Daily Women's Health Policy Report Examines Latest Research On Breast Cancer

Main Category: Breast Cancer
Article Date: 18 Dec 2008 - 5:00 PST

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The following summarizes news coverage of recently reported studies on breast cancer.

~ Tumor removal: An experimental device developed by a team at Duke University Medical Center can help surgeons determine if they have removed a breast cancer tumor in its entirety, reducing the chances that a patient will have to undergo subsequent surgeries, researchers reported at the recent San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, ABC News' "World News" reports. The device uses a special imaging technique to differentiate between cancerous tissue and healthy breast tissue, "World News" reports. Quincy Brown, an engineer helping to develop the device, said that a removed tumor is placed under beams of light, allowing surgeons to analyze factors such as the types of blood vessels in the tissue, the amount of fat present and the density of the cells. The results are plotted on a colored map of the tumor to show whether cancerous tissue is still present in the patient. The data presented at the symposium include results from 57 patients. Lee Wilke, a surgeon at Duke University Medical Center, said the device is "showing us, with an 85% sensitivity, the areas we would need to remove." Researchers said they plan to do an additional two years of testing to refine the technique (McKenzie, "World News," ABC News, 12/15).

~ Estrogen: Women with breast cancer can unintentionally expose themselves to daily doses of estrogen through the use of topical moisturizers, according to researchers at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, Reuters reports. Adrienne Olson of Breastlink in Hawthorne, Calif., and colleagues analyzed 16 widely available skin moisturizers for estrogen-like compounds. They found that six of the samples contained estriol or estrone, even though none of the products listed estrogen as an ingredient. Olson said estrogens are more efficiently absorbed when applied to the skin than when taken orally. She recommended that women with estrogen-receptor positive breast cancer avoid applying estrogen to the skin to minimize the risk of recurrence. She added that women without breast cancer also could increase their risk by exposing themselves to estrogen through the use of the moisturizers (Reuters, 12/15).

~ Fruits and vegetables: Certain breast cancer survivors who consume large amounts of fruits and vegetables can decrease the risk of tumor recurrence by nearly one-third, according to a study published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Reuters reports. Researchers said that the findings only apply to women who did not have hot flashes after their cancer therapy, which suggests that plant-based foods affect estrogen and might explain "why some studies have shown that eating more fruits and vegetables lowers the risk that breast cancer will come back, while others do not," according to Reuters. The study was a second look at data on 3,000 breast cancer patients with an average age of 53 in a previous study that examined the effects of a diet low in fat and high in fruits and vegetables. Researchers focused on the 30% of the original participants who said they did not have hot flashes, a common side effect of breast cancer treatment. Half of the group was told to eat 10 servings of fruit and vegetables daily, eat more fiber and reduce their fat intake, while the other half was told to eat five fruit and vegetable servings daily. The study found that 16% of participants in the 10-serving group had experienced a tumor recurrence after 7 years, compared with 23% in the five-serving group (Fox, Reuters, 12/15).

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