Redheads May Have a Genetic Risk For Skin Cancer
Natural redheads are known for their fair skin and, yes, burn more easily, but new research shows that the melanin found in people with red hair is also linked to the development of melanoma — even without sun exposure. A study published in the online journal Nature found that redheads produce a different type of melanin than those with darker skin and hair called pheomelanin. Researchers found that this type of melanin in mice led to melanoma development even before they were exposed to UV light.
“There is something about the redhead genetic background that is behaving in a carcinogenic fashion, independent of UV,” David Fisher, the cancer biologist who led the study, told Nature. The study shows that pheomelanin itself is a cancer-causing agent. But researchers say that the sun is still a driving force in the development of skin cancers in redheads, despite this genetic discovery.
The bottom line: Redheads should be even more keenly aware of changes in their skin, freckles, and moles. Make sure you have a dermatologist regularly check out your skin, and be proactive in keeping your skin protected.
Cancer and Women
Every year, cancer claims the lives of more than a quarter of a million women in America. Women can reduce their cancer risk by adopting a healthy lifestyle and getting the right cancer screening tests for their stage of life.
Melanoma rates keep rising, especially among young women
“There is no such thing as a healthy tan, because you can’t get tanned without damaging your skin first,” said Jerry D. Brewer, MD, lead author of the study and assistant professor of dermatology at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. “That damage is what makes you more likely to get skin cancer later in life.”
The study shows that between 1970 and 2009, melanoma increased eightfold among women ages 18 to 39 and fourfold in men who lived in Olmstead County, Minn. Although the data are for a largely white population, the findings are significant for doctors across the country, because they mirror the national trend that melanoma is increasing, particularly among young women, Dr. Brewer said.
“We anticipated that we’d find rising rates, particularly among young women, but we were surprised to see such a dramatic increase in incidence,” he said.
He added that the rising cancer rate, particularly for young women, probably is being driven by use of indoor tanning beds.
Ultraviolet radiation is a known carcinogen, but indoor tanning is particularly dangerous, because tanning beds can emit 10 to 15 times more UV radiation than the midday sun, health professionals say.
Liam Myrick, Toddler With Neuroblastoma, Sells Paintings To Pay For $500,000 Medical Bills
According to Liam’s Facebook page, they’ll be auctioning off some of his paintings on Ebay next week. ‘Like’ his page for updates. You can also donate to Liam and his family through a Paypal link on their Facebook page.
HPV Vaccine Guards Against Many Viral Strains
The human papilloma virus vaccine Cervarix, which targets two cancer-causing strains of the virus, has been found to partially protect against four more viral strains, according to new research. Together, the six strains cause about 85 percent of cervical cancers.
“The study provides data to substantiate the benefits of HPV vaccination [programs], and health-care professionals should be encouraged to aim for a high vaccine uptake,” Matti Lehtinen at the University of Tampere in Finland and colleagues reported today in the Lancet Oncology.
Lehtinen’s study followed nearly 20,000 healthy women between the ages of 15 and 25 years old for four years. About half the women received the HPV vaccine in three doses; the other half received a control hepatitis A vaccine.
In women previously unexposed to the virus, the HPV vaccine was more than 93 percent effective against grade 3 cervical intraepithelial neoplasia, and 100 percent effective against adenocarcinoma in situ, regardless of the offending viral strain. Both CIN and AIS can develop into cervical cancer. Unvaccinated women were protected 46 percent against CIN, and 77 percent were protected against AIS, according to the study.
Provided teens get vaccinated before they start having sex, “HPV vaccination has the potential to substantially reduce the incidence of cervical cancer,” Lehtinen and colleagues wrote.
DIY cervical cancer test could save lives: study
LONDON (Reuters) - A do-it-yourself test for cervical cancer could help prevent thousands of cases of the disease in women who don’t have easy or regular access to smear tests, scientists said on Wednesday.
The DIY test, which detects the human papillomavirus (HPV) responsible for cervical cancer, was widely accepted in a trial involving 20,000 women in Mexico and was more effective than traditional smear tests at picking up early signs of disease.
British researchers who helped develop the test and led the trial said the results, published in the Lancet medical journal, suggest the DIY kit has the potential to help thousands of women who live in countries where smear testing is difficult or impossible.
Smear tests are conducted by a nurse or doctor and checked manually by a cytologist who makes a judgment after examining a sample under a microscope. The DIY test can be taken by a woman at home and the sample is then assessed by an automated system.
Cancer of the cervix is the second most common cancer in women worldwide, with about 500,000 new cases and 250,000 deaths each year, according to the World Health Organisation.
Research suggests that anywhere from six to 100 U.S. airline passengers each year could get cancer from the machines. Still, the TSA has repeatedly defined the scanners as “safe,” glossing over the accepted scientific view that even low doses of ionizing radiation — the kind beamed directly at the body by the X-ray scanners — increase the risk of cancer.
U.S. Government Glossed Over Cancer Concerns As It Rolled Out Airport X-Ray Scanners via ProPublica/PBS NewsHour
(Photo:Michael Fein/Bloomberg via Getty Images )
Tall people 'more likely to develop cancer'
Being tall has been linked to a greater risk of 10 common cancers by University of Oxford researchers.
For every four inches (10cm) above five feet a person was, the researchers said they had a 16% increased cancer risk.
The study of more than one million women, published in The Lancet Oncology, suggested chemicals that control growth might also affect tumours.
Cancer Research UK said tall people should not be alarmed by the findings.
The study followed 1.3 million middle-aged women in the UK between 1996 and 2001.
It linked 10 cancers to height - colon, rectal, malignant melanoma, breast, endometrial (uterus), ovarian, kidney, lymphoma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma and leukaemia.
Those in the tallest group, over 5ft 9in, were 37% more likely to have developed a tumour than those in the shortest group, under 5ft.
Although the study looked only at women, the researchers said the height link was also present in men.
They combined 10 other research studies which showed a similar link in men.
Beyond The Shock is a comprehensive online guide to understanding breast cancer.
It is a resource for women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer, a place for loved ones to gain a better understanding of the disease, and a tool for doctors to share information.
The web and mobile platforms contain a series of seven video chapters about breast cancer that explain its types and stages, how it grows, how it is diagnosed, and how it is treated. Beyond The Shock is more than just videos; it is an online community of women around the world who are wrestling with similar emotions, questions, decisions, and experiences. People can ask questions and give answers. They can also watch stories of hope and share their own.
Beyond The Shock is a collaborative breast cancer guide created by the National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc. (NBCF) with the support of the finest medical experts, doctors, and researchers in the world. NBCF utilized ground-breaking technology and the resources of the global medical community to create an accessible platform for understanding a diagnosis of breast cancer.
A U.S. study of current and former smokers shows that early screening with CT scans cuts the death rate for lung cancer by 20 percent. The findings are significant because lung cancer is an aggressive disease that often is undetected, and once diagnosed, the mortality rate is very high. VOA’s Melinda Smith in Washington has more on the study and what effect it might have on future screening.
U.S. adds formaldehyde to list of carcinogens
The government on Friday added formaldehyde, a substance found in plastics and other commonly used products, to a list of known carcinogens and warned that the chemical styrene might cause cancer.
In a report prepared for the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), scientists warned that people with higher exposure to formaldehyde were more at risk for nasopharyngeal cancer, myeloid leukemia and other cancers.
“There is now sufficient evidence from studies in humans to show that individuals with higher measures of exposure to formaldehyde are at increased risk for certain types of rare cancers …,” the Report on Carcinogens said.
Formaldehyde is a colorless, flammable, strong-smelling chemical widely used to make resins for household items, such as composite wood products, paper product coatings, plastics, synthetic fibers, and textile finishes.
It is also commonly used as a preservative in medical laboratories, mortuaries, and some consumer products, including hair straightening products.
The report, produced by the National Toxicology Program (NTP), also added styrene to the list of substances that were reasonably anticipated to be human carcinogens.
Styrene is a synthetic chemical used in the manufacture of products such as rubber, plastic, insulation, fiberglass, pipes, automobile parts, food containers, and carpet backing.
The greatest exposure to styrene in the general population is through cigarette smoking, the report said.
today is national cancer survivors day.
i’m a brain cancer survivor but i’m still fighting colon cancer. my birthday last week marked my 8th year fighting it. 8 long, hard years. i’ve had 23 surgeries, 17 rounds of chemo, 3 rounds of radiation, and one transplant. i lost count of hospital stays after 145. i spent all of my 20’s in the hospital and fighting to live. i hope to make it to my 30’s. i hope those are spent just living.
if you have any spare change or time to volunteer, the ulman cancer fund for young adults is an organization dear to my heart and has done so much for the young adult cancer community.
Pet Detective: A Dog that Sniffs Out Colon Cancer
Second ‘Labradors are the best’ story of the day. This is quickly becoming a Labrador appreciation blog.
Prevention: Surgery Sharply Reduces Risk of 2 Cancers
About 1 in 400 women carry genetic mutations that put them at high risk for breast and ovarian cancer. For these women, doctors may recommend prophylactic mastectomy and oophorectomy, or removal of the ovaries — even before there is any sign of cancer.
Now a study in The Journal of the American Medical Associationsuggests that the surgery sharply reduces the risks of the two types of cancer.
Scientists followed 2,482 women who learned they had inherited the BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations through genetic testing done between 1974 and 2008. The women were tracked through 2009.
During three years of follow-up, 7 percent of the women who did not have mastectomies developed breast cancer and 6 percent of those who retained their ovaries developed ovarian cancer. There were no breast cancers in the mastectomy group, and only 1 percent of women who had the ovarian surgery developed ovarian cancer. (These women also reduced their risk of breast cancer, the study found.)
The authors acknowledged that the protective surgery was no guarantee because some residual breast or ovarian tissue remains in the body. Still, they said it provided tremendous protection.
“It’s crucial for women to understand: this is their best chance to reduce risk,” said the senior author, Timothy R. Rebbeck, a professor of epidemiology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.
“It’s very strong and nearly complete, but it’s not 100 percent,” Dr. Rebbeck continued. “If you’re at high risk, this maximizes your chances of survival.”
Cancer Prevention and World Cancer Day
From the GAVI Alliance, in its entirety:
February 4 is World Cancer Day and the theme is “Cancer can be prevented too.” There is a new generation of vaccines that can help supplement behavior change and environmental efforts.
In 1971 President Nixon declared war on cancer, yet families across America, and the world, continue to suffer casualties. This week President Obama requested $6 billion for the National Institutes of Health to launch 30 new drug trials and to ramp up cancer research to have twice as many drugs and vaccines in clinical trials by 2016. But will these efforts benefit children in low-income countries?
Hepatitis B is the most common serious liver infection. Transmitted through blood and infected bodily fluids, Hepatitis B can lead to liver cancer. Death is swift once the liver fails to function, usually within 24 to 48 hours. In the US, 5,000 people die from Hepatitis B each year and 100,000 become infected. Tragic, yet these numbers are dwarfed by the dimensions of the problem elsewhere. In the Asia-Pacific region alone, 260 million people are infected.
Yet this disease can be prevented. Newborns receiving a Hepatitis B immunization within the first 12 hours of life have a 95 percent chance of lifelong protection.
That is why immunizing infants against Hepatitis B is a top priority for the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI). Since 2000, more than 233 million children in the poorest communities have been vaccinated against Hepatitis B, with GAVI’s help.
Roll out of Hepatitis B vaccine in poor countries is a great success story for cancer prevention and control. But the job is not done.
The HPV Challenge
Every two minutes a woman dies of cervical cancer -even though almost every case is preventable through a program of screening, treatment, and vaccination against the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV).
In India alone, about 70,000 women die every year. In Africa, more than 250 million girls and women aged 15 years and older are at risk for developing the disease. Of the 80,000 African women diagnosed with cervical cancer this year, nearly 80 percent will die of it.
Making the HPV vaccine available to girls in the world’s poorest countries will save lives and improve women’s health in places where health care is limited or non-existent.
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Nina Schwalbe is Managing Director for Policy and Performance at GAVI in Geneva.
Nina has spent 20 years in public health. Prior to joining GAVI in 2008, Nina directed the policy department at the Global Alliance for TB Drug Development, a product development partnership focused on medicines for tuberculosis. She directed the Soros Foundation’s global public health program supporting, among other projects, initiatives in harm reduction, tobacco control, and palliative care.
