Oncology and hematology

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Articles, page 82

5 important cancer prevention updates

June 7, 2011Jun 7, 20113

Most people agree — the best way to beat cancer is to prevent it. What can we do as a nation to help people live healthier lives today so they can avoid cancer tomorrow? Major research findings and policy changes…

Most people agree — the best way to beat cancer is to prevent it. What can we do as a nation to help people live healthier lives today so they can avoid cancer tomorrow?

Major research findings and policy changes are steps in the right direction. Here are some important cancer prevention milestones we’ve reached in the past year.

1. Lung cancer screening is now a reality for selected patients

Smoking causes …

Read more…

5 important cancer prevention updates

Conditions and diseases

Do doctors have more influence than the media in cancer screening?

Kevin Pho, MD

June 6, 2011Jun 6, 20119

Not all cancer screening saves lives. I alluded to this recently in a New York Times' Room for Debate piece, discussing why Medicare shouldn't pay for prostate cancer screening in men over the age of 75. And, when it comes…

Not all cancer screening saves lives.

I alluded to this recently in a New York Times’ Room for Debate piece, discussing why Medicare shouldn’t pay for prostate cancer screening in men over the age of 75.

And, when it comes to ovarian cancer screening, a recent study showed that annual CA-125 antigen testing and transvaginal ultrasound did not save lives. In …

Patient voices

How Susan G. Komen for the Cure affects other cancer non-profits

Gayle A. Sulik, PhD

June 6, 2011Jun 6, 201111

In response to increased publicity surrounding Susan G. Komen for the Cure’s questionable trademark and marketing activities, the organization published an official statement on its website, titled: “Susan G. Komen for the Cure® Sees Trademark Protection as Responsible Stewardship of…

According to the statement, Susan G. Komen for the Cure® has never sued other charities or put other non-profits out of business, and the organization does not have …

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Physician voices

Examining the evidence behind a community health screening

Kenneth Lin, MD

June 3, 2011Jun 3, 201111

The following deceptive advertisement appeared in my church's bulletin yesterday: Life Line Screening, the nation's leading provider of preventive health screenings, will offer their affordable, non-invasive, painless health screenings on April 9th. Five screenings will be offered that scan for…

The following deceptive advertisement appeared in my church’s bulletin yesterday:

Life Line Screening, the nation’s leading provider of preventive health screenings, will offer their affordable, non-invasive, painless health screenings [in the church cafeteria] on April 9th. Five screenings will be offered that scan for potential health problems related to: blocked arteries, which is a leading cause of stroke; abdominal aortic aneurysms, which can lead to a ruptured aorta; hardening of the

…

Drugs and prescribing

Unrealistic optimism in early phase new drug studies

Richard Leff, MD

June 3, 2011Jun 3, 20113

In a thoughtful posting in the New York Times, Dr. Pauline Chen, a well respected observer of the doctor-patient relationship, points out an ethical dilemma that faces cancer researchers working in drug development conducting early phase (I) new drug studies.…

In a thoughtful posting in the New York Times, Dr. Pauline Chen, a well respected observer of the doctor-patient relationship, points out an ethical dilemma that faces cancer researchers working in drug development conducting early phase (I) new drug studies. Ethicists have identified that patients in these studies often have unrealistic optimism about their personal outcomes despite …

Patient voices

Guiding patients through fragmented health care

Jessie Gruman, PhD

May 31, 2011May 31, 20114

"The most important thing I learned was that different doctors know different things: I need to ask my internist different questions than I do my oncologist." This was not some sweet ingénue recounting the early lessons she learned from a…

“The most important thing I learned was that different doctors know different things: I need to ask my internist different questions than I do my oncologist.”

This was not some sweet ingénue recounting the early lessons she learned from a recent encounter with health care. Nope. It was a 62-year-old woman whose husband has been struggling with multiple myeloma for …

Patient voices

Benefits of chance meetings with other cancer patients

Steve Wilkins, MPH

May 28, 2011May 28, 2011

My wife had just finished meeting with her medical oncologist for her bi-annual check-up at MD Anderson’s Thoracic Clinic. We were sitting in an area called "the Park" rehashing what her doctor had said when a mother and her daughter…

My wife had just finished meeting with her medical oncologist for her bi-annual check-up at MD Anderson’s Thoracic Clinic.

We were sitting in an area called “the Park” rehashing what her doctor had said when a mother and her daughter sat down at our table. There were lots of empty seats in area but for some reason they decided to sit with us. Call it serendipity. …

Physician voices

Cancer screening on autopilot in patients with advanced cancer

Alex Smith, MD

May 25, 2011May 25, 20118

by Alex Smith, MD I used to get Sports Illustrated, and my favorite column was titled, "This week's sign that the apocalypse Is upon us." Well, JAMA recently published the medical equivalent. Sima and colleagues at Memorial Sloan Kettering used…

by Alex Smith, MD

I used to get Sports Illustrated, and my favorite column was titled, “This week’s sign that the apocalypse Is upon us.” Well, JAMA recently published the medical equivalent.

Sima and colleagues at Memorial Sloan Kettering used a population based dataset of patients with cancer to compare rates of cancer screening (mammography, PAP smears, …

Conditions and diseases

Breast implants and the risk of cancer

Anthony Youn, MD

May 23, 2011May 23, 20113

The FDA has issued a statement alerting physicians and patients to a possible link between breast implants and a rare type of cancer. Although anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL) is extremely rare, the FDA believes that women with breast implants…

ALCL in the presence of breast implants has been noted in sporadic case reports over the past 25 years. To date, …

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Breast implants and the risk of cancer

Patient voices

Cancer will always be a part of a patient’s identity

Ann Silberman

May 20, 2011May 20, 20119

So, you've cut off your breast(s) and poisoned and radiated your body. You've hit all your medical milestones - surgery, chemo, herceptin. You've recovered and the hair on your legs has grown back to plague you, and you have gotten…

So, you’ve cut off your breast(s) and poisoned and radiated your body. You’ve hit all your medical milestones – surgery, chemo, herceptin. You’ve recovered and the hair on your legs has grown back to plague you, and you have gotten back to a normal life. Work, jobs, family. Shaving.

Yet you are changed. You didn’t expect this, but each time you get dressed or undressed, you can’t help but notice your mastectomy …

Patient voices

5 rules for living well with a chronic illness

Carolyn Thomas

May 14, 2011May 14, 20117

Dr. Elvira Aletta is a clinical psychologist with a unique perspective on what it’s like to live with a chronic illness. In her early twenties, she was diagnosed with nephrotic syndrome, a rare kidney disease that usually affects young boys.…

She’d never heard of that, either. She describes her …

Medical education

Medical students asking a patient about death

Jessica Gold

May 13, 2011May 13, 20116

Like any kid who always wanted to be a doctor, I went to medical school to learn how to help people. Just wearing the white coat during orientation week had people looking at me differently, expecting me to know something…

Conditions and diseases

Sunscreen advice from a dermatologist to prevent skin cancer

Susan Y. Chon, MD

May 12, 2011May 12, 201112

by Susan Y. Chon, MD You know you need sunscreen. But with so many lotions, sprays and gels to choose from, how do you know which sunblock will actually prevent sunburns — and skin cancer? When it comes to shielding…

by Susan Y. Chon, MD

You know you need sunscreen. But with so many lotions, sprays and gels to choose from, how do you know which sunblock will actually prevent sunburns — and skin cancer?

When it comes to shielding your skin from the sun, the type of sunscreen you choose is as important as how you use it.

I hear many people blame their sunscreen when …

Conditions and diseases

Using genomics in cancer, and for early diagnosis in infectious disease

Stephen C. Schimpff, MD

May 11, 2011May 11, 2011

In the previous post I discussed the field of pharmacogenomics. Today I will focus on: Nutragenomics Disease classification Disease prognostication Early and rapid diagnosis Prediction of diseases to develop later in life Nutragenomics or the science of how our genes…

In the previous post I discussed the field of pharmacogenomics.

Today I will focus on:

Nutragenomics
Disease classification
Disease prognostication
Early and rapid diagnosis
Prediction of diseases to develop later in life

Nutragenomics or the science of how our genes affect what we eat is a developing field.

Here is one example. Cholesterol is an important part of our physiology although too much in the wrong places is harmful. Cholesterol is carried in the body …

Patient voices

Treatment for stage 0 breast cancer is definitely real

Jackie Fox

May 10, 2011May 10, 20116

I had never heard of ductal carcinoma in situ before I was diagnosed with it. Nor did I have a clue that breast cancer could be classified as stage 0; I only thought it came in stages 1 through 4.…

I had never heard of ductal carcinoma in situ before I was diagnosed with it. Nor did I have a clue that breast cancer could be classified as stage 0; I only thought it came in stages 1 through 4. And I’m far from alone; most people I talked to had never heard of it either, including a …

Patient voices

Cancer is a crime, and how a tumor board is the courtroom

Katherine O'Brien

May 2, 2011May 2, 2011

Cancer patients usually say they want a cure. Well, of course, that goes without saying. But it’s also kind of annoying. We’ve all, as children and adults, had those "What if" conversations. What if you could have anything you wanted…

Cancer patients usually say they want a cure. Well, of course, that goes without saying. But it’s also kind of annoying.

We’ve all, as children and adults, had those “What if” conversations. What if you could have anything you wanted in the whole world? Depending on the respondents’ ages, people might say anything from “a banana cream …

Conditions and diseases

MKSAP: 63-year-old woman with a 4 week history of fatigue

mksap

April 16, 2011Apr 16, 2011

Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians. A 63-year-old woman is evaluated during a follow-up visit for a 4-week history of fatigue; pain in the proximal interphalangeal joints, knees, and hips;…

Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians.

A 63-year-old woman is evaluated during a follow-up visit for a 4-week history of fatigue; pain in the proximal interphalangeal joints, knees, and hips; and low-grade fever.

She has not had joint swelling, chest pain, or shortness of breath. Over the past 4 years, she has …

Patient voices

How much empathy is too much?

Wendy S. Harpham, MD

March 30, 2011Mar 30, 20116

If you're sick, you need people to empathize with you, right? Maybe not. Empathy is one of those words with a wide variety of definitions, especially in academic settings. From Wikipedia: "Empathy ... cover a broad spectrum, ranging from feeling…

If you’re sick, you need people to empathize with you, right? Maybe not.

Empathy is one of those words with a wide variety of definitions, especially in academic settings.

From Wikipedia: “Empathy … cover[s] a broad spectrum, ranging from feeling a concern for other people that creates a desire to help them, experiencing emotions that match another person’s emotions, knowing what the other person is …

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How much empathy is too much?

Physician voices

Developing innovative solutions to battle cancer and disease

Vipan Nikore, MD

March 25, 2011Mar 25, 2011

There isn’t a country on this planet where there isn’t someone dreaming of curing cancer. What if there was something even more spectacular than curing cancer? What if you could stop cancer right in its tracks and eliminate its existence.…

Vincent Tuohy, PhD, an immunologist at Cleveland Clinic, may be on a path toward …

Conditions and diseases

Prostate cancer from a patient perspective

Dan Zenka

March 21, 2011Mar 21, 20112

by Dan Zenka As a patient, I feel for anyone who is given a diagnosis of prostate cancer. Hearing the "Big-C" word can be upsetting enough. But the complexity of the disease—diagnosing it, trying to characterize it and selecting the…

by Dan Zenka

As a patient, I feel for anyone who is given a diagnosis of prostate cancer. Hearing the “Big-C” word can be upsetting enough. But the complexity of the disease—diagnosing it, trying to characterize it and selecting the appropriate treatment—can feel like insult upon injury. We need to talk about prostate cancers. With 24 known sub-types of this cancer—from …

Oncology and hematology

Articles, page 82

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