September 2008 Research News

Bigger Babies May Have Higher Breast Cancer Risk
September 30, 2008
Researchers have found an association between birth size and the risk of breast cancer later in life. Read more...

Characteristics Shown by MRI May Help Predict Whether Cancer Cells Are in Lymph Nodes
September 25, 2008
New research suggests that certain breast cancer characteristics shown by MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) may help predict whether there are cancer cells in the lymph nodes when the cancer is first diagnosed. Read more...

New Tool Can Help Predict Recurrence Risk
September 24, 2008
A new tool that looks at four breast cancer characteristics seems to do a good job of predicting whether early-stage hormone-receptor-positive breast cancer is likely to come back (recurrence). The tool assessed recurrence in women diagnosed with early-stage hormone-receptor-positive breast cancer that had been treated with hormonal therapy before surgery. Read more...

Efaproxiral Doesn’t Improve Radiation Benefits Against Metastatic Breast Cancer in Brain
September 24, 2008
New research suggests that the experimental medicine Efaproxyn (chemical name: efaproxiral) doesn't improve the benefits of radiation therapy to the brain to treat breast cancer that has spread there. Read more...

Hormone Replacement Therapy Doesn’t Seem to Increase Risk in Women with Abnormal BRCA1 Gene
September 23, 2008
A small study suggests that combination hormone replacement therapy doesn't seem to raise the risk of breast cancer in post-menopausal women with an abnormal BRCA1 gene, but several leading researchers don't think the results are definitive. Read more...

Acupuncture Helps Ease Hot Flashes
September 22, 2008
Twelve weeks of acupuncture seems to offer the same relief from hot flashes as 12 weeks of Effexor (chemical name: venlafaxine), an antidepressant. Read more...

MammoSite System Seems Just as Good as Whole Breast Radiation
September 22, 2008
Women who got internal partial-breast irradiation with the MammoSite system, also known as brachytherapy, had the same outcomes as women who got traditional external radiation therapy in the 3 to 4 years after lumpectomy to treat early-stage breast cancer. Read more...

Lower-Dose Radiation Seems OK After Lumpectomy
September 22, 2008
Women diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer with no lymph node involvement who got a lower dose of radiation for a shorter time after lumpectomy had the same outcome as women who got standard radiation therapy (a higher dose for a longer time). Read more...

Experimental HER2 Vaccine Shows Promise
September 15, 2008
A very early study done in mice shows promise for a vaccine against HER2-positive cancer cells. Read more...

Breast Cancer Gene Prediction Models Not Accurate for Asian Women
September 15, 2008
Two models used to predict BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene abnormalities aren't very accurate when used on Asian women. Read more...

Cancers Resistant to Anthracyclines May Respond to Taxotere-Xeloda Combo
September 10, 2008
A new study suggests that breast cancer that is resistant to an anthracycline may respond to a combination of two other chemotherapies, Taxotere (chemical name: docetaxel) and Xeloda (chemical name: capecitabine). Read more...

Electronic Internal Radiation Device Shows Promise
September 10, 2008
Preliminary results show the Axxent brachytherapy system, which uses electricity and miniature x-ray tubes instead of radiative materials, successfully delivered specified doses of radiation therapy to 44 women so far. Read more...

Antidepressants and Ambien May Ease Sleep Problems
September 9, 2008
A very small study suggests that a combination of an antidepressant medicine and Ambien, a sleep medicine, may ease sleep problems caused by hot flashes more effectively than just taking an antidepressant. Read more...

Arm/Shoulder Problems Common After Breast Cancer Surgery
September 9, 2008
Most women who have breast cancer surgery have some type of arm problem, even more than a year after surgery. Read more...

MRI Before Treatment Doesn’t Improve Care or Prognosis
September 8, 2008
Routinely doing MRI after diagnosis and before surgery may lead to more mastectomy recommendations vs. lumpectomy recommendations with no improvement in care or outcome. Read more...

Even with New Treatments, No Improvement in Metastatic Breast Cancer Survival
September 9, 2008
A new study finds the average survival time after a diagnosis of metastatic breast cancer hasn't changed much since 1985. Read more...

Nexavar May Make Metastatic Cancers Start Responding to Hormonal Therapy Again
September 8, 2008
A preliminary study suggests that a targeted therapy may be able to make hormone-receptor-positive breast cancers that have stopped responding to hormonal therapy start responding again. Read more...

Removing Opposite, Healthy Breast Reduces Risk of New Cancer
September 8, 2008
Contralateral prophylactic mastectomy -- removing the opposite healthy breast -- reduced the risk of developing a new breast cancer in the other breast and also reduced the risk of dying from breast cancer by about 30% for young women diagnosed with early-stage, hormone-receptor-negative breast cancer. Read more...

If Cancer Stops Responding to Herceptin, It May Have Switched from HER2-Positive to HER2-Negative September 4, 2008
A new study suggests that about one-third of HER-positive breast cancers that stop responding or don't respond completely to Herceptin do so because the cancers change from HER2-positive to HER2-negative during treatment. Read more...

Arimidex Doesn’t Seem to Cause Thinking or Memory Problems
September 3, 2008
A small study shows that women who took the aromatase inhibitor Arimidex (chemical name: anastrozole) for 2 years didn't have any more thinking and memory problems than women who took a placebo pill for 2 years. Read more...