Research News for 2010
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Aspirin Seems to Improve Prognosis
Research suggests that premenopausal women who took two or more aspirin each week in the years after a diagnosis of early-stage breast cancer have a better prognosis than women who don't take aspirin.
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Exercise Lowers Estrogen Levels in Older Women
A new study found that post-menopausal women who regularly did intense exercise for a year had lower levels of estradiol, a type of estrogen, compared to women who didn't exercise.
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MRI Before Breast Cancer Surgery Doesn’t Lower Reoperation Rate
New research suggests that doing MRI before a first breast cancer surgery doesn't reduce the likelihood that a woman would need more surgery within 6 months.
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Recurrence Risk Same for Standard, Lower-Dose Radiation Schedules
Research suggests that newer, low-dose radiation therapy schedules are as effective as the standard schedule.
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Taking Antidepressant with Tamoxifen Reduces Tamoxifen’s Effectiveness
Research suggests that women taking the antidepressant Paxil at the same time as the hormonal therapy medicine tamoxifen are more likely to die from breast cancer than women taking tamoxifen who never took Paxil.
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Side Effects, Body Image Concerns Same for Standard and Lower-Dose Radiation Schedules
Researchers compared a standard radiation therapy schedule to new, lower-dose schedules and found that side effects and body image concerns were about the same for all the schedules
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FDA Approves Tykerb-Femara Combo to Treat Advanced-Stage Disease
The FDA has approved the combination of Tykerb and Femara to treat post-menopausal women diagnosed with hormone-receptor-positive, HER2-positive advanced-stage breast cancer.
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Herceptin Plus Chemo Before Surgery Better Than Chemo Alone for HER2-Positive Locally-Advanced Disease
Research suggests that giving Herceptin at the same time as chemotherapy BEFORE surgery for HER2-positive locally advanced or inflammatory breast cancer can lengthen the time before the cancer comes back or grows compared to chemotherapy alone.
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Digital Mammograms Offer Lower Radiation Exposure; Amount Varies
While digital mammograms generally expose women to less radiation, taking more than the standard four images (two of each breast) reduces this benefit.
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Journal Commentaries Discuss Mammogram Recommendations
Commentaries in the Journal of the American Medical Association reviewed here offer various perspectives on some of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommended changes to breast cancer screening guidelines.
