Cancer Death Rates Drop Again; Doctors Hopeful
iStockphoto/Thinkstock(ATLANTA) — Cancer death rates for men, women and children steadily decreased from 2004 to 2008, according to a new report from four major national cancer tracking groups. The declines in death and new cases of cancer reflect pro…
Study: Few Women with Cancer Freeze Eggs to Preserve Fertility
Siri Stafford/Photodisc/Thinkstock(SAN FRANCISCO) — Few women in their childbearing years with cancer opt to preserve their eggs before going through chemotherapy and radiation treatment, according to the findings of a new study.The research, carried …
Toddler Takes Cannabis Oil for Cancer Treatment
Brand X Pictures/Thinkstock(MISSOULA, Mont.) — Marijuana was the best medicine for 3-year-old Cash Hyde of Missoula, Mont. At least that’s what his parents, Mike and Kalli Hyde, believe. The couple said they defied doctor’s orders — and Montana law -…
Pig Sells for $20K — Money Goes to Cancer Patient
Adam Gault/Thinkstock(TRENTON, Fla.) — One Florida 10-year-old had big plans for his 255-pound pig. Chandler Beach, with help from the Suwannee River Fair, has raised more than $20,000 from the sale of his pig, all to help an 18-year-old boy who is ba…
Do Opioids Play Role in Cancer Growth?
iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — When Dr. Jonathan Moss was developing a drug to relieve the severe constipation plaguing end-stage cancer patients taking opioid painkillers, he noticed a few of those patients lived longer than expected.Although lik…
Can an Aspirin a Day Keep Cancer Away?
Brand X Pictures/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — A daily aspirin may cut your risk of cancer, new research suggests. But doctors advise that there’s no reason for everyone to start taking it — at least not yet.In three studies published in the Lancet and the …
Online Grieving: Support a Keyboard Away
Zach Whiteman via Reddit(KOKOMO, Ind.) — On March 8, a young man marking a painful anniversary went to Reddit.com and posted three short sentences and a photograph depicting a heartbreaking story of young love nipped in the bud by cancer.”A year ago t…
Kathy Bates Reveals Why She Kept Ovarian Cancer a Secret
John Shearer/WireImage(NEW YORK) — Veteran actress Kathy Bates battled ovarian cancer almost a decade ago and is now opening up about why she originally kept her diagnosis a secret.“I was advised to [do so],” Bates, 63, told Anderson Coope…
New Molecular Discovery Could Mean Fewer Chemo Side Effects
iStockphoto/Thinkstock(DURHAM, N.C.) — While it can often work wonders against invading cancer cells, chemotherapy can also bring on very undesirable side effects, such as hair loss, nausea and vomiting.But the recent discovery of the structure of a c…
Why a Cancer ‘Cure’ Is So Elusive
iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — In the realm of targeted cancer treatment, Carla Leslie is a success story.Leslie was diagnosed in September 2010 with Stage 3C breast cancer, a disease that kills 50 to 60 percent of those who have it within five ye…
Radiation Therapy Linked to Secondary Cancers
iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — While the number of cancer survivors has tripled since the 1970s and continues to grow, the cost of that survival for many has been the development of secondary cancers and cardiovascular disease related to radiation…
Cancer Risk Among Women Taking Contraceptives Measured in Study
Keith Brofsky/Thinkstock(JOHANNESBURG) — Women who have used injectable or oral birth control in the past are at a significantly higher relative risk of invasive breast cancer, but they are at significantly lower risk of ovarian cancer, according to a…
Pap Smears Improve Cervical Cancer Survival, Research Confirms
Keith Brofsky/Photodisc/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — Regular Pap smears improve the chances of surviving cervical cancer, according to Swedish research, confirming the life-saving benefits of screening every three years during a woman’s 20s, 30s and 40s.The…
12-Year-Old Boy to Halt Cancer Treatment to Be with Family
AbleStock[dot]com/Hemera Technologies(SHELBYVILLE, Tenn.) — A 12-year old boy who has battled a rare form of cancer since he was 7 has made a bold decision: He is stopping his treatments so he can go home and be with his family.Alex Rodriguez is aware…
Proof at Last? Colonoscopy and Cancer Prevention
iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — Do you really need that colonoscopy? It’s a question that seems simple at first. After all, as more Americans routinely undergo the oft-dreaded colonoscopy with each passing year, cases of colorectal cancer hav…
New Drug Promising Against Deadly Melanoma
iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — When Richard Kaminski had an unusual mole removed from his cheek in 1998, he thought it was the end of his experience with melanoma.But more than 10 years later, Kaminski developed a cough that didn’t go away. Medica…
FDA Efforts Reversal of Critical Cancer Drug Shortage
iStockphoto/Thinkstock(WASHINGTON) — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved new suppliers for two cancer drugs Tuesday in an effort to curb the largest nationwide drug shortage in nearly a decade.The FDA said its approval of a new supply metho…
Ingredient in Hot Peppers is Medically Useful
iStockphoto(LAS CRUCES, N.M.) — Ted Barrus, an ordinary guy from Pullman, Wash., calls himself an idiot — more specifically, a “fire-breathing idiot.” Barrus, 37, doesn’t actually breathe fire, but his main hobby is sampling extremely hot peppers tha…
Cancer Patients Fume Over Counterfeit Avastin
J.B. Reed/Bloomberg News(OCEANSIDE, Calif.) — Cancer patients are furious that a counterfeit version of the drug Avastin has landed in U.S. clinics.Avastin, which is made by the Oceanside, Calif.-based company Genentech, is used in combination with ch…
Girl, 7, Donates Hair in Honor of Cancer-Stricken Pal
File photo. Siri Stafford/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — This Valentine’s Day, seven-year-old Kelsey McIsaac plans on celebrating the holiday by getting a haircut. But rather than a trim, McIsaac is cutting off nearly a foot to donate to Locks of Love i…