A diet rich in fruits and veggies can help protect against breast cancer.
A study by Oregon Health and Science University researchers found women who eat at least four servings of fruits and vegetables have a 50 percent lower risk of breast cancer than women who consume no more than two such servings each day.
They reached that conclusion after examining the diets of 378 women with breast cancer and the diets of 1,070 cancer-free women. All the women, living in Shanghai, China, filled out questionnaires that asked about their intake of 108 individual food items, fried and restaurant food, dietary changes, and the use of nutrient supplements and Chinese herbal medicines.
Along with its finding about the cancer benefits from eating more fruits and vegetables, the study also found that eating at least six eggs a week was also associated with reduced risk of breast cancer. But no association was found between intake of soy or soy products and breast cancer risk.
The study was presented this week at the American Association for Cancer Research conference in Phoenix.
"This study provides further evidence that low fruit and vegetable intake in the Western diet may be a major risk factor in developing breast cancer," lead author Jackilen Shannon, an assistant professor of public health and medicine, says in a prepared statement.
"Women should modify their diet to include more fruits and vegetables to help prevent breast cancer," Shannon says.
Showing posts with label breast cancer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label breast cancer. Show all posts
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Breast cancer changes with spread
Nearly 40% of breast cancer tumours change form when they spread, a UK study shows.
The researchers say this could mean that patients require changes to their treatment regime.
They analysed 211 tumours which had spread to the lymph nodes in the armpit - the place where breast cancer tends to migrate first.
The study, by Breakthrough Breast Cancer scientists in Edinburgh, appears in Annals of Oncology.
Breast cancer is a complex disease with many different types which can be treated in different ways.
Breast cancer spreads to the lymph nodes in about 40% of the 46,000 women diagnosed with breast cancer in the UK each year.
Cancer cells which spread in this way are often more difficult to treat than those in the breast - so it is vital that women receive the most appropriate treatment.
Researchers were surprised to find the disease changed in such a high proportion of patients, and in so many ways, when it had spread.
For example, 20 tumours changed from oestrogen receptor (ER) negative to ER positive.
This change would mean hormone therapies such as tamoxifen, which would not have worked for the original tumour, could help treat the disease if it has spread.
Other tumours changed from ER positive to ER negative, which suggests those patients may be given treatments which will not benefit them - experiencing side-effects unnecessarily.
Surprising result
Lead researcher Dr Dana Faratian said: "We were surprised that such a high proportion of tumours change form when they spread beyond the breast.
"This suggests there is a need to test which type of disease a woman has in the lymph nodes, because it could radically alter the course of treatment she receives.
"We now need a clinical trial to see how these results could benefit patients."
Professor David Harrison, director of the Breakthrough Breast Cancer Research Unit, said: "This research may show why some women whose cancer has spread to the lymph nodes do not respond to treatment.
"With an additional test we may be able to treat women more effectively and also make more efficient use of NHS resources."
The researchers stress that a clinical trial needs to be carried out to fully evaluate the benefits of testing cancer cells in the lymph nodes before it can be approved for use on the NHS.
Breast cancer accounts for nearly one in three of all female cancers and one in nine women in the UK will develop breast cancer at some point in their lifetime.
The researchers say this could mean that patients require changes to their treatment regime.
They analysed 211 tumours which had spread to the lymph nodes in the armpit - the place where breast cancer tends to migrate first.
The study, by Breakthrough Breast Cancer scientists in Edinburgh, appears in Annals of Oncology.
Breast cancer is a complex disease with many different types which can be treated in different ways.
Breast cancer spreads to the lymph nodes in about 40% of the 46,000 women diagnosed with breast cancer in the UK each year.
Cancer cells which spread in this way are often more difficult to treat than those in the breast - so it is vital that women receive the most appropriate treatment.
Researchers were surprised to find the disease changed in such a high proportion of patients, and in so many ways, when it had spread.
For example, 20 tumours changed from oestrogen receptor (ER) negative to ER positive.
This change would mean hormone therapies such as tamoxifen, which would not have worked for the original tumour, could help treat the disease if it has spread.
Other tumours changed from ER positive to ER negative, which suggests those patients may be given treatments which will not benefit them - experiencing side-effects unnecessarily.
Surprising result
Lead researcher Dr Dana Faratian said: "We were surprised that such a high proportion of tumours change form when they spread beyond the breast.
"This suggests there is a need to test which type of disease a woman has in the lymph nodes, because it could radically alter the course of treatment she receives.
"We now need a clinical trial to see how these results could benefit patients."
Professor David Harrison, director of the Breakthrough Breast Cancer Research Unit, said: "This research may show why some women whose cancer has spread to the lymph nodes do not respond to treatment.
"With an additional test we may be able to treat women more effectively and also make more efficient use of NHS resources."
The researchers stress that a clinical trial needs to be carried out to fully evaluate the benefits of testing cancer cells in the lymph nodes before it can be approved for use on the NHS.
Breast cancer accounts for nearly one in three of all female cancers and one in nine women in the UK will develop breast cancer at some point in their lifetime.
Heavier breasts linked to increased cancer risk
Women with heavier busts who have been treated for breast cancer are at higher risk of its recurrence, says a new study.
These findings indicate that such patients may benefit from additional therapies, such as radiation, following surgery.
Researchers suspected that high breast density (heavier breasts) may also increase the risk of cancer recurrence after lumpectomy, but this theory has not been thoroughly studied.
Lumpectomy is a surgical procedure that involves removing a suspected malignant (cancerous) tumour, or lump, and a small portion of the surrounding tissue from a woman's breast.
Researchers led by Steven A. Narod, Women's College Research Institute (WCRI) in Toronto reviewed the medical records of 335 patients who had undergone lumpectomy for breast cancer.
Researchers found that patients with the highest breast density had a much greater risk of cancer recurrence than did women with the lowest breast density.
Over 10 years, women in the highest breast density category had a 21 percent chance of cancer recurrence, compared to a five percent chance among women in the lowest category, according to a WCRI release.
"The composition of the breast tissue surrounding the breast cancer is important in predicting whether or not a breast cancer will return after surgery," Narod said.
The study authors say their findings indicate that women with low breast density, who have a low chance of recurrence after surgery, may not need radiation but that women with high breast density could significantly benefit from the additional therapy.
These findings are slated for publication in December issue of Cancer, a journal of the American Cancer Society.
These findings indicate that such patients may benefit from additional therapies, such as radiation, following surgery.
Researchers suspected that high breast density (heavier breasts) may also increase the risk of cancer recurrence after lumpectomy, but this theory has not been thoroughly studied.
Lumpectomy is a surgical procedure that involves removing a suspected malignant (cancerous) tumour, or lump, and a small portion of the surrounding tissue from a woman's breast.
Researchers led by Steven A. Narod, Women's College Research Institute (WCRI) in Toronto reviewed the medical records of 335 patients who had undergone lumpectomy for breast cancer.
Researchers found that patients with the highest breast density had a much greater risk of cancer recurrence than did women with the lowest breast density.
Over 10 years, women in the highest breast density category had a 21 percent chance of cancer recurrence, compared to a five percent chance among women in the lowest category, according to a WCRI release.
"The composition of the breast tissue surrounding the breast cancer is important in predicting whether or not a breast cancer will return after surgery," Narod said.
The study authors say their findings indicate that women with low breast density, who have a low chance of recurrence after surgery, may not need radiation but that women with high breast density could significantly benefit from the additional therapy.
These findings are slated for publication in December issue of Cancer, a journal of the American Cancer Society.
