Research News for 2008
-
Cancers Resistant to Anthracyclines May Respond to Taxotere-Xeloda Combo
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).
-
Antidepressants and Ambien May Ease Sleep Problems
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.
-
Arm/Shoulder Problems Common After Breast Cancer Surgery
Most women who have breast cancer surgery have some type of arm problem, even more than a year after surgery.
-
Even with New Treatments, No Improvement in Metastatic Breast Cancer Survival
A new study finds the average survival time after a diagnosis of metastatic breast cancer hasn't changed much since 1985.
-
Removing Opposite, Healthy Breast Reduces Risk of New Cancer
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.
-
Nexavar May Make Metastatic Cancers Start Responding to Hormonal Therapy Again
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.
-
MRI Before Treatment Doesn’t Improve Care or Prognosis
Routinely doing MRI after diagnosis and before surgery may lead to more mastectomy recommendations vs. lumpectomy recommendations with no improvement in care or outcome.
-
If Cancer Stops Responding to Herceptin, It May Have Switched from HER2-Positive to HER2-Negative
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.
-
Arimidex Doesn’t Seem to Cause Thinking or Memory Problems
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.
-
Hormone-Related Health Factors May Influence Breast Cancer Characteristics
A new study suggests that several hormone-related health factors may affect the risk of developing specific types of breast cancer.
