ScienceCache
Vol. 225
April 18, 2006
OSTEOPOROSIS DRUG EFFECTIVE AGAINST BREAST CANCER,
WITH FEWER SIDE EFFECTS THAN TAMOXIFEN
Researchers and patients at the James P. Wilmot Cancer Center have helped
to show that the drug raloxifene, currently used to prevent and treat
osteoporosis in postmenopausal women, works as well as tamoxifen in reducing
breast cancer risk for postmenopausal women who are at increased risk
of the disease. The initial results come from STAR, or the Study of Tamoxifen
and Raloxifene – one of the largest breast cancer prevention trials
ever conducted. Nearly 20,000 women who are at increased risk of the
disease took part in the nationwide study, including 178 women at the
Wilmot Cancer Center. The study showed that both drugs reduced the risk
of developing invasive breast cancer by about 50 percent. In addition,
women who took raloxifene had 36 percent fewer uterine cancers and 29
percent fewer blood clots than the women who were assigned to take tamoxifen. “This
offers women a safer choice for medications to reduce their risk of breast
cancer,” says Gary Morrow, the local principal investigator for
the STAR study and director of the Community Clinical Oncology Program.
Adds Evelyn Streiff of Rochester, who participated in STAR: “My
mother died from breast cancer and I take advantage of any opportunity
that I can to help reduce my risk of getting breast cancer. And for me,
I saw it as an added benefit that both of these drugs are used to improve
bone density and reduce osteoporosis. I’m a strong believer in
research and this was my way to contribute.”
Full story
MORE PATIENTS WITH ESOPHAGEAL CANCER NOW SURVIVE, SURGEONS SAY
Nearly 50 percent of patients with esophageal cancer who undergo an advanced
surgical procedure now survive for five years, not 20 percent as once
thought, according to an article published in the April edition of the
Journal of the American College of Surgeons. Researchers contend that
earlier diagnoses, more widespread screening and individualized care
have made surgery by far the best way to combat esophageal cancer as
it is most often diagnosed today. Whether surgery, chemotherapy, radiation,
or some combination of them should be the standard of care has been debated
for years. Until recently, surgery has been considered the gold standard,
but its role has been questioned by some physicians based on their assumption
that surgery comes with a high risk of complications and small chance
of survival. In many cases today, doctors will try chemotherapy and radiation
first, completely avoiding surgery. Authors of the current study argue
that the information used to make those decisions is dated, and that
surgery is the most effective approach in many patients. “Those
who argue against surgery for esophageal cancer cite surgical mortality
rates of up to 15 percent and low five-year postoperative survival rates
of 20 percent to justify their approach,” says Jeffrey H. Peters,
chair of the Department of Surgery and surgeon-in-chief of Strong Memorial
Hospital. “What’s worrying is that treatment decisions are
being made based on decades-old experiences with a type of esophageal
cancer that most patients no longer have, and on fears about problems
with surgery that are no longer a concern. Our study found that the five-year
survival of patients after surgical resection for esophageal adenocarcinoma
is better than that reported for any other form of therapy,” says
Peters, co-author of the article.
Full story
TEENS WHO USE HERBAL PRODUCTS MORE LIKELY TO USE ILLEGAL DRUGS
Adolescents who have used herbal products are six times more likely to
have tried cocaine and almost 15 times more likely to have used anabolic
steroids than teens who have never used herbal products, according to
a study published recently in the Journal of Adolescent Health. More
than a quarter of the high school students in the study sample reported
having ever used herbal remedies and of those, the heaviest herbal users
were more likely to use illicit drugs. Teen responders decided for themselves
what would be considered “herbal or other natural products, either
to make you feel better, or to help you perform better at sports or school,” as
asked in the survey. Herbal remedies could include products from dietary
supplements such as vitamins or St. John’s wort to natural performance
enhancers, such as creatine. “The study points to the need for
parents and health care providers to ask if teens are using herbal remedies
and from there probe deeper for possible drug use,” says lead author
Susan Yussman, assistant professor of pediatrics at Golisano Children’s
Hospital at Strong. “Children who are open to experimenting with
herbal products may be more open to trying illicit drugs.”
Full story
VACCINE WITH ROCHESTER ROOTS SAVES ELDERLY, CUTS RESISTANCE TOO
Nancy Bennett and colleagues have found that a vaccine that had its start
in basic research two decades ago at what is now Golisano Children’s
Hospital at Strong has shown success more far-reaching than protecting
just the children who receive it. Bennett, director of the Center for
Community Health at the medical center, is an author on a recent study
in the New England Journal of Medicine that shows the pneumococcal conjugate
vaccine has been effective in reducing cases of antibiotic-resistant
infections in the elderly who have not received the vaccine, as well
as young children who have received it. “This vaccine has been
incredibly effective in reducing pneumococcal disease in children who
receive the vaccine, and in adults who are protected by herd immunity,” Bennett
says. “This paper reports on yet another beneficial effect, the
decrease in antibiotic-resistant infections. This is great news as antibiotic
resistance is a tremendous challenge to our ability to decrease illness
and death from this common infection.” Among children younger than
2 years old, there was an 81 percent decline in resistant infections
between 1999 and 2004. And for those 65 years old or older, there was
a decline of almost 50 percent. Researchers believe the decline among
the older population, which has not received the vaccine, is because
children aren’t spreading the infections as often because they
are vaccinated against them. The vaccine, known commercially as Prevnar,
exists due to conjugate vaccine technology developed at the medical center.
Full story
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