April 17, 2008, 7:41 PM CT

Inherited colon cancer mutation is widespread

A gene mutation responsible for the most common form of inherited colon cancer is older and more common than formerly believed, as per a recent study.

The findings provide a better understanding of the spread and prevalence of the American Founder Mutation, a common cause in North America of Lynch syndrome, a hereditary cancer syndrome that greatly increases a persons risk for developing cancers of the colon, uterus and ovaries.

The same researchers discovered the mutation in 2003. That research identified nine families with the mutation and concluded that a German immigrant couple brought the mutation to North America in 1727.

The latest study includes an additional 32 families and indicates that the mutation is actually about 500 years old, suggesting that it arose several generations earlier in Europeans or perhaps in Native Americans.

Of the 41 families overall, most are clustered in Kentucky, Ohio and Texas.

Researchers at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center and Creighton University conducted the study, published recently in the journal Cancer Research.

The increased age of the American Founder Mutation means that it is significantly more prevalent in the United States than previously thought, says principal investigator Albert de la Chapelle, a researcher with Ohio States Human Cancer Genetics program......... Posted by: Sue      Read more         Source

April 13, 2008, 8:53 PM CT

Smoking related to subset of colorectal cancers

Smoking puts older women at significant risk for loss of DNA repair proteins that are critical for defending against development of some colorectal cancers, as per research from a team led by Mayo Clinic scientists.

In a study being presented at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), the scientists observed that women who smoked were at increased risk for developing colorectal tumors that lacked some or all of four proteins, known as DNA mismatch repair (MMR) proteins. These proteins keep cells lining the colon and rectum healthy because they recognize and repair genetic damage as well as mistakes that occur during cell division.

Scientists think that, in this study population, few if any of the four proteins were absent because of an inherited genetic alteration. We believe that smoking induces a condition within intestinal cells that does not allow MMR genes to express their associated proteins, and this loss leads to formation of tumors in some women, says the studys lead author, Mayo gastroenterologist Paul Limburg, M.D.

The scientists also discovered a direct association between the number of cigarettes smoked daily by study participants and increased risk of developing these specific tumors. They say a number of prior studies have observed only a very weak positive association between use of cigarettes and development of the cancer......... Posted by: Sue      Read more         Source

April 3, 2008, 9:50 PM CT

Colon Cancer's Potential for Metastasis

Some colon cancers are destined to spread to the liver and other parts of the body, whereas others are successfully treated by surgical removal of the tumor. Now, Howard Hughes Medical Institute researchers have observed that the ability of a colon tumor to metastasize arises early in its development.

Those colon cancers that spread carry the ability to metastasize from the time they become malignant, the scientists found. They don't need to acquire any new genetic mutations to become metastatic. The research also suggests that once a colon carcinoma develops, if it is going to spread outside the colon, it will do so in less than two years.

"The ability to metastasize is hard-wired into this group of tumors in the colon," said Sanford Markowitz, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator at Case Western Reserve University. "It isn't something that happens after a cancer cell wanders off and leaves the colon."

Markowitz and colleagues published their findings in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on March 3, 2008.

Colon cancer is the second leading cause of cancer mortality in the United States, causing about 60,000 deaths annually. But there are a number of more cases of colon cancer that are cured by surgical removal of the tumor. Markowitz and his team wanted to understand the genetic differences between the two types......... Posted by: Sue      Read more         Source

March 9, 2008, 4:57 PM CT

New colorectal cancer gene

Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine scientists published a study in the March 7th issue of The American Journal of Human Genetics identifying the hereditary components of colorectal cancer (CRC.) Identification of Susceptibility Genes for Cancer in a Genome-wide Scan: Results from the Colon Neoplasia Sibling Study is the first large linkage study of families with CRC and colon polyps in the country. Because only five percent of CRC cases are due to known gene defects, this NIH-funded study is designed to identify the remaining CRC-related susceptibility genes. The team built on a prior study which identified a specific region on chromosome 9q that harbors a CRC susceptibility gene. Upon review of a whole genome scan of all chromosome pairs in 194 families, the scientists were able to identify additional CRC gene regions on chromosomes 1p, 15q, and 17p.

While the overall Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine study looked at families with colon cancer and colon polyps, the study also analyzed families with different clusters of cancer, such as CRC with multiple polyps and CRC with breast cancer. These different phenotypes appeared to link to different chromosomal regions, which the study teams says supports the idea of multiple susceptibility genes causing different types of cancers. These links will be further investigated in the next phase of the study......... Posted by: Sue      Read more         Source

March 5, 2008, 8:51 PM CT

Tests that prevent colorectal cancer

New consensus colorectal cancer guidelines released recently state for the first time that the primary goal of colorectal cancer screening is cancer prevention. Prior guidelines have given equal weight to tests for detecting cancer and preventing cancer. By removing polyps from the large bowel, colonoscopy is the only screening test that also prevents colorectal cancer.

Colorectal cancer prevention should be the primary goal of screening, said Nicholas LaRusso, MD, AGAF, president, American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) Institute. Detection and removal of premalignant lesions is essential to improve the health of Americans.

The guidelines, which represent the most current scientific evidence and expert opinion available, are a joint effort of the American Cancer Society, the American College of Radiology and the U.S. Multi-society Task Force (comprised of the American College of Gastroenterology, the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) Institute and the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy).

While the AGA Institute considers optical colonoscopy the definitive screening and therapy procedure for colorectal cancer, we support all clinically proven options for colorectal cancer screening. There are a number of tests available for screening and everyone age 50+ should talk with their doctor about what test is available to them, said John I. Allen, MD, MBA, AGAF chair of the AGA Institute Clinical Practice and Quality Management Committee......... Posted by: Sue      Read more         Source

February 24, 2008, 9:36 PM CT

5-fluorouracil in colonic neoplasm?

5-fluorouracil (5-FU) is a common chemotherapeutical drug. It exerts its antitumor effect through competitive thymidylate synthase (TS) inhibition. Thymidylate synthase (TS) catalyses deoxyuridine-5-monophosphate (dUMP) to 2-deoxythymydine-5-monophosphate (dTMP). It is the only de novo source of thymidylate, an essential precursor of DNA biosynthesis. In the 5-untranslated region of TS gene, there a unique tandem repeated sequence. There are three predominant genotypes of TS: (1) Homozygous with two tandem repeats (2R/2R); (2) homozygous with three tandem repeats (3R/3R); (3) heterozygous with both alleles (2R/3R). It was reported that TS genes with the triple repeats have higher expression activity than those with double repeats in vitro and in vivo.

The critical role of TS in nucleotide metabolism has made it an important target for cancer chemotherapy. Intratumoral TS protein expression before the chemoradiation therapy has been observed to inversely correlate with the response to 5-FU chemotherapy. Patients with low TS levels have better clinical outcome than those with high TS levels. Detecting the intratumoral TS levels is important for patients who are going to receive 5-FU-based chemotherapy, as these can be used to forecast the efficacy of chemotherapy. However, the classical assay for TS-activity determination (high-performance liquid chromatography with output monitored by radioactive flow detector) is tedious and expensive. A simple way to detect the TS levels is necessary. A research article would be published on January 28, 2008 in the World Journal of Gastroenterology addresses this question......... Posted by: Sue      Read more         Source

February 20, 2008, 8:04 AM CT

Cancer deaths down but

New data revealing decreasing trends in cancer deaths in the United States overall, and in colorectal cancer deaths in particular, highlight the remarkable benefits of colorectal cancer screening tests, but the lifesaving potential of these tests is unrealized for a number of Americans as per experts from the American College of Gastroenterology. Racial minorities, uninsured Americans and even Medicare patients who should be tested are not being screening appropriately, and other recent studies reveal that they are diagnosed with more advanced cancers in comparison to patients with private insurance.

Today, the American Cancer Society reported a downward trend in cancer deaths between 2004 and 2005. Deaths from cancer of the colon and rectum decreased from 1998 to 2004 among both men and women, as per ACS. The report attributes early detection to this sharp decline in colon cancer deaths. Early detection of colorectal cancer, when it is most treatable, directly results in improved survival, exceeding 90 percent when detected at the earliest stage.

As per ACG President Amy E. Foxx-Orenstein, D.O., FACG, The good news is that colorectal cancer deaths are down, but marked differences in the experience of colorectal cancer, its impact on quality of life, and death rates are seen between whites and blacks, and between the uninsured, and even those with health coverage under Medicare and Medicaid. As per Dr. Foxx-Orenstein, The American College of Gastroenterology is committed to national policy changes to improve access to colorectal screening and increased use of these proven prevention strategies, including reversing Medicares massive cuts to reimbursement for these tests since the benefit was first introduced, as well as to payments in ambulatory surgery centers where a number of screening tests are performed......... Posted by: Sue      Read more         Source

February 13, 2008, 9:22 PM CT

Earlier colon cancer screening for smokers

New evidence suggests screening for colorectal cancer, which is now recommended to begin at age 50 for most people, should start five to 10 years earlier for individuals with a significant lifetime exposure to tobacco smoke, a University of Rochester Medical Center study said.

An examination of 3,450 cases observed that current smokers were diagnosed with colon cancer approximately seven years earlier than people who never smoked. The study is also one of the first to link exposure to second-hand smoke, particularly early in life, with a younger age for colon cancer onset.

The article appears online in the Journal of Cancer Research and Clinical Oncology.

The message for physicians and patients is clear: When making decisions about colon cancer screening you should take into account smoking history as well as family history of disease and age, said lead author Luke J. Peppone, Ph.D., research assistant professor of Radiation Oncology at the James P. Wilmot Cancer Center at the University of Rochester.

Peppones group examined data from patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer between 1957 and 1997 at Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo. (Peppone joined the University of Rochester in 2007, coming from RPCI. Co-authors are from RPCI.)......... Posted by: Sue      Read more         Source

December 18, 2007, 8:43 PM CT

Colon cancer screenings may not pay off

Even though current guidelines advocate colorectal cancer screenings for those with severe illnesses, they may bring little benefit and may actually pose harm, as per a recent study by Yale School of Medicine scientists reported in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

The study offers a new approach for assessing who is likely to benefit from a screening so that screening recommendations can be tailored more effectively to individual patients.

First author R. Scott Braithwaite, M.D., and colleagues developed a new method of evaluating medical screening tests like colonoscopy, called the payoff time, which is the minimum amount of time it takes for the benefits from a test to exceed its harms (i.e., its complications and side effects). The method can also be applied to patients of any age and illness.

To estimate the payoff time for using colonoscopy to screen for colorectal cancer, the team focused on two patient groups that included 50-year-old men with HIV, and 60-year-old women with congestive heart failure.

Braithwaite said the payoff time for colorectal cancer screening was as long as five years for 50-year-old men and as long as 2.9 years for 60-year-old women. Because patients with severe congestive heart failure have a life expectancy of less than 2.9 years, they were more likely to be harmed than benefited by colorectal cancer screening, say the researchers, whereas patients with HIV have a life expectancy of greater than five years, so they were likely to benefit from colorectal cancer screening......... Posted by: Sue      Read more         Source

December 17, 2007, 9:30 PM CT

Underuse of colorectal cancer screening

Two recently released studies confirm an alarming reality, that a majority of Americans who should be getting screened for colorectal cancer are not. Men and women over the age of 50 should be screened for colorectal cancer, but as per a research studyin the journal Cancer, scientists observed that among an assessment of Medicare beneficiaries between 1998 and 2004, only 25.4 percent of people were screened, despite Medicare coverage for colorectal cancer screening. As per figures released by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, only half of all Americans age 50 and over have had a screening colonoscopy.

These numbers are very discouraging and, unfortunately they confirm prior studies that show not enough people are getting screened for colorectal cancer. This disease is preventable and treatable when caught in its early stages, and screening is a covered benefit for those eligible for Medicare, said Grace Elta, MD, president of the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE). We know that screening works. As per a recent study by leading cancer groups, including the American Cancer Society and the CDC, deaths from colorectal cancer dropped nearly 5 percent between 2002 and 2004. Prevention through screening and the removal of premalignant polyps were among the reasons credited for the decline. The ASGE encourages all people age 50 and older to talk to their doctor about getting screened for colorectal cancer......... Posted by: Sue      Read more         Source

November 14, 2007, 9:18 PM CT

Grape powder blocks genes linked to colon cancer

Low doses of freeze-dried grape powder inhibit genes associated with the development of sporadic colorectal cancer, University of California, Irvine cancer scientists found.

The study suggests that a diet rich in grapes may help prevent the third most common form of cancer, one that kills more than a half a million people worldwide each year. Around 7 percent of all Americans develop colon cancer during their lifetimes.

Led by Dr. Randall Holcombe, director of clinical research at the Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center at UC Irvine, the study followed up on prior in vitro studies showing that resveratrol, a nutritional supplement derived from grape extract, blocks a cellular signaling pathway known as the Wnt pathway. The Wnt pathway has been associated with more than 85 percent of sporadic colon cancers, which is the most common form of colon cancer.

The UC Irvine scientists conducted their study with patients with colon cancer. One group was given 20 milligrams daily of resveratrol as a pill; another drank 120 grams daily of grape powder mixed in water; and a third drank 80 grams daily of grape powder.

While the supplements did not have an impact on existing tumors, biopsied colon tissue showed that Wnt signaling in the patients taking 80 grams of grape powder was significantly reduced. Similar changes were not seen in patients taking the higher dose of grape powder or the resveratrol pills......... Posted by: Sue      Read more         Source

October 28, 2007, 3:04 PM CT

A possible biomarker for colon cancer

An abnormality of chromosomes long linked to diseases of aging has, for the first time, been associated with colon cancer in people 50 years old and younger, an age group commonly considered young for this disease.

The finding may provide an early alert for younger colon cancer patients and could prompt new research into colon cancer prevention and therapy strategies, say Mayo Clinic researchers.

The study results will be presented at 10 a.m., Saturday, Oct. 27, during the annual meeting of the American Society of Human Genetics in San Diego.

The Mayo Clinic team led by Lisa Boardman, M.D., a specialist in gastrointestinal malignancies, investigated the structures inside of cells known as telomeres, which are the caps on the ends of chromosomes that keep chromosomes from unraveling. Telomeres naturally shorten with aging and are linked to a number of diseases of aging, including cancer. Shortened telomeres have been found in colon cancer tumor cells, but this study links these telomeres to colon cancer.

Dr. Boardman and an interdisciplinary group of scientists examined the DNA in blood samples of 114 patients with colon cancer 50 years old and younger and 98 people with no history of cancer. They observed that the patients with colon cancer had abnormal telomeres that were uncommonly short, especially for a group of patients considered young for colon cancer: patients in the study were about 15 years younger than the average age of colon cancer patients. In addition, colon cancer in this younger group affected men more often than women......... Posted by: Sue      Read more         Source

October 15, 2007, 4:43 PM CT

First colonoscopy with removal of polyps

Using a model to predict reductions in death from colorectal cancer, epidemiologists and clinical scientists from Memorial Sloan-Kettering looked at the relative effect of an initial screening colonoscopy which clears pre-malignant polyps from the colon versus surveillance follow-up colonoscopy. Ann G. Zauber, Ph.D., Sidney J. Winawer, M.D., MACG and his colleagues presented their findings at the Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology.

The model demonstrated a dramatic reduction in expected colorectal cancer mortality with initial polypectomy with or without surveillance, and suggests that the initial polypectomy accounts for the major component of the mortality reduction, explained Dr. Zauber.

Using a MISCAN model, scientists used National Polyp Study data to predict colorectal cancer mortality among three groups of patients: those with no initial removal of polyps or follow-up surveillance by colonoscopy, in comparison to patients with only initial polypectomy, and those with both polypectomy and follow-up surveillance. The model predicted mortality of up to thirty years after the initial colorectal exam and removal of pre-malignant polyps.

As per Dr. Zauber, the major effect on colorectal cancer mortality reduction produced by the initial polypectomy rather than the surveillance colonoscopies is consistent with the low occurence rate of advanced adenomas observed during National Polyp Study (NPS) follow-up (i.e., pre-malignant growths in the colon larger than 1 cm, polyps with a villous component, high grade dysplasia or invasive colorectal cancer.)........ Posted by: Sue      Read more         Source

October 10, 2007, 4:47 AM CT

New radioactive agents for colon cancer work inside cells

Johns Hopkins researchers have developed a potentially novel way to fight colorectal cancer using tiny molecules to deliver potent barrages of radiation inside cancer cells, unlike current therapys that bind to the surface of cells and attack from the outside and cause unwanted side effects.

In laboratory studies with normal and cancer cells, the new radiation delivery system proved able to specifically target colon cancer cells, and whats left over is likely to be easily filtered out by the kidneys because the delivery systems molecules are so small.

As reported online in PLoS One on October 3, Hopkins colorectal cancer specialists John Abraham, Ph.D., and Stephen Meltzer, M.D. -working with the notion that small molecules generally make better therapy packages-designed small bits of protein only 10 amino acids long as the foundation for their drugs. By contrast, antibodies used to deliver radiation or chemicals can be over one thousand amino acids long.

The team attached radioactive phosphorous, P32, as a test of how well their peptides worked and to our surprise, our first tests showed that cells were ingesting these molecules, thus transferring the radiation inside and killing them by breaking up their DNA and proteins, Abraham says.

While cautioning that the new radiation delivery system is still far from ready for use in people, Abraham notes that P32 gives off high energy that can penetrate through 5 millimeters of human tissue, making it a good candidate to tackle colon cancer since colon cancer cells can often form large, thick tumors into which drugs may not penetrate very well. In addition, P32-labeled peptides may serve another valuable use: to find small metastases or recurrences of colon tumors while they are still small enough to treat. Images of the body can be taken of the labeled peptides as they bind, revealing where stray tumor cells may be nesting......... Posted by: Sue      Read more         Source

September 24, 2007, 10:03 PM CT

A search for biomarkers for colorectal cancer

Scientists at the Zhejiang University, Hangzhou have discovered that mimecan and Thioredoxin Domain-Containing Protein 5 (TXNDC5) were differentially expressed in colorectal adenoma. The research article describing this work entitled Differential Expression of Mimecan and Thioredoxin Domain-Containing Protein 5 in Colorectal Adenoma and Cancer: A Proteomic Study will be featured in the October 2007 issue of Experimental Biology and Medicine.

Adenoma is the major precursor lesion of colorectal cancer, one of the most common cancers worldwide. The elucidation of the molecular mechanism underlying adenoma is essential for early detection, prevention and intervention of colorectal cancer.

The research team, led by Maode Lai, a professor of molecular pathology, found 27 differentially expressed proteins in colorectal adenoma using two dimensional electrophoresis (2-DE) and mass spectrometry. Western-blot analysis clearly validated 2 differentially expressed proteins, mimecan downregulation and TXNDC5 upregulation in colorectal adenomas and cancers.

Adenoma is a very important step in the development of cancer. Discovering the biomarker of adenoma will improve the early detection and prevention of cancer, said Lai. 2-DE is an efficient traditional approach for the identification of differentially expressed proteins in cancer biology. Using this technology, we first identified 27 differentially expressed proteins in individual-matched colorectal normal, adenoma and cancer tissues......... Posted by: Janet      Read more         Source

August 28, 2007, 9:10 PM CT

A gene for metastasis

Colorectal cancer is one of the most prevalent cancers in the Western world. The tumor starts off as a polyp but then turns into an invasive and violent cancer, which often spreads to the liver. In an article recently reported in the journal Cancer Research, Prof. Avri Ben-Zeev and Dr. Nancy Gavert of the Weizmann Institutes Molecular Cell Biology Department reveal mechanisms that help this cancer metastasize.

In a majority of cases, colorectal cancer is initiated by changes in a key protein beta-catenin. One of the roles of this protein is to enter the cell nucleus and activate gene expression. But in colorectal and other cancers, beta-catenin over-accumulates in the cell and inappropriately activates genes, leading to cancer.

Surprisingly, one of the genes activated by beta-catenin, which had been previously detected in colorectal cancer cells by Ben-Zeevs group, codes for a receptor called L1-CAM. This receptor is a protein commonly found on nerve cells, where it plays a role in nerve cell recognition and motility. What is this receptor doing in cancer cells" Ben-Zeevs prior research had shown that L1-CAM is only expressed on certain cells located at the invasive front of the tumor tissue, hinting that it could be an important player in metastasis.

In this study, the researchers observed that colorectal cancer cells engineered to express the L1-CAM gene indeed spread to the liver, while those cells lacking L1-CAM did not......... Posted by: Sue      Read more         Source

August 1, 2007, 9:03 PM CT

Vaccine For Metastatic Colorectal Cancer

A therapeutic cancer vaccine has shown effectiveness when given alongside chemotherapy to patients with metastatic colorectal cancer in a phase II trial, as per scientists at Oxford BioMedica (UK) Ltd. The study observed that six of the 17 metastatic colorectal cancer patients in the study showed tumor shrinkage, classified as complete or partial responses following independent expert review.

The study, published in the August 1 issue of Clinical Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, was designed to demonstrate the safety and immunogenicity of the vaccine, called modified vaccinia Ankara-encoding 5T4 (TroVax), when used alongside standard chemotherapy. The research was funded by Oxford BioMedica which is developing the vaccine in partnership with Sanofi-Aventis.

Unlike preventative vaccines, such as the human papillomavirus vaccine to prevent cervical cancer, TroVax is a therapeutic vaccine, designed to stimulate the immune systems of patients who already have cancer. The vaccine consists of an attenuated (non-disease causing) version of the vaccinia virus modified to deliver the gene for 5T4, a protein found in a number of tumors.

The idea is that the modified virus enters cells, produces the tumor protein and stimulates the immune system, said lead study author Richard Harrop, Ph.D., vice president of clinical immunology at Oxford BioMedica. To give a vaccine alongside chemotherapy might seem counterintuitive, since chemotherapy can weaken the immune system, but our study shows that TroVax could be complementary to standard chemotherapy, enhancing the immune response to tumors......... Posted by: Sue      Read more         Source

July 23, 2007, 5:11 PM CT

NSAIDs treatment can reduce colorectal cancer risk

A study of Medicare patients with osteoarthritis provides additional evidence that non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as aspirin reduce the risk of colorectal cancer. Earlier investigations of the drugs impact on tumor development could not rule out the possibility that an observed protective effect was caused by other preventive health care measures. The current study, led by a Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) physician, appears in the August 2007 Journal of General Internal Medicine.

This is good news for people who take NSAIDs regularly for osteoarthritis, says Elizabeth Lamont, MD, MS, of the MGH Cancer Center, the studys lead author. Eventhough patients face risks such as bleeding or kidney damage from this treatment, they probably are at a lower risk of developing colorectal cancer. Because of the risks posed by the dosage used to treat osteoarthritis, she and her co-authors stress that currently available NSAIDs should not be used solely to prevent cancer.

Earlier randomized trials clearly showed that NSAID therapy can prevent the development of premalignant colorectal polyps, but whether or not such treatment also reduces the risk of invasive colorectal cancer has still not been confirmed. Those trials used relatively low doses of aspirin and showed no significant differences in colorectal cancer rates between the aspirin and placebo groups. While a number of findings based on observation have shown a protective effect of NSAIDs against colorectal cancer, interpretation of some of those results may have been clouded by other healthy behaviors of the participants......... Posted by: Sue      Read more         Source

July 8, 2007, 10:06 PM CT

Genetic Risk Factor For Colorectal And Prostate Cancer

A study led by scientists at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California (USC) has observed that one of seven genetic risk factors previously identified as increasing the probability of developing prostate cancer also increases the probability of developing colorectal cancer. As in the prior prostate cancer study, which was also conducted by USC scientists and reported in the April 2007 edition of Nature Genetics, the colorectal cancer risk factor is located in a region of the human genome devoid of known genes on chromosome 8. The studys complete findings would be reported in the July 8 online edition of Nature Genetics.

This is an important finding because, for the first time, a common genetic risk factor for multiple cancers has been identified, says lead author Christopher Haiman, assistant professor of preventive medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. Adding, There appears to be something fundamental occurring in this region that influences not only colorectal and prostate cancer, but perhaps cancers in general. (Another recently published study, in which USC scientists also were involved, identified variants in this same chromosomal region as playing a predictive role relative to the risk of developing breast cancer.).

For the current colorectal cancer study, the USC team genotyped six of the seven variants previously identified as increasing the risk of prostate cancer development. The samples analyzed totaled 1,807 invasive colorectal cancer cases and 5,511 controls. These samples were drawn from five populations (African Americans, Japanese Americans, Native Hawaiians, Latinos, and European Americans) included in the Multiethnic Cohort Study, an epidemiological study of more than 215,000 people from Los Angeles and Hawaii created in 1993 by Brian Henderson, dean, Keck School of Medicine of USC, and Laurence Kolonel of the University of Hawaii......... Posted by: Sue      Read more         Source

June 6, 2007, 10:00 PM CT

Colonoscopy up in NYC

More New Yorkers are getting life-saving colonoscopies than ever before, the Health Department announced recently, and people of all races and incomes are benefiting. The test which can detect, prevent, or cure colorectal cancer is generally recommended once every decade for people 50 and older, and earlier for those with a family history of the disease. Four years ago, only 43% of New Yorkers age 50 and older had been screened during the prior decade. Health officials will announce today that 60% of New Yorkers 50 and older had a colonoscopy in the past ten years, an increase of some 350,000 tests compared with 2003. The announcement is being made at the 4th Annual Citywide Colon Cancer Control Coalition (C5) summit at the American Conference Centers (780 Third Avenue, between 48th & 49th Streets).

In 2003, we set a five year goal to increase the percent of New Yorkers 50 and older who have been screened for colon cancer to 60%, said Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. Im proud to report that weve reached that goal two years ahead of schedule. Since 2003, colonoscopies increased among New Yorkers of all races, ethnicities, income level and insurance status. That means across the board more cancers will be prevented, and lives will be saved.

While whites were more likely than either blacks or Hispanics to have had a colonoscopy in 2003, the three groups screening rates were nearly equal in 2006, just four years later. More people are getting colonoscopies to prevent or find early colon cancer and it is saving lives, said Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas R. Frieden. The health gap for screening for this important cancer is closing. Weve accomplished a great deal, but we have more to do. We want to increase the colon cancer screening level to more than 80% of New Yorkers over 50 in the next 5 years......... Posted by: Sue      Read more         Source