The use of preoperative Breast MRI detects otherwise occult cancer with a relatively high degree of accuracy when applied to a diverse population of patients newly diagnosed with breast cancer, according to a new study.
Continue Reading Add comment February 15th, 2011
Researchers have discovered a gene signature that can accurately predict which breast cancer patients are at risk of relapse, thereby sparing those who are not from the burdens associated with unnecessary treatment.
Continue Reading Add comment February 15th, 2011
A new study has found that tamoxifen, an anti-estrogen breast cancer medication, may reduce an individual’s risk of death from lung cancer. The study supports the hypothesis that there is a hormonal influence on lung cancer and that estrogen levels play a role in lung cancer patients’ prognosis.
Continue Reading Add comment January 31st, 2011
The use of preoperative Breast MRI detects otherwise occult cancer with a relatively high degree of accuracy when applied to a diverse population of patients newly diagnosed with breast cancer, according to a new study.
Continue Reading Add comment January 30th, 2011
The use of preoperative Breast MRI detects otherwise occult cancer with a relatively high degree of accuracy when applied to a diverse population of patients newly diagnosed with breast cancer, according to a new study.
Continue Reading Add comment January 11th, 2011
Types of diabetes; those who are at risk; causes, symptoms and proper diagnosis. Treatment options (insulin, medication, and self-monitoring procedures); prevention.
Continue Reading Add comment December 11th, 2010
A German study indicates that women at high-risk for breast cancer can benefit from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans by detecting a nonmalignant tumor called ductal carcinoma in-situ (DCIS). If the pre-cancerous growth is discovered and removed before it becomes malignant, breast cancer could be prevented. Almost all malignant breast cancer is believed to begin with DCIS.
Because MRI is expensive, about $1,000 to $1,500 per scan, the technology does not yet make sense as a routine screening tool for all women. However, for women who have a strong family history of cancer or a genetic mutation found through testing, MRI can be especially effective. Apart from the expense, MRI has a high rate of false positives – often detecting lesions that are harmless. MRI scanning of breasts should always be paired with mammography, which finds things that MRI doesn’t.
The German study of 7,319 women took place over a five-year period. MRI scanning found DCIS in 90% of the 167 high-risk women discovered to have the condition, while mammograms detected only 56% of DCIS cases.
Two Dutch researchers involved with the study published their findings and recommendations in Lancet medical journal. They suggested that MRI be tested in more women to determine whether the technology should be used as a standard screening tool. They also noted that autopsy results show 9% of women have undetected DCIS.
The American Cancer Society recommends for women at high risk that MRI screening be performed annually in conjunction with mammography starting at age 30.
About 1.2 million cases of breast cancer are diagnosed annually, and each year 500,000 women (and a small percentage of men) die of the disease.
Source: Yahoo News
Add comment August 11th, 2007
Ovarian cancer is one of the most difficult female cancers to find early. The symptoms are often vague, illusive, or nonexistent until the cancer has spread beyond the ovary and into the abdominal cavity. As a result, only 45% of all women with the disease survive at least five years after diagnosis.
When ovarian cancer is found early enough to be surgically removed before spreading, as in only 19% of cases, some 93% of patients are alive five years later. This year about 22,430 new cases are expected to be diagnosed and more than 15,000 women will die of the disease.
Recently, cancer experts identified a set of health problems that could be early symptoms of ovarian cancer. They urge women who have these symptoms consistently for more than a few weeks to see their doctors. Ovarian cancer grows so rapidly that even a few months’ delay can mean the difference in survival. Tumors can spread quickly to the intestines, liver, diaphragm, and other organs.
Potential warning symptoms are bloating, pelvic or abdominal pain, difficulty eating, feeling full quickly, and frequent urges to urinate. A woman experiencing any of those problems almost every day for three weeks is urged to see a gynecologist, especially if these symptoms are new or markedly different from the usual. We aren’t talking about transient bloating that often accompanies menstruation or a lifelong history of indigestion. A bladder infection that persists after treatment would be a cause for concern.
Too often, women with advanced ovarian cancer were originally given a wrong diagnosis, such as depression or irritable bowel syndrome. Some are told they are just growing old or going through the change of life. It is important to be persistent and seek out a specialist if your concerns are dismissed by your general practitioner.
Any woman with persistent symptoms as cited should see a gynecologist for a pelvic and rectal exam. A doctor can feel the ovaries through the rectum. A transvaginal ultrasound to check ovaries for abnormal growths, and a CA125 tumor marker blood test are also steps that can be taken to get an accurate diagnosis.
Anyone with suspicious findings on tests should be referred to a gynecologic oncologist, a surgeon who specializes in female reproductive system cancers. The woman may be monitored for a while or advised to undergo a CT scan or MRI. When cancer is strongly suspected, urgent surgery should be done. Needle biopsies cannot be done as in breast cancer, as any escaping cancer cells could spread the malignancy throughout the abdomen. The entire ovary or abnormal growth on it must be removed and the rest of the abdomen be examined for cancer.
When more extensive cancer is found, the gynecologic oncologist removes as much cancerous tissue as possible while the patient is still on the operating table. When such “debulking†is done, followup chemotherapy works better and improves survival.
In the absence of a definitive screening tool or test to find ovarian cancer before it has symptoms, women need to be vigilant and see their doctors for any persistent symptoms identified recently as early signs of the disease.
Source:Â New York TimesÂ
Add comment June 13th, 2007
This spring, new information came out about breast cancer screening, much of it perplexing to women. Past guidelines for annual mammograms included women in their 40s. Now, a major medical group disputes the need to screen women between the ages of 40 and 49.
The American College of Physicians has issued new and controversial guidelines. Their rationale is that for every 10,000 women screened in their 40s, perhaps six might avoid death from breast cancer. In addition, a high percentage of false positives could lead to unnecessary biopsies, increased costs, and potential for injury. Younger women receiving annual screenings might also incur a tiny risk of cancer developing from radiation used in mammograms.
All medical groups and experts agree that women 50 and over should get regular annual mammograms. Some women are known to have a very high risk of developing breast cancer — based on a strong family history or genetic testing showing defective BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes. The American Cancer Society recommends screening mammograms and MRI imaging for these women, beginning at age 30. Sonograms are also used for more definitive imaging in high-risk young women whose breasts are quite dense.
Recently, a new study found that MRI scans can detect tumors mammograms missed in about 3% of women. This sensitive technology, not available in all hospitals, often picks up suspicious but harmless growths that need to be biopsied. The result can be costly procedures that might cause unnecessary alarm in women. For those few in whom cancer is found at an early stage, MRI can prove valuable and, hopefully, life-saving.
Another controversial subject is a computer-assisted program designed to help radiologists identify small cancers on mammograms. This system has proved to be no more effective than traditional mammography read by an experienced radiologist. The technology also has led to many false alarms requiring needless biopsies. About 30% of mammography centers use computer-assisted technology, and no clear medical benefits have been found. Government and private insurers may be re-evaluating whether these expensive systems are worth the price.
The best advice in the screening controversy is to assess your risks carefully with your physician and determine what is right for you. If you are very high risk for breast cancer, use all available technologies at an early age. Early detection is still the best strategy.
Source:Â Â New York Times
Add comment April 7th, 2007
For women with very dense breasts or a strong family history of breast or ovarian cancer, MRI can yield much greater detail than mammography. MRI is so sensitive that it can reveal many types of suspicious growths in the breast. For this reason, there may be more false-positive findings leading to some unnecessary biopsies and additional scans. But for women at high risk for the disease, MRI can find tumors when they are most treatable.
Breast MRI requires special equipment, software and trained radiologists, and the expense can be 10 times the cost of mammography. In addition, breast MRI may not be available outside large cities.
Women at high risk are defined as having at least a 20 to 25% chance of developing breast cancer over their lifetime. Most U.S. women have about a 9% lifetime risk. Those who inherited defective BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes – a condition involved in only 10 percent of breast cancers – have a lifetime risk ranging from 36 to 85% of getting the disease. Especially at risk are those whose mothers, sisters or daughters carry those mutations, even if the woman herself has not been tested.
Using MRI for breast scans is especially useful for women who have been diagnosed with cancer in one breast and who need to know the status of the other breast. This sensitive technology can find tiny tumors that mammograms have missed. If an early cancer is detected in the other breast, both can be treated at the same time. Studies have shown that 10% of women with cancer in one breast over time will also develop it in the second breast.
MRI scans are most useful in younger women with cancer diagnosed in one breast and those with dense tissue that mammograms do not clearly image. Older, post-menopausal women with early tumors and clear mammograms are less likely to need MRI imaging.
Breast MRI can cost between $1,000 and $2,000. It may not always be covered by medical insurance. Figuring out just who needs MRI scans in addition to mammography can be difficult and much will depend on having a knowledgeable referring physician. A simple risk calculator is available online at http://www.cancer.gov/bcrisktool/. Genetic counseling can also be valuable in determining a woman’s level of risk.
Sources: New York Times ; MSNBC
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Add comment March 31st, 2007
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