http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. Carol Carr showed all the signs of colorectal cancer seven years ago, but doctors thought the 44-year-old Glen Burnie, Md., woman was too young to have the disease and never tested her for it. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-younger-people-colorectal-cancer.html Cancer Fri, 10 Aug 2012 09:10:01 EST news263806594 When treating prostate cancer with radiotherapy, knowing the prostate cancer position is critical to accurately targeting the radiation beam to avoid missing the tumour and irradiating healthy tissue. Prostate cancer patients being treated with radiotherapy can now have their prostate position known to within 0.5mm during radiation treatment thanks to a study led by Professor Paul Keall, NHMRC Australia Fellow at the University of Sydney. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-prostate-cancer-treatment.html Cancer Mon, 06 Aug 2012 07:16:40 EST news263456193 People with cancer often receive fragmented and uncoordinated care, as their treatments frequently require help from multiple clinicians. However, a new review by The Cochrane Library finds no evidence that three main strategies designed to improve coordination of cancer care are effective. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-07-cancer.html Cancer Fri, 13 Jul 2012 08:13:00 EST news261385046 A new cancer drug with remarkably few side effects is dramatically improving survival in Hodgkin lymphoma patients who fail other treatments and are nearly out of options. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-06-drug-survival-hodgkin-lymphoma-patients.html Cancer Wed, 27 Jun 2012 10:44:47 EST news260012675 A recent Phase I/II clinical trial has shown that a new combination of radiation therapies developed at Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center escalates radiation doses to safely and effectively treat prostate cancer and lower the risk of recurrence with minimal radiation exposure to nearby healthy tissue and organs. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-06-therapy-safely-prostate-cancer-lowers.html Cancer Tue, 26 Jun 2012 17:41:21 EST news259951274 An estimated 3.5 million cancer patients around the globe are in severe pain from their disease, but many get no relief. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-implantable-pain-disk-cancer.html Medical research Fri, 25 May 2012 10:50:02 EST news257159816 A novel pancreatic cancer vaccine shows promise in improving survival when added to standard treatment, according to new research out of University Hospitals Case Medical Center's Seidman Cancer Center and Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. The Phase 2 data was presented today at the Annual Meeting of the Society for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract, part of Digestive Disease Week in San Diego. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-pancreatic-cancer-vaccine.html Cancer Tue, 22 May 2012 12:58:04 EST news256910275 In a paper published today in the journal Cell, a team from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill unveils the first broad-based test for activation of protein kinases "en masse", enabling measurement of the mechanism behind drug-resistant cancer and rational prediction of successful combination therapies. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-kinase-yield-big-gains-drug-resistant.html Cancer Thu, 12 Apr 2012 12:00:04 EST news253441476 Low oxygen levels in tumors can be used to predict cancer recurrence in men with intermediate-risk prostate cancer even before they receive radiation therapy. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-oxygen-tumors-prostate-cancer-recurrence.html Cancer Sun, 01 Apr 2012 05:58:29 EST news252478701 Breast cancer patients treated with intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) instead of standard whole breast irradiation (WBI) have a lower incidence of acute or chronic toxicities, according to a study in Practical Radiation Oncology (PRO), the official clinical practice journal of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-imrt-side-effects-breast-cancer.html Cancer Wed, 28 Mar 2012 11:50:18 EST news252154210 Could blocking a testosterone receptor lead to a new way to treat an aggressive form of breast cancer? That's a question researchers at Mayo Clinic in Arizona and the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) are exploring. Preliminary results of a Mayo Clinic - TGen collaborative study shows the testosterone receptor may be a potential target to attack in treating triple negative breast cancer (TNBC). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-role-testosterone-triple-negative-breast.html Cancer Fri, 23 Mar 2012 09:29:27 EST news251713731 (Medical Xpress) -- Image-guided stereotactic radiation therapy is well tolerated and very effective in locally-controlling lung cancer, Methodist Cancer Center researchers report in the April issue of the Journal of Radiation Oncology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-stereotactic-radiotherapy-excellent-local-lung.html Cancer Tue, 20 Mar 2012 09:36:37 EST news251454989 Researchers at the University of Granada and the university hospital Virgen de las Nieves in Granada have developed a new radiotherapy technique that is much less toxic than that traditionally used and only targets cancerous tissue. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-02-radiotherapy-technique-significantly-irradiation-healthy.html Cancer Fri, 24 Feb 2012 10:44:42 EST news249302670 Researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Fla., and the University of South Florida (USF) College of Medicine evaluated the experience of medical students who participated in videotaped sessions where they practiced conveying difficult news to "standardized patients" (SPs). The SPs role-played patients with a variety of cancers and who were receiving bad medical news. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-02-bad-news-patients.html Health Wed, 22 Feb 2012 11:57:21 EST news249134169 Stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) provides better overall survival rates than surgery for lung cancer patients with severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a disease commonly associated with lung cancer, according to a study in the upcoming March issue of the International Journal of Radiation, Oncology, Biology, Physics, the official scientific journal of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-02-sbrt-outcomes-surgery-cancer-patients.html Surgery Thu, 16 Feb 2012 12:59:47 EST news248619574 Man may not live by bread alone, but cancer in animals appears less resilient, judging by a study that found chemotherapy drugs work better when combined with cycles of short, severe fasting. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-02-short-fasting-chemotherapy-mice.html Cancer Wed, 08 Feb 2012 14:00:03 EST news247920060 The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) has developed a guideline on the radiotherapeutic and surgical management for newly diagnosed brain metastases. It has been published in Practical Radiation Oncology (PRO), ASTRO's official clinical practice journal. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-02-astro-brain-metastases-guideline.html Cancer Wed, 08 Feb 2012 11:03:57 EST news247921422 Radiation therapy with or without chemotherapy is less effective for patients with HIV when compared to the recurrence and overall survival rates in patients who do not have HIV, according to a study presented at the Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancer Symposium. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-standard-treatments-neck-cancer-effective.html Cancer Thu, 26 Jan 2012 11:50:01 EST news246795615 Patients with gynecologic cancer have new hope in a novel technology now offered at the Seidman Cancer Center at University Hospitals (UH) Case Medical Center. A team of cancer specialists, led by Robert DeBernardo, MD, is among the first in the nation to launch a dedicated program using Hyperthermic Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy (HIPEC) to treat ovarian, endometrial and select other cancers. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-uh-case-medical-center-therapy.html Cancer Fri, 20 Jan 2012 17:51:04 EST news246304256 Investigators at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Cancer Center have identified a new genetic signature associated with bile duct cancer, a usually deadly tumor for which effective treatment currently is limited. Their report, which has been published online in The Oncologist, finds that growth-enhancing mutations in two related genes may account for nearly a quarter of bile duct tumors arising within the liver, presenting the possibility that drugs targeting this mutation could represent a new strategy to control tumor growth. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-gene-mutations-bile-duct-cancer.html Cancer Wed, 18 Jan 2012 14:36:58 EST news246119693 Having a brother or sister with newly diagnosed cancer can be a distressing and difficult time for a child. While most children eventually cope, there can be a period of adjustment when their school work and social functioning suffer. New research published in BioMed Central's open access journal Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health shows that a teaching program, designed to improve the child's knowledge about their sibling's disease and to give them coping skills, was able to improve their adjustment and psychological well being in this early time period after diagnosis. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-siblings-children-cancer.html Psychology & Psychiatry Wed, 11 Jan 2012 05:04:19 EST news245480652 The holidays are over, January has arrived, and many of us enter the New Year determined to live our lives a little healthier than last. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-spice-food-boost-disease-prevention-power.html Health Fri, 06 Jan 2012 14:50:02 EST news245078063 (Medical Xpress) -- In choosing where they get treatment, prostate cancer patients tend to opt for a major cancer center if they have severe disease, but stick closer to home for less complicated cases, even when offered a model of care that taps numerous experts. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-approach-prostate-cancer-patients-riskiest.html Cancer Thu, 05 Jan 2012 09:00:36 EST news244976423 Obesity doubles the risk of cancer recurrence and cancer-related death in patients with esophageal cancer who have been treated with surgery, researchers at Mayo Clinic found. Their 778-patient study, which appeared in the Dec. 1 issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology, found that five-year survival in obese patients -- those with a body mass index of 30 or higher -- with esophageal cancer was 18 percent, compared to 36 percent in patients of normal weight. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-12-obesity-linked-higher-year-death.html Surgery Tue, 20 Dec 2011 13:16:18 EST news243609347 In an African county lacking any specialists in children's cancers, a team approach that "twins" Rwandan physicians with Boston-based pediatric oncologists has shown it can deliver expert, curative care to young patients stricken with lymphoma. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-12-twinning-us-based-rwandan-physicians.html Cancer Tue, 13 Dec 2011 03:47:44 EST news242970447 Breast cancer patients frequently undergo imaging like mammograms or ultrasounds between their first breast cancer-related doctor visit and surgery to remove the tumor. Evaluations of these scans help physicians understand a person's disease and determine the best course of action. In recent years, however, imaging has increased in dramatic and significant ways, say researchers from Fox Chase Cancer Center. More patients have repeat visits for imaging than they did 20 years ago, and single imaging appointments increasingly include multiple types of imaging. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-12-breast-cancer-patients-imaging-surgery.html Surgery Fri, 09 Dec 2011 19:22:53 EST news242680958 (AP) -- In the smoker-heavy state of Kentucky, a cancer center is suggesting something that most health experts won't and the tobacco industry can't: If you really want to quit, switch to smoke-free tobacco. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-10-urges-smokers-smokeless-tobacco.html Health Fri, 28 Oct 2011 15:20:22 EST news239034002 The European Association of Echocardiography has announced that it is working together with the American Society of Echocardiography to issue joint recommendations on the usefulness of serial echocardiographic evaluations and the potential impact of more advanced ultrasound technologies (in particular Speckle Tracking Echocardiography) in patients undergoing cancer therapy. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-10-ase-eae-issue-guidelines-echocardiographic-cancer.html Cardiology Thu, 20 Oct 2011 11:21:00 EST news238328453 Approximately 10-20 percent of prostate cancer patients have a family history of the disease. There are three major factors that are used to evaluate the extent and aggressiveness of prostate cancer, help make treatment decisions, and estimate prognosis: the Prostate Specific Antigen Level (PSA), Gleason score (GS) from the biopsy, and the digital rectal exam findings (DRE). However, men with a family history of prostate cancer have often been feared to have a more aggressive form of the disease not otherwise represented by these three factors and therefore are sometimes urged to undergo more aggressive treatment. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-10-aggressive-treatment-men-family-history.html Cancer Wed, 05 Oct 2011 13:54:32 EST news237041665 After a prostate cancer patient receives radiation treatment, his doctor carefully monitors the amount of prostate-specific antigen, or PSA, in his blood. An increase in PSA, called biochemical failure, is the first detectable sign of the cancer's return to the prostate. Fox Chase Cancer Center researcher have found that the time between the last radiation treatment and biochemical failure can accurately predict a patient's risk of death of prostate cancer. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-10-tool-prostate-cancer-patients-highest.html Cancer Wed, 05 Oct 2011 09:08:33 EST news237024502