“Biologic” age, a DNA-based estimate of a person’s age, is linked to future development of breast cancer, according to scientists at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Biologic age was determined by measuring DNA methylation, a chemical modification to DNA that is part of the normal aging process. The scientists’ study, published online Feb. 22,… Continue reading Older “Biologic” Age Linked to Elevated Breast Cancer Risk
Tag: Breast Cancer
How to Give Yourself the Best Chance for a Normal Breast Shape After Mastectomy
Many people who have seen a woman’s chest after mastectomy have been exposed to the bold horizontal line that marks the spot where the breast existed before it was amputated. The preoperative markings for a traditional mastectomy look like an eye drawn on the breast to indicate the area of skin that will be cut… Continue reading How to Give Yourself the Best Chance for a Normal Breast Shape After Mastectomy
Confronting The Side Effects of A Common Anti-Cancer Treatment
A new treatment approach is needed to deal with the side effects of aromatase inhibitors, drugs that are commonly given to men and women to stop the recurrence of estrogen-positive breast cancer, researchers say. The therapy, though effective, has been linked with hot flashes, memory lapses, anxiety and depression. Sometimes the effects have been so… Continue reading Confronting The Side Effects of A Common Anti-Cancer Treatment
Breaking Down AGEs: Insight into How Lifestyle Drives ER-Positive Breast Cancer
Poor diet and lack of exercise are associated with cancer development, but the underlying biology is not well understood. Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) could offer a biological link to help us understand how certain lifestyle behaviors increase cancer risk or lessen the likelihood that an anti-cancer therapy will be effective. AGE accumulation is the… Continue reading Breaking Down AGEs: Insight into How Lifestyle Drives ER-Positive Breast Cancer
New Moms: Weaker Breast-Cancer Prevention Benefits
Although women who have had children generally have a lower risk of breast cancer compared to women who have never given birth, new research has found that mothers don’t experience that breast cancer benefits until decades later. Additionally, mothers may face an elevated risk of breast cancer for more than 20 years after their last… Continue reading New Moms: Weaker Breast-Cancer Prevention Benefits
Widely Used Hormone Therapy for Breast Cancer Doesn’t Cause Cognitive Decline
University of California, Los Angeles researchers have found that commonly used hormone therapies for women diagnosed with breast cancer do not appear to cause significant cognitive dysfunction following the treatment. Endocrine therapy has become an essential part of treatment for the many women diagnosed with hormone-receptor positive breast cancer, in which hormones, such as estrogen,… Continue reading Widely Used Hormone Therapy for Breast Cancer Doesn’t Cause Cognitive Decline
Advances in Breast Reconstruction: Fat Grafting to Improve Outcomes
For many women who have lost one or both breasts to mastectomy, achieving the ideal breast reconstruction may take time and patience. While it is tempting to opt for short-term quick fixes, the reality is that breast reconstruction after mastectomy should be considered a process rather than a single procedure. Even with the most advanced… Continue reading Advances in Breast Reconstruction: Fat Grafting to Improve Outcomes
Advances in Breast Reconstruction: The PAP Flap Reduces Visible Scarring
Women undergoing breast reconstruction after mastectomy have many options. The gold standard of breast reconstruction is natural tissue breast reconstruction, in which a woman’s own tissue is used to reconstruct the breast. Unlike implant-based breast reconstruction, a restored breast made of your own tissue is soft, warm, and grows or shrinks as you gain or… Continue reading Advances in Breast Reconstruction: The PAP Flap Reduces Visible Scarring
Nipple Reconstruction: Creating a Natural Breast After Mastectomy
Breast reconstruction recreates a breast mound either with implants or with the woman’s own tissue. In either case, nipple reconstruction can be performed in a separate surgery from the original breast reconstruction. Modern techniques in mastectomy and breast reconstruction offer women many options. Many women are candidates for nipple-sparing mastectomy, in which the nipple is… Continue reading Nipple Reconstruction: Creating a Natural Breast After Mastectomy
Obese Women Have Lower Breast Cancer Risk before Menopause
Young women with high body fat have a decreased chance of developing breast cancer before menopause, according to scientists at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and their collaborators. The finding, published online in the journal JAMA Oncology, may help researchers better understand the role obesity plays in breast cancer risk. “It is well known… Continue reading Obese Women Have Lower Breast Cancer Risk before Menopause
New Hope for Combating Lymphedema in Breast Cancer Survivors
More than 2.5 million women in the United States have had breast cancer. Many of them were treated with a combination of surgery, radiation, and sometimes chemotherapy that has removed or damaged lymph nodes and left them vulnerable to upper extremity lymphedema, a condition that can be disfiguring, painful and profoundly impair quality of life… Continue reading New Hope for Combating Lymphedema in Breast Cancer Survivors
Landmark Study Finds More Breast Cancer Patients Can Safely Forgo Chemotherapy
A 21-gene test performed on tumors could enable most patients with the most common type of early breast cancer to safely forgo chemotherapy, according to a landmark study done at Loyola University in May wood IL and published in June 2018 in the New England Journal of Medicine. A release from the university notes that… Continue reading Landmark Study Finds More Breast Cancer Patients Can Safely Forgo Chemotherapy
Breast Cancer Places Greater Financial Burden on Black Women than White Women
Having breast cancer placed a significantly greater financial strain on black women than white women, according to study by researchers at the University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center. The researchers, who published their findings in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, surveyed women who were diagnosed with breast cancer in North Carolina between 2008… Continue reading Breast Cancer Places Greater Financial Burden on Black Women than White Women
Breast Reconstruction: Understanding the Women’s Health and Cancer Rights Act
A diagnosis of breast cancer profoundly impacts a woman’s life. In addition to coping with overwhelming emotions, she must make important choices about treatment and all of its implications. One of those is the financial ramifications of her illness, particularly if she will need surgical treatment of her breast. She will need to learn all… Continue reading Breast Reconstruction: Understanding the Women’s Health and Cancer Rights Act
Screening mammography for women 40-49 detects more cancers compared with older age groups
When compared to the screening population ages 50 and over, screening mammography in women ages 40-49 detects 19.3% additional cancers at the expense of an overall 1.5% increase in callbacks and 0.1% in increased biopsies, according to a study to be presented at the 2018 annual meeting of the American Roentgen Ray Society (ARRS), set… Continue reading Screening mammography for women 40-49 detects more cancers compared with older age groups
Prepectoral Breast Implants: New Options to Save the Muscle
In the United States, only 30% of women who undergo mastectomy also undergo breast reconstruction. Of those women who undergo breast reconstruction, about 80% decide to undergo breast reconstruction with implants. Most women undergo implant-based breast reconstruction because it is simpler, scars are limited to the breasts, and the recovery is often faster immediately after… Continue reading Prepectoral Breast Implants: New Options to Save the Muscle
“Liquid Biopsy” Can Help Predict Outcomes in Metastatic Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
A clinically relevant “liquid biopsy” test can be used to profile cancer genomes from blood and predict survival outcomes for patients with metastatic triple negative breast cancer (TNBC), according to research published in the February 20th 2018, print issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology by a multi-institutional team of researchers with The Ohio State… Continue reading “Liquid Biopsy” Can Help Predict Outcomes in Metastatic Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
Breast Reconstruction Has Come a Long Way
The ancient Egyptians described breast cancer in papyrus writings as far back as 1600 B.C. Over the following centuries, many causes were suggested – from imbalances of bodily fluids to compression from tight clothing – and treatments ranged from cauterization to opium to arsenic. It was not until the 18th century that breast cancer came… Continue reading Breast Reconstruction Has Come a Long Way