cancer

Sunlight continues to damage skin hours after exposure

21st February 2015

Sunlight continues to damage people’s skin and increase the risk of cancer for hours after they leave the beach and head indoors, a study shows. Scientists at Yale University, in the US, discovered it was the supposedly protective pigment melanin that was causing the damage. The team say the findings may lead to better sunscreens that can prevent the extra damage. British experts said that the findings “reinforce” current advice. When UV radiation pummels our skin cells, it can cause mutations in the DNA. Melanin, the pigment behind a tan or natural skin tone, is the body’s defence as it absorbs the radiation. What scientists did not know previously was what happens to all the energy that the melanin has absorbed. Super-charged The Yale team [More…]

Too Many Hours Sitting Increases Risk of Breast Cancer

21st November 2014

Weight control and exercise are two steps that can significantly lower your risk of breast cancer. So it’s not surprising that too much sitting, which is associated with both weight gain and lack of exercise, could increase your risk of cancer. You might be surprised, however, just how strong the association is. According to research presented at a conference of the American Institute for Cancer Research, too much sitting and lack of physical activity lead to 49,000 cases of breast cancer a year. Separate research found that people who sat for 11 hours a day or more were 40 percent more likely to die from any cause. Even those whose job required sitting for six or more hours a day gained an average of 17 [More…]

Berries in cancer therapy experiment

16th November 2014

Wild berries native to North America may have a role in boosting cancer therapy, according to a study in the Journal of Clinical Pathology. Scientists suggest chokeberries could work in combination with conventional drugs to kill more cancer cells. But the UK research is at an early stage, with experiments carried out only on cancer cells in laboratories. Cancer Research UK says much more work is needed to test the effectiveness of berries, particularly in human trials. Researchers from the University of Southampton and King’s College Hospital, London, tested a berry extract on pancreatic cancer samples. Pancreatic cancer is particularly hard to treat and has an average survival period of just six months after diagnosis. The study found that when the berry extract was used, [More…]

Hospitals See Rapid Rise in Skin Cancer

9th October 2014

The number of people admitted to hospital for skin cancer treatment in England rose by nearly a third in five years, official figures show. In 2007 there were 87,685 admissions, while in 2011 there were 123,808. The data, gathered by researchers at Public Health England, does not include treatment in outpatient units or by GPs. Experts say cheap foreign holidays and the fashion for having tanned skin are probably to blame for the increase. The majority of the cancers treated were on the head and neck. While skin cancers can be serious, they are also largely avoidable as excess sun exposure is the major cause. The figures, which will be presented at the World Congress On Cancers Of The Skin, in Edinburgh later this week, [More…]

Bowel Cancer Symptoms – Signs and Symptoms

8th May 2014

The symptoms of bowel (colorectal) cancer can be: Bleeding from your bottom and/or blood in your poo A change in bowel habit lasting for 3 weeks or more especially to looser or runny poo Unexplained weight loss Extreme tiredness for no obvious reason A pain or lump in your tummy You might experience one, some, all of the above or no symptoms at all. Remember most symptoms will not be bowel cancer. If you are worried about any symptoms that you think might be caused by bowel cancer, make an appointment with your doctor or call the Bowel Cancer UK Information and Support Service on 0800 8 40 35 40 or email support(at)bowelcanceruk.org.uk Just remember you’ll not be wasting anyone’s time by getting checked out. If it isn’t serious, you’ll [More…]

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