Biopeer

Significant advances in cancer research

US researchers have associated a high fat diet with breast cancer. They interviewed 188,700 women between the ages of 50 and 71, about their eating habits. They were all post menopausal and their health was monitored for the next 4 years. Overall, 3501 women developed breast cancer. They found that those who consumed the highest amount of fat had an 11 per cent higher chance of getting breast cancer as compared to those who ate the least fatty food. The body mass index, alcohol intake, smoking habits and so on, did not affect the results. However, those who had had a hormone replacement therapy and consumed large amounts of fat had higher chances of developing cancer. The researchers suspect that the extra fat affects hormone production and thus causes cancer. However, more studies need to be conducted to fully comprehend the risks involved.

Meanwhile, another study found that those surviving leukemia had a higher chance of developing cancer over time. Researchers from St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee, examined 2169 children and adolescents who had received therapies for acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Their aim was to calculate the long-term cumulative incidence of secondary cancers. 1290 patients had remained in remission. 9.5 per cent of these patients contracted cancer as their first event. They found that the occurrence of cancer in the leukemia-surviving patients increased as time went by. The cumulative incidence was 6.27 per cent over a period of 30 years when meningiomas and basal cell carcinomas were not taken into account. These findings raise significant health issues and emphasize the importance of a continual follow through after leukemia treatment.

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Research in cancer diagnostics makes progress

American researchers have developed a new blood test that could transform the way prostate cancer is diagnosed and treated. The new test has been developed at John Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, is more accurate than the standard PSA test and can also detect cancers that have started to spread. The test looks for the protein called early prostate cancer antigen-2 or EPCA-2. Those who have a minimum of 30 ngml of EPCA-2 are at an increased risk of developing prostate cancer. When tried on 330 patients, the test correctly showed negative in 97 per cent of those who did not have the disease and identified prostate cancer patients with 94 per cent accuracy. The researchers hope that the test will be available for clinical use in 18 months.

Meanwhile, researchers from the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles have found that Positron emission tomography (PET) scans can help doctors find out whether breast cancer has spread to the axillary lymph nodes. In a trial, women were injected with fludeoxyglucose F18 (FDG) and a chemical tracer and were then subjected to a PET scan. The researchers analyzed the scans to determine how much FDG was absorbed and set 2.3 as the standard uptake value. It was found that the PET scans were 72 per cent accurate in detecting tumors and detected 60 per cent of axillary metastases.

Also, researchers from the University of North Carolina have determined the molecular process in cells that is vital in the development of Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia and Acute Myeloid Leukemia. The findings explain how the fusion of proteins created by flawed chromosomes can trigger leukemia development and the important role of the enzyme hDOT1L. The researchers now want to explore the possibility of developing drugs that target this enzyme.

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New treatment for Chronic Eosinophilic Leukemia (CEL)

According to researchers from the Flanders Interuniversity Institute for Biotechnology (VIB) affiliated to the Catholic University of Leuven, Sorafenib (Nexavar) is a better drug for CEL. This finding showcases a new approach for treating specific forms of leukemia by combining targeted drugs to induce greater chances of a lifelong effective treatment. Sorafenib (Nexavar) is already in use in the US markets as a treatment of kidney tumors. In a typical case of CEL, which is a rare form of leukemia, there is a sudden increase in the number of eosinophils in the blood stream causing tissue damage in the heart, the skin, and the central nervous system. The abrupt excessive production of eosinophils results due to defects in the DNA, causing targeted activation of the enzyme tyrosine kinases. To combat CEL scientists have come up with proteins to inhibit tyrosine kinases in the form of inhibitors that work to be effective over a long period by using different inhibitor drugs like Sorafenib (Nexavar) either together or in succession.

While the Sorafenib (Nexavar) asserts to be devoid of any gruesome side effects, the most commonly used drug to combat leukemia, Glivec, has proved to be detrimental to bones. The recent findings on patients using Glivec have shown that these patients were prone to bone remodeling — a medical term for stalled bone formation and resorption. This derivation was based on a study conducted by Dr Ellin Berman and colleagues at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York. However, the complete significance of this proposed theory is yet to be established.

Green tea and cancer cure: A tenuous link

Green Tea seems to be the flavour of the season with various studies pointing to its ability to not only be an effective remedy for cancer, but also help boost the immune system for a healthier lifestyle.

Specifically speaking, a green tea extract—Epigallocatechin Gallate (EGCG)—has been identified as being beneficial for people with Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL). According to preliminary evidence in a case study of four patients, an improvement in the clinical state of their disease was noticeable after they starting taking over-the-counter products that contained EGCG.  Per the author of the study, Dr. Tait Shanafelt, “The experience of these individuals provides some suggestion that our previously published laboratory findings may actually translate into clinical effects for patients with the disease”. However, it is not known as to how many patients were taking similar products and failed to have any benefit. Also, the optimal dose, the frequency of the medication, and its long-term side effects are not known yet. CLL is a blood and bone marrow cancer, which affects white blood cells. It is the commonest type of leukaemia and is yet to have a cure. However, more research is needed to prove the findings on a larger scale and it is still premature to say that this is a new treatment for cancer.

Meanwhile, researchers from the University of Minnesota have performed a meta-analysis of 13 studies and concluded that green tea consumption lowers the risk of breast cancer. However, only controlled randomized trials can confirm the above observations.

 

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