Saturday, September 26, 2009

“Environmental chemicals found in breast milk and high incidence of ... - Science Centric” plus 4 more

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“Environmental chemicals found in breast milk and high incidence of ... - Science Centric” plus 4 more

Environmental chemicals found in breast milk and high incidence of ... - Science Centric

Posted: 26 Sep 2009 07:52 AM PDT

A comparison of breast milk samples from Denmark and Finland revealed a significant difference in environmental chemicals which have previously been implicated in testicular cancer or in adversely affecting development of the foetal testis in humans and animals. This finding is published today in the International Journal of Andrology.

In recent years a worldwide increase in testicular cancer has been noticed, but the cause remains unknown. In some countries, such as Denmark the prevalence of this disease and other male reproductive disorders, including poor semen quality and congenital genital abnormalities is conspicuously high; while in Finland, a similarly industrialised Nordic country, the incidences of these disorders are markedly lower. In the UK, almost 2,000 men are diagnosed with testicular cancer every year, and in the US this number is over 8,000. There is a wide variation in incidence rates of testicular cancer around the globe, and the reasons behind the observed trends are unexplained.

Environmental endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) are commonly found in fatty foods, paints, plasticisers, pesticides, and the byproducts of industrial processes, and in recent studies an association has been shown between some of these agents and male reproductive problems. To investigate whether EDCs could be related to such great differences in reproductive disorders between closely related countries, Konrad Krysiak-Baltyn and colleagues from Denmark, Finland, and Germany measured levels of 121 chemicals in 68 breast milk samples from Denmark and Finland to compare exposure of mothers to EDCs.

With so many chemicals, they used sophisticated, bioinformatics tools to interpret the complex data, and the results showed a clear distinction between the countries.

'We were very surprised to find that some EDC levels, including some dioxins, PCBs and some pesticides, were significantly higher in Denmark than in Finland,' said Professor Niels Skakkebaek, a senior member of the research team, based at the University Department of Growth and Reproduction, Rigshospitalet, Denmark. 'Our findings reinforce the view that environmental exposure to EDCs may explain some of the temporal and between-country differences in incidence of male reproductive disorders.'

'In spite of the findings, I would strongly urge women, including Danish mothers, to continue with breast feeding, which has many beneficial effects for the child,' added Skakkebaek.

Source: Wiley-Blackwell



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Roche Suspends Avastin Breast Cancer Study Enrollment After Heart ... - RTT News

Posted: 25 Sep 2009 11:38 PM PDT

(RTTNews) -  Swiss pharma giant Roche Holding AG (RHHBY.PK: News ) in a statement released on Friday revealed that it has suspended the enrollment for a late-stage U.S. trial with its cancer drug Avastin, citing that six patients suffering from early stage breast cancer showed clinical congestive heart failure. In the trial, dubbed E5103, women who have just undergone surgery, received Avastin in combination with anthracycline chemotherapy.

Congestive heart failure is a condition in which the heart does not pump blood efficiently, leading to shortness of breath, fluid accumulation, fatigue and other symptoms.

Roche stated that it was informed about this by the U.S. National Cancer Institute and U.S. Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group, and said that they had suspended enrollment in the trial. However, Basel-based Roche remains committed to the development of Avastin in early stage cancer.

Roche added that 3,439 of the planned 4,950 patients had already entered the study, which began in November 2007. However, there had been no deaths due to cardiac toxicity and the rate of congestive heart failure in the trial was consistent with that previously reported for Avastin. The hearts of five patients returned to their previous condition once the patients had stopped taking the drug, while the condition of the sixth patient is unknown.

Avastin, which cuts off blood supply to tumours, is already a blockbuster and a key drug for Roche, with global sales of 5.2 billion Swiss francs or US$5.02 billion in 2008, as a treatment for colon, lung and breast cancers. In the U.S., Avastin raked in sales of $2.7 billion last year.

Roche gained complete control over Avastin following the $46.8 billion acquisition of the remaining publicly held outstanding common stock in Genentech, Inc. in March. Avastin has been Genentech's key sales growth driver. Prior to the acquisition, Roche was selling Avastin outside of the U.S., while Genentech was marketing the drug in the U.S.

RHHBY.PK closed Friday's regular trading session at $40.18, down $0.52 or 1.28% on a volume of 2.33 million shares, sharply higher than the three-month average volume of 0.32 million shares.

by RTT Staff Writer

For comments and feedback: contact editorial@rttnews.com



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Precancer? Earliest cancer? Milk-duct cells vexing - Taiwan News

Posted: 25 Sep 2009 09:44 PM PDT

Some doctors tell patients they have "stage zero" breast cancer. Others call it a precancer.

A less scary formal name could help, says a new report that urges removing the word "carcinoma" from the diagnosis of a common growth in milk ducts.

More than 50,000 women a year are diagnosed with DCIS, or ductal carcinoma in situ. This is not invasive breast cancer, the kind that kills. The abnormal cells have not left the milk duct to penetrate breast tissue.

Still, the cells are removed because it is a risk factor for developing true invasive cancer later. Treatment works. Only about 2 percent of DCIS patients die of breast cancer in the next 10 years.

The problem: Doctors do not have a good way to tell which women are at risk of DCIS returning as true cancer and which are not. So there are vast differences in how it is treated, from a simple small surgery to a full radiation-and-chemo blast. Some women even have the healthy opposite breast removed protectively.

It is time for major research to answer the risk question and determine who could safely skip harsh treatment and who really needs it, concluded specialists convened by the National Institutes of Health to assess DCIS.

And changing the name, the panel concluded, will help doctors convey that while this growth should not be ignored, there is time to carefully consider the options.

"The name carries with it such a disproportionate level of anxiety relative to the relatively indolent nature of the disease," said Dr. Carmen Allegra, a University of Florida oncologist who chaired the panel.

The panel did not offer an alternative name.

But the issue is similar to cervical cancer, where abnormal cells form on the surface of the cervix before eventually invading. What doctors now call a precancerous condition _ and classify with various levels of severity _ they once termed cervical carcinoma in situ.

With DCIS, "this is a complex area we know less about," said Dr. Susan Reed of Seattle's Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. "We don't have a clear understanding of how to say, for example, 'Mrs. Jones, your risk to get an invasive breast cancer in the next 10 years would be' some percentage."



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For students, it's the principal; Anthony Wayne educator was diagnosed ... - Toledo Blade

Posted: 26 Sep 2009 12:03 PM PDT

Pink ribbons cover the outside of the main office at Anthony Wayne High School, both as a reminder of tomorrow's Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure and the reason that so many students will participate:

Principal Jeri Hoellrich, who was diagnosed with breast cancer this summer - within two days of her mother, Ellen Vantrease, 85, of Holgate, Ohio.

"All our life, we have been close and done many things together, but this is a journey that we would probably not have wished to take together," said Ms. Hoellrich, 49, of Holgate.

The Anthony Wayne community has rallied behind her, putting together a team of 429 students, teachers, and others for the annual event in downtown Toledo that raises money and awareness to fight breast cancer.

Students who once were only casually aware of breast cancer now find it at the forefront of their minds.

"We cared, but it wasn't like, oh, it's a big deal. But now it's a big deal," said Marissa Schnapp, a junior from Waterville.

During a gathering Friday for students decked out in "Jogging for Jeri" T-shirts, Brad Vogtsberger, student council president, said the student body wants to help the principal with anything it can.

"We love showing our support for her in any way possible," the senior from Maumee said.

Ms. Hoellrich said there is a huge amount of positive energy surrounding the effort.

"It certainly has brought the student body themselves together for a common cause," Ms. Hoellrich said.

The Anthony Wayne team is the largest of the 438 that have signed up for the event so far, event organizers said.

"This is a group of young people in our community who are making a difference. It's powerful," said Mary Westphal, executive director of Susan G. Komen for the Cure Northwest Ohio affiliate, which benefits from the race to help with breast health education, cancer screening, and treatment programs for medically underserved people.

The students are making that difference - like the rest of the more than 16,600 people who have signed up so far - for more than just the particular loved one who may have motivated them to take part, she said.

"By showing support on this day, everybody is having a significant impact on helping one another while helping to find a cure," Ms. Westphal said.

Contact Ryan E. Smith at:
ryansmith@theblade.com
or 419-724-6103



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Young adult fiction - Minneapolis Star Tribune

Posted: 26 Sep 2009 10:58 AM PDT

Adult readers might worry that the book doesn't dead-end in juvenile detention, but to its intended audience the signs are clear that Kelleigh will have to take a different road -- especially if she wants to get her license.

NOTES FROM THE DOG

by Gary Paulsen (Wendy Lamb Books, ages 12 and up, $15.99)

Fourteen-year-old Finn plans to keep his conversations short and his social orbit as small as possible over summer break, but when his border collie delivers a note that says, "You're not as ugly as you think," he's forced to reconsider. His new neighbor, Johanna, a vibrant grad student with a curiously bald head, turns out to be the source of these canine affirmations -- life lessons that seem all the more urgent as Finn and his friend Matthew come to understand that Johanna is also fighting breast cancer. While the tender friendship that grows between Finn and his neighbor could be the stuff of a Lifetime television movie, Paulsen successfully steers away from the saccharine through Finn's goofy and growing self-awareness, and his neighbor's good example about not wasting the good things life throws your way.

THE DAY OF THE PELICAN

by Katherine Paterson (Clarion Books, ages 10 and up, $16)

The conflict in Kosovo is told through the eyes of 11-year-old Meli, an Albanian Kosovar forced to flee with her family when the Serbs slaughter the leader of the Kosovo Liberation Party. While this bloody recent history may be uncomfortable territory for fans of Paterson's beloved "Bridge to Terabithia," the Newbery Medal-winning novelist uses the atrocities in Kosovo as a starting place for exploring questions about ethnic hatred, family love and the real courage of refugees forced to start their lives over again. Though not as involving as Paterson's previous novels, her exploration of the human cost of ethnic mistrust (which doesn't end when Meli arrives in America) seems destined for classroom discussion groups.

ODD AND THE FROST GIANTS

by Neil Gaiman, with illustrations by Brett Helquist (Harper Collins, ages 8 and up, $14.99)



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