Breast Cancer News and Research

Latest Breast Cancer News and Research

Women warned about talcum powder ovarian cancer risk

Scientists have issued a warning to women about using talcum powder - they say it increases their risk of developing ovarian cancer.

29 Sep 2008

Gap in black, white new cancer diagnoses narrowing in Missouri; mortality rate gap falling more slowly, study finds

The gap between blacks and whites in Missouri for newly diagnosed cancers is narrowing in part because of an overall decline in smoking and an increase in cancer screenings, according to a study to be published early next year in the journal Missouri Medicine, the AP/St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

29 Sep 2008

Nanotubes detect tumors and deliver high-potency punch

Researchers at the Center for Cancer Nanotechnology Excellence Focused on Therapy Response (CCNE-TR), based at Stanford University, have found a new way to target cancer cells while leaving healthy cells untouched.

28 Sep 2008

Multifunctional polymer nanoparticles pass critical in vivo test

In an effort to overcome the drug resistance that often occurs in cancer, a team of investigators has developed a nanoparticle made of a blend of polymers that first releases a powerful anticancer drug and then delivers an agent that tricks a drug-resistant cell into committing suicide. Now, tests in mice with human breast cancer have shown that these blended nanoparticles are effective in maintaining high levels of both drugs in the vicinity of tumors.

28 Sep 2008

Social class dictates cancer risk

Cervical and lung cancer are more common in poor people while rates of breast cancer and melanoma are higher in the wealthy. A detailed analysis of the incidence of these four different kinds of cancer, carried out on more than 300,000 English cancer patients and published today in the open access journal BMC Cancer, describes the effects of socioeconomic group, region and age.

25 Sep 2008

Some cases of breast cancer overtreated

According to a new study standard radiation therapy for some breast cancer patients may not be medically required and may, therefore, be causing unnecessary serious side effects.

24 Sep 2008

One week radiation treatment for breast cancer as effective as standard 6 to 7 week course

A new type of radiation treatment rapidly speeds up treatment for some breast cancer sufferers.

24 Sep 2008

High salt levels in food banished by seaweed

High salt levels in processed food could be a thing of the past, thanks to new research which has found that a certain type of seaweed can be used as a natural, health boosting alternative that doesn't affect the taste or adversely affect the shelf life of the food.

From Sheffield Hallam University 21 Sep 2008

Breast MRI scan could determine need for radiation therapy

For women whose breast cancer has spread to their lymph nodes, a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan could replace exploratory surgery as the method for determining whether those women need radiation therapy to treat their disease, according to a study to be presented during the annual meeting of the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ASTRO) which opens today in Boston.

21 Sep 2008

New tool for early diagnosis of breast cancer

Scientists from Finland, Germany and the ESRF have developed a new X-ray technique for the early detection of breast cancer. This allows a 3D visualization of the breast with a high spatial resolution and is extremely sensitive to alterations in the tissue, such as those generated by cancer. This technique could be used in the next years in hospitals. It may help doctors to detect tumours with greater precision than is possible using current X-ray mammography.

17 Sep 2008

New drug might make tumor cells more sensitive to therapy

Scientists at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital have shown that it might be possible to make tumor cells more sensitive to irradiation and some types of chemotherapy by treating them with a drug that cripples their ability to repair DNA damage caused by these therapies.

16 Sep 2008

Benefits of combined treatments against cancer

In cancer therapy, the best results are often achieved by combining treatments such as chemotherapy, radiotherapy and surgery. This multidisciplinary approach is the focus of special symposia at the meetings of the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) and the European Society for Therapeutic Radiology (ESTRO) taking place in Sweden this month.

16 Sep 2008

Breast cancer vaccine could protect against aggressive HER2-positive breast tumours

Women with a certain type of breast cancer have been given hope in the form of a vaccine which promises to eliminate the cancer tumours.

16 Sep 2008

Pain-relieving gel makes mammograms a less painful experience

Women dreading the prospect of another painful mammogram can, according to researchers, relieve some of the breast discomfort by using a pain-relieving gel.

16 Sep 2008

Lung cancer in non-smokers is sixth biggest cancer killer

While lung cancer in smokers and former smokers is the biggest cancer killer by far, lung cancer in people who have never smoked is -- by itself -- the sixth biggest cancer killer in the United States.

15 Sep 2008

Vaccine against HER2-positive breast cancer offers complete protection in lab

Researchers at Wayne State University have tested a breast cancer vaccine they say completely eliminated HER2-positive tumors in mice - even cancers resistant to current anti-HER2 therapy - without any toxicity.

15 Sep 2008

DNA vaccine developed at the Karmanos Cancer Institute fights HER2-positive cancers

Researchers at the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute and Wayne State University School of Medicine have developed a HER2 DNA vaccine that has shown to be effective on drug resistant tumors in mice. The study was reported in the September 15 issue of Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

15 Sep 2008

Adding Taxotere to chemotherapy regimen improves survival in early breast cancer

For patients with early stage breast cancer that has spread to the lymph nodes, adding four cycles of docetaxel (Taxotere) into a sequential regimen of epirubicin followed by cyclophosphamide, methotrexate and fluorouracil (CMF) reduces the risk of recurrence and death, updated long-term results show.

15 Sep 2008

Surveillance mammography after treatment for primary breast cancer

The National Institute for Health Research Health Technology Assessment (NIHR HTA) programme has commissioned a new study to identify the most effective and efficient surveillance methods for women who have received treatment for primary breast cancer.

14 Sep 2008

Untapped potential of antidepressants for cancer

A comprehensive review of current scientific literature, published in the peer-reviewed journal ecancer, has suggested that antidepressants can help the human body fight cancer by boosting its own immune response, amongst other mechanisms.

11 Sep 2008