Glasgow, UK: Extending national breast cancer screening programmes to women over the age of 70 does not result in a decrease in the numbers of cancers detected at advanced stages, according to new research from The Netherlands. Instead, researchers told the European Breast Cancer Conference that their findings suggest that extending screening programmes to older […]
2014
Regular physical activity reduces breast cancer risk irrespective of age
Glasgow, UK: Practising sport for more than an hour day reduces the risk of contracting breast cancer, and this applies to women of any age and any weight, and also unaffected by geographical location, according to research presented to the 9th European Breast Cancer Conference (EBCC-9). Compared with the least active women, those with the […]
Deaths from breast cancer fall in Europe, but unexplained differences between countries remain
Glasgow, UK: Improvements in treatment, as well as enhanced access to care, underlie the sustained decreases in breast cancer mortality seen in 30 European countries [1] from 1989 to 2010. But there are notable variations between different countries that cannot be explained simply by the resources devoted to cancer care, and these differences need to […]
Obesity and diabetes have adverse effects on outcomes across different tumour types and should be taken into account when planning breast cancer treatment
Glasgow, UK: Both obesity and diabetes have adverse effects on outcomes in breast cancer patients who receive chemotherapy as primary treatment before surgery (neoadjuvant chemotherapy), according to research to be presented at the 9th European Breast Cancer Conference (EBCC-9) on Friday. Although a high body mass index (BMI) is known to have a negative impact […]
Where are we with breast cancer in 2013? Good news for some, bad for others
Glasgow, UK: The global burden of breast cancer remains immense in 2013, with over 1.6million new cases being diagnosed annually. This burden has been increasing at a rate of 3.1% per year, and while the majority of new cases are diagnosed among women in developed countries, the 450,000 deaths per year from the disease are […]
Radiotherapy after mastectomy benefits women with breast cancer that has spread to just a few lymph nodes
Glasgow, UK: Women whose breast cancer has spread to just a few lymph nodes under their arm are less likely to have their disease recur or to die from it if they have radiotherapy after mastectomy, according to new research presented at the European Breast Cancer Conference (EBCC-9) and published in The Lancet. [1] Dr […]
Genetic testing may improve selection of women with ER+ breast cancer for ten rather than five years of hormonal therapy
Glasgow, UK: Genetic analyses of results from 1125 postmenopausal women being treated for oestrogen responsive breast cancer have shown that some of them are more likely than others to have a late recurrence of their cancer and might benefit from ten years of hormone therapy rather than five. Prof Mitch Dowsett told the opening press […]
Passive smoking causes irreversible damage to children’s arteries
Exposure to passive smoking in childhood causes irreversible damage to the structure of children’s arteries, according to a study published online in the European Heart Journal [1]. The thickening of the arteries’ walls associated with being exposed to parents’ smoke, means that these children will be at greater risk of heart attacks and strokes in […]
Outbursts of anger linked to greater risk of heart attacks and strokes
Outbursts of anger may trigger heart attacks, strokes and other cardiovascular problems in the two hours immediately afterwards, according to the first study to systematically evaluate previous research into the link between the extreme emotion and all cardiovascular outcomes. The study – a systematic review and meta-analysis – published online in the European Heart Journal […]
Fit teenagers are less likely to have heart attacks in later life
Researchers in Sweden have found an association between a person’s fitness as a teenager and their risk of heart attack in later life. In a study of nearly 750,000 men, they found that the more aerobically fit men were in late adolescence, the less likely they were to have a heart attack 30 or 40 […]