African Americans have a much worse chance of surviving colorectal cancer that whites.  However, there appear to be reasons beyond race for these differences

After looking at factors including poverty, stage at diagnosis, and treatment received, researchers in Detroit found the differences between races disappeared. Read the rest of this entry »

While  aspirin reduces risk for cardiovascular problems, it can harm the stomach and upper GI tract.  However, in a randomized study, Pepcid® (famotidine) reduced stomach and duodenal ulcers and damage to the esophagus for people taking low-dose aspirin for protection against heart attacks and strokes.

Researchers in the United Kingdom used an endoscope to examine the throats and stomachs of patients being treated with low-dose aspirin (85 to 325 mg a day).  They randomly assigned 400 patients without signs of existing GI damage to 20 milligrams of famotidine twice a day or a placebo.  Neither patients or doctors knew who was getting the drug or who was received a placebo.

Twelve weeks later, they looked again for ulcers and esophageal erosion.   Read the rest of this entry »

Research this week finds FDG/PET able to predict response to chemotherapy even after one treatment, and chemotherapy before surgery for liver mets makes CT scan evaluation less accurate.

Finding the best imaging methods to diagnosis and monitor cancer and comparing new colorectal cancer screening technologies to current standards are among recommended priorities for comparative effectiveness research (CER).  The FDA reports new egg safety rules and the recall of a powdered dietary supplement.

Videos of cancer patients are now online discussing the emotional impact of their diagnosis in The Day I Found Out. Read the rest of this entry »

A number of studies have found that red meat and processed meats — the hamburgers, steaks, and hotdogs of summer backyard barbeques — increase risk for colon and rectal cancer.  Grilling those meats at high temperatures makes the risk even higher.

Eating more fruits and vegetables can reduce the chances of getting cancer, and grilling them is safe.

Grilling is an interesting new way to get the additional fruits and vegetables into your diet.  Brush them lightly with olive or canola oil to prevent sticking. Read the rest of this entry »

News in Brief catches up today after celebrating the Fourth of July with swimming, sailing, and time with family.  We hope you had as good a time relaxing as we did.

Research shows that children whose parents have cancer have more social and psychological problems, mice who are fed a high-fat Western-style diet don’t benefit from exercise and develop more colon polyps, and adding irinotecan to 5FU after surgery to remove liver mets adds no benefit but has more serious side effects.

The VA is upgrading equipment to sterilize endoscopes and train staff to clean them properly with $26 million from its reserve funds.  Two scientists at MIT are sampling and freezing their own stools each day to study changing patterns of millions of  microbes in the intestinal tract. Read the rest of this entry »