Breast Cancer News and Research

Latest Breast Cancer News and Research

microRNAs appear essential for retinal health

Retinas in newborn mice appear perfectly fine without any help from tiny bits of genetic material called microRNAs except for one thing - the retinas do not work.

7 May 2008

Wal-Mart generic drug program to begin offering 90-day supplies of more than 350 medications for $10 each

Wal-Mart officials on Monday announced the company will expand its discount program for generic drugs to offer three-month supplies for $10, the AP/Google.com reports (Harris, AP/Google.com, 5/5).

6 May 2008

Breast cancer cluster prompts nationwide study of all ABC studios

The Cancer Council New South Wales (NSW) has announced that it is conducting a study of breast cancer cases at every Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) site in the country.

6 May 2008

FGFR2 gene increases susceptibility to breast cancer

Much work has been done to identify genetic variations that predispose women to breast cancer. Previous work showed that variants in the gene called fibroblast growth factor receptor 2 (FGFR2) were associated with increased risk of the disease, but how these variants translated into increased risk was unknown.

6 May 2008

Mood and anxiety disorders put cancer patients at risk for posttraumatic stress disorder

Breast cancer patients who have a prior history of mood and anxiety disorders are at a much higher risk of experiencing posttraumatic stress disorder following their diagnosis, new research suggests.

5 May 2008

Cells lining milk ducts hold key to spread of ductal carcinoma in situ

When a form of cancer that begins in the milk ducts of the breast invades neighboring tissue to spread to other parts of the body, the cause lies not in the tumor cells themselves but in a group of abnormal surrounding cells that cause the walls of the duct to deteriorate like a rusty pipe, according to a new study led by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute researchers.

5 May 2008

Epidermal growth factor receptor protects cancer cells from starving

A growth factor receptor found abundantly on the surface of cancer cells and long known to fuel cancer growth also protects tumor cells from starvation by a newly identified mechanism, researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center report in the May 5 issue of Cancer Cell.

5 May 2008

Variations of the adiponectin gene may predict risk of breast cancer in women

According to a recent study, led by Virginia Kaklamani, MD, an oncologist at Northwestern Memorial Hospital and assistant professor of medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, variations of the adiponectin gene, which regulates a number of metabolic processes, may increase a woman's risk of developing breast cancer.

2 May 2008

Fat grafting for breast enhancement

It is the cosmetic treatment many women have dreamed of -- taking the fat from their hips and thighs and redistributing it to their breasts. But many people question whether this procedure is safe or effective.

2 May 2008

Aspirin a day cuts risk of common breast cancer

Scientists in the U.S. say an aspirin a day may afford women some protection against the most common type of breast cancer, estrogen receptor or ER-positive breast cancer.

30 Apr 2008

New drug added to chemo kills off residual breast cancer stem cells

New research says chemotherapy often fails to totally eliminate breast cancer because it does not knock out breast cancer stem cells.

30 Apr 2008

Aspirin and other NSAIDs could lower the risk of breast cancer

Taking aspirin on a daily basis may lower women's risk of a particular type of breast cancer, according to results published in BioMed Central's open access journal Breast Cancer Research.

30 Apr 2008

Mothers and offspring can share cells throughout life - with positive and negative effects

Cutting the umbilical cord doesn't necessarily sever the physical link between mother and child. Many cells pass back and forth between the mother and fetus during pregnancy and can be detected in the tissues and organs of both even decades later. This mixing of cells from two genetically distinct individuals is called microchimerism. The phenomenon is the focus of an increasing number of scientists who wonder what role these cells play in the body.

30 Apr 2008

Study describes mechanism linking acohol with risk of breast cancer

The known association of alcohol consumption with an increased risk of breast cancer has been linked by researchers at the University at Buffalo to a process that causes genes that promote normal cell growth to produce proteins that precipitate unregulated cell growth, an action known as hypermethylation

30 Apr 2008

Breast cancer risk cut by breast feeding

A World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) survey has revealed that three out of four women are unaware that breast feeding can protect a woman from breast cancer.

29 Apr 2008

Medicare costs estimated at $21.1 billion for 5 years of care for elderly cancer patients

The cost of cancer care for elderly Medicare patients varies by tumor type, stage at diagnosis, phase of care, and survival, according to a new study published online April 29 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

29 Apr 2008

Getting to the roots of breast cancer

The lesson learned in eradicating dandelions from your yard could apply in treating breast cancer as well, said researchers from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston in a report that appears online today in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

29 Apr 2008