ACS News Today

For women facing radiation therapy after surgery for breast cancer, the standard course of treatment typically involves daily radiation sessions over a period of 6 to 7 weeks. That regimen can be hard to manage, especially for women already juggling work and child care schedules or for those living far from treatment centers.

Virtual colonoscopy, or computed tomographic (CT) colonography, is about as effective as traditional colonoscopy in finding colorectal cancer and large polyps, according to results from a large clinical trial comparing the two tests published in The New England Journal of Medicine. The study confirms results from smaller trials.

After a 3-year hiatus from the sport, cycling champion and cancer survivor Lance Armstrong is back in the saddle.

About 1 in 5 breast cancer survivors who have completed 5 years of adjuvant therapy suffer a recurrence within the 10 years after their treatment, according to a recent study in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

The US National Toxicology Program (NTP) recently released its final report on the potential negative health effects of bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical widely used in consumer plastic products. The agency found that there is "some concern" about the chemical's effects on infants and children. They had lower levels of concern for other groups and concluded more research is needed to determine just what the risks of BPA exposure might be.

On September 5, 2008, the 3 major television networks -- ABC, CBS, and NBC -- teamed up to broadcast an hour-long, commercial-free telethon benefiting cancer research.

University of Edinburgh researchers are seeing positive results from a new approach for treating depression in cancer patients. The program, which is given by specially-trained cancer nurses, is designed to work alongside a patient's usual cancer care. It emphasizes screening for depression, antidepressant medication, and teaching patients problem-solving skills. The results of the trial were published recently in The Lancet.

Researchers at Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center and Northwestern University's Cancer Genetics Program have found a definitive link between an inherited genetic variation and colorectal cancer risk. The variation, which occurs on a gene known as TGFBR1, significantly increases a person's lifetime risk of getting the disease.

A paper by American Cancer Society researchers published this week in Cancer, one of the Society's peer-reviewed journals, offers one of the largest and most detailed portraits of complementary and alternative therapy use among cancer survivors in the United States.

This week the US House of Representatives voted 326 to 102 to pass the Family Smoking Prevention Tobacco Control Act, which would grant the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) power to regulate tobacco products. If the legislation is enacted, consumers would see tougher warning labels on cigarettes, as well as tighter restrictions on how they're marketed, especially to youth.

Women with breast cancer who undergo breast-conserving surgery (lumpectomy) may not have realistic expectations of what their breasts will look like after treatment, according to a new study published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. Doctors and patients need to do a better job discussing the issue, researchers say, because disappointing cosmetic results can have a negative impact on women's quality of life.

Promising--yet preliminary--results from an early clinical trial show that the experimental drug abiraterone can significantly reduce the size of prostate cancer tumors in men who haven't responded to other therapies.

A study of nearly 20,000 men aged 66 and older with early-stage prostate cancer found that those who were prescribed androgen deprivation hormone therapy instead of other treatments were no better off than their counterparts who adopted a "wait and see" approach. However, younger men who aren't good candidates for surgery or radiation should still consider the therapy, which reduces androgen levels and often makes prostate cancers shrink or grow more slowly.

The US Food and Drug Administration has approved another test that can help doctors determine whether a breast cancer patient is a good candidate for the drug Herceptin (trastuzumab). The test, called the SPOT-Light HER2 CISH kit, may help labs run more efficiently, but it won't ultimately change who gets the drug.

Following 11 preventive health strategies over the next 30 years could add an average of 1.3 years onto a US adult's life expectancy, according to a new report by researchers from 3 top health organizations. Approximately three-fourths of US adults could benefit from adopting at least one of these life-saving preventive activities, the scientists say.