Cancer - December 2014 Archives

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Women with atypical hyperplasia of the breast have a higher risk of developing breast cancer than previously thought, a Mayo Clinic study has found. Results of the study appear in a special report on breast cancer in the New England Journal of Medicine. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwZkl205Eag Journalists:  Sound bites with Drs. Hartman and Degnim are available in the downloads. Atypical hyperplasia of the breast is a precancerous condition found in about one-tenth of the over 1 million breast biopsies with benign findings performed annually in the United States. Viewed under a microscope, atypia contains breast cells that are beginning to grow out of control (hyperplasia) and cluster into abnormal patterns (atypical). Atypia lesions are considered benign, but by its risk and appearance and genetic changes, they exhibit some of the early features of cancer.

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: What causes testicular cancer? How do doctors determine which treatment will be most effective? ANSWER: Compared with other types of cancer, testicular cancer is rare. However, testicular cancer is the most common cancer in male Americans between the ages of 15 and 34.  While the cause of testicular cancer is not well understood, there are some factors that can raise a man’s risk. Key risk factors are age and a condition known as cryptorchidism, where one or both of the testes are in the abdomen instead of in the scrotum.

Cancer survivors: Managing your emotions after cancer treatment Get to know the emotions that are common for cancer survivors and how to manage your ...

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: At my last physical, my doctor suggested that I should be screened for lung cancer. I used to smoke about a pack of cigarettes a day, but I quit 12 years ago. I am 63 now and in good health. Is screening really necessary for me? What does it involve? ANSWER: Screening programs are used to find lung cancer at an early stage, when it is more likely to be successfully treated. In general, screening is recommended for people at higher risk of developing lung cancer. That often includes people like you who smoked heavily at some point in their lives. Lung cancer is currently the number one cancer killer in the United States. More people die in the U.S. each year from lung cancer than from colon, breast and prostate cancer combined. But studies have shown that a properly organized screening program can reduce the number of people who die from lung cancer by 20 percent.

Inspiration for the holidays Cancer survivors need to try and reduce stress, especially during the holiday season. Focus on what's really important — your ...

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — It may not be necessary for experienced gastroenterologists to send polyps they remove from a patient’s colon to a pathologist for examination, according to a large study conducted by physician researchers at the Jacksonville campus of Mayo Clinic. Their 522-patient study, published in the December issue of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, found that physicians correctly evaluated whether a polyp was precancerous or benign using high-definition optical lenses during a colonoscopy. Their assessment was 96 or 97 percent accurate — depending on which of two generations of scopes was used — compared with a standard pathological evaluation of the polyps. The Mayo Clinic researchers conclude that the pathological polyp examination now required by national practice guidelines may not be necessary — an advance they say could result in substantial cost savings for the patient and the health care system, as well as more rapid information and recommendations for follow-up for the patient.

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: I just found out I have stage I breast cancer, and I’m trying to decide on the kind of surgery I’ll have. My doctor says I could have either a mastectomy or a lumpectomy. I’m leaning toward a lumpectomy. But how do you know if a lumpectomy is enough treatment? I’m worried the cancer could come back.ANSWER: Research has shown that for women with early-stage breast cancer, survival rates are very similar between those who choose to have a lumpectomy followed by radiation therapy and those who choose a mastectomy. Choosing which surgery to have is a very personal decision. It is important to take time to carefully consider your options. A lumpectomy is surgery that removes the breast cancer along with a rim of normal tissue around the tumor, called the margin. This surgery allows you to keep the rest of your breast tissue. A mastectomy involves removing most of the breast tissue from your breast. With early-stage breast cancer, radiation is not recommended after a mastectomy unless cancer cells are found in the lymph nodes or the tumor is larger than anticipated.

  Listening to patients is what medical teams at Mayo Clinic do each day. To honor Mayo's 150th Anniversary, StoryCorps was asked to listen to and ...

A seasonal wish for cancer survivors: Celebrate life Here are some things to keep in mind during the holidays, including how to simplify, live ...

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Clinical recommendations discouraging the use of CYP2D6 gene testing to guide tamoxifen therapy in breast cancer patients are based on studies with flawed methodology and should be reconsidered, according to the results of a Mayo Clinic study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7LzSSnY3Ko Journalists:  Sound bites with Dr. Matthew Goetz are available in the downloads. For years, controversy has surrounded the CYP2D6 gene test for breast cancer. Women with certain inherited genetic deficiencies in the CYP2D6 gene metabolize tamoxifen less efficiently, and thus have lower levels of tamoxifen’s active cancer-fighting metabolite endoxifen. Numerous studies have shown that these women gain less benefit from tamoxifen therapy and have higher rates of recurrence. MEDIA CONTACT:
 Joe Dangor, Mayo Clinic Public Affairs, 507-284-5005, newsbureau@mayo.edu.

SAN ANTONIO — James Ingle, M.D., an internationally recognized breast cancer expert, will receive the 2014 William L. McGuire Memorial Lecture Award on Dec. 10 at the 2014 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium. Dr. Ingle is a professor of oncology and the Foust Professor in the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine in Rochester, Minnesota. He has been the leader of breast cancer research at the Mayo Clinic Cancer Center, serving as program co-leader of the women's cancer program with responsibility for breast cancer. He is currently co-director of the Mayo Clinic Breast Cancer Specialized Program of Research Excellence (SPORE). SPORE grants are funded by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and are the major NCI translational research grants in which clinicians and basic scientists work together to conduct the most promising research. Dr. Ingle's research has had a significant impact on clinical practice. He has a long track record of leading or co-leading studies in breast cancer, first with tamoxifen and then with aromatase inhibitors, which are the two major endocrine therapies in breast cancer. More recently, Dr. Ingle has a leadership role in the Mayo Clinic Pharmacogenomic Research Network, leading multiple genome-wide association studies to investigate genetic variability in patients’ response to tamoxifen and aromatase inhibitors as well as chemotherapy. This work is central to developing precision medicine in which the right dose of the right drug is given to the right patient.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A marker of immune function that predicts for better outcomes in patients treated with chemotherapy for triple negative breast cancer is also linked to improved prognosis in patients treated with chemotherapy for HER2-positive breast cancer. But that marker — the quantity of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (S-TILs) in a biopsy — appears irrelevant when trastuzumab is used. http://youtu.be/iApOV4e0BfI