News from Rabin Medical Center – Obesity in Adolescence Linked With Subsequent Colorectal Cancer

Overweight and obesity in adolescence were associated with an increased risk for colon cancer later in life among both men and women, according to the results of a recent study. Obesity, but not overweight, was also linked to subsequent rectal cancer.

Researchers were extending previous work looking at the association between body mass index (BMI) measured at adolescence and risk for colorectal cancer (CRC) among men. The study was expanded to include women and by updating the cancer registry linkage data to increase the number of CRC cases.

“The association between adolescent BMI and CRC among men has been addressed in several studies, some reporting little or no association, a possible association, or a positive association,” wrote Zohar Levi, MD, of the Rabin Medical Center, Tikva, Israel, and colleagues.

According to the researchers, few previous studies have reported on colon and rectal cancers separately.

“Our data indicate that the risk for rectal cancer may be increased only for obese adolescents, and this suggests possibly different mechanisms for colon cancer and rectal cancer,” the researchers wrote. “This might be supported by reports of a differential impact of obesity on the risk of adenomas and may provide some explanation for the inconsistencies concerning the association of BMI with rectal cancer in women reported in several studies.”

Source: http://www.cancernetwork.com/colorectal-cancer/obesity-adolescence-linked-subsequent-colorectal-cancer

Source: http://www.timesofisrael.com/coming-of-age-israel-biotech-sector-gets-ready-for-market/?utm_source=Start-Up+Daily&utm_campaign=134b9a1a0b-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2017_08_17&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_fb879fad58-134b9a1a0b-55366073

New breast cancer blood test could improve treatment options in more serious cases

‘Liquid biopsy’ detects tumor DNA and can track alterations in 13 different genes.

Women with advanced stages of breast cancer could receive potentially life-extending personalized treatment after taking a new blood test that detects tumor DNA.

Source: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/health/breast-cancer-blood-test-new-treatment-improve-detect-tumour-dna-liverpool-uk-advanced-metastatic-a7862241.html

Tumor Test Helps Identify Which Breast Cancers Don’t Require Extra Treatment

For years, doctors have focused on detecting breast cancer at the earliest possible moment after a tumor develops so treatment can start right away. But more and more studies are showing many small, early tumors don’t present a danger.

So, when is it safe to remove a tumor but skip additional treatments like tamoxifen, chemotherapy and radiation?

A study published Thursday in JAMA Oncology suggests that it may be possible to distinguish fairly precisely between “ultra low-risk” tumors that are unlikely to cause problems and those that are more aggressive and likely to spread — thus allowing some patients to avoid unnecessary treatments.

Researchers in the U.S. and Sweden used a diagnostic test called MammaPrint to measure a tumor’s genomic “fingerprint” and compared it with survival time after a tumor was removed. They say they were able to pinpoint patients who had a very low risk of death from breast cancer — even up to 20 years after the first diagnosis.

MammaPrint is a genomic test that looks at a set of 70 genes in a tumor, showing how the genes are controlling the production of the proteins that drive a tumor’s growth. A genomic test of the tumor, which measures how genes are functioning, differs from other genetic tests that determine someone’s hereditary risk of cancer.

The tumor test was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2007 to predict whether an existing cancer has the ability to spread. It’s priced at $4,200 and is covered by some insurance plans in the U.S.

Source: http://n.pr/2s6VO4v

Effective Immunotherapy Steps Closer With New T Cell Study 

In a recent study, researchers report some progress in developing an immunotherapy for ovarian cancer. However, they also outline the considerable challenges that remain before the treatment can be made effective for this and other cancers that have solid tumors.

The researchers presented the findings at the annual meeting of the American Association of Cancer Research in Washington, D.C. Estimates from the American Cancer Society  suggest that, in the United States, around 22,440 women will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer and approximately 14,000 will die from the disease during 2017.

The cancer begins in cells of the ovaries – reproductive glands found only in women. Each woman normally has two ovaries, situated on each side of the uterus inside the pelvis. The ovaries produce eggs that travel to the uterus through the fallopian tubes.

Dr. Kristin Anderson, an immunotherapy researcher who presented the findings at the meeting, says that while ovarian cancer is not as common in the U.S. as other cancers with solid tumors, it has a low rate of survival and a high rate of relapse. The main reason is that the cancer does not cause obvious symptoms and is often advanced by the time it is diagnosed.

Immunotherapy is a relatively new area of medicine that is showing promising results in the treatment of cancer. The approach uses the patient’s own immune system to fight disease.

The new study concerns a method called adoptive T cell transfer. In this approach, immune cells called T cells are taken from the patient’s own blood and trained to target and destroy cancer cells. Then, after multiplying in the laboratory, the primed cells are returned to the patient’s body. Sometimes donor cells are used instead.

The team hopes to start a human clinical trial of adoptive T cell transfer for ovarian cancer in the next few years.