Hidden costs of DIY genetic tests
PEOPLE should think carefully before buying do-it-yourself genetic tests over the internet, says an Australian scientist.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
cancer
The following articles have the tag cancer
Kids at higher cancer risk after CT scans
CHILDREN undergoing CT scans have a 24% higher risk of developing cancer than those who have not had scans, Australian research has found.
Australian who developed cancer from diabetes drug to fight US pharmaceuticals
AN AUSTRALIAN patient who developed bladder cancer after taking type 2 diabetes medication pioglitazone (Actos, Eli Lilly) for almost two years has been added to legal action taking place in the US against two pharmaceutical companies.
Lessons on lymphoedema
THE Lymphoedema Breast Cancer App was developed by Kelly Foote, an Australian physiotherapist, and promotes self-awareness.
Power food fights disease
PHYTOCHEMICALS play a role in reducing human disease risk.
Health gets a fair deal in this budget
DESPITE the savings measures, health has actually done remarkably well when you look at the cuts elsewhere in this budget.
Watchdog issues order to AVN on black salve
THE Australian Vaccination Network (AVN) has for the second time been ordered to remove misleading claims from an advertisement on its website for black salve, an unregistered treatment the AVN claimed could cure cancer.
Prolonged grief not included in DSM-5
BOWING to pressure, the authors of DSM-5 have kept grief out of the diagnostic manual, according to an Australian psychiatrist.
Budget round-up: How health fared
THE government is set to net $644 million over four years by freezing indexation of Medicare rebates at current levels until 1 July 2014 as part of savings measures in the federal budget.
Health takes budget hit: $1.7 billion savings from Medicare
HEALTH was one of the major areas that took a hit in last night's federal budget as Treasurer Wayne Swan looked to limit the deficit, with more than $1.7 billion over four years collected through changes to Medicare.
MIMS May prescribing update
New products
HPV self-testing could be a way forward in East Africa
SELF-collection of samples for HPV RNA testing shows promise for identifying women in low-resource settings at higher risk for high-grade cervical lesions, researchers say.
Cognitive decline as CVD risks rise
COGNITIVE function may decline in adults from as young as 35 years as heart disease risk factors increase, a study suggests.
Latin America facing huge cancer burden: report
THE cancer mortality rate in Latin America is nearly twice that of the United States, largely due to late diagnosis, according to a new report predicting a million deaths annually.
Slow tamoxifen uptake for prevention
INCREASING the uptake of selective oestrogen receptor modulators (SERMs) to prevent breast cancer in higher-risk women requires a cultural shift by doctors and patients, a cancer expert believes.
An irritating, recurring itch
VULVAL pruritus is a common symptom resulting from infectious or noninfectious causes.
Chemo funding shake-up
THOUSANDS of cancer patients may now be spared treatment disruption after the federal government agreed to reinvest some of the funds recently cut from chemotherapy, according to pharmacy leaders.
Australia really is the lucky country
AUSTRALIANS live longer, healthier lives than people in almost every other country, according to a major international study.
Cervical screening review - A Prof Dorota Gertig - Observations
In this podcast, Dr Annette Katelaris speaks with Associate Professor Dorota Gertig, a public health physician and Medical Director of the Victorian Cervical Cytology Registry.
Obese men at higher risk of prostate cancer
OBESE men are more likely to have precancerous lesions detected in benign prostate biopsies compared with non-obese men, research has shown.
One daily soft drink increases diabetes risk by 22%
THE link between sugary soft drinks and diabetes has been demonstrated again in a new study that found just one sweet beverage per day significantly increased the risk of developing the condition.
Hep C doctor seeks leave to appeal
A MELBOURNE doctor sentenced to a minimum of 10 years in jail for infecting 55 women with hepatitis C at an abortion clinic is seeking leave to appeal his sentence.
First PSA test advised in mid-40s
NEARLY half of prostate cancer deaths can be predicted before age 50, new data shows, with researchers suggesting men have their first PSA test in their mid to late 40s.
High cervical cancer rates among Melanesian women
DESPITE having a cervical cancer screening program, participation by women in Fiji is only about 8%, a study shows.
Price of fame and success: play hard and die young
SUCCESSFUL actors and musicians die younger than those who achieve fame and success in the military, business and political sphere, an analysis of New York Times obituaries shows.
GP hails appeal victory in $364k obesity case
A GP who successfully appealed a $364,000 damages payout to a morbidly obese patient says the decision showed “we’re still accountable for the consequences of our own lifestyle choices”, as lawyers for his former patient contemplated a High Court challenge.
Five things to consider in haematospermia
BLOOD in the ejaculate is usually self-limiting and rarely malignant.
The humane approach to opioids
CHRONIC, non-cancer pain will become an increasing health and social burden.
Support strengthening for medicinal synthetic cannabis
THERE is widespread support for a synthetic form of cannabis to be approved for medical use, the chair of a NSW inquiry says.
Dramatic drop in genital warts after HPV vax
NEW data shows genital wart diagnoses fell by 93% in women vaccinated against human papillomavirus, demonstrating the extraordinary success of Australia’s national HPV vaccination program.
‘Win for common sense’: GP speaks of appeal victory
A GP who successfully appealed against a $364,000 damages payout to a morbidly obese patient has hailed the result as a “win for common sense” that shows patients are still ultimately accountable for their own choices.
GP wins appeal against $364K payout to obese man
A GP ordered to pay a morbidly obese man $364,000 in negligence damages for failing to refer him to a weight loss clinic or for bariatric surgery has had the ruling overturned.
Historic gene patent case begins in US Supreme Court
THE US Supreme Court has heard the most high-profile genetics case in history, as justices considered whether private firms should be allowed to patent human genes linked to breast cancer.
Gene breakthrough on oesophageal cancer
SCIENTISTS say they have found mutations in 26 genes that may cause oesophageal cancer, a breakthrough they hope will lead to new drugs for the deadly and increasingly frequent disease.
Aspirin may reduce risk of melanoma in women
ASPIRIN may offer protection from melanoma in women, a study has found, adding to the body of evidence supporting the potential role of aspirin in cancer prevention.
Experts debate anti-omega-6 stance
A NEW book claiming seed oils “will kill you” because of their harmful omega-6 fatty acids is based on cherry-picked data, experts say.
Endocrine-disrupting chemicals a bigger threat than thought
THE disease risk due to endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) may have been significantly under-estimated, United Nations agencies have warned in a new report.
Former AVN president forced to retract advertising on black salve
A TGA complaints resolution panel has ordered former Australian Vaccination Network president Meryl Dorey to retract advertisements for black salve on the grounds claims regarding the product were misleading.
Brits too polite to waste doctors’ time
THE well-known reserve of the British means individuals tend to stay out of people’s way. Unfortunately for them, this ‘courtesy’ seems to extend to doctors.
Vulval itch that isn’t thrush
The diagnoses and treatment of lichen sclerosus in women.
Bid to quell cancer myths
UNFOUNDED cancer fears perpetuated on the internet about underarm deodorants, artificial sweeteners and drinking water from plastic bottles are being tackled on World Cancer Day today.
Targeting tumour DNA to treat cancer
CANCER could become a chronic disease rather than a terminal illness, according to British scientists who have been trialling a new treatment method based on genetic profiling.
Man growing new nose in his arm
BRITISH scientists at University College London are reportedly using a man's bone marrow cells to help him replace the nose he lost to cancer.
Diesel exhaust may increase risk of brain tumours in offspring
PARENTAL exposure to diesel exhaust prior to birth could increase a child’s risk of developing a brain tumour, according to an Australian case-control study.
Govt firm on chemo drug price drop
THE federal government is standing firm in the face of claims from pharmacists and private hospitals that changes to subsidies for chemotherapy drugs could result in cutbacks to services.
Funding cut for chemo drug causes alarm
INDEPENDENT senator Nick Xenophon is demanding the federal government reverse a decision to cut funding for a chemotherapy drug.
Complementary therapies safe and effective for cancer patients
FAILURE to integrate complementary therapies into medical education and a risk-averse profession mean cancer patients are missing out on beneficial treatments, a conference has heard.
Insulin glargine safety clarified by latest evidence
THE Australian Diabetes Society (ADS) has updated safety advice on insulin glargine in light of the latest research confirming its use confers no increased risk of malignancy.
Large payout reminds GPs to update insurance
GPs have been reminded to ensure their insurance is up to date after a woman who slipped outside a practice and broke her arm – revealing a previously undisclosed form of bone cancer – was awarded $273,000 in damages.
Blood test holds promise for breast cancer screening
A SIMPLE blood test could in future replace the mammogram to screen for breast cancer, researchers say.
Cancer survival rates on the increase
CANCER patients are increasingly living longer with 66% now surviving for at least five years – a dramatic rise from the rate of 47% in the mid-1980s.
Universal Medicine may have to answer to AHPRA
THE NSW Health Care Complaints Commission (HCCC) has called on AHPRA to investigate an alternative medicine group after complaints alleged its founder, former tennis coach Serge Benhayon, claimed he could help prevent cancer despite having no medical qualifications.
Cancer in pregnancy on the rise, but researchers unsure why
THE rate of pregnancy-associated cancer is rising, according to a new Australian study.
Doubt cast over metformin claims
A META-ANALYSIS has cast doubt on previous research suggesting that metformin can reduce cancer risk by about one third.
Endometrial cancer needs team approach
NEW clinical practice guidelines for the treatment and management of endometrial cancer should serve to highlight the complex nature of the disease, according to a leading oncologist.
Cancer rates in coal mining community spark concern
A HIGHER than expected rate of cancer diagnosis has been found at a NSW coal loading terminal following a study of workers going back 23 years.
First State Super incinerates tobacco links
SUPERANNUATION fund First State Super has wiped from its investment portfolios all companies involved in the manufacture of tobacco products, in a move welcomed by cancer specialists.
Investigation urged into ‘cult’ medical group
THE Health Care Complaints Commission (HCCC) of NSW has been asked to investigate an alleged “cult” led by a former tennis coach turned “esoteric” healer amid accusations the group urges followers not to exercise, not to eat most foods and not to see a registered doctor if they are ill.
Big tobacco using loophole to entice kids
TOBACCO companies are dodging Australian advertising bans by using films, TV and the internet to target children, a survey has found.
Study backs glargine safety
A LANDMARK trial of high risk patients with type 2 diabetes or impaired glucose tolerance, ORIGIN, has shown that early initiation of insulin glargine reduced new onset diabetes with only moderately increased hypoglycaemia and weight gain.
Poor mouth hygiene associated with increased deaths from cancer
PERSISTENT dental plaque may increase the risk of premature death from cancer, an observational study has found.
Diesel fumes cause cancer
DIESEL exhaust causes cancer, the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) cancer agency has declared, a ruling it says could make exhaust as important a public health threat as second-hand smoke.
Safety of short-term glargine use confirmed
The jury is now in on short-term use of insulin glargine – and the finding is that it does not cause cancer, experts say.
Half of sunscreen buyers fail to have regular skin checks
A SURVEY of people purchasing sunscreen has found nearly half are ignoring warnings to have regular skin checks done by a health professional.
Court rejects $400,000 negligence claim against GP
A GP has defeated a $400,000 negligence claim after a man claimed the doctor failed to diagnose him with a rare and deadly cancer.
Mobiles may be safe
A MAJOR new review of evidence has found no cause for alarm over the possible adverse health effects of mobile phones but warns caution is still needed in relation to children's exposure.
Bald Barbie to help kids with cancer
THE US maker of the famous Barbie franchise will release a bald doll next year in support of children who have lost their hair from cancer therapy, a Mattel spokesman says.
New breast cancer gene discovered
THANKS to super-speed technology, Australian researchers have discovered that mutations of a newly identified gene are associated with an increased risk of breast cancer.
Aspirin’s anti-cancer effects confirmed
THREE studies confirming aspirin’s anti-cancer effects have led to calls for broadening its prophylactic use.
Opioids may promote tumours
OPIOIDS given to reduce pain in cancer patients may actually promote tumour growth and metastasis, two studies suggest.
NSW sunbed law sparks calls for nationwide ban
SIX Australian states and territories are coming under increased pressure to outlaw sunbeds, after the NSW government caved to pressure from skin cancer groups and took the landmark step of banning the units.
Oral HPV infection more likely in men
MEN are three times as likely as women to have an oral infection with human papillomavirus (HPV), according to the first major prevalence study in the US.
Alpha inhibitor could slow down prostate cancer
THE drug dutasteride, a 5-alpha-reductase inhibitor approved for the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), may slow the progression of prostate cancer potentially providing the first treatment option for men with low-risk disease, researchers say.
Cancer protein smiles at researchers
SCIENTISTS who have been probing for 12 years how a particular protein causes cancer could only laugh wryly when they filmed the subject of their experiment apparently mocking them.
CAM popular therapy for men with cancer
HALF of men diagnosed with cancer are using a complementary or alternative therapy alongside their treatment, Australian research suggests.
Half of Australian women undergo mammogram
JUST over half of the women (55%) in the target age for breast cancer screening had a free screening mammogram in 2008–09, according to the latest BreastScreen Australia Monitoring Report.
PSA testing common among elderly men
AROUND one in five Australian men aged over 75 years may be choosing PSA screening despite consensus against it in this age group, a conference will be told this week.
Barriers for GPs in cancer treatment
GPs embrace their role in cancer detection and prevention but are less keen to be involved in treatment or post-operative management, research shows.
Recall: raw apricot kernels a toxic risk
A PERSON’S presentation to hospital after consuming a large quantity of raw apricot kernels – touted by some as a cancer therapy – has prompted a national recall of the product from health food stores.
Mobile phone cancer link in doubt, study says
NO CLEAR evidence of a link between mobile phones and brain cancer has been found in the largest cohort study to date. Researchers found, in an 18-year study examining almost 360,000 Danish mobile phone subscribers, a total of 10,729 cases of central nervous system tumour, but the incidence among subscribers was comparable to non-subscribers. Even when restricted to those with phone contracts spanning more than 10 years, there was little difference in the rate of incidence of glioma or meningioma for those exposed to phones compared to non-exposed individuals. ...
Drinking frequency linked to cancer risk
FREQUENT alcohol consumption increases women’s risk of cancer mortality by nearly a third, a study suggests. The research found high frequency drinking drives the increased risk of all-site cancers among women, whereas among men increased risk is linked to the quantity consumed, with more than three drinks on ‘drinking days’ raising risk by 24%. Pooled data from more than 324,000 US men and women, including more than 8000 cancer deaths, showed there was a mechanism between alcohol and cancer that could be used to counsel patients, addiction specialist Professor Jon Currie said. “GPs don’t have to ...
DES daughters at higher risk of cancer
WOMEN whose mothers took diethylstilboestrol (DES) in pregnancy are at increased risk of a spectrum of reproductive complications and gynaecological cancers, a large US study concludes. The study looked at 4600 women whose mothers had taken DES to prevent pregnancy complications from the 1940s to the early 1970s and compared their health with 1900 women whose mothers had not taken the synthetic oestrogen. The researchers found that women exposed in utero were 2.4 times as likely as unexposed women to be infertile, 4.7 times as likely to have a pre-term delivery and 2.4 ...
Injected virus targets tumours
A NOVEL cancer therapy is on the horizon following the first trial of an intravenous genetically modified virus that infects and destroys tumours, researchers say. The phase I trial proved that a tumour-targeting virus injected into the bloodstream could find cancer wherever it had spread without harming healthy tissue. Six out of eight patients receiving the highest doses of therapy – in a trial involving 23 patients –experienced shrinking or arrested growth of metastatic tumours without evidence of viral replication in normal tissue. The most common side-effect recorded was mild ...
Nurse defends care after five patients die
A NURSE has told a coronial inquest into the deaths of five patients on a radical cancer treatment program the level of care was better than in some hospitals. WA Deputy State Coroner Evelyn Vicker is investigating the deaths of Sandra McCarty, 53, from Victoria, Pia Bosso, 68, from NSW, Perth woman Sandra Kokalis, 52, Deborah Gruber, 42, from New York, and Perth man Carmelo Vinciullo, 29. The five, who all had severe forms of cancer, underwent Dr Hellfried Sartori's treatment program at the Perth home of Dr Alexandra Boyd in 2005. The treatment involved the administration ...
Gene discovery gives hope for non-invasive cancer screening
PEOPLE with a heritable risk of cancer due to mutations in the MLH1 gene may be spared invasive screening tests, following a discovery by Australian medical researchers. The researchers, from the Lowy Cancer Research Centre at the University of NSW, and the University of Western Australia, found changes to the outside of the gene attract a paralysing biochemical that stops it working, increasing the risk of developing bowel, uterine and other cancers by up to 80%. The discovery followed investigation of a WA family with a history of colorectal cancer. ...
New gene therapy uses T-cells to attack tumours
US RESEARCHERS have reported striking success in the use of a novel gene therapy technique to reduce tumour burden in three patients with advanced chronic lymphoid leukaemia. The technique, which harnesses autologous T-cells to target and destroy tumour cells, may be applicable to a range of other cancers, scientists said. “We saw amazing results,” study author Dr Michael Kalos (PhD) said. “These were nasty tumours that were late-stage, a lot of mutations that had a bad prognosis. “We saw massive reductions in tumour burden. One patient had ...
TGA examines cancer risk from angiotensin receptor blockers
THE TGA is investigating whether there is a link between angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) and cancer, following recent studies showing patients taking ARBs had a small increased risk of the disease. A spokesperson for the TGA confirmed the organisation was conducting its own evaluation of the evidence and had not offered specific advice on the use of ARBs and potential cancer risk. Last week the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that ARBs do not increase cancer risk, following the results of an analysis of 31 randomised controlled trials of more than 150,000 patients taking ARBs ...
Cancer risk from heavy mobile phone use
HEAVY use of mobile phones could lead to an increased incidence of some brain tumours such as gliomas, according to the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). A report released overnight by IARC, which is affiliated with WHO, concluded that radiofrequency electromagnetic fields generated by wireless devices such as mobile phones were “possibly” carcinogenic to humans. A working party of the IARC said among users of wireless phones the evidence was “limited for glioma and acoustic neuroma and inadequate to draw conclusions for other types of cancers”. An Australian cancer researcher who worked ...
Study rejects PSA screen
ANOTHER major study has failed to find compelling evidence in support of PSA screening for prostate cancer. A randomised controlled trial involving 9000 men found PSA screening did not significantly reduce cancer mortality and suggested the risk for over-detection and over-treatment was considerable. “After 20 years of follow-up, the rate of death from prostate cancer did not differ significantly between men in the screening group and those in the control group,” researchers said. The trial, in which 1500 men were randomised to screening every third year, follows the publication of two major studies in 2009 that ...
Funding concerns over diagnostic imaging
MORE than 20,000 radiology patients have presented personal messages to the Federal Health Minister demanding better funding for diagnostic imaging services. Current funding levels meant gap payments were creating a barrier for many patients, they argued. The messages were handed to Health Minister Nicola Roxon, as part of a joint initiative by cancer patient advocacy group Cancer Voices Australia and the peak body for specialist radiology providers, the Australian Diagnostic Imaging Association (ADIA). Both groups have signed a communiqué to the Government demanding to have the Medicare patient rebate for radiology services indexed for the first ...
Cancer ‘healer’ facing court
A QUEENSLAND man who claims he can cure cancer with diet and exercise is now facing court over the credibility of his treatment regime. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) alleges medical treatment claims by Darryl Peter Jones, principal of the Darryl Jones Health Resolution Centre on the Sunshine Coast, are misleading or deceptive under the Trade Practices Act. Before being shut down early last year, the Darryl Jones Health Resolution Centre's website advertised a cancer treatment program involving an exercise regime, the consumption of vitamin B17 and restriction of glucose in the diet. The ...
Cancer-sniffing dog raises hope of diagnostic breath test
A STUDY demonstrating dogs can sniff out early-stage colorectal cancer raises the prospect a diagnostic breath test could be developed, Australian experts say. A Japanese study using an eight-year-old labrador retriever showed the dog could distinguish among breath and watery stool samples from colorectal cancer patients compared to controls that included people with benign polyps. The sensitivity of canine scent detection compared with colonoscopy diagnosis was 0.91 and the specificity was 0.99, the researchers reported in an article published by Gut online. Out of 74 breath and stool tests, there were four discrepancies between ...
Breast screen glitch gives women false diagnosis
TWO women have been diagnosed with breast cancer after falsely being given the all-clear during a computer glitch that affected Victoria’s breast screening program late last year. The women were among over 5000 whose mammograms were re-read after a software error prompted an investigation by BreastScreen Victoria. In November 2010, BreastScreen Victoria revealed mammographic screens may not have been reviewed by two independent radiologists in accordance with best practice following a move to digital mammography across Australia ( MO , 22 Nov, 2010 ). The re-reading of the mammograms in November and December led to ...
Long-acting insulin cancer link ‘inconclusive’
THE cancer scare associated with Lantus (insulin glargine) has faded further in the wake of a US government safety review, Australian experts say. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) determined evidence linking Lantus and cancer was “inconclusive” due to limitations in the studies that initially sparked concern. Three out of four observational studies published in 2009 in Diabetologia suggested an increased risk of cancer – and one, a doubling of breast cancer – with the use of long-acting insulin glargine alone. “The evidence presented in the studies is inconclusive due to methodological limitations [and] these ...
Long-acting insulin cancer link ‘inconclusive’
THE cancer scare over Lantus (insulin glargine) has faded further following a US government safety review, Australian experts say. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) determined that evidence linking Lantus and cancer was “inconclusive” due to limitations in the controversial studies. Three out of four studies published in 2009 suggested an increased risk of cancer with insulin glargine. “The evidence presented in the studies is inconclusive due to methodological limitations [and] these limitations prevent our ability to attribute the observed cancer risk to Lantus,” the FDA said. Problems with the studies included short duration of ...
Study refutes cancer risk of anti-hypertensives
Angiotensin-receptor blockers (ARBs) and other anti-hypertensives are not linked to an increased risk of cancer, according to the findings of a new meta-analysis. Experts say the results mean clinicians can be reassured about this link after previous findings hinted that ARBs in particular may be linked to an increased risk of lung cancer. The latest meta-analysis – of 70 randomised trials involving 324,168 participants – found no increased risk of cancer or cancer-related deaths with ARBs, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEI), beta blockers, calcium-channel blockers or diuretics compared to placebo over 3.5 years. The only positive ...
Increase in oesophageal cancer cause for concern
MORE resources will need to be directed towards the diagnosis and management of patients with oesophageal cancer as experts anticipate a significant rise in the numbers affected by the disease. A snapshot of the presentation and management of oesophageal cancer in a population-based cohort of 831 patients with the cancer showed early detection is currently inadequate, and most patients were presenting with late-stage diseases. The concern has prompted a call for more multidisciplinary clinics to be set up to aid earlier diagnosis and treatment. Lead author David Whiteman, a senior principal research fellow at the Queensland ...
Breast scan radiation risk outstripped by lives saved
THE risk of radiation-induced breast cancer from digital mammographic screening after age 40 is far outweighed by the expected mortality reduction it brings, experts say. A recent Canadian assessment of radiation-induced breast cancer incidence has concluded the risk should not deter screening of women in this age group. Researchers estimated that, among a cohort of 100,000 women screened annually between the ages of 40 and 55, and biennially thereafter to age 74, there would be 86 cancers and 11 deaths due to radiation-induced breast cancer. This was estimated with the most recent standard screening dose of 3.7 ...
Doctor defends radical cancer treatment after patients die
A DOCTOR giving evidence at a coronial inquest into the deaths of five cancer patients has defended his radical cancer treatment, blaming poor treatment in hospitals and a lack of ongoing nutritional support. The inquest is examining whether the treatment given to five cancer patients in 2005 by Austrian-trained Dr Hellfried Sartori contributed to their deaths. Dr Sartori, who is not registered to practice in Australia, told reporters outside the inquest yesterday that his patients had died after being rushed to hospital and taken off his treatment. “It would have been so much better if I ...
Inquest examines cancer treatment link to deaths
FIVE cancer patients who died following treatment with radical chemicals had been told to break up with "false friends" who opposed the treatment, a Perth coronial inquest has heard. In May 2005, the five, who all had severe forms of cancer, undertook treatment in Perth which involved the administration of substances such as cesium chloride, magnesium sulphate and potassium chloride. The treatment was developed in the mid 1980s by Austrian-trained Dr Hellfried Sartori, also known as Dr Abdul-Haqq Sartori, who claimed it had a high cure rate. The five people were treated at a Perth home ...
Bowel screen audit shows flaws
MORE problems with the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program have been revealed in a study indicating many public patients having colonoscopy are not being registered for recall. The Adelaide study of 635 program patients with positive FOBT found that although 93% of patients having their colonoscopy in the private sector were entered into a formal recall system, only 34% of public patients were being entered into similar recall systems. “The standard of care is to have a computerised recall system to bring those people identified with an adenoma or cancer back after an interval of three or ...
Mind over matter
Amanda Sheppeard looks at how science is exploring the link between stress and disease.
Heat is on: bowel screening program overhaul
AUSTRALIA’S beleaguered bowel cancer screening program has undergone a revamp due to concern about ambient temperatures reducing the effectiveness of test kits. The Federal Health Department has revealed invitations to participate are now being timed differently in climatic “hot zones”. The change comes on the back of the program being suspended during 2009 after faults in the kits’ buffer led to unusually low positivity rates.Faecal occult blood test (FOBT) kits are now being issued during cool, ‘optimal months’, based on data from the Australian Bureau of Meteorology. For people living in hot zones all year ...
Clopidogrel cleared for acute coronary syndrome
CLOPIDOGREL remains the first choice anticoagulant for all patients with acute coronary syndrome, Australian experts believe, despite recent regulatory warnings over its use by those with certain genetic polymorphisms. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warned earlier this year about the drug’s use by patients with genetic polymorphisms that decrease CYP2C19 function, diminishing the effectiveness of clopidogrel and increasing the risk of cardiovascular events. Professor David Hare, a cardiologist at Melbourne’s Austin Hospital, believed it was reasonable to continue following current guidelines recommending a daily dose of 75 mg of clopidogrel due to the “low frequency” ...
Glargine cancer link debated
THE jury is still out on the safety of insulin glargine after recent reports again raised the possibility it was linked to an increased risk of cancer. An Italian retrospective case-control study found a higher incidence of cancer among patients taking high-dose insulin glargine compared to other insulins and analogues. But Professor Duncan Topliss, director of diabetes and endocrinology at Alfred Health, said the findings were far from definitive, given the convoluted nature of the analysis. Despite the authors’ best attempts to adjust for confounders, the picture remained clouded by the high numbers of comorbidities in ...
Alternative health clinic forced to stop spruiking cancer treatments
A MELBOURNE alternative health clinic that claimed its treatment could cure cancer has been forced to suspend its advertising pending a Supreme Court trial. The state’s consumer watchdog, Consumer Affairs Victoria, has alleged the Hope Clinic and its director Noel Rodney Campbell “have engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct” in claiming its treatments are scientific and can cure cancer or prolong the lives of sufferers. Treatments being advertised include “ozone therapy”, a ketogenic diet designed to “starve” cancer cells and intravenous vitamin C therapy. Victorian Consumer Affairs Minister Tony Robinson said while such treatments were not ...
Glargine cancer link debated
THE jury is still out on the safety of insulin glargine after recent reports again raised the possibility it was linked to an increased risk of cancer. An Italian retrospective case-control study found a higher incidence of cancer among patients taking high-dose insulin glargine compared to other insulins and analogues. But Professor Duncan Topliss, director of diabetes and endocrinology at Alfred Health, said the findings were far from definitive, given the convoluted nature of the analysis. Despite the authors’ best attempts to adjust for confounders, the picture remained clouded by the high numbers of comorbidities in ...
No cancer legacy from mums’ exposure to mobile phone towers
A MAJOR British study has found no links between cancer in young children and their mothers’ exposure to mobile phone towers during pregnancy. While concerns about living close to towers have been raised due to reported cancer clusters, no systematic epidemiological investigation of prenatal exposure has ever been undertaken, the researchers said. All registered cases of cancer in children aged up to four years in Great Britain from 1999-2001 were assessed for pregnancy exposure to the nearest mobile phone base station. The researchers, from Imperial College London, examined almost 1400 cases of cancer – including leukaemia, ...
Higher HDL-C could offer cancer protection
ELEVATED high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels are associated with a significant reduction in cancer risk, research shows. A meta-analysis of 24 randomised controlled trials found raised HDL-C levels significantly lowered cancer risk after adjusting for conventional risk factors, including low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, age, BMI, diabetes, sex and smoking. After an average of five years’ follow-up, the authors estimated that every 0.55 mmol/L increment in HDL-C translated into a 36% lower risk of developing cancers, including lung and liver. The meta-analysis compared the incidence of cancer in 76,265 patients receiving statin treatment with average HDL-C levels of 2.57 mmol/L, ...
Higher HDL-C could offer cancer protection
ELEVATED high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels are associated with a significant reduction in cancer risk, research shows. A meta-analysis of 24 randomised controlled trials found raised HDL-C levels significantly lowered cancer risk after adjusting for conventional risk factors, including low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, age, BMI, diabetes, sex and smoking. After an average of five years’ follow-up, the authors estimated that every 0.55 mmol/L increment in HDL-C translated into a 36% lower risk of developing cancers, including lung and liver. The meta-analysis compared the incidence of cancer in 76,265 patients receiving statin treatment with average HDL-C levels of 2.57 mmol/L, ...
Environmental risk factors have no effect on breast ca gene variant
WOMEN with common genetic variants linked to increased breast cancer risk are no more likely than others to get the disease if they use HRT or drink alcohol. Epidemiologists involved with the Million Women Study in the UK set out to investigate the interaction between environmental risk factors and 12 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) known to carry a small increased risk of breast cancer (but excluding the susceptibility genes BRCA1 and BRCA2) . The risk factors included the age at menarche and menopause, parity, breastfeeding, use of HRT, BMI, height and alcohol consumption. In the ...
Diabetes: the great debates
LINK BETWEEN CANCER AND INSULIN GLARGINE It’s enough to cause panic in patients, pandemonium in pharmaceutical companies, and it leaves clinicians caught in the middle wondering how to deal with the fallout. Data is published linking a widely used drug with cancer. It happened last year when Diabetologia published four retrospective studies from Germany, Sweden and the UK showing insulin glargine was associated with a dose-dependent increase in cancer risk. 1 The Swedish study found using insulin glargine doubled the risk of breast cancer, but ...
Colon cancer link to high coffee and soft drink intake disputed
CONSUMPTION of even large amounts of coffee and sugar-sweetened soft drinks may not be associated with a higher risk of colon cancer. A US and European meta-analysis found those who drank more than six cups of coffee daily did not have a greater risk of colon cancer over six to 20 years follow-up compared to non-coffee drinkers. However, people who consumed four or more cups of non-herbal tea daily had a modestly increased risk of colon cancer. The reviewers said while this finding warranted further analysis, it was potentially confounded by the limited range of tea consumption ...
Smoking grandmothers pass down cancer risk to grandkids
A CHILD whose grandmother smoked has double the risk of childhood cancer as the grandchild of a non-smoker. This increased relative risk of cancer added to the evidence that damage from tobacco smoke might be passed down through generations of a family, researchers said. The study of 128 children with cancer and 128 matched controls was conducted in Spain by Spanish and American researchers. Exposure and use of tobacco was determined over three generations, with the smoking habits of mothers and maternal grandmothers being assessed. Sixty per cent of mothers of children with neuroblastoma were ...
Celebrity cancer hype skews messages
THE media storm that surrounds celebrities with cancer is excessively pessimistic and sends the wrong long-term public health messages, according to an editorial in The Lancet Oncology . Coverage of cases such as Kylie Minogue – whose 2005 breast cancer diagnosis prompted a 40% rise in screening bookings in the following two weeks – is typically short on facts but “heavy on what is often termed scare-mongering,” the article said. When UK reality TV star Jade Goody died of cervical cancer last year, the media did not report that she had previously ignored abnormal test results ...
Rise in oral cancers adds weight to HPV vax for boys
THE debate over extending HPV vaccination to males is set to reignite, after Australian research revealed the virus was responsible for an increasing number of oropharyngeal cancers. The rate of HPV positive oropharyngeal cancer cases had more than tripled from 19% in 1987-90 to 66% in 2005-06, the authors in the Department of Health-funded study found. Around 475 new cases of oropharyngeal cancer were diagnosed in Australia each year from 2001 to 2005 and the number was increasing, they said. Smaller numbers of cancers at other sites, such as the larynx, were also HPV-related, the authors ...
Alternative health provider stalled by ACCC injunction
AN alternative health provider has been reined in by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) over claims his treatments can prevent or treat cancer. The commission has obtained an injunction from the Brisbane Federal Court against Darryl Jones, principal of the Darryl Jones Health Resolution Centre on the Sunshine Coast, stopping him from making claims about the efficacy of his treatment, and effectively preventing Mr Jones from operating his business. The ACCC alleges that Mr Jones wrote – both on his centre’s website and in an e-book – that he had scientific evidence to show that ...
Cooking with gas produces more carcinogens than electricity
COOKING with gas stoves may increase the risk of cancer from noxious fumes, Norwegian scientists say. Researchers from Trondheim found exposure to carcinogenic fumes was greater when pan-frying steak on a gas hob compared to an electric hob. They fried 17 400 g steaks for 15 minutes in “conditions similar to those in a Western European restaurant kitchen”. Regardless of the type of cooking fat, gas hobs yielded higher concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, aldehydes and other particles in the breathing zone of the cook. “This is presumed to be due to the higher temperature of ...
Improvements needed for kids' palliative care
AUSTRALIAN children with cancer are more likely to die peacefully at home and receive fewer aggressive interventions than those in other countries, new research has found. Sixty-one per cent of patients treated at the Children’s Cancer Centre in Melbourne, the largest specialist paediatric oncology centre in Australia, died at home, compared to 49% in the US and just 29% in Japan. However, the study did highlight some areas for improvement, with 84% of children reported to be suffering “a lot” or “a great deal” during the last month of life. While the authors believed the findings ...
Study raises new concerns over folate supplement-cancer link
MORE evidence has emerged linking folic acid supplementation with an increased risk of cancer. A combined analysis of two Norwegian studies has found patients with ischaemic heart disease who received 0.8 mg/d of folic acid plus 0.4 mg/d of vitamin B12 had an 18% increased risk of death from any cause compared to controls. Deaths were primarily due to an increase in lung cancer, the authors said. However, patients receiving folic acid and vitamin B12 had a 21% increased risk of being diagnosed with any form of cancer. The two randomised trials included 6837 participants. ...
Cancer patients benefit from Qigong
TRADITIONAL medicine may embrace the use of complementary medicine techniques such as Medical Qigong (MQ) to improve quality of life in cancer patients, experts believe. A randomised controlled trial conducted by Australian oncologists and psychologists has found that patients taught the Chinese mind-body technique reported improved quality of life (QOL) and mood and reduced treatment side-effects such as inflammation and fatigue. In the largest such trial of Medical Qigong, 162 patients were randomised to either usual care or to usual care plus a 10-week MQ program with a trained Chinese medical practitioner. This included two supervised 90-minute ...
Debate continues on insulin glargine safety
INTERNATIONAL experts are divided on the safety of insulin glargine, with studies still hinting at links to cancer incidence. Earlier this year four studies published in Diabetologia suggested long-acting insulin glargine (Lantus) might increase the risk of cancer ( MO , 10 July ), though this was played down by Australian experts. New research, presented to the recent European Association for the Study of Diabetes annual meeting in Vienna, indicated an increased risk among the most frequent insulin users, but that this risk might be attenuated by concurrent metformin use. The UK researchers ...
Making a call on CT scans
Concerns over patient safety, excessive ordering practices and spiralling costs are increasing the scrutiny on doctors who order CT scans. Jo Stratmoen reports. CONSIDER the case of a 15-year-old girl with community-acquired pneumonia who needs radiological follow-up to check her pneumonia has cleared. Although a plain chest x-ray would serve the purpose adequately, chances are she will have a thoracic computer tomography (CT) scan. Alternatively, ponder the case of a 25-year-old female non-smoker with severe asthma and a recent normal chest x-ray who presents to emergency with breathlessness and wheeze. Would a CT scan ...
Why prions have a potential role in cancer treatment
WE’VE COME to associate those minute infectious agents composed of protein known as prion with brain degeneration in Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. But what do we know about what these misfolded proteins get up to outside the brain? Recent findings indicate they do occur in other organs, and unfortunately they may be hard at work promoting malignant tumours. US researchers have shown that pancreatic tumours in patients who fare poorly showed evidence of incompletely processed prion proteins that were not evident in patients who had longer survival times. It suggested that prions were playing a role in determining the aggressiveness of the ...
Humanity a monkey on our back for cancer risk
AS IF concerns over diet and lifestyle weren’t enough, according to US researchers, it seems simply being human can place you at risk of cancer. Professor John McDonald of the Georgia Tech School of Biology has compared genetic differences between humans and our nearest relatives, chimpanzees, and says cellular differences between the two species account for our greater risk of cancer. Earlier studies had shown chimpanzees have lower rates of cancer than humans. The latest study compared gene expression patterns in the brain, testes, liver, kidneys and heart of humans and chimpanzees, and found differences in ...
Study reignites HRT safety debate
AUSTRALIAN experts are divided over the findings of a study suggesting that the risks of HRT outweigh the benefits, even with initiation soon after menopause. The re-analysis of the Women’s Health Initiative trial disagrees with the so-called “window of opportunity” hypothesis which proposes that perimenopausal women may reduce their risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) with short-term HRT introduced early. Epidemiologists Dr Karen Canfell, from the University of NSW, and Associate Professor Emily Banks, from the Australian National University, said the study showed either adverse effects or no effect on CHD risk, adverse effects on stroke and ...
PSA predicament
Two eagerly anticipated studies on the benefit of PSA screening have delivered disappointing results. Will newer technologies replace PSA testing any time soon? Kate Woods reports. ESTIMATES suggest at least one in every two to three Australian men older than 40 has his prostate specific antigen (PSA) level tested regularly. These men are not part of a population-screening program, but their reasons for testing are just the same: to pick up increases in PSA levels and ensure early detection of cancer. Given the fact that prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer after ...
Lifestyle changes key to colorectal cancer prevention
MODERATE changes to five key lifestyle factors could have more impact on reducing deaths from colorectal cancer than screening, researchers say. Researchers from the United Kingdom say small shifts in diet and exercise habits population-wide could prevent nearly a third of the colorectal cancers in men and 18% in women. The UK faecal occult blood screening program is expected to prevent about 15% of these cancers. The five keys to better bowel health include: reduced consumption of red meat and processed meat; increased fruit and vegetable intake; reduced alcohol consumption; increased exercise; and better weight control, ...
World report - 6 March 2009
• UK VETO FOR ECSTASY DOWNGRADE THE UK government has rejected recommendations to downgrade ecstasy from a class A to a class B drug. The UK Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs advised that, based on a review of more than 4000 papers, methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) was no more dangerous than other amphetamines, which are listed as class B drugs. As a class A drug, ecstasy is ranked alongside heroin, crack cocaine, cocaine and LSD. Downgrading it to class B would have meant lighter sentences for supplying and possession. The council said that, while ecstasy ...
World report - 6 March 2009
• UK VETO FOR ECSTASY DOWNGRADE THE UK government has rejected recommendations to downgrade ecstasy from a class A to a class B drug. The UK Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs advised that, based on a review of more than 4000 papers, methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) was no more dangerous than other amphetamines, which are listed as class B drugs. As a class A drug, ecstasy is ranked alongside heroin, crack cocaine, cocaine and LSD. Downgrading it to class B would have meant lighter sentences for supplying and possession. The council said that, while ecstasy ...
Avoiding short-term HRT ‘unjustified’
DOCTORS and patients are avoiding HRT despite recent evidence that short-term use early after menopause confers more benefits than risks, a leading gynaecologist says. Dr Barry Wren, a founding member of the Australasian Menopause Society, said that reanalysis of the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) study showed the original conclusions were erroneous. He believed the pendulum of opinion regarding HRT use had swung too far, and more women were avoiding it than was warranted by the data. “Most doctors... have a concern that HRT will cause cancer,” he said. “But few have looked at the benefits and ...
Australians may overinflate their risk of disease
AUSTRALIANS may overestimate their risk of contracting some serious diseases, a recent opinion poll has shown. Respondents were more worried about contracting arthritis than any other disease, with 43% believing they had a one in 10 or more chance of contracting it during their lifetime, which is a realistic view according to Arthritis Australia. Anxiety or depression were the next biggest perceived risk, with 39% of those polled expecting to contract one or the other condition during their lifetime. This was much higher than the actual risk of one in five people experiencing depression at some ...
Daily vitamins have no role in cancer prevention
TAKING folic acid, vitamin B 6 or B 12 supplements has no effect on the incidence of cancer in women, new research shows, contradicting previous studies that had indicated they may be preventive. A US randomised trial has found the widely used supplements, while not harmful, do not prevent incidence of total invasive cancer or breast cancer. Observational studies had indicated they may prevent colorectal cancer and breast cancer in particular. More than 5000 women aged 42 or older received a daily combination of 2.5 mg folic acid, 50 mg vitamin B 6 ...
Cancer screens need genetic emphasis
A LEADING epidemiologist has argued that a new approach is needed to detect people with a genetic risk of certain forms of cancer. Professor John Hopper from the University of Melbourne said genetic testing should focus on tumours among people who develop breast cancer before the age of 40 or colorectal cancer before age 50. This would determine if the cause was an inherited genetic condition for which other family members might have an increased risk. This approach would detect more of these cancers, and detect them earlier, Professor Hopper said. Currently, genetic screening programs for ...
Higher suicide risk among cancer patients
CANCER patients have twice the general population suicide rate, and it’s not only the terminally ill who are at risk, a study shows. Analysis of data from cancer registries across the US, revealed that suicide rates peak in the first five years after diagnosis. The data also showed that the location of tumours affects the likelihood of suicide. “It is important to ask about suicidal thoughts and intent regularly,” US palliative care expert Dr Timothy Quill commented in an editorial in the Journal of Clinical Oncology . “There is a need to unbundle and ...
Could new pet scan be our best friend?
COULD your family pet really be turned into a highly trained diagnostician? So goes the theory that some dogs have such a highly developed sense of smell that they can detect cancer in humans before it has been diagnosed. Anecdotal reports over many years have suggested that dogs have behaved in ways that alerted their owners to cancers which were later detected by more conventional methods. Dogs are able to identify chemical traces in the range of parts per trillion. Controlled studies have confirmed the ability of trained dogs to detect melanomas by sniffing skin lesions, and bladder cancers 1 by sniffing urine. Dogs ...
Cancer uncertainty with lipid-lowering drug
CONCERNS about an increased risk of cancer in patients taking the cholesterol-lowering drug Vytorin (ezetimibe and simvastatin) have been reignited by an analysis of conflicting findings from three ongoing trials. Secondary data from the Simvastatin and Ezetimibe in Aortic Stenosis (SEAS) study revealed higher rates of prostate, gastrointestinal and skin cancers among patients taking Vytorin – with 101 cancers overall compared to 65 in controls. Now, analysis of data from this and two other trials – which found no overall excess of cancer – has concluded they “do not provide credible evidence of ...
Get tough on obesity with cancer pitch
RADICAL public health advertising measures highlighting the link between obesity and cancer, along the lines of successful anti-smoking campaigns, are urgently needed to halt the obesity epidemic, experts say. Writing in the Medical Journal of Australia , Cancer Council Australia CEO Professor Ian Olver argued restrictions to fast-food advertising should form part of a national obesity strategy that could also include taxing high fat, sugar or salt foods, and health insurance rebates. Professor Olver’s call has been backed by other leading obesity experts. Dr Ian Caterson, professor of human nutrition at the University of Sydney, ...
Media coverage biases distort cancer burden
MEDIA coverage of different cancers fails to reflect their disease burden, with over-reporting of common cancers and under-reporting of rarer or ‘less glamorous’ cancers, an Australian study shows. Researchers from the Sydney University School of Public Health documented 1063 items on cancer in free-to-air television news reports from May 2005 to January 2008. Celebrity diagnoses accounted for one-fifth of the news reports, with almost three-quarters of these being about breast cancer – in particular relating to entertainer Kylie Minogue and the late actor Belinda Emmett. Breast cancer was the most widely reported cancer, accounting for 42.5% ...
GPs key to future of cancer care
AUSTRALIAN cancer and public health experts have argued that greater general practice involvement is needed in cancer diagnosis and management. In a recent MJA opinion piece , a group of WA researchers proposed four key strategies to overcome current limitations in cancer care in Australia. They argued there was a need for greater general practice involvement due to the development of oral chemotherapeutic and biological agents, shorter hospital stays, and a perceived lack of continuity and coordination of care by cancer patients. Strategies outlined included funding reforms such as enhanced primary care item numbers and ...