Ulcer bacteria linked to risk of stomach cancer in certain groups

Electron microscopic view of H. pylori bacteria – Credit
Yutaka Tsutsumi, M.D.

CANCER DIGEST – Nov. 16, 2019 – Eliminating the bacteria that causes stomach ulcers from the gastrointestinal tract led to a 75 percent reduction in risk of stomach cancer, researchers have found.

After analyzing nearly 400,000 patient records, researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania found that rates of stomach cancer after detection of H. pylori, the ulcer-causing bacteria, are higher among specific populations, which they suggest would benefit from careful monitoring. The study appeared Nov. 14 online ahead of publication in the journal Gastroenterology.

Any amount of running linked to longer life

CANCER DIGEST – Nov. 9, 2019 – The human body evolved to standing, walking and then running. And running seems to do a body good, according to new analysis of all the available data from 14 studies involving 232,149 people.

Published in the Nov. 4, 2019 British Journal of Sports Medicine the researchers found that any amount of running is linked to a significantly lower risk of death from any cause. Specifically any amount of running was associated with a 27 percent lower risk of death from all causes for both sexes compared to no running, a 30 percent lower risk of death from cardiovascular disease, and a 23 percent lower risk of death from cancer.

Liver cancer deaths rising dramatically

Rising obesity may be contributing
to a rise in liver cancer rates

Liver cancer death rates have increased by around 50% in the last decade and have tripled since records began, according to the latest calculations* by Cancer Research UK.

There were 3,200 liver cancer deaths in the UK in 2007, and the mortality rate has steadily climbed since then with 5,700 deaths due to the disease in 2017, researchers at Cancer Research UK say. 

Artificial intelligence boosts accuracy of breast cancer imaging

Artificial Intelligence learned which lesions were likely malignant (red)
and which were likely benign (green) – Credit NYU School of Medicine

CANCER DIGEST – Oct. 17, 2019 – An artificial intelligence (AI) tool identified breast cancer with approximately 90 percent accuracy when combined with analysis by radiologists, a new study finds.

Viagra may speed stem cell harvesting for bone marrow transplants

Diagram shows standard regimen (left) compared to new
Viagra regimen (right) – Credit Smith-Brendan, et al,
Stem Cell Reports 2019

CANCER DIGEST – Oct. 12, 2019 – A combination of Viagra and a second drug called Plerixafor speeds production and mobilization of blood-forming stem cells needed for bone marrow transplants, new research shows.

The new approach to harvesting stem cells involves a single oral dose of Viagra followed two hours later by a single injection of Plerixafor. The study published Oct. 10, 2019 in Stem Cell Reports showed that the method mobilized enough stem cells from the bone marrow in just 2 hours.