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New Treatment Approach Good News for People Battling Rectal Cancers

Rectal cancer often involves surgeries that can lead to a debilitating loss of bowel function for patients.

However, new research suggests that a less aggressive approach to treating the disease has helped an increasing number of patients avoid these surgeries.

That can mean everything to patients' quality of life, explained study lead author

  • Ernie Mundell HealthDay Reporter
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  • February 5, 2024
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  • Can Some Cancer Patients Safely Skip Radiation Therapy? New Studies Say Yes

    Radiation therapy might not be necessary in treating some forms of rectal cancer and lymphoma, sparing patients from the toxic treatment, a pair of new clinical trials shows.

    One trial found that rectal cancer patients whose tumors shrink in response to chemotherapy can safely skip the radiation therapy that's normally provided prior to surgery, researchers reported at the American Societ...

    More Evidence That Obesity Raises Odds for Gastrointestinal Cancers

    Maintaining a healthy weight may be important for reducing the risk of gastrointestinal cancer, a new study suggests.

    The research adds to the evidence that excess weight and weight increases in adulthood increase the risk for colon and other gastrointestinal (GI) cancers.

    “In a time when obesity rates are rising globally and 70% of the U.S. population alone is considered overwe...

    In Small Study, New Treatment Brings Remission of Rectal Cancer in All Patients

    A small study delivers startling results on the power of a new immunotherapy treatment against rectal cancer: The drug triggered remission in all the patients who got it.

    All of them had mismatch repair-deficient (MMRd) locally advanced rectal cancer and were given dostarlimab - an anti-PD-...

    Shedding Pounds Might Help Stop Pre-Cancerous Colon Polyps

    Colon cancer rates are increasing for younger Americans, along with rates of obesity. Could slimming down reduce young people's risk for malignancy?

    A new study suggests that even a small amount of weight loss may cut your odds for benign growths in the colon known as adenomas, or polyps. Left unchecked, these growths can lead to

    Late-Stage Colon Cancers Increasing Among Young Americans

    Yet another study is chipping away at the idea that colon and rectal cancers are diseases of older age: In the past couple decades, Americans younger than 40 have shown the steepest rise in advanced cases of these cancers.

    The research adds to evidence of a disturbing, and not yet completely understood, increase in early-onset

  • Amy Norton HealthDay Reporter
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  • January 31, 2022
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  • Most Americans Don't Know Alcohol Can Raise Cancer Risk

    Most American adults don't know that alcohol boosts cancer risk, but a majority support steps to increase awareness of the link, a new nationwide survey shows.

    ""It is important that people are made fully aware of the potential harms of alcohol so that they may make informed decisions about alcohol consumption," said study author Kara Wiseman. She's an assistant professor of public health...

    Supplements: Many Cancer Patients Think They'll Help, But Experts Urge Caution

    Many cancer patients take dietary supplements in hopes of keeping their disease at bay, but British researchers say there's little evidence it will pay off.

    In fact, they add, supplements may not only be ineffective, but harmful as well.

    "We found 1 in 5 people who had been treated for cancer mistakenly thought that taking vitamins or other supplements would help reduce the ris...

    HPV Vaccine Is Reducing Cervical Cancers in Teens, Young Women

    The first wave of girls to receive the HPV vaccine are much less likely to contract or die from cervical cancer than women just a few years older, a new study reports.

    Nearly all cases of cervical cancer are caused by human papillomavirus (HPV), for which a vaccine has been available since 2006.

    Cervical cancer deaths and cases have fallen dramatically among 14- to 24-year-old women...

    Clinical Trials Are Becoming More Diverse, But There's Still Work To Do

    U.S. cancer clinical trial participants have become more diverse in makeup, but certain groups remain underrepresented, a new study finds.

    It's important to have a wide range of participants in clinical trials, to find out if treatments are safe and effective for people with different characteristics, according to the National Cancer Institute (NCI), which has a number of initiatives to b...

    Younger Age Doesn't Boost Survival With Advanced Colon Cancer

    Younger patients with advanced colon cancer don't live longer than older patients, but it's unclear why, researchers say.

    The authors of the new study said they were surprised by the findings, which come as colon cancer rates are on the rise among young Americans.

    "As a group, younger patients are more physically active and have higher performance status and are better able to perfo...

    Too Little Vitamin D Could Raise Colon Cancer Risk in Black Women

    Black American women with low levels of vitamin D have higher odds of developing colon cancer, according to a new research that echoes previous findings in white women.

    Researchers used a vitamin D prediction model for nearly 50,000 participants in the Black Women's Health Study and concluded that those with predicted levels in the bottom 25% had an estimated 40% higher risk of colon canc...

    Could a Japanese Plant Turn Cold Cuts Into Healthy Fare?

    There's good news for health-conscious sausage and bacon lovers.

    A new study suggests the Japanese knotweed plant could be used to make healthier cured meats.

    According to researchers, this fast-growing plant that invades gardens and buildings contains a chemical that could take the place of the preservative nitrite, which has been linked to cancer, in cured meats. That might not on...

    Too Many Antibiotics Might Raise Colon Cancer Risk

    Here's another reason to avoid unnecessary use of antibiotics: Long-term use of these medications could increase your risk of colon cancer, researchers say.

    "While in many cases antibiotic therapy is necessary and saves lives, in the event of less serious ailments that can be expected to heal anyway, caution should be exercised. Above all to prevent bacteria from developing resistance but...

    Vitamin D Might Help Prevent Early-Onset Colon Cancer

    Foods rich in vitamin D may help protect younger adults against colon cancer, researchers report.

    While colon cancer is decreasing overall, cases among younger adults have been on the rise. The trends dovetail with a decline in vitamin D intake from foods such as fish, mushrooms, eggs and milk.

    There is growing evidence of a link between vitamin D and risk of colon cancer death, but...

    Immune-Based Therapy May Help Some Battling Advanced Colon Cancers

    Immunotherapy helped extend the lives of some patients with the most common type of advanced colon cancer, researchers report.

    The new findings are important, they noted, because immunotherapy doesn't typically work against microsatellite stable (MSS) colon cancer. These patients have few treatment options once their disease no longer responds to chemotherapy.

    This study included 95...

    Could Too Many Antibiotics Raise Your Odds for Colon Cancer?

    Antibiotics may increase the risk of colon cancer, especially in younger people, U.K. researchers report.

    "To our knowledge, this is the first study to link antibiotic use with the growing risk of early-onset colon cancer -- a disease which has been increasing at a rate of at least 3% per year over the last two decades," said study co-author Sarah Perrott, a cancer researcher at the Unive...

    HPV Vaccination Is Lowering U.S. Cervical Cancer Rates

    In a finding that offers the first evidence that the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine is indeed protecting women from cervical cancer, new research shows cases in the United States have slowly but steadily declined over the last decade and a half.

    However, other HPV-related cancers like anal, rectal and oral tumors continue to increase, suggesting that regular cancer screening also play...

    Relatives' Colonoscopy Results Could Affect Your Colon Cancer Risk

    Having close relatives with colon polyps -- which can be precursors of cancer -- could mean that you have a higher risk for colon cancer, researchers say.

    Colon cancer is the second deadliest form of cancer in the world, according to the World Health Organization.

    Being overweight and inactive increases the risk, but genetics also play a role, researchers in Sweden and Boston said ...

    FDA Approves First AI Tool to Boost Colonoscopy Accuracy

    The first device that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to help detect possible signs of colon cancer during colonoscopy has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

    The GI Genius uses AI-based machine learning to help identify lesions such as polyps or suspected tumors in real time during a colonoscopy, according to the agency.

    "Artificial intelligence has the potent...

    Research Reveals How Aspirin Helps Prevent Colon Cancer

    New research offers insight into why regular, long-term use of low-dose aspirin may reduce the risk of death from colon and rectal cancers.

    Resarchers found that aspirin prevents blood cells called platelets from producing an enzyme that allows them to clump together. Tumor cells can attach to these clumps and spread (metastasize) throughout the body.

    "Aspirin inhibits platelet act...

    Abnormal Stool Test Result? Don't Delay Your Colonoscopy

    Getting a colonoscopy as soon as possible after an abnormal stool test could reduce your risk of colon cancer and death from the disease, researchers say.

    In a new study, investigators analyzed data from more than 200,000 U.S. veterans, aged 50 to 75, who had an abnormal fecal immunochemical test (FIT) or fecal occult blood test (FOBT).

    Both are common stool blood screening tests. A...

    Breast Cancer Surpasses Lung Cancer as Leading Cancer Diagnosis Worldwide

    Breast cancer has surpassed lung cancer as the world's most commonly diagnosed cancer.

    In 2020, there were an estimated 19.3 million new cancer cases and nearly 10 million cancer deaths worldwide, according to the Global Cancer Statistics 2020 report from the American Cancer Society (ACS) and the International Agency for Research on Cancer.

    Overall, 1 in 5 people get cancer during t...

    Obesity's Influence on Colon Cancer Risk May Vary by Gender: Study

    Obesity affects colon cancer risk differently in women and men, new research reveals.

    British researchers analyzed data from more than 58,000 people with colon cancer and nearly 68,000 without.

    The takeaway: A higher body mass index (BMI, an estimate of body fat based on height and weight) is more dangerous for men, while a higher waist-to-hip ratio (a measure of abdominal fat) is m...

    Black Cancer Survivors Often Face Added Challenges: Study

    Social and financial struggles are common among Black American cancer survivors and take a heavy toll on their health-related quality of life, according to a new study.

    Health-related quality of life among cancer survivors -- how a person perceives their mental, physical and social well-being -- tends to be significantly lower among Black Americans than in other groups.

    In this stud...

    HPV Vaccine Proves Its Mettle Against Cervical Cancer

    Girls who are vaccinated against human papillomavirus (HPV) may drastically cut their chances of developing cervical cancer by age 30, a huge, new study finds.

    Researchers found that of more than 1.6 million young Swedish women, those who'd gotten the HPV vaccine were about two-thirds less likely to be diagnosed with cervical cancer than their unvaccinated peers.

    Those odds ...

    Many High-Risk Patients Don't Know They Need Follow-Up Colonoscopy

    Many Americans at high risk for colon cancer don't know how often they need to have a screening colonoscopy, researchers say.

    The report follows the recent death of actor Chadwick Boseman, who died Aug. 28 at age 43 after a private, four-year battle with colon cancer. Boseman was best known for playing the superhero Black Panther.

    Colon cancer is the third most common cause ...

    No Link Found Between Blood Pressure Meds and Cancer: Study

    Blood pressure drugs don't increase the risk of cancer, according to the largest study to examine the issue.

    A possible link between blood pressure drugs and cancer has been the subject of debate for decades, but evidence has been inconsistent and conflicting.

    For this study, researchers analyzed data from 31 clinical trials of blood pressure drugs that involved 260,000 peop...

    How Streetlights Might Affect Your Colon Cancer Risk

    Cities around the world are increasingly turning to streetlights emitting so-called "blue light," and it's also common in smartphones, laptops and tablets. Now, a study hints that excess exposure to blue-spectrum light might raise a person's odds for colon cancer.

    As a team of Spanish researchers noted, prior studies have suggested that blue light emitted by most white LEDs (light-emi...

    Blood Test Might Spot Cancer Years Earlier

    Scientists are working on a blood test that may catch five common cancers years sooner than current methods.

    The blood test, which is still experimental, hunts for certain genetic "signatures" associated with tumors. Researchers found that it can detect five types of cancer -- colon, esophageal, liver, lung and stomach -- up to four years earlier, compared to routine medical care.

    ...

    Tough Decisions as COVID-19 Causes Cancer Surgery Delays

    Many cancer patients have faced delays to their health care during the coronavirus pandemic, but with what consequences?

    Researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston analyzed 15 years of data to determine how long surgery for certain types of cancer can be delayed without harming patients' chances of survival. The study began in early spring, as the pandemic led many ...

    Parent or Sibling With Colon Cancer? You May Need Colonoscopy Earlier

    If colon cancer runs in your family, screening at age 40 might help catch the disease at an early stage, or even prevent it, specialists say.

    But a new investigation suggests that that advice is rarely heeded among those who go on to develop colon cancer before age 50.

    "We need better public awareness of the importance of family history, and systems put in place to help make...

    Low-Dose Aspirin Might Lower Odds for Digestive Cancers

    Low-dose aspirin may reduce the risk of several types of digestive tract cancers, according to a team of researchers in Europe.

    For the new study, the researchers analyzed 113 studies investigating colon/rectal ("bowel"), head and neck, esophageal, stomach, liver, gallbladder, bile duct and pancreatic cancers in the general population. The studies were published up to 2019.

    ...

    5 Ways to Fight America's No. 3 Cancer Killer

    With screening, colon cancers can effectively be detected and prevented. Though colon cancer is the third-leading cause of cancer death in the United States, one-third of Americans over age 50 are not getting screened.

    "Screening saves lives and can prevent colon cancer," said Dr. Susanne Shokoohi, a gastroenterologist at Loyola Medicine in Maywood, Ill.

    More than 140,000 Am...

    Weight-Loss Surgery May Lower Colon Cancer Risk

    Obesity increases the risk for colon cancer, but weight-loss surgery may bring the risk back to normal, French researchers report.

    People who are obese have a 34% higher risk of colon cancer than the general population, but any type of bariatric (weight-loss) surgery can bring their risk back in line, according to the authors of a new study.

    "People aged 50 to 75 are ...

    For Black Americans, Exercise Brings Real Boost to Life After Cancer

    Regular exercise can benefit black cancer survivors' physical and mental health, but most don't get the recommended amount of activity, a new study says.

    Cancer survivors should get at least 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity a week, according to the American Cancer Society (ACS).

    For most cancers, black patients have a higher risk of dying from their diseas...

    Gay Men Underestimate Their Risks From HPV

    Young men who have sex with other men don't fully grasp their risk for human papillomavirus (HPV) infection, due to a lack of information from health care providers, researchers say.

    Interviews with men in their early 20s who are gay, bisexual or who identify as straight but have sex with men found that they knew little about HPV, including how it is transmitted, its symptoms and how ...

    More Sex Partners, Higher Cancer Risk?

    If you need more than two hands to count the number of lovers you've had in your life, new research suggests you might want to worry about your cancer risk.

    People who have had 10 or more sexual partners had higher odds of being diagnosed with cancer than those who were less sexually active, researchers report.

    Women with that many sex partners had nearly double the risk of ...

    For Patients on Blood Thinners, GI Bleeding May Signal Colon Cancer: Study

    Gastrointestinal bleeding in patients taking blood thinners for an irregular heartbeat should prompt doctors to check for colon cancer, a new study advises.

    Researchers looked at more than 125,000 patients in Denmark with the heart rhythm disorder atrial fibrillation (a-fib). They reported that those with gastrointestinal bleeding were 11 to 24 times more likely than others to be diag...

    Strong Support Network Is Key to Women's Cancer Recovery: Study

    Older women with colon or rectal cancer are more likely to die early if they lack support from family, friends or others, a new study finds.

    For the study, researchers looked at more than 1,400 postmenopausal women with colon or rectal cancer who were enrolled in the long-term U.S. Women's Health Initiative (WHI) study.

    Compared to those with strong social support, those wit...

    New Study Supports Lowering Age of First Colonoscopy

    The rate of colon cancer among Americans spikes sharply between the ages of 49 and 50, a new study finds -- supporting the case for earlier screening for the disease.

    Researchers say the uptick between those two ages does not reflect an actual increase in the occurrence of colon cancer but the fact that screening for the disease has traditionally begun at age 50. So "latent" cancers ...

    Massachusetts' Health Reforms Helped Catch More Cancers Early

    Advanced-stage colon cancer diagnoses declined after Massachusetts expanded health insurance coverage, a new study finds.

    In 2006, state legislators passed a health insurance reform law with the aim of providing health care access to nearly all residents.

    "Colorectal cancer frequently occurs in adults under 65 who are not yet eligible for Medicare. And we know from previous ...

    Obesity May Be Upping Rates of Pancreatic Cancer Worldwide

    Rising rates of obesity and diabetes could be pushing up rates of pancreatic cancer across the globe, a new report suggests.

    Global rates of colon cancer are also on the rise, although fewer cases are now proving deadly, researchers said.

    Colon cancer rates and pancreatic cancer deaths rose by 10% worldwide between 1990 and 2017, according to a new study of global trends...

    Study Points to Herd Immunity Against HPV in Unvaccinated U.S. Adults

    The United States could be approaching a state of herd immunity against human papillomavirus (HPV), a virus linked to several cancers.

    Oral HPV infections declined by 37% among unvaccinated 18- to 59-year-old men between 2009 and 2016, according to a Sept. 10 report in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

    That included a decline in infections of HPV16, the...

    Colon Cancer Rates Rising Among the Young in Wealthy Nations

    Colon cancer rates among young adults are on the rise in the United States, Canada and seven other wealthy nations, even though rates among older adults are down or stable, a new study finds.

    The researchers analyzed data for 36 countries and found that over the past 10 years, colon cancer rates among people under age 50 were stable in 14 countries, fell in three (Italy, Austria and L...

    More Antibiotics, Higher Odds for Colon Cancer?

    Taking certain antibiotics -- especially multiple times or for long courses -- may put you at risk for colon cancer, a large new study suggests.

    The researchers found that as people's antibiotic use increased, their odds of being diagnosed with colon cancer inched up. Specifically, the risk was tied to antibiotics that kill anaerobic bacteria -- which include common drugs like penicil...

    Red Meat May Raise Breast Cancer Risk

    Skipping that grilled T-bone and having chicken instead could reduce a woman's risk of breast cancer, a new study suggests.

    The World Health Organization has declared red meat a probable carcinogen, and this new study adds breast cancer to a list of cancers linked to red meat, including beef, veal, pork, lamb and some game.

    Breast cancer is the number one cancer among women...

    Despite Cancer Screening, 'Oldest Old' Have Low Survival Odds: Study

    The oldest Americans have higher cancer screening rates but lower cancer survival rates than younger seniors, a new report shows.

    Those 85 and older -- a group dubbed the oldest old -- are also less likely to have cancer surgery than their counterparts between 65 and 84 years of age.

    Adults aged 85 and up are the fastest-growing age group in the United States, yet relatively...

    Millions of Life Years, Billions of Dollars Lost to Cancer Each Year

    More than 8.7 million years of life and about $94 billion in earnings were lost to cancer in the United States in 2015, researchers say.

    Cancer is the nation's second-leading killer and is expected to cause nearly 607,000 deaths this year. These premature deaths and the lost productivity they cause impose a significant economic burden, the study authors explained.

    In this s...

    Your Drinking Water May Harbor Cancer-Causing Nitrate: Study

    Millions of tons of nitrate from industrial farming find their way into America's drinking water each year, causing thousands of cases of cancer and other health problems, an environmental advocacy group says.

    In a new report, researchers from the Environmental Working Group (EWG) quantify the risk. They say nitrate is responsible for nearly 12,600 cases of cancer a year.

    "...