Artificial Intelligence analysis of mammograms may predict breast cancer risk

CANCER DIGEST – Dec. 27, 2020 – A group of Australian researchers have developed a method for predicting breast cancer risk from mammograms. If the system is confirmed by other researchers it could be a game changer for breast cancer screening.

If successfully adopted, the researchers say their new measures could substantially improve screening, reduce mortality and reduce anxiety around screening. The study was published in the International Journal of Cancer.

Oral contraceptives protect women from ovarian and endometrial cancer

Courtesy Uppsala University photo credit Matton

CANCER DIGEST – Dec. 19, 2020  – Women who had taken oral contraceptives had a 50 percent lower risk of ovarian and endometrial cancer 15 years after discontinuing the drugs, a new Swedish study has found. At the same time the women in the study had only a small increased risk of breast cancer.

Breast cancer survivors can have healthy babies and good long-term health

CANCER DIGEST – Dec. 12, 2021 – Women of childbearing age who have survived breast cancer are less likely to get pregnant than non-cancer women, but when they do, they are just as likely to have healthy babies, according to a study presented at the 2020 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.

The study was a meta-analysis that combined data from 39 studies that involved 114,573 breast cancer patients. It was presented at this year’s conference by Matteo Lambertini MD, PhD, adjunct professor in medical oncology at the University of Genova, Italy.

Cancer survivors more likely to be hospitalized or die of seasonal flu

Illustration credit – London School of Hygiene

CANCER DIGEST – Dec. 4, 2020 – Cancer survivors have a higher risk of being hospitalized or of dying from seasonal flu according to a new study. The findings also found these patients were more vulnerable to COVID-19 and ought be prioritized for vaccination.

Discovery could lead to treatment for triple negative breast cancer

Sanchita Bhatnagar, PhD – Photo credit UVAHealth

CANCER DIGEST – Nov. 20, 2020 – Researchers think they may have found a way to treat a form of breast cancer, called triple negative breast cancer, meaning the tumor does not have any of the receptors commonly found in breast cancer.

These receptors are proteins on the cell surface that allow hormones into the cell. The three most common are estrogen, progesterone and HER-2 or human epidermal growth factor. 

Triple negative breast cancer is the most aggressive type of breast cancer and accounts for 40,000 deaths each year in the US.

Promising personalized vaccine trial expands to phase II

CANCER DIGEST – Nov. 14, 2020 – An early clinical trial of a new therapeutic vaccine approach to cancer has shown promising results and will be expanded, according to researchers at the University of Arizona.

How does exercise protect against cancer?

CANCER DIGEST – Nov. 9, 2020 – It has long been known that exercise provides a protective effect against a number of illnesses including cancer, but exactly what the biological mechanism is that underpins that effect has not been identified.

In new research in the journal eLife, Swedish researchers have shown that exercise stimulates certain metabolites that increase T cell activity, which could explain the protective effect of exercise.

'Fast MRI' detects significantly more breast cancer in women with dense breasts

CANCER DIGEST – Nov. 3, 2020 – Should women with dense breasts be routinely referred for simplified MRI technique following a negative 3D mammogram? That is the question researchers at Penn Medicine of the University of Pennsylvania asked following results of a February 2020 JAMA Network study.

Promising new blood test for early brain cancer

CANCER DIGEST – Oct. 24, 2020 – Another blood test, sometimes called liquid biopsy has shown promise in detecting and monitoring cancer, this time the test accurately identifies the most common type of brain tumor early.

The researchers at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) compared blood samples from patients with gliomas with biopsied tumor tissue taken from the same patients. 

A breath test for cancer? It could happen

Photo credit Flinders University 

CANCER DIGEST – Oct. 17, 2020 – A new Australian study has shown that head and neck cancers could be accurately identified 85 percent of the time with a breath sample taken before diagnostic testing.

The study involved 181 patients suspected of early-stage head and neck cancer before any treatment. A sample of each patient's breath was collected and then subjected to a high-tech machine called flow-tube mass spectrometer. This is a machine that can separate molecules based on the mass of the individual electrically-charged molecules. In addition the researchers used statistical modeling to develop a breath test that could differentiate cancer from non-cancer molecules.

Oat bran may reduce intestinal inflammation from radiation therapy

Editor's note: Cancer Digest does not usually present results of animal studies as our focus is on research that is likely to affect cancer therapy in time to potentially be an option for currently diagnosed patients. However this mouse study involves a dietary intervention that does not face the same lengthy regulatory path of a therapeutic intervention.

CANCER DIGEST – Oct. 9, 2020 – A new study challenges the standard advice to avoid high-fiber diet for colorectal cancer patients about to undergo radiation therapy.

Antibody treatment for advanced prostate cancer may boost survival

CANCER DIGEST – Oct. 3, 2020 – Men with advanced prostate cancer that has spread to other parts of the body and is resistant to hormone therapy, survived two to three times longer when treated with a monoclonal antibody compared to men who did not receive the antibody, a new study shows.

Immune depleting cancer therapy poses highest risk of dying from COVID-19

Trisha Wise-Draper, MD, PhD, in her lab in
the Vontz Center for Molecular Studies.
Photo credit/Colleen Kelley/UC Creative + Brand

CANCER DIGEST – Sept. 26, 2020 – Researchers have known from the earliest phase of the COVID-19 pandemic that cancer patients were at greater risk of dying from the virus. A new study shows that cancer patients who have recently undergone a certain type of cancer treatment within one to three months prior to infection were at the highest risk of dying of the virus.

Coffee continues to show benefits for patients with cancer

CANCER DIGEST – Sept. 19, 2020 – A cup of coffee a day appears to lengthen survival for patients treated for advanced colorectal cancer that has spread to other parts of the body, a new study shows.

In the study researchers at Dana Farber Cancer Institute and the MAYO Clinic is based on data from a large observational study nested within a clinical trial. The results align with earlier studies that also showed a link between coffee consumption and improved outcomes in patients with localized colorectal cancer. The findings appear in the Sept. 17, 2020 JAMA Oncology.

Blood test to better match targeted therapies to specific cancer defects

CANCER DIGEST – Sept. 12, 2020 – Targeted therapies for cancer are aimed at specific genes and proteins that drive the growth of certain cancers. 

The success of these therapies have been seen in lung cancer, certain leukemias, colorectal cancer, certain lymphomas and melanoma. 

Hair dye does not increase risk of cancer

CANCER DIGEST – Sept. 5, 2020 – A lot of women whose hair color comes from a box can breathe a sigh of relief. After years of suspicion that the chemicals in such permanent hair dye carried health risks, including increased risk of cancer, a new study has found no increased risk linked to most cancers or to cancer deaths in women using the products.

The study involved 117,200 women from the long-running Nurses’ Health Study based at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. Those women have been followed for 36 years with a variety of analyses coming from the data gathered over those years. The new analysis was published in the Sept. 2 British Medical Journal (BMJ)

Single dose radiotherapy during surgery is effective for early breast cancer

CANCER DIGEST – Aug. 22, 2020 – Women with early breast cancer treated with a single dose of targeted radiotherapy during surgery were just as likely to survive cancer free for over 8 years as women treated with surgery and conventional radiotherapy, according to a new study.

The findings, published by The BMJ Aug. 19, 2020, show that targeted radiotherapy at the time of surgery to remove the tumor is associated with around an 80% chance of avoiding a full course of conventional radiotherapy, and had fewer side effects and no difference in survival or likelihood of the cancer returning.

Women who use tobacco less likely to get cancer screenings

CANCER DIGEST – Aug. 14, 2020 – A new study has found a strong link between smoking and lower used of cancer screening services by women, and a link to more advanced disease once cancer is diagnosed. The study appears in the online journal BMJ Open.

The study led by Victor Eng of the Department of Dermatology at Stanford University used data collected from the Women’s Health Initiative, a long-running study that originally started in the 1990s and has been extended several times. This analysis of data collected from questionnaires answered by 89,058 women looked at the odds of women undergoing breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer screening tests based on smoking status.

COVID-19 delays for early stage breast cancer surgery unlikely to impact survival

CANCER DIGEST – Aug. 7, 2020 – Delays in breast cancer surgeries for very early stage

cancer may not affect overall survival, a new study shows, which is reassuring news for women’s the earliest stage of breast cancer whose surgeries were postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, many elective surgeries were postponed to ensure hospitals had staff capacity to deal with virus patients. Surgeries in the gray area between essential and elective, however concerned many, including breast cancer surgeons. Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) was one such surgery.

Global trends in breast cancer show disparities by countries

Photo courtesy of University of Calgary News

CANCER DIGEST – July 31, 2020 – Breast cancer rates are increasing among pre- and postmenopausal women around the world, but trends are different in low-income countries versus high-income countries, say a group of Canadian researchers.

Maintaining health of mouth and teeth my reduce cancer risk

CANCER DIGEST – July 24, 2020 – People with history of gum disease appear to have higher risk of developing digestive tract cancers, according to a new study published online July 20, 2020 in the journal GUT.

Researchers led by Chun-Han Lo and colleagues at Harvard Medical School examined the history of periodontal disease and tooth loss with the risk of esophageal and stomach cancer in 98,459 women who participated in the Nurses’ Health Study, and 49,685 men from the Health Professionals Follow-up Study. Both studies were conducted over a couple of decades beginning1988 for the men and 1992 in women.

Researchers say their cancer vaccine is ready for human trials

The Vaccine Research Team at Translational Research Institute, Australia says 
they are ready to begin human clinical trials of their cancer vaccine. 
Image courtesy TRI

CANCER DIGEST – July 17, 2020 – Scientists are ready to begin clinical trials for a new cancer vaccine in humans they say has the potential to treat a variety of blood cancers, following results of preclinical trials appearing in the journal Clinical and Translational Immunology.

New formulation of leading prostate drug could improve effectiveness

CANCER DIGEST – July 11, 2020 – A new formulation of the leading prostate cancer drug improves effectiveness and reduces side effects, a new early clinical trial shows.

The results of a pre-clinical trial by researchers at the University of South Australia show the new formulation improves the effectiveness of the drug Zytiga® (abiraterone acetate) by 40 percent. 

Pre-clinical trials are typically done in the laboratory and in living animals. The study appeared in the May 2020 issue of the International Journal of Pharmaceutics.

FDA approves home breast cancer treatment amid COVID-19 epidemic

Image credit – US Public Health
Emergency Weekly Report

CANCER DIGEST – July 3, 2020 – The US Food and Drug Administration has approved Phesgo, for home administration for HER-2 positive breast cancer.

A combination of targeted therapy drugs pertuzumab, trastuzumab (Herceptin®) and hyaluronidase is commonly given to HER-2 positive breast cancer patients whose cancer has spread to other parts of the body as an intravenous infusion at a clinic.

Vitamin D may be key to reducing side effect of new cancer drugs

Image credit FDA Healthnews.com

CANCER DIGEST – June 26, 2020 – New research indicates that taking vitamin D supplements may help prevent one of the potentially serious side effects of a revolutionary form of anti-cancer therapy, called checkpoint inhibitors, a new study shows. 

The findings are published early online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society (ACS).

Movers have lower risk of dying of cancer

Image credit – MD Anderson

CANCER DIGEST – June 19, 2020 – A new study shows that the most sedentary individuals had an 82 percent higher risk of dying of cancer compared to the least sedentary individuals.

Led by Susan Gilchrist M.D., associate professor of Clinical Cancer Prevention at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center the study involved a group of participants in the REGARDS study,

Aspirin taken daily for two years still lowers cancer risk 10 years later

Image credit – Newcastle University

CANCER DIGEST – June 12, 2020 – Two aspirin a day for two years reduced the risk of inherited bowel cancer 10 years after stopping the aspirin treatment, an analysis of research data has revealed.

The findings come from results of the international trial called CaPP2, which involved 861 patients with Lynch syndrome from around the world. Lynch syndrome, also known as hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC), is the most common cause of hereditary colorectal (colon) cancer. The study appears in the June 12, 2020 The Lancet.

Genetic variant identified for higher rates of African American prostate cancer

CANCER DIGEST – June 5, 2020 – A study of prostate cancer in Americans of African descent has found a genetic variant that appears to increase the risk of prostate cancer in black men. The study appears in the May 11, 2020 journal European Urology.

Armed with this new information, clinicians may be able to screen for prostate cancer earlier and treat it sooner, according to study author Christopher Haiman, ScD.

New prostate cancer test targets sugar molecules

Image credit– University of Birmingham, UK

CANCER DIGEST – May 29, 2020 – Researchers have developed a new type of test that identifies a specific complex of sugars attached to PSA to detect prostate cancer earlier and with greater accuracy.

The test works by identifying sugars, known as glycans, in blood. These sugars are attached to the prostate specific antigen, or PSA and are known to undergo distinct but subtle changes when cancer is present in the body. The research appeared May 28, 2020 in the journal Advanced Functional Materials.

Pancreatic cancer patients with certain mutations benefit from platinum chemo

Image credit Cancer Research UK via Wikipedia

CANCER DIGEST – May 22, 2020 – Patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer who have certain genetic mutations that can be passed on to offspring had better clinical outcomes after treatment with platinum-based chemotherapy, compared to patients without such mutations, a new study shows.

Say AAAH for oral cancer test

Image courtesy QUT 

CANCER DIGEST – May 15, 2020 – A simple saliva test developed by Queensland University of Technology (QUT) has detected early throat cancer in a person who had no symptom and no clinical signs of cancer, QUT scientists report.

It is believed to be world's first non-invasive test to pick up HPV-DNA in a saliva sample from an infected healthy person. 

Drug may help control nausea unrelated to chemo in patients with advanced cancer

Image courtesy Mayo News Network

CANCER DIGEST – May 8, 2020 – A drug used to treat nervous, emotional and mental conditions, such as schizophrenia, has been shown to be effective in easing nausea and vomiting unrelated to chemotherapy or radiation therapy in cancer patients.

The drug olanzapine was tested by Mayo Clinic researchers in 30 patients with advanced cancer who had not recently undergone chemotherapy or radiation but did have substantial trouble with nausea and vomiting.

Breast cancer drug may be effective for certain prostate cancers

CANCER DIGEST – May 4, 2020 – A breast cancer drug may be more effective than

targeted hormone therapy for advanced prostate cancer, a new study shows.

The drug olaparib, Lynparza™, is a targeted chemotherapy pill used to treat both ovarian cancer and an aggressive form of metastatic breast cancer, that generally has few side effects. The study appears in the April 28, 2020 New England Journal of Medicine.

In the new study, called the PROfound trial, researchers from The Institute of Cancer Research in London, UK, in collaboration with Northwestern University in Chicago, tested 387 men with advanced prostate cancer for tumors with specific genetic alterations. The men were treated in two groups.

New drug shows promise for a deadly type of uterine cancer

CANCER DIGEST – April 24, 2020 – The first early clinical trial of a new drug for a deadly type of uterine cancer showed an impressive 30 percent response rate, according to a report presented online at Thursday's virtual session of the Society for Gynecologic Oncology (SGO) Annual Meeting on Women's Cancer.

Study links reductions in digestive tract cancers to regular aspirin use

Credit Sauligno – used under Creative Commons license

CANCER DIGEST – April 17, 2020 – Taking aspirin at least once or twice a week cut the risk of digestive tract cancers, such as colorectal cancer, by 22 percent to 38 percent according to findings of the largest, most comprehensive analysis of data to date.

"We found that the risk of cancer was reduced with increased dose," said lead author Dr Cristina Bosetti (PhD), head of the Unit of Cancer Epidemiology at the Mario Negri Department of Oncology, Milan (Italy) in a press release.  "An aspirin dose between 75 and 100mg a day was associated with a 10% reduction in a person's risk of developing cancer compared to people not taking aspirin; a dose of 325mg a day was associated with a 35% reduction, and a dose of 500mg a day was associated with a 50% reduction in risk."

Immunotherapy after chemo slows bladder cancer progression

Image credit Terese Winslow via Cancer.gov

CANCER DIGEST – April 11, 2020 – Using immunotherapy immediately after chemotherapy treatment in patients with metastatic bladder cancer significantly slowed the progression of the cancer, according to results of a clinical trial led by Mount Sinai researchers published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology in April.

The trial involving 108 patients showed that the time before their type of bladder cancer called urothelial cancer progressed was 60 percent longer when they received the immunotherapy drug called pembrolizumab (Keytruda®) after platinum-based chemotherapy compared to patients who received a placebo after chemotherapy.

Cancer drug a potential anti-COVID-19 treatment for people with blood cancers

Photo credit -- Hoffman La Roche, Ltd

CANCER DIGEST – April 4, 2020 – A 60-year-old Wuhan man in the hospital for treatment of multiple myeloma, a blood cancer, contracted COVID-19 but three days after receiving the cancer drug his chest tightness went away and 10 days

Fewer Americans dying of deadly form of skin cancer

CANCER DIGEST – March 28, 2020 – Death rates for metastatic melanoma, the aggressive form of skin cancer that spreads from the skin to other organs, such as the lung, liver, or brain dropped by nearly 18 percent between 2013 and 2016 a new population study shows.

Statins might starve cancer cells to death

Microscopic view of cells that stop moving –
Credit: xiaoguang Li

CANCER DIGEST – March 21, 2020 – A drug that 35 million Americans already take daily may be effective in halting cancer growth, a new study shows.

The findings by researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine confirm findings of population studies that have shown that people taking statin drugs to lower their cholesterol may gain a protective effect against cancer.

Are cancer patients more susceptible to COVID-19?

CANCER DIGEST – March 14, 2020 – A preliminary study of COVID-19 patients in China has found that cancer patients may be more vulnerable to the disease, but not from the cancer itself.

Chemo after surgery for rare kidney cancer extends survival

Cancer Digest – March 7, 2020 – Patients with a rare form of kidney cancer who received chemotherapy after surgery to remove tumors were more likely to survive three years or more compared to those treated with surgery alone, a new study has found.

Cancer of the urinary tube connecting the lower part of the kidney and the bladder is rare, with about 1,000 people diagnosed in the UK each year and about 10 percent of the 15,000 people diagnosed with kidney cancer in the US annually. However, it is one of the more lethal forms of cancer with less than half of those diagnosed surviving more than three years.

Study exposes Achilles heel of deadly kidney cancer

The red dots represent the protein complex in kidney 

cancer cells that spur cancer growth. The right frame 

shows tumor after treatment with PT2385

CANCER DIGEST – Feb. 22, 2020 – An experimental drug already shown to be safe and helps some patients with a deadly form of kidney cancer, has shed light on a possible new way to treat the cancer.

“Short of a cure, which we’re still struggling to get to patients, we think this drug and other future drugs in this class could offer a durable way to fight this cancer while preserving quality of life,” said Kevin Courtney, M.D., Ph.D. in a press release.

5 days of radiation for sarcomas as effective as 5 weeks

Researchers Dr. Fritz Eilber, left, and Dr. Anusha
Kalbasi, find shorter radiation for sarcoma is effective

CANCER DIGEST – Feb. 15, 2020 – Significantly shorter radiation treatments for cancer of soft tissues like muscle, nerves, fat or connective tissues, is safe and likely just as effective as conventional 5 week regimens, a new study shows.

Led by researchers at the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, 52 adults diagnosed with a soft tissue sarcoma of the limbs or trunk, where such tumors most commonly occur, participated in the study. The tumors had not spread to other parts of the body. The treatment consisted of a condensed form of radiation for 5 days, followed by surgery. The researchers then followed the patients for an average of two-and-half years.

First trial shows direct editing with CRISPR to fight cancer is feasible

CANCER DIGEST – Feb. 8, 2020 – A new study in three patients with advanced cancer has shown that directly editing T cells to fight cancer can be done safely.

Many advances in immunotherapy approaches have been achieved                                   Credit Mayo Clinic 

New combination therapy may overcome HER2 resistance

Dhivya Sudhan, Ph.D., (left) and Carlos L. Arteaga, M.D. –
Credit UT Southwestern

CANCER DIGEST – Jan. 25, 2020 – A combination therapy using a drug already on the market together with a promising new drug still being tested may overcome cancers with HER 2 mutations, that have long shown resistance to treatment.

“This finding may give clinicians an effective response to neratinib resistance,” Carlos L. Arteaga, M.D., Director of the Simmons Cancer Center at UT Southwestern said in a press release. "That could make a real difference for patients with breast, ovarian, lung, and other cancers harboring HER2 mutations."

Report shows steady decline in cancer death rates

Graph credit ACS

CANCER DIGEST – Jan. 17, 2020 – The cancer death rate declined by 29 percent from 1991 to 2017, including a 2.2 percent drop from 2016 to 2017, the largest single-year drop in cancer mortality ever reported.

Overall cancer death rates dropped by an average of 1.5 percent per year during the most recent decade of data (2008-2017), continuing a trend that began in the early 1990s and resulting in the 29 percent drop in cancer mortality in that time. 

Zapping cancer in a single treatment: FLASH therapy is feasible

Photo credit–Roberts Proton Therapy Center

CANCER DIGEST – Jan. 11, 2020 – Imagine that one day in the not-too-distant future, your cancer is treated with an entire course of radiation delivered in a single one-second dose.

For current cancer patients who undergo their radiation treatments over the course of weeks, such a treatment might seem impossible, but researchers at Penn Medicine say they have demonstrated the ability to deliver an entire course of radiation in less than a second.

Single course chemo is effective for preventing testicular cancer

Image credit – MedlinePlus

CANCER DIGEST – Jan. 4, 2020 – Half the chemo is as effective as current regimens in preventing recurrence of testicular cancer after surgery, a new study has found.

The study led by the Institute of Cancer Research, London and University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation trust involved nearly 250 men with early stage testicular cancer at high risk of their cancer returning. The results appear in the Jan. 1, 2020 journal European Urology