A new study should give women pause before filling their wine glass. Researchers found that women who regularly drink a small amount of alcohol — less than a drink a day — may increase their lifetime risk of breast cancer.
Cancer
Study: No Higher Risk for Women With Breast Cancer Genes in the Family
Here’s some encouraging news for women whose family members carry the BRCA gene mutations that increase the risk of breast cancer: if you don’t have the mutations yourself, your risk of developing the disease isn’t significantly increased.
Mammograms Only Occasionally Save Lives, Analysis Finds
Some doctors and public-health experts have stirred controversy in recent years by arguing that aggressive breast-cancer screening does more harm than good. Many health professionals disagree, but perhaps the most compelling …
Study: Mammograms Lead to Many False-Positive Results
In 2009, a government advisory group sent women and their doctors into a frenzy when it rolled back recommendations for annual breast cancer screening for most women. Saying that routine mammograms could potentially do more harm …
A Surprising Link Between Bacteria and Colon Cancer
Could bacteria be responsible for colon cancer? In papers published in the journal Genome Research, two research teams, working independently, describe a group of bacteria that are linked to higher rates of the disease.
Vitamin E May Increase Risk of Prostate Cancer
Adding to the evidence that regularly taking dietary supplements may do more harm than good, researchers at the Cleveland Clinic have found that men taking vitamin E are not protected from prostate cancer, and may even be at …
Prostate Cancer Screening: What You Need to Know
A panel of cancer experts is recommending against testing for prostate-specific antigen (PSA), the most commonly used prostate cancer screen, in healthy men.
The Pancreatic Cancer That Killed Steve Jobs
In their announcement of founder Steve Jobs’ death, at age 56, Apple officials did not mention a specific cause of death. But the visionary digital leader had been battling pancreatic cancer since 2004.
HPV Linked to More Oral Cancers Than Smoking
The number of head and neck cancers linked to the sexually transmitted human papillomavirus (HPV) has increased sharply over the past two decades, and the virus now accounts for more cancers than tobacco or alcohol, a new study finds.
Study: Men May Benefit from Earlier Colonoscopy, But Women Can Wait
Colonoscopies aren’t the most pleasant medical procedures around, but regular colon-cancer screening can potentially save your life. That’s why doctors and most professional medical organizations recommend that all men and women …
In 40 Years of Cancer Research, How Far Have We Come?
I don’t normally write about anniversaries, but this one seems worth noting. It’s been 40 years since President Richard Nixon signed the National Cancer Act in 1971, the historic legislation that focused attention — and perhaps …
IUDs May Protect Against Cervical Cancer
The IUD, or intrauterine device, is a highly effective method of birth control, and now a new study reveals that it may be useful in guarding against cervical cancer as well.
Study Finds Higher Rate of Cancer in 9/11 Firefighters
Firefighters who worked at Ground Zero are 19% more likely to have cancer than those who were not exposed to the site, a new study finds.