got a cancer diagnosis. Naturally, the case of John and Elizabeth Edwards comes to mind: when Elizabeth got sick, John had an affair (several of them if the latest reports are to believed). The study does not address why women are much more likely than men to be abandoned by spouses when they are seriously ill.
Video: Betsey Johnson Talks Lifetime Achievement Award, Does Cartwheel
Designer Betsy Johnson appeared on Good Day New York to discuss being awarded the Medal of Honor for Lifetime Achievement in Fashion from the National Arts Club's fashion committee. Betsey was awarded the medal at a black tie affair, where a retrospective of her designs were displayed. Betsey is a breast cancer survivor and spends a great deal of time fundraising for breast cancer charities. She talks about how she discovered she had breast cancer after having her breast implants. Betsey attributes her longevity in the business to a youthful outlook: she ends every runway show (and this television interview) with a cartwheel. Take a look:
Video: Melissa Etheridge Talks About Breast Cancer
Melissa Etheridge sings at the Hard Rock Cafe to promotes a month-long breast cancer awareness program. Melissa talks about her breast cancer diagnosis five years ago and how it changed her life. Melissa underwent chemotherapy and is now cancer free. Take a look:
Scientific Breakthrough: Faulty Gene Present in 50% of all Breast Cancers Discovered
In what is being being hailed as the most significant breast cancer research finding, scientists have discovered
a gene that is faulty in 50% of all breast cancers.
The finding will help researchers understand how cancer develops and may in future lead to new treatments, they said.
Everyone is born with the gene, called NRG1, but in some people it gets damaged during their lifetime and this can lead to cancer developing, it has been found.
Damaged NRG1s have been found in half of breast cancers and it has also been implicated in half of all prostate and bowel cancers along with one quarter of ovarian and bladder cancers.
When the gene works properly it acts as a brake, stopping cancer cells from growing, but when it is damaged the brakes are off, allowing the cells to multiply into a tumour.
Everybody is born with an intact NRG1 but it gets damaged in some people during their lifetime, thereby enabling cancer to develop.
The exact reason why the gene is damaged is lost has not yet been discovered.
However, by identifying the gene, experts hope they will be able to target therapies at specific cancers in the future.
Researchers say that the finding is a major step forward in understanding how cancer develops. They are hoping to find ways to bypass the gene or create a treatment that would heal the defect in the gene.
Video: Beyonce Sings at Children's Cancer Ward in Singapore
Beyonce took time out of her schedule performing for the F1 in Singapore to visit the children's cancer ward in a local hospital. She joined in an impromptu rendition of "Irreplaceable" much to the joy of the staff and patients. We're sure she helped raise their spirits. A fan in the room filmed the (somewhat shaky) video. Take a look:
Belkin has launched two iPod case and holder products for October, National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Pictured above is the Grip for the Cure, an iPod touch case with the pink-ribbon logo. Belkin is also selling the DualFit for the Cure. For each DualFit and Grip case for iPod touch sold, Belkin will donate $2.50 to support Susan G. Komen for the Cure. They are guaranteeing a minimum donation of $100,000.
Tanning beds were recently upgraded to defintely a cause of cancer by an expert panel. The news is likely to boost sales of bronzers and self-tanning sprays while diminishing the use of tanning beds. However, the CEO of Beach Bum Tanning told the New York Times that he has not seen a decrease in the use of tanning beds yet.
It is too soon to tell how the tanning bed business will be affected. James Oliver, chief executive of Beach Bum Tanning, with more than 25 salons in New York state, said "people are coming in and asking about it, but we have not seen a decrease in business." But the study is prompting many in the blogging community to ponder if "pale is the new tan."
Others wonder if sunless tanning options that don’t rely on UV rays - spray tanning, bronzers and tanning creams - may benefit from the study.
Natalie Cupid, manager of Sundara, a spray-tan salon in Midtown, said that even before the study she had noticed a move away from the UV solution. “A lot of our clients have not sworn off beds but have definitely become more aware that they are not as healthy as perceived,” she said.
It would be nice if the "pale is the new tan" trend would quickly catch on everwhere but there will probably always be a portion of the community that continues to tan themselves. Cigarette warnings and knowledge that smoking causes cancer and wrinkles have not caused everyone to stop smoking. There have been studies that suggest indoor tanning can be addictive so there may some people unable to stop tanning without help.
Researchers Discover Compound That Kills Cancer Stem Cells
U.S researchers have discovered a compound which could revolutionize breast cancer treatment. The compound kills the breast cancer stem cells that are responsible for growing new cancer cells. They are called "master cells" and before this scientists have been unable to kill them.
"There is a lot of evidence to suggest now that these cells are responsible for many of the recurrences that are observed after treatment has stopped," Piyush Gupta of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Broad Institute, whose study appears in the journal Cell, said in a telephone interview on Thursday.
The problem is that cancer stem cells are rare and difficult to study in the lab because they quickly change into other types of cells. And they are hard to kill.
"It wasn't clear it would be possible to find compounds that selectively kill cancer stem cells," Gupta said in a statement. "That's what we did."
*****
A chemical called salinomycin hit the target. It was 100 times more potent at killing breast cancer stem cells than Bristol-Myers Squibb Co's cancer drug Taxol, or paclitaxel.
Cancer stem cells treated with salinomycin were far less able to start breast cancers when injected into mice than cancer stem cells treated by paclitaxel. And the treatment also appeared to slow the growth of tumors in the mice.
Gupta said it is not clear if salinomycin will emerge as the best drug compound for killing breast cancer stem cells — or that it will be safe to use in people with cancer.
But the study offers a new roadmap for drug companies to isolate and test compounds capable of killing the cells.
Although the research is groundbreaking, unfortunately it won't lead to a quick cure for cancer. Thee is much more research to be done before human trials can be started. With luck, a treatment using the compound could be available in a few years, the scientists said.
