‘Dog Scan’ for Cancer!!

We all know that ‘CAT Scan’ is used in the diagnosis of cancer, but now doctors believe that ‘Dogs’ can actually sense cancer, since they can smell hundreds of chemicals released by the body in sweat, urine and breath, as a result of cancer.

Well, if ‘CATs’ can, why not ‘Dogs’!

Check this news story from ABC News to learn more about this interesting find!

‘Supermouse’ helps in finding a holistic approach to fight cancer!

BBC News: Mice carrying a gene which appears to make them invulnerable to cancer may hold the key to safer and more effective treatments for humans.

The new breed, created with a more active "Par-4" gene, did not develop tumours, and even lived longer, said the journal Cancer Research.

University of Kentucky researchers said a human cancer treatment was possible. Cancer Research UK said that more research would be needed to prove it didn't just work in mice.

Par-4 was originally discovered in the early 1990s working inside human prostate cancers, and is believed to have a role in "programmed cell death", the body's own system for rooting out and destroying damaged or faulty cells.

The Kentucky team used an existing mouse breed known to be more vulnerable to cancers to test whether Par-4 could be used to fight them.

They introduced the gene to mouse eggs, and it was active in both the resulting pups - and their own offspring.

The mice with active Par-4 did not develop cancers, and lived slightly longer than those without the gene.

Read more of this story….

Obesity increases your cancer risk (even if you are a non-smoker)!

Telegraph.co.uk: Obesity has become the main cause of cancer in non-smokers, a global conference will hear next week.

The World Cancer Research Fund has spent five years collecting information about the effect bodyweight, diet and physical activity has on the risk of developing cancer and will present its findings on Thursday.

Smoking is still the single biggest cause of cancers, accounting for one third of the 300,000 cases in the UK each year.

But only one quarter of people smoke and research has found that for non-smokers being overweight or obese is the most important avoidable cause of cancer. In the UK, 12,000 people a year could avoid cancer if they maintained a healthy weight, according to Cancer Research UK.

Obesity is known to cause between nine and 15 per cent of breast cancers – more than defective genes.

A recent study found women who have gone through the menopause and are obese increase their risk of developing breast cancer by a third.

Obesity is known to increase the risk of cancer by raising the level of hormones such as oestrogen, which feeds many breast cancers.

Read more of this story….

Breast Thermography – A new tool for early detection of breast cancer!

Breast Thermography or Digital Infrared Imaging is a technique that is based on the principle that metabolic activity and vascular circulation in both pre-cancerous tissue and the area surrounding a developing breast cancer is almost always higher than in normal breast tissue. In an ever-increasing need for nutrients, cancerous tumors increase circulation to their cells by holding open existing blood vessels, opening dormant vessels, and creating new ones. This process frequently results in an increase in regional surface temperatures of the breast. DII uses ultra-sensitive medical infrared cameras and sophisticated computers to detect, analyze, and produce high-resolution diagnostic images of these temperature variations. Because of DII’s extreme sensitivity, these temperature variations may be among the earliest signs of breast cancer and/or a pre-cancerous state of the breast. (Source: http://www.breastthermography.com/breast_thermography_mf.htm)

This technique is FDA approved, non-invasive, non-radioactive and painless and can help in detecting breast cancer much earlier than other established techniques like mammography. This news story from CBS News talks in detail about ‘Breast Thermography’ and the need for women to know more about this new technology.

Treating childhood cancer!

In spite of the developments in treatments and technologies that are enhancing the survival rate of childhood cancer, children with cancer are still at risk for developing various cognitive, sexual and heart problems, later in their lives, because of the cancer itself and the side effects of cancer treatments like chemotherapy and radiation therapy that they receive. Some studies have shown that cancer treatments can damage brain white matter and disrupt brain activity to a large extent.

Researchers at Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, New York are now working to reduce this risk, by reducing or increasing the doses of medicine administered on children with cancer, based on a type of protein present in the tumor. By doing so, they are able to minimize the damage caused by cancer therapies on the quality of the life of childhood cancer patients, which enables them to lead a normal life like any other person.

This news story, throws more light on this new approach to treating childhood cancer.

Why do ex-smokers continue to have a higher 'lung' cancer risk than non-smokers?

BBC News: Even years after quitting, former smokers still have a raised risk of lung cancer - and now scientists believe they know why.

Smoking appears to permanently alter the activity of key genes, even though most cigarette damage is repaired over time.

Canadian researchers, writing in the journal BMC Genomics, looked at lung tissue of 24 people.

UK experts stressed that giving up still delivers massive health benefits. It has been shown that the poisons in cigarette smoke can alter the activity of genes.

If you give up smoking, your risk of lung cancer falls significantly, but former smokers continue to have a slightly higher risk of lung cancer compared with someone who has never smoked.

The latest study from the British Columbia Cancer Research Centre in Vancouver suggests that some of these changes might be permanent.

They studied cell samples from the lungs of eight current smokers, 12 former smokers and four people who had never smoked.

Some gene changes appeared to be relatively short-lived, reversing after they had quit the habit for a year or more.

Read more of this story….

Smoking rates are falling in the U.S! - says Gallup

The Gallup Organization, which studies human nature and behaviors around the globe, has concluded from its ‘Gallup Smoking Poll’ that smoking rate in the Unites States is at its lowest level, since the 1950’s, and it is great news for a country, which has the highest rate of cancer in the world.

This news story throws more light on this poll (which was conducted across the globe) and its findings.