Breast Cancer

One drink a day may raise woman's risk of breast cancer

noreply@blogger.com (Nayana James) — Wed, 05 Dec 2012 07:00:00 +0000

Consuming as little as one booze a day or beneath may accession a woman's accident of developing breast cancer, according to a new abstraction appear this week.

European advisers analyzed abstracts from added than 100 studies that looked at the accord amid booze burning and breast blight and begin that accepting up to one booze per day aloft women's accident for the ache by 4 percent. Three or added drinks per day added accident by 40 to 50 percent.

"Women should not beat one booze [per] day, and women at animated accident for breast blight should abstain booze or absorb booze occasionally only," assured the authors, led by Helmut K. Seitz of the University of Heidelberg in Heidelberg, Germany.

Previous analysis has aswell begin a hotlink amid ablaze booze burning and animated breast blight risk. A abstraction appear in November begin that as few as three to six drinks per anniversary aloft accident by 15 percent.

Some experts said the allegation abutment accepted recommendations for women to booze in balance in adjustment to abbreviate their accident of breast blight as able-bodied as added bloom conditions. They added that while it's important to abstain boundless drinking, women should aswell accede booze as one of abundant factors that can play a role in the development of blight and added illnesses.

"The American Blight Society guidelines say that for women who don't drink, there is no acumen to alpha drinking, and not just to anticipate breast cancer. It can even anticipate affection disease," said Susan Gapstur, carnality admiral of epidemiology analysis at the American Blight Society. "For women who do drink, they should absolute their burning to no added than one booze per day. This abstraction underscores that these guidelines are reasonable."

Dr. Stefan Gluck, a assistant at the University of Miami Sylvester Blight Center, argued that although boundless bubbler should actually be avoided, there is annihilation amiss with accepting one booze a day. The 4 percent added accident a part of women who had one booze a day is a actual baby increase, he said, and added factors play a bigger role.

"There are abounding added things that are added important," he said. "If you attending at the American Association for Blight Analysis address from endure year, 30 percent of all blight deaths were attributable to smoker and addition 30 percent were attributable to obesity."

That aforementioned address begin booze played a role in about 3 percent of blight deaths.

Gapstur added that even admitting the abstraction begin ablaze bubbler animated accident alone moderately, breast blight is a actual accepted cancer, acceptation 4 percent can add up to a lot of women.

Past Studies Contradictory?

Other studies accept begin that abstinent booze assimilation can assure adjoin affection disease.

"A ample amount of empiric studies accept consistently approved a abridgement in coronary affection ache with abstinent booze consumption. Prohibiting booze burning would abjure a potentially ample bloom account to humans who would contrarily accept to drink," the American Affection Association says on its website.

The American Affection Association recommends that women accept no added than one booze per day.

While she fatigued that a booze a day should be the maximum, Gapstur added that women should get an all-embracing account of their alone accident for altered illnesses to get a bigger faculty of what affairs changes to accomplish to advance all-embracing health.

Papaya and Breast Cancer

noreply@blogger.com (Nayana James) — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 08:21:00 +0000

Papaya was the only studied food found to halt Breast CancerScientists studied 14 plant foods commonly consumed in Mexico to determine their ability to halt breast cancer cell growth. These included avocado, black sapote, fuava, mango, prickly pear cactus (nopal), pineapple, g****s, tomato, and papaya. They also evaluated beta-carotene, total plant phenolics, and gallic acid contents and antioxidant capacity. They found that only papaya had a significant effect on stopping breast cancer cell growth. (International Journal of Food Science and Nutrition, May)

Papaya is a store-house of cancer fighting lycopene

The intense orangey-pink color of papaya means it is chock full of cancer fighting carotenoids. Not only beta carotene, but lycopene is found in abundance. The construction of lycopene makes it highly reactive toward oxygen and free radicals. Scientists at the University of Illinois think this anti-oxidant activity contributes to its effectiveness as a cancer fighting agent. Epidemiological studies have indicated an inverse relationship between lycopene intake and prostate cancer risk. They showed that oral lycopene is highly bioavailable, accumulates in prostate tissue, and is localized in the nucleus of prostate epithelial cells.

In addition to antioxidant activity, other experiments have indicated that lycopene induces cancer cell death, anti-metastatic activity, and the up-regulation of protective enzymes. Phase I and II studies have established the safety of lycopene supplementation. (Cancer Letter, October 8, 2008)

Prostate cancer was the subject of a study in Australia that looked at 130 prostate cancer patients and 274 hospitalized controls. The scientists found that men who consumed the most lycopene-rich fruits and vegetables such as papaya were 82% less likely to have prostate cancer. In this study, green tea also exerted a powerf! ul anti-cancer effect. When lycopene-rich foods were consumed with green tea, the combination was even more effective, an outcome the researchers credited to their synergy. ( Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2007)

Isothiocyanates found in papaya restore the cell cycle to eliminate cancer

Organo-sulfur compounds called isothiocyanates are found in papaya. In animal experiments, isothiocyanates protected against cancers of the breast, lung, colon pancreas, and prostate, as well as leukemia, and they have the potential to prevent cancer in humans. Isothiocyanates have shown themselves capable of inhibiting both the formation and development of cancer cells through multiple pathways and mechanisms. (International Journal of Oncology), October, 2008)

Researchers in Japan clarified the mechanisms of action in a type of isothiocyanate found in papaya known as BITC, that underlies the relationship between cell cycle regulation and appropriate cell death. When cancerous cells die on schedule, they are no longer a problem. The researchers established that BITC exerted cancer cell killing effects that were greater in the proliferating cells than in the quiescent cells. Cancer cells that are proliferating are much more dangerous than cancer cells that are in a state of dormancy. (Forum of Nutrition, 2009)

Enzymes from papaya digest proteins including those that protect tumors

The fruit and other parts of the papaya tree, also known as the paw paw tree, contain papain and chymopapain, powerful proteolytic enzymes that facilitate chemical reactions in the body. They promote digestion by helping to break down proteins from food into amino acids that can be recombined to produce protein useable by humans. Proteolytic enzymes protect the body from inflammation and help heal burns. They do a good job of digesting unwanted scar tissue both on the skin and under its surface.

Research has shown that the physical an! d mental health of people is highly dependent on their ability to produce proteins they can use effectively. However, as people age, they produce less of the enzymes needed to effectively digest proteins from food and free needed amino acids. They are left with excessive amounts of undigested protein which can lead to overgrowth of unwanted bacteria in the intestinal tract, and a lack of available amino acids.

Eating papaya after a meal promotes digestion, and helps prevent bloating,gas production, and indigestion. It is quite helpful after antibiotic use to replenish friendly intestinal bacteria that were the casualties in the war against the unwanted bacteria. When the intestinal tract is well populated with friendly bacteria, the immune system is strengthened, and can better protect against flu and cancer.

Being a proteolytic enzyme, papain is able to destroy intestinal parasites, which are composed mostly of protein. To rid the body of intestinal parasites, half a cup of papaya juice can be alternated each hour for twelve consecutive hours with the same amount of cucumber or green bean juice.

Papaya contains fibrin, another useful compound not readily found in the plant kingdom. Fibrin reduces the risk of blood clots and improves the quality of blood cells, optimizing the ability of blood to flow through the circulatory system. Fibrin is also important in preventing stokes.Proteolytic enzymes containing fibrin are a good idea for long plane rides to minimize the potential of blood clots in the legs. People who sit at a desk all day might want to use proteolytic enzymes too.

Proteolytic enzymes are able to digest and destroy the defense shields of viruses, tumors, allergens, yeasts, and various forms of fungus. Once the shield is destroyed, tumors and invading organisms are extremely vulnerable and easily taken care of by the immune system.

Undigested proteins can penetrate the gut and wind up in the bloodstream where they are treated by the immune system as invaders. If too many undigested proteins are floating around, the immune system becomes overburdened and unable to attend to the other tasks it was meant to do. Proteolytic enzymes can digest these rogue proteins, freeing up the immune system.

Confusion Reigns Abroad Over Faulty Breast Implants

noreply@blogger.com (Nayana James) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 14:50:00 +0000

Women in Continent and Individual U.s. somebody received mixed messages from their governments nigh whether mamma implants from a now-defunct Nation militia should be separate.

The implants, prefab by Poly Infix Prostheses (PIP) and never ready in the U.S., were manufactured with a chintzy industrialized evaluation of polymer, rather than medical rating. The Gallic regime also saved that they tally an unusually adenoidal divide evaluate.

Officials in France hump recommended that the roughly 30,000 Carver patients who received the PIP implants have them confiscate out, with the polity support the vizor.

Recommendations from separate governments are scarce homogeneous: both get advised women to soul the implants separate but at their own cost; others score promised to pay but exclusive in cases where a particularized plant is leaking or is otherwise nonfunctional. Plant others soul only recommended that recipients mortal their implants checked.

PIP oversubscribed an estimated 400,000 of the implants worldwide before achievement out of of business in 2010.

The implants were neither authorized nor sold in the U.S., nor did the militia record an employment for FDA commendation, an effectuation exponent told MedPage Today.

But tens of thousands of the PIP implants were sold in Brasil, Mexico, and separate Mortal Earth nations that are nonclassical "scrutiny business" destinations for inexpensive impressible surgery.

"Patients should be knowledgeable there are risks to having a pattern [implantation] done maximal the U.S., peculiarly if the FDA has not authorized the twist," the FDA interpreter said.

The nonfunctional implants change been related with redness and irritation, and are author believable to separate, urination, or course the inferior-grade siloxane, according to whatever reports.

Patients' concerns roseate after a tot of figure women who received the defective devices died of house, with the current example occurring in Author in Nov 2010.

In January 2011, the FDA free a variety that noted a realizable connectedness between anaplastic large-cell lymphoma (MedPage Today) -- a rarefied var. of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma indicated as the make of the most past PIP-patient death -- and polymer helping implants.

A ulterior FDA estimate noted that localised complications are shared with all portion implants, with umpteen women needing to know implants distant or replaced within 10 life.

"Women should be alive that bosom implants are not lifetime devices," the FDA spokeperson told MedPage Today.

At this instant, no expressed line has been constitute between the PIP implants and house probability.

Brasil, which ingrained an estimated 10,000 implants, ceased goods of the PIP products in April 2010 after hit concerns were raised in Continent. A siamese company of the implants were sold in Mexico, which also stopped imports in 2010.

Since then, governments in Brazil and Mexico hump advised women to bed their implants chequered but stopped little of recommending package removals or auspicious to pay for explant procedures.

Several 15,000 were constituted in Colombia. Its governing has promised to pay for removals if recommended by a physician, Reuters reported.

In Britain, the Domestic Wellbeing Assistance (NHS) recommended against function remotion of the prosthetics because of a need of activity evidence, but said it would allot the 3,000 patients who'd had the implants square for by the NHS to soul them replaced for supply if they were saved to be leaking or otherwise malfunctioning.

Nonfunctional confront augmentation is not performed through the NHS, so the offer did not relate to the some larger symbol of British women who received PIP implants in snobbish clinics.

The NHS ulterior recommended cliquish practices similarly render patients who stipendiary for titty augmentation unhampered interview and exchange when clinically essential. The maximal of these practices, the Harley Examination Radical, said it would not supersede the faulty implants remove of trust, the BBC according.

The add value of equivalent for Country patients is estimated at $184 cardinal. The Gallic government module drop around $77 cardinal to vanish the taken devices, tho' it module not pay for replacements.

After the Country governing announced in mid-December that it would money the explanations, women in individual additional Continent nations -- including Deutschland and the Netherlands -- were counseled by their governments to get them separate.

Initially, the Country government advised recipients to bang their implants patterned by their doctors but did not recommend removal. But this hebdomad, the region's Welfare Inspectorate said that all women with the PIP implants should screw them distant.

But neither the Country nor Teutonic governing offered to beat the calculate.

Breast cancer treatment

noreply@blogger.com (Nayana James) — Sun, 02 Oct 2011 08:20:00 +0000

The mainstay of breast cancer treatment is surgery when the tumor is localized, followed by chemotherapy (when indicated), radiotherapy and adjuvant hormonal therapy for ER positive tumours (with tamoxifen or an aromatase inhibitor). Management of breast cancer is undertaken by a multidisciplinary team based on national and international guidelines. Depending on clinical criteria (age, type of cancer, size, metastasis) patients are roughly divided to high risk and low risk cases, with each risk category following different rules for therapy. Treatment possibilities include radiation therapy, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, and immune therapy.

Surgery
Excised breast tissue showing a stellate, pale area of cancer measuring 2 cm across. The tumor could be felt as a hard, mobile lump before the surgical excision.

Depending on the staging and type of the tumor, just a lumpectomy (removal of the lump only) may be all that is necessary, or removal of larger amounts of breast tissue may be necessary. Surgical removal of the entire breast is called mastectomy.

Lumpectomy techniques are increasingly utilized for breast-conservation cancer surgery. Studies indicate that for patients with a single tumor smaller than 4cm, lumpectomy may be as effective as a mastectomy. Prior to a lumpectomy, a needle-localization of the lesion with placement of a guidewire may be performed, sometimes by a radiologist if the area being removed was detected by mammography or ultrasound, and sometimes by the surgeon if the lesion can be directly palpated.

Live tissue samples for testing

Recently[citation needed] live tissue samples from surgery are tested with various chemotherapy agents to derive probabilities of which ones may work better and specially the ones which would not work (Cell-death assays). The companies need the sample within 24 hours of surgical excision. This is specially useful for early stage cancers were a response for the therapy cannot be determined once the whole cancer is taken out during the surgery and the chemotherapy is given in an adjuciant setting. However, the benefits of such tests have not yet been established in clinical trials and is not mainstream.

Radiation therapy

Radiation therapy is an adjuvant treatment for most women who have undergone lumpectomy and for some women who have mastectomy surgery. In these cases the purpose of radiation is to reduce the chance that the cancer will recur. Radiation therapy involves using high-energy X-rays or gamma rays that target a tumor or post surgery tumor site. This radiation is very effective in killing cancer cells that may remain after surgery or recur where the tumor was removed.

Radiation therapy can be delivered by either external beam radiotherapy or brachytherapy (internal radiotherapy). In the case of external beam radiotherapy, X-rays are delivered from outside the body by a machine called a Linear Accelerator or Linac. In contrast, brachytherapy involves the precise placement of radiation source(s) directly at the treatment site. Radiation therapy for breast cancer is usually performed after surgery and is an integral component of breast-conserving therapy.

All u need to know about breast cancer

noreply@blogger.com (Nayana James) — Sat, 15 Jan 2011 09:41:00 +0000

Here is what i came acroos on the net, found it informative n sharing with u, hoping its not a repost:

The truth behind some of the most common misconceptions about breast cancer.

Images from this article Public awareness about breast cancer has increased dramatically over the past 20 years. Yet misleading ideas still persist. Here, we explain the truth behind common misconceptions.

Myth: The "one in eight chance of breast cancer" statistic means that if eight women are randomly selected, one of them must have or will get breast cancer.

Fact: In reality, the statistic -- which comes from the National Cancer Institute -- is an estimate of a woman's chance of developing breast cancer during her entire lifetime. So if a woman lives to be 85, she has a one in eight (12.5%) chance of getting breast cancer. But for younger women the odds are much better. For example, a 50-year-old woman has a 1 out of 54 chance. At age 40, a woman's odds of getting breast cancer are 1 in 235. Of course, these probabilities are based on population averages, so an individual woman's risk may be higher or lower, depending upon various factors, including family history, reproductive history and other factors that are not yet fully understood.

Myth: Only women can get breast cancer.

Fact: Men have breast tissue, so it is possible for them to develop breast cancer. Like all cells of the body, a man's breast duct cells can undergo cancerous changes. Because women have many more breast cells than men do, and perhaps because their breast cells are constantly exposed to the growth-promoting effects of female hormones, breast cancer is much more common in women. This year about 1500 men are expected to be diagnosed with breast cancer in the United States.

Myth: Using deodorant or antiperspirant causes breast cancer.

Fact: This urban legend has suggested that chemicals in antiperspirants are absorbed through the skin, interfere with lymph circulation and cause toxins to accumulate in the breast that eventually lead to breast cancer. There is absolutely no experimental or epidemiological evidence to support this. Chemicals in products such as antiperspirants are tested thoroughly to ensure their safety.

Myth: Mammograms are painful and unsafe.

Fact: Mammograms can be uncomfortable, but the compression of the breast during mammography takes only a few minutes. To lessen discomfort, schedule your mammogram when your breasts are least sensitive (not right before your period). Mammograms result in only minimal exposure to radiation, so they are safe.

Myth: Any mass that shows up on a mammogram is most likely cancerous.

Fact: Most abnormalities will turn out not to be cancer. A mass could be a cyst or another benign breast condition. Your physician can perform an ultrasound or biopsy to investigate further.

Myth: Breast-feeding increases your risk for breast cancer.

Truth: A woman who breast-feeds can get breast cancer, but no studies indicate that breast-feeding causes breast cancer. In fact, some studies indicate that breast-feeding can reduce a woman's risk of developing the disease.

Myth: If breast cancer doesn't run in your family, you won't get it.

Fact: About 80% of women who get breast cancer have no known family history of the disease. Increasing age is the biggest single risk factor for breast cancer. If you have a family history of breast cancer, your risk may be elevated a little, a lot, or not at all. If you are concerned, discuss your family history with your physician or a genetic counselor.

Myth: Birth-control pills cause breast cancer.

Fact: Today's birth-control pills contain a low dose of the hormones estrogen and progesterone. They have not been associated with an increased risk of breast cancer and, in fact, can provide some protection against ovarian cancer. The higher-dose contraceptive pills used in the past were associated with a small increased risk in only a few studies.

Myth: A monthly breast self-exam is the best way to find breast tumors.

Fact: High-quality mammography is the most reliable way to find breast cancer as early as possible -- when it is most curable. By the time a tumor can be felt, it is usually bigger than the average size of one first detected by mammogram. However, breast examination by you and your health care provider is still very important. About 25% of breast cancers are found only on breast examination (not on the mammogram), about 35% are found using mammography alone and 40% are found by both physical exam and mammography. So it's important that you take a three-step approach: yearly mammograms (for women 40 and older), yearly clinical breast exams, and monthly self-exams.

What are the symptoms of Breast Cancer?

noreply@blogger.com (Nayana James) — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 09:24:00 +0000

What are the symptoms of Breast Cancer?

Screening for breast cancer by mammography (X-raying the breast) is offered every three years in the UK to all women between 50 and 64. The highest number of cases of breast cancer occurs in women between these ages.

Mammography can detect very early breast tumours, when they are too small to be felt. In fact, most of the breast cancers detected by screening are at this very early stage, when they are relatively easy to cure. Studies have shown that women who take part in screening are more likely to have breast cancer diagnosed early and more likely to have it cured and, as a result, are less likely to die from it, than women who do not take part in mammography screening.

Another method of screening available to all women is to feel the breasts for any lumps. A guide on how to do this properly can be obtained at any doctor's surgery. Women should also check for the other main symptoms:

Change in the size or shape of a breast
Dimpling of the breast skin
The nipple becoming inverted
Swelling or a lump in the armpit

Vegetables and lower breast cancer risk

noreply@blogger.com (Nayana James) — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 09:19:00 +0000

Cruciferous vegetables may help lower the risk of developing breast cancer, particularly for women who carry a particular gene variant linked to the disease.

American researchers studied more than 6,000 women and found that those with the highest intake of cabbage and white turnips had a somewhat lower risk of postmenopausal breast cancer than those with the lowest intake. The findings add to evidence that compounds in cruciferous vegetables may help fight cancer. Cabbage, white turnips, broccoli, cauliflower and kale contain certain compounds that the body converts into substances called isothiocyanates, which are thought to have anti-cancer effects.

High consumption of cabbage and white turnips were linked to a moderately lower breast cancer risk. But the apparent benefit was stronger among women who carried two copies of a particular variant of a gene called GSTP1. Among these women, those with the highest intake of any cruciferous vegetables had about half the risk of breast cancer as those who ate the fewest.

GSTP1 is an enzyme that helps detoxify the body of potentially cancer-causing substances. Some studies have suggested that having a particular form of the gene - the Val variant - may raise a woman's risk of breast cancer. The current study found that women who carried two copies of the Val variant did, in fact, have a higher risk of developing breast cancer before menopause than women who had other variants in the GSTP1 gene. But the excess risk was cut substantially in those who ate the most cruciferous vegetables.

It's possible that people who carry two Val variants of the GSTP1 gene excrete the beneficial isothiocyanates more quickly, and eating more cruciferous vegetables helps counter this. However, more research is needed to better understand how cruciferous vegetables might modify breast cancer risk.

What is Breast Cancer?

noreply@blogger.com (Nayana James) — Sat, 15 May 2010 12:03:00 +0000

Breast cancer will affect more than 200,000 American women this year. That means about one out of every eight women will be told they have breast cancer at some point in their life. Breast cancer to a lesser extent also affects men.

How Breast Cancer Happens
The breast is made up of five main parts: the lobes, lobules, fat, milk ducts and stroma.

During pregnancy and breastfeeding, the lobules produce milk, which travels through the ducts to the nipple.

Most breast cancers originate inside the milk ducts, but it can start anywhere in the breast tissue. This happens when cells turn cancerous and start to grow unchecked. As with other cancers, these cells are abnormal and divide and grow rapidly, often resulting in the development of a lump.

Breast cancer can spread via the lymph vessels in the breast. Lymph vessels carry a colorless fluid that supports the immune system and removes waste from the cells. These vessels are connected to the lymph nodes—a type of gland located throughout the body. A lymph gland is often the first place cancer will spread to beyond the breast.

Signs & Symptoms of Breast Cancer

Signs and symptoms of breast cancer include:

A lump anywhere in the breast tissue
Spontaneous clear or bloody discharge from the nipple
Retraction or indentation of the nipple
A change in size or contours of the breast
Any flattening or indentation of the skin covering the breast
Redness or pitting of the skin over the breast.
While these signs and symptoms may be due to cancer, they can be the result of other diseases and conditions.

Only your doctor or an oncologist will be able to tell you if you have breast cancer. If you think you may be at risk, and especially if you have any of the warning signs, call your doctor.

Breast Cancer Screening
A woman's breast screening program may vary, depending on family history and other significant risk factors.

The process typically consists of the following:

Breast Self Examination (BSE). This should be done at least once a month.
Clinical Breast Examination. This is a physical examination performed by your doctor.
Mammogram. A mammogram uses a series of x-rays to capture images of your breast tissue to better see the lump in your breast. The test typically lasts about 30 minutes, and you should avoid drinking caffeine for two days prior to the exam to reduce breast tenderness. And don't wear deodorant, which contains aluminum and can interfere with the quality of the image.
If the mammogram confirms that you have a lump, your doctor will order additional tests to determine if the lump is cancerous.
Biopsy. A biopsy is a procedure that requires removing a sample of the tissue from your breast with a small needle. Depending on how deep the lump is located within your breast, the doctor may have to remove a larger sample to properly test it for cancer.
Regular testing is extremely important. The American Cancer Society recommends the following guidelines for breast cancer screening:
Know how your breasts normally feel and report any changes to your doctor. Starting in your 20s, breast self-examination is very important.
If you're in your 20s or 30s, have a clinical breast exam every three years, and have one every year if you're 40 or older.
And if you can, schedule your routine mammogram right after your menstrual cycle, when your breasts are least tender.
If you're at greater risk of breast cancer because of your family history, genetic makeup, past breast cancer or other significant risk factors, talk with your doctor. You may benefit from more frequent exams, earlier mammograms and/or additional tests.
The most common sign of a potential problem starts with a change in the size, or the feel of your breast, such as a lump. If you find a lump, this does not necessarily mean that you have breast cancer, but you should tell your doctor, so it can be further investigated.

Treating Breast CancerIf your tests show you have breast cancer, you should work closely with your doctor to figure out the best treatment for you. To do that, your doctor will consider many different factors including the stage of your cancer, your age, the size and shape of your breasts, and your feelings about your body.

Surgery. The most common treatment for breast cancer is surgery. The two main types are lumpectomy with radiation, and mastectomy. During a lumpectomy, your surgeon will only remove the cancerous lump and as little of the surrounding tissue as possible. This surgery largely keeps your breast tissue intact.
A mastectomy is a more dramatic surgery, because more of the breast tissue is removed. The amount removed depends on how far the cancer has spread. Reconstructive surgery is an option that you should talk to your doctor about.
Radiation or Chemotherapy. After the surgery, it's possible that radiation or chemotherapy will be needed for some period of time to help eradicate any cancer that may have spread in your body.
Remember, the earlier you detect breast cancer through regular exams and screenings, the better chances you have to beat the disease.