Mammograms starting at age 40 could cut cancer deaths in black women

Photo credit – University of Georgetown Media Department

CANCER DIGEST – Oct. 23, 2021 – A new statistical model based on existing data and self-reported race demographics shows that if black women begin mammography screening every other year at age 40, the number of breast cancer deaths among black women could be reduced by 57 percent compared to starting such screening at age 50.

Moderate exercise could prevent 46,000 cancer cases annually

Photo credit – Vijay.shivu via Wikipedia Creative Commons

CANCER DIGEST – Oct. 16, 2021 – More than 46,000 cancer cases annually could be prevented in the US if people could manage to get just five hours of moderate exercise per week, a new analysis shows.

Gut bacteria may fuel prostate cancer

Section of a mouse gut. Credit–Kevin Mackenzie, University of Aberdeen

CANCER DIGEST – Oct. 10, 2021 – New research shows that gut bacteria can compensate for androgen deprivation therapy often used in prostate cancer to block hormone driven cancer growth. The findings show that low androgen levels resulted in growth of gut bacteria that become hormone factories, thus providing an alternative source of cancer growth-producing hormones.

Key to treating lung cancer in never-smokers identified

An image of a lung tumor in a patient who never smoked

Image credit Washington University

CANCER DIGEST – Oct. 2, 2021 – Lung cancer in people who have never smoked has long been a mystery to researchers, and although they still are working to understand the origin of these cancer, researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have found that these tumors are treatable with existing therapies.