Women's Health News

RSS

More women are surviving advanced breast cancer

Writing in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, (Vol. 22, No. 16: 3302-3308), doctors from 3 French hospitals reported on 724 women whose first diagnosis was breast cancer that had spread to other parts of the body (stage 4). It is rare for women to be diagnosed with such late stage disease.

27 Aug 2004

Success of breast screening varies between women

Breast cancer may be harder to detect and exclude among women with certain personal and lifestyle characteristics, according to research published in this week's BMJ.

26 Aug 2004

Sugar-sweetened beverages increase women's risk of developing type 2 diabetes

Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH), Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Boston Children’s Hospital have found that women who increased their intake or consumed higher amounts of sugar-sweetened beverages had a greater magnitude of weight gain and a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes compared to women who consumed fewer sugar-sweetened drinks.

25 Aug 2004

Popular injectable contraceptive increases risk of STD's

The injectable contraceptive depot-medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA) appears to increase a woman’s risk of acquiring the sexually transmitted infections chlamydia and gonorrhea by approximately three fold when compared to women not using a hormonal contraceptive

23 Aug 2004

African-American women are less likely to be treated with breast reconstruction after mastectomy than women of other races

According to a new study published August 23, 2004 in the online edition of CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, African-American women had significantly lower immediate breast reconstruction rates compared to Caucasian, Asian, and Hispanic women. The abstract of this article will be freely accessible via the CANCER Newsroom.

23 Aug 2004

1 in 5 women who have mammograms every 2 years will have to undergo follow up evaluation for a false positive finding

A new long-term study finds over 20 years, only one in five women who have mammograms every two years will have to undergo follow up evaluation for a false positive finding. Only one in 16 will have an unnecessary invasive procedure over two decades.

23 Aug 2004

Evidence of pelvic floor nerve injury after routine vaginal birth

Women with pelvic floor disorders suffer from urinary and fecal incontinence as well as prolapse of the bowel, bladder and reproductive organs. (Bowel prolapse occurs when the bowel slips out of place, and pushes up against the walls of the vagina, which may cause a great deal of discomfort.)

20 Aug 2004

Benefits from short-term hormone therapy are likely to outweigh the risks

A group of prominent experts on treatment of the menopause today issued advice for doctors on the use of hormone therapy.

13 Aug 2004

The largest North American breast cancer prevention trial ever undertaken has reached its goal of enrolling 19,000 women

The largest North American breast cancer prevention trial ever undertaken, the Study of Tamoxifen and Raloxifene (STAR), reached its goal of enrolling 19,000 women to the trial in June 2004, a month earlier than originally expected.

13 Aug 2004

Alternative to hysterectomy for women with painful uterine fibroids

The University of Toronto’s teaching hospitals are all equipped to perform uterine fibroid embolization (UFE), but many women suffering from benign fibroids aren’t aware that there’s a procedure that can spare their uterus, says Gaylene Pron, professor of public health sciences and author of two 2003 studies evaluating the success of the procedure.

11 Aug 2004

Link between short-term hormone therapy (HT) and improvements in life quality for women with menopausal symptoms

An article in the current issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine explains how a computer based simulation model has found a link between short-term hormone therapy (HT) and improvements in life quality for women with menopausal symptoms. The article also points out that short-term hormone therapy may actually shorten life expectancy.

10 Aug 2004

Newborns may be harmed when pregnant women take Selective Serotonin Re-uptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) and other anti-depressants during the third trimester of pregnancy

Health Canada is advising Canadians that newborns may be adversely affected when pregnant women take Selective Serotonin Re-uptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) and other newer anti-depressants during the third trimester of pregnancy.

9 Aug 2004

Atherosclerosis at menopause slowed by diet and exercise

Thickening of artery walls accelerates as women enter menopause, but these signs of the progression of atherosclerosis can be slowed by a lower-fat diet and increased physical activity, according to a new study in the Aug. 4, 2004, issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

5 Aug 2004

A woman’s expectation of her life span can influence their babies’ gender

A study by biological anthropologists at University of Kent has revealed that contemporary, British women who believed they had a longer time to live, were more likely to give birth to a son than women who thought that they would die earlier.

5 Aug 2004

As the saying goes “breast milk is best”

As the saying goes “breast milk is best,” and more than 85 percent of new moms who give birth at the University of Michigan Health System agree and continue to breastfeed their new bundle of joy, on average, for the first six months.

3 Aug 2004

Half of women over 55 don't discuss osteoporosis with their doctors

A recent survey of 376 women age 55 and over found fewer than half of them discuss osteoporosis prevention therapies with their healthcare providers, yet this bone crippling disease is one of the major reasons women eventually lose their independence and enter nursing homes.

3 Aug 2004

African-American women are having fewer children and breastfeeding less

Keck School of Medicine researchers report that African-American women are having fewer children and breastfeeding less, which might translate to escalating rates of breast cancer in the African-American community.

3 Aug 2004

Risk of pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) decreases with condom use

A multi-center study from the University of Pittsburgh's Graduate School of Public Health suggests that women wishing to decrease their risk of pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) should ensure that their sexual partners use condoms consistently.

31 Jul 2004

Teenage girls' obsession with looking like Britney Spears or Posh Spice is leading to them to make unhealthy diet choices

Irish teenage girls' obsession with looking like pop divas Britney Spears or Posh Spice is leading to them to make unhealthy diet choices, according to University research.

29 Jul 2004

Tool that enables women with breast cancer to choose their own course of treatment

McMaster University cancer researcher, Tim Whelan, a radiation oncologist with the Juravinski Cancer Centre, has developed a tool that enables women with breast cancer to choose their own course of treatment.

29 Jul 2004