Laboratory Equipment

A new study suggests that aspirin and other similar painkillers may help protect against skin cancer. Published early online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, the findings indicate that skin cancer prevention may be added to the benefits of these commonly used medications.

Previous studies suggest that taking nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, or NSAIDs, which include aspirin, ibuprofen, and naproxen, as well as a variety of other nonprescription and prescription drugs, can decrease an individual’s risk of developing some types of cancer. Sigrún Alba Jóhannesdóttir, BSc, of Aarhus Univ. Hospital in Denmark, and her colleagues looked to see if the medications might decrease the risk of the three major types of skin cancer: basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and malignant melanoma.

Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news-NSAIDs-May-Help-Prevent-Skin-Cancer-052912.aspx

Even a moderate amount of weight loss can significantly reduce levels of circulating estrogens that are associated with an increased risk of breast cancer, according to a study by researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center – the first randomized, controlled clinical trial to test the effects of weight loss on sex hormones in overweight and obese postmenopausal women, a group at elevated risk for breast cancer.

The findings by Anne McTiernan, and colleagues are published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, a publication of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. “Based on previous research, our results suggest that losing just 5 percent or more of one’s weight could cut by a quarter to a half the risk for the most common, estrogen-sensitive breast cancers,” says McTiernan, director of the Hutchinson Center’s Prevention Center and a member of its Public Health Sciences Division. McTiernan cautions that these findings only apply to overweight or obese women who are not taking hormone-replacement therapy.

Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news-Moderate-Weight-Loss-May-Help-Prevent-Breast-Cancer-052212.aspx

Peter Bach, of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, and colleagues conducted a systematic review to examine the evidence regarding the benefits and harms of low-dose computerized tomography (LDCT) screening for lung cancer, which is the leading cause of cancer death. “Most patients are diagnosed with advanced disease, resulting in a very low 5-year survival rate,” the authors write. “Renewed enthusiasm for lung screening arose with the advent of LDCT imaging, which is able to identify smaller nodules than can chest radiographs.”

For the review, the researchers identified 8 randomized controlled trials and 13 cohort studies of LDCT screening that met criteria for inclusion. Three randomized studies provided evidence on the effect of LDCT screening on lung cancer mortality, of which the National Lung Screening Trial was the most informative, demonstrating that among 53,454 participants enrolled, screening resulted in significantly fewer lung cancer deaths (20 percent lower relative risk). The other 2 smaller studies showed no such benefit.

Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news-Uncertainty-Remains-for-Screening-of-People-at-Risk-for-Lung-Cancer-052112.aspx

A new study led by researchers at Hospital for Special Surgery identifies the mechanism by which a cell signaling pathway contributes to the development of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). In addition, the study provides evidence that drugs under development for diseases such as cancer could potentially be used to treat RA. Rheumatoid arthritis, a systemic inflammatory autoimmune disease that can be crippling, impacts over a million adults in the United States.

“We uncovered a novel mechanism by which the Notch pathway could contribute to RA,” says Xiaoyu Hu, a research scientist at Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City and principal investigator of the study. The study appears online in advance of print in Nature Immunology.

Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news-Mechanism-Behind-RA-May-Be-Key-to-Treatment-052112.aspx

Investigators at The Cancer Institute of New Jersey (CINJ) and the Institute for Advanced Study (IAS) in Princeton, N.J., have identified and validated a drug compound that reactivates a primary function in a mutated form of the p53 protein – the ability to suppress cancer tumors. CINJ is a Center of Excellence of the Univ. of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.

More than three decades of research into the p53 protein has substantiated its role as one of the most important regulators of human cancer. P53 has been called “the guardian of the human genome” where it serves to recognize cellular stress and puts the brakes on cell proliferation to allow the cell to either recover from the stress or kill the cell if the damage is irreparable. Loss of p53 function is one of the most common ways that cancer cells escape this control and proliferate freely.

Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news-Drug-Reactivates-Tumor-Suppressor-in-Mutated-Protein-051412.aspx

With high UV levels continuing in Queensland this autumn, young people are at risk of suffering the worst skin damage they will receive during their lifetime, research from Queensland Univ. of Technology (QUT) has found. Researcher Prof. Michael Kimlin from QUT’s AusSun Research Lab says the study found UV exposure during a person’s first 18 years of life was the most critical for cancer-causing skin damage and skin aging.

Kimlin says while people aged over 50 had the slowest rate of skin degradation, results indicated that damage still occurred even at that age, so lifetime sun protection was important. The study used a unique, non-invasive “UV camera”, which took images of skin damage and aging invisible to the naked eye, to measure the relationship between lifetime sun exposure and skin cancer risk.

Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news-Skin-Damage-When-young-is-Worse-in-Long-Term-051112.aspx

Hans Vogel, a professor in Univ. of Calgary’s biological sciences department, is the guest editor of a special issue of the journal Biochemistry and Cell Biology that focuses on lactoferrin, an important iron-binding protein with many health benefits. “Some people describe this protein as the ‘Swiss army knife’ of the human host defense system,” says Vogel. “We now know that lactoferrin has many functions in innate immunity and that it plays a role in protecting us from bacterial, viral, fungal, and protozoal infections. It can even protect us from some forms of cancer.”

Lactoferrin—which is secreted into human milk, blood and other biofluids—has attracted a lot of interest from academics and industry. Furthermore, Vogel says it’s likely the only protein that garners its own regular scientific conference. Researchers are starting to use lactoferrin as a potential therapeutic protein, one that can be taken orally instead of injected like other proteins.

Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news-Protein-Protects-Against-Cancer-Heals-Wounds-050112.aspx