Broken heart syndrome linked to cancer

Image by Sakazaki used under Creative Commons license

CANCER DIGEST – July 20, 2019 – While the headlines grab the attention of the romantically inclined, there really is a medical condition affecting the heart resulting from traumatic emotional events called takotsubo cardiomyopathy.

The new international study led by Swiss researchers in the Journal of the American Heart Association, shows that a substantial number of patients with takotsubo syndrome (TTS) have an increased risk of cancer.

Limiting sugary sodas and fruit drinks may lower cancer risk

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CreativeCommons license

CANCER DIGEST – July 13, 2019 – Sugary drinks are associated with an increased risk of cancer, especially breast cancer, a new observational study shows.

The study led by French researchers followed 101,257 healthy French adults over a maximum of 9 years. The participants completed at least two standardized questionnaires over the course of the study. They were asked about their usual intake of more than 3,000 different food and beverage items. The study appears in the July 10, 2019 British Medical Journal (BMJ).

Earlier studies have shown a link between sugar intake and obesity and visceral or gut fat that is stored around the liver and pancreas. Also sugary drinks have been linked with diabetes and inflammation, which are also linked to higher cancer risk.

Coffee burns brown fat, may help with weight control

Image courtesy University of Nottingham

CANCER DIGEST – July 5, 2019 – Chock up another benefit of drinking coffee. A group of British researchers have found that a cup of coffee can stimulate 'brown fat,' the body’s own fat-fighting defenses. 

Brown adipose tissue (BAT) or brown fat is the "other" fat in your body. Brown fat plays an important role in burning calories for energy. The white fat most people think of or see when trimming a steak before cooking is stored by the body.