March 2010

Those Easter eggs may be good for you! Study shows chocolate reduces blood pressure and risk of heart disease

Easter eggs and other chocolate may be good for you – at least in small quantities and preferably if it’s dark chocolate – according to research that shows just one small square of chocolate a day can lower your blood pressure and reduce your risk of heart disease. The study is published online today (Wednesday […]

Initial results from international trial show specific lymph node radiotherapy is well-tolerated after surgery in women with early breast cancer

Barcelona, Spain: In patients with early breast cancer, giving radiotherapy to the lymph nodes located behind the breast bone and above the collar bone is well-tolerated, after mastectomy or breast conserving surgery, a radiation oncologist will tell delegates at the seventh European Breast Cancer Conference (EBCC7) today (Saturday 27 March). Women at a high risk […]

Discovery that PARP protein exists in all tumour types will help target chemotherapy and predict response

Barcelona, Spain: The presence of the protein poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) in tumours can help predict their response to chemotherapy, a German scientist will tell the seventh European Breast Cancer Conference (EBCC7) in Barcelona tomorrow (Saturday 27 March). Professor Gunter von Minckwitz, from the German Breast Group Forschungs GmBH, Neu-Isenburg, says that, contrary to current […]

Survival in metastatic breast cancer patients is improving – targeted therapies have specifically contributed to this improvement

Barcelona, Spain: Trends indicate that survival is improving in patients with metastatic breast cancer, especially in those patients whose tumours are described as being HER2 (human epidermal growth factor receptor-2) positive, a surgical oncologist will say today (Friday 26 March) at the seventh European Breast Cancer Conference (EBCC7). Dr Marie Sundquist, from the Department of […]

Beta-blockers help reduce metastasis and improve survival in breast cancer patients

Barcelona, Spain: Treatment with beta-blockers can help reduce the spread of cancer in patients with breast tumours, a researcher will tell the seventh European Breast Cancer Conference (EBCC7) in Barcelona today (Friday). In a controlled study, Dr. Des Powe, a senior healthcare research scientist at Queen’s Medical Centre, Nottingham University Hospital NHS Trust, Nottingham, UK, […]

Study suggests pregnant women can receive chemotherapy for breast cancer without endangering the health of their babies

Barcelona, Spain: Women who discover they have breast cancer while they are pregnant can be treated with chemotherapy without endangering the health of their unborn baby, according to research to be presented at the seventh European Breast Cancer Conference (EBCC7) in Barcelona today (Friday). Dr Sibylle Loibl, Assistant Professor in Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the […]

Two studies reveal associations between pregnancy, breast-feeding, breast cancer and survival

Barcelona, Spain: Women who are diagnosed with breast cancer in the 12 months after they have completed a pregnancy are 48% more likely to die than other young women with breast cancer according to new research to be presented at the seventh European Breast Cancer Conference (EBCC7) in Barcelona today (Friday). [1] However, the study […]

New studies on surgical options in inherited breast cancer show that drastic treatment is not always best

Barcelona, Spain: Two studies to be presented at the seventh European Breast Cancer Conference (EBCC7) in Barcelona today (Friday) and tomorrow (Saturday), shed light on the treatment options facing women carrying the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genetic mutations which predispose them to breast cancer. In the first, Ms Annette Heemskerk-Gerritsen, a PhD student in the Department […]

Pregnancy for breast cancer survivors: meta-analysis reveals it is safe and could improve survival

Barcelona, Spain: Women who have been treated for breast cancer can choose to become pregnant and have babies, without fears that pregnancy could put them at higher risk of dying from their cancer, according to a major, new study. In a meta-analysis of 14 trials, presented today (Friday) at the seventh European Breast Cancer Conference […]

Patients requesting prophylactic mastectomies overestimate their breast cancer risk and need a ‘cooling off’ period

Barcelona, Spain: Women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer believe the risk of the disease occurring in their unaffected breast is as much as ten times higher than it actually is. As a result, they are choosing to have prophylactic mastectomies based on a false perception of increased risk, according to new research. However, […]