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Posts Tagged ‘cancer’

Researchers found a way to detect whether a cancer will spread or recur, with the consideration of a certain protein in the tumor, according to a study published Tuesday in the Journal of Clinical Investigation. This discovery may provide more precise information about the possibility of survival than the current method of classification of the stages of the disease, which is one to four, the researchers said.

If this test can be developed to be used on a large scale, for which is still years, will help doctors decide when to treat aggressively to prevent tumor metastasis, which is often fatal.

“This biomarker may be useful for many types of cancer,” said the study’s lead author, Y. Pang Loch of the cellular neurobiology section of the U.S. National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD).

“It is very important to know when a cancer has the potential to spread,” said the expert and then add that there are currently no accurate biomarkers that can provide this kind of predictions. “The prognosis is determined according to the stage where the cancer,” he said.

This new variant of the protein carboxypeptidase’s E (CPE), which usually is involved in the processing of hormones like insulin, was discovered by scientists from the U.S. Health Institutes and the University of Hong Kong.

The protein, CPE-delta N, was found to be present at high levels in metastasis tumor cells of many cancers, including liver, breast, colon, adrenal gland and the neck and head.

The eight-year study focused on 99 patients with liver cancer in stages one to four, who have examined the tumor cells and surrounding tissue to detect the levels of delta-N CPE by measuring ribonucleic acid, which helps the body produce the protein.

When the CPE level delta-N RNA in the tumors was more than double that of the surrounding tissues, “Cancer had great potential to recur or metastasize in two years,” the study said. While at this level or below it the disease was much less likely to recur, he said the investigation.

Applying this method, scientists predicted that the cancer would metastasize or recur in more than 90% of cases and matched 76% of the time they anticipated that the tumor would not return.

In some cases, they found that the protein would indicate that cancer patients in the second stage, which would normally be considered, free of cancer and would not have received particular attention after the removal of the tumor.

It is known that human reproduction is relatively ineffective. Each month, a couple with no problems conceiving, it is only 7% chance of achieving pregnancy. The chances are further reduced in those with fertility problems, even to this objective cannot be spontaneously in 15% of cases.

However, advances in assisted reproduction were able to reverse the fate of many. From birth in 1986 of the first IVF babies in Argentina until the present, assisted reproduction remained steady growth.

In less than 25 years, diagnosis, description of the various disorders that may affect reproduction, the selection of eggs and sperm and the implementation of assisted reproductive technology (including advances) allowed better results when implementing an action strategy.

Today is still possible to preserve fertility in cases where the woman must receive cancer treatments like chemotherapy or radiotherapy, to avoid the inheritance of disease from the selection of embryos, defer motherhood through the cry preservation of eggs and increasingly control more effectively the multiple gestation, “said Gabriel Fishbone, head of the Center for Reproductive Medicine in Gynecology and Reproduction Studies (Cagier).

However, the degree of effectiveness of these innovations also depends on a crucial variable: the age of the woman. Despite scientific advances, the female biological clock remains intact. “From the age of 35 fertility declines and increases the risk of genetic abnormalities in offspring,” said Fishbone.

That is why a couple does not realize that pregnancy after a year of searching should consult a reproductive specialist, a diagnosis and begin the necessary studies without further delay. Especially if it comes to women over the barrier of 35.

First is a history in which notes all the antecedents that may be related to the difficulty of achieving a pregnancy, for example, registration of sexually transmitted diseases, surgery, chronic problems, drug use, alcohol or cigarette.

Through control of temperature, hormone analysis and implementation of translational ultrasound, we studied whether the woman is ovulating normally. “Then there is a ray of the uterus and fallopian tubes called a hysterosalpingogram, which evaluates the path traveled by sperm and egg to meet,” he added.

Also important is the Gynecologic ultrasonography to rule out uterine fibroids that may affect the implantation or cause abortions.

The man, meanwhile, should be studied simultaneously, and that male problems represent 50% of cases. In this case seeks to establish if your semen is normal and if after intercourse, the sperm find the underlying cause of the uterus and cervix ascend. It is recommended to make a study of compatibility between sperm and cervical mucus as, of course; they must swim through the substance in his rise to the egg.

After analyzing 34,670 women between 39 and 73 years who had no cardiovascular disease or cancer at baseline in 1997, the team of Dr. Susanna Larsson of the Karolin’s Institute in Stockholm, Sweden, found that participants who consumed large amounts of red meat (at least 102 grams per day) showed a 42% higher chance of suffering a cerebrovascular accident (CVA), compared with women who ate less meat (25 grams per day).

Researchers reported the findings of experience in a recent issue of the journal Stroke. They claimed that within 10 years of the work, 1,680 (4% of participants) suffered a stroke.

This is the first study in years to establish a connection, applicable to the female, between red meat consumption and the possibility of having a stroke.

“The most common was ischemic stroke, which occurs as a result of blockage of an artery that is responsible for delivering blood to the brain. Such occurred in 78% of cases. The rest belong to other accidents unspecified causes or cerebral hemorrhage, experts presented their conclusions.

On the other hand added that “no relationship was detected between the possibility of stroke and the consumption of fresh meat (the analysis is performed on processed red meat) or farm products.”

As a possible explanation, the team led by Dr. Larsson said: “Several mechanisms explain the association between processed meat and risk of stroke. However, we believe that the first point is the connection between the consumption of that food type and hypertension, major risk factors when we think of strokes. “

Moreover, the experts added: “We must not fail to consider the iron accelerates the production of free radicals that damage tissue. Finally, the processed red meat is rich in sodium, a mineral that increases blood pressure. “