Colon Cancer

Less than four months ago, a group of Baltimore researchers announced a genetic mutation had been found that increased the risk of colon cancer for some Jewish people. The finding sent people seeking genetic testing. But now findings by researchers at Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia suggest that the mutated gene by itself does not increase colon-cancer risk. The researchers conclude in today's issue of Cancer Research that widespread screening for the gene "is likely to be excessive.

In the wake of the mixed results from the most ambitious, definitive study of postmenopausal women's health ever conducted, what's a woman to do? That's the question now that the federally funded Women's Health Initiative has wrapped up. It took 15 years, $725 million, 40 medical centers, and the steadfast participation of 161,000 American women ages 50 to 79. The WHI set out to test strategies touted as ways women could ward off cancer, heart disease, osteoporosis and Alzheimer's disease - "the major causes of death, disability and frailty in older women of all races.

Denise Benn spent Mother's Day last year enduring the effects of chemotherapy, trying to treat the cancer that invaded her colon and worried her five sons. One of those sons is Arrelious Benn, now an Eagles wide receiver and in better spirits than a year ago. One of the reasons is the health of Denise, whose cancer is in remission. On Saturday, one day before Mother's Day, Denise joined her five sons on Team Arrelious, created for the Susan G. Komen Global Race for the Cure, a 5K walk/run in his native Washington.

No one likes having a colonoscopy - a big reason why the colon cancer screening is underused. Nonetheless, growing research suggests that older folks are having unnecessary colonoscopies. The latest study of routine colonoscopies among people over 70 found that nearly a quarter were getting "potentially inappropriate" tests, based on U.S. Preventive Services Task Force guidelines. Those guidelines say that people at average risk of colon cancer should have a colonoscopy once a decade starting at age 50, and stop at age 75. The rationale is that the disease usually progresses slowly, so people near the end of their lives are unlikely to live longer with early detection and treatment.

Sharon Osbourne , who successfully battled colon cancer a decade ago, has revealed that she recently had a double mastectomy even though her breasts were cancer-free. The 60-year-old heavy-metal spouse and talk-show host tells Britain's Hello! that she was impelled to make that radical move last summer after learning that she has a gene that predisposes women to breast cancer. "As soon as I found out I had the breast cancer gene, I thought: 'The odds are not in my favor,' " Osbourne said.

"YOU HAVE colon cancer. " These are words no one wants to hear, words that will surely change your life forever. Tony Pace was in his 40s when he heard them. The good-natured Philadelphia native, husband and father of three is an industrial mechanic and exercise enthusiast. He is also a four-year survivor of colon cancer, who describes his journey as a "strange tale that began with a 2007 diagnosis of an infected prostate. " Just weeks after treatment for the infection, he awoke one morning and urinated only blood.

NEW YORK - Aspirin, one of the world's oldest and cheapest drugs, has shown remarkable promise in treating colon cancer in people with mutations in a gene that's thought to play a role in the disease. Among patients with the mutations, those who regularly took aspirin lived longer than those who didn't, a major study found. Five years after their cancers were diagnosed, 97 percent of the aspirin users were still alive versus 74 percent of those not taking the drug. Aspirin seemed to make no difference in patients who did not have the mutations.

Could colon cancer be a hormone deficiency disease? And could that deficiency also play a role in obesity? Thomas Jefferson University researcher Scott Waldman has been awarded a $1.2 million "provocative questions" grant from the National Cancer Institute to try to find answers. His search is focused on a hormone called guanylyl cyclase that binds to a cell "receptor," called GCC, in the intestines. The hormone activates GCC, which in turn tells intestinal cells to make more hormones.

AS A PHYSICIAN who specializes in digestive health, I'm concerned that too few people are getting screened for colon cancer. Screening rates remain low, even though Medicare, Medicaid and many private plans pay for tests. Colon cancer is the No. 2 cancer killer in the U.S. It's estimated that over 8,000 new cases were diagnosed in Pennsylvania in 2007, with over 2,700 deaths. Despite these numbers, this is one of the most preventable cancers, curable if detected early. Early detection and intervention can reduce deaths by up to 90 percent.

More than 3,000 lives could be saved each year if a new form of chemotherapy for colon cancer patients is used, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and the National Cancer Institute said yesterday. In two studies involving 1,704 cancer patients, including about 100 from the Philadelphia area, researchers found that death rates could be reduced 10 percent to 15 percent if two drugs were given after surgery. The National Cancer Institute sent out a special announcement to 36,000 physicians and cancer researchers urging them to adopt the new treatment, if possible.

Denise Benn spent Mother's Day last year enduring the effects of chemotherapy, trying to treat the cancer that invaded her colon and worried her five sons. One of those sons is Arrelious Benn, now an Eagles wide receiver and in better spirits than a year ago. One of the reasons is the health of Denise, whose cancer is in remission. On Saturday, one day before Mother's Day, Denise joined her five sons on Team Arrelious, created for the Susan G. Komen Global Race for the Cure, a 5K walk/run in his native Washington.

An amazing thing has happened over 30 years with the Broad Street Run. It has become more than a footrace. For thousands, this 10-mile run through the heart of Philadelphia represents a refusal to surrender to infirmity or disability. It's a celebration of achievement on the journey to health and happiness. Here are some of their stories. On New Year's Day, Christine Meyer, a physician in Exton, "woke up feeling crappy: fat, tired, and depressed. " "I could not get my aunt off my mind," she said.

SALT LAKE CITY - If the Miami Heat keep streaking - they have won 27 straight - they could tie the NBA record by beating the 76ers on April 6. The record of 33 straight wins was set by the 1971-72 Los Angeles Lakers. Sixers coach Doug Collins believes that the Heat are good enough to break the record. "Sure they can," Collins said Monday. "They have been pulling rabbits out of their hat lately, but they are in a rhythm. "Absolutely, they could do it. They have great players, a great coach, they defend every night and they have championship players like Ray Allen and Shane Battier coming off their bench.

LeBron James scored 29 points, Dwyane Wade added 19, and the Miami Heat extended their winning streak to 25 games by pulling away in the second half and beating the visiting Detroit Pistons, 103-89, on Friday night. Miami shook off a slow start to move within eight of tying the 1971-72 Los Angeles Lakers for the NBA's longest winning streak. James added eight rebounds and eight assists for Miami, whose magic number for clinching the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference is now three.

As Maria Grasso sees it, people are dying because people aren't talking. So she is talking. " 'Have you had a colonoscopy?' I work that into every conversation," said Grasso, of Mount Laurel, who organized the fifth annual "Get Your Rear in Gear" race and walk in Fairmount Park on Sunday to benefit colorectal cancer research and treatment. Her father and grandfather died of it. Embarrassment, she said, often keeps people from talking about symptoms and from getting a colonoscopy, the test used to detect the nation's second-most fatal cancer.

No one likes having a colonoscopy - a big reason why the colon cancer screening is underused. Nonetheless, growing research suggests that older folks are having unnecessary colonoscopies. The latest study of routine colonoscopies among people over 70 found that nearly a quarter were getting "potentially inappropriate" tests, based on U.S. Preventive Services Task Force guidelines. Those guidelines say that people at average risk of colon cancer should have a colonoscopy once a decade starting at age 50, and stop at age 75. The rationale is that the disease usually progresses slowly, so people near the end of their lives are unlikely to live longer with early detection and treatment.

"YOU HAVE colon cancer. " These are words no one wants to hear, words that will surely change your life forever. Tony Pace was in his 40s when he heard them. The good-natured Philadelphia native, husband and father of three is an industrial mechanic and exercise enthusiast. He is also a four-year survivor of colon cancer, who describes his journey as a "strange tale that began with a 2007 diagnosis of an infected prostate. " Just weeks after treatment for the infection, he awoke one morning and urinated only blood.

CHICAGO - Want to know your chances of dying in the next 10 years? Here are bad signs: getting winded walking several blocks, smoking, having trouble pushing a chair across the room. That's according to a "mortality index" developed by San Francisco researchers for people older than 50. The test scores may satisfy people's morbid curiosity, but the researchers say their 12-item index is mostly for use by doctors. It can help them decide whether costly health screenings or medical procedures are worth the risk for patients unlikely to live 10 more years.

1Colorectal cancer (cancer of the colon and rectum) is the second-leading cancer killer in the United States. 2Colon cancer is an equal opportunity disease, affecting men and women of all racial and ethnic groups and socio-economic backgrounds. 3Colon cancer is most often found in people older than 50, but some people may get the disease at a younger age, especially those with genetic predispositions. 4About 60 percent of colorectal cancer deaths could be prevented with regular screenings.

Terry Glover, 57, the managing editor of Ebony magazine, has died of colon cancer at her Chicago home. Ebony announced on its website that Mrs. Glover died Monday. Her husband, Kendall Glover, told the Chicago Tribune that his wife had been fighting cancer for about two years. Mrs. Glover joined Ebony in 2006 and was appointed managing editor in 2009 after serving as a senior editor for the website for three years. Editor-in-chief Amy DuBois Barnett said Mrs. Glover was "the heart and soul" of the magazine's team.