Research that followed more than 1.6 million Swedish men from adolescence onwards between 1968 and 2005 has shown that those who were overweight as teenagers were more likely to develop heart failure in early middle age. Surprisingly, the increased risk of heart failure was found in men who were within the normal body weight range […]
Loss of Y chromosome in blood cells is associated with developing Alzheimer’s disease: new research could lead to a simple test to identify those at risk
Barcelona, Spain: Men with blood cells that do not carry the Y chromosome are at greater risk of being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease (AD), and this is in addition to an increased risk of death from other causes, including many cancers, researchers told the annual conference of the European Society of Human Genetics. The paper […]
Discovery of new disease gene will lead to better screening for severe paediatric heart disease
Barcelona, Spain: Cardiomyopathy, or a deterioration of the ability of the heart muscle to contract, generally leads to progressive heart failure. It is frequently inherited, and, because approximately 40% of children born with it are likely to die within five years of diagnosis, being able to identify its genetic basis is particularly important. Now, an […]
Dietary experiments in mice point the way to early detection of cancer development in humans
Barcelona, Spain: Colorectal cancer is the second most common cause of cancer-related deaths in the Western world, mainly because it is usually diagnosed too late. Finding ways to identify those people who are at increased risk of developing colon cancer is therefore crucial, a researcher told the annual conference of the European Society of Human Genetics. […]
How does obesity cause disease in organs distant from those where fat accumulates? New genetic evidence points the way
Barcelona, Spain: Obesity is on the rise throughout the world, and in some developed countries two-third of the adult population is either overweight or obese. This brings with it an increased risk of serious conditions such as heart disease, stroke, cancer and osteoarthritis. Many of these conditions do not appear to affect the parts of […]
World report on fertility treatments reveals high use of intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI); editor attacks the over-use of ICSI as ‘ineffective and costly care’
The editor-in-chief of one of the world’s leading reproductive medicine journals has attacked the rising use of intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) for the treatment of infertility, following publication of the latest world report on assisted reproductive technologies (ART) [1]. The report in Human Reproduction shows that while ICSI use has levelled off in some regions, […]
Radiotherapy for lung cancer patients is linked to increased risk of non-cancer deaths: researchers set out to investigate new heart-sparing techniques
Turin, Italy: Researchers have found that treating patients who have early stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with a type of radiotherapy called stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) is associated with a small but increased risk of death from causes other than cancer. In particular, they found that high doses to the left atrium of […]
Largest study of patients with early stage II testicular cancer shows radiation therapy is more effective than chemotherapy
Turin, Italy: A large study of testicular cancer patients has shown that radiation therapy is a better treatment than chemotherapy for patients with stage IIa disease (where one or more regional lymph nodes contain cancer cells but they are less than 2cms in diameter). These findings, presented at the ESTRO 35 conference and published simultaneously […]
Radiation and immunotherapy combination can destroy both primary and secondary tumours
Turin, Italy: Radiation therapy not only kills cancer cells, but also helps to activate the immune system against their future proliferation. However, this immune response is often not strong enough to be able to cure tumours, and even when it is, its effect is limited to the area that has been irradiated. Now, however, research […]
Breast conserving therapy or mastectomy? New study sheds light on best choices for younger and older women with early breast cancer
Turin, Italy: Young women with early breast cancer face a difficult choice about whether to opt for a mastectomy or breast conserving therapy (BCT). This is because there is little evidence as to whether the greater risk of a return of the disease at the site of the original tumour after BCT is linked to […]