Fighting cancer at your local Indian restaurant

Turmeric, a bright yellow spice from south Asia belonging to the ginger family, is the main ingredient in curries — and ancient wisdom suggests that it’s also good for your health. Taking this wisdom to the laboratory, Tel Aviv University r…

2 drugs protect hearing better than 1

Whether on a battlefield, in a factory or at a rock concert, noise-induced hearing loss is one of the most common hazards people face.
Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have identified a low-dose, two-drug cockta…

Study reveals major shift in how eczema develops

Like a fence or barricade intended to stop unwanted intruders, the skin serves as a barrier protecting the body from the hundreds of allergens, irritants, pollutants and microbes people come in contact with every day. In patients with eczema, or ato…

Researchers find regular use of aspirin may lower risk of adult leukemia

Researchers from the Cancer Center at the University of Minnesota have found that adult women taking aspirin two or more times a week may lower their risk of adult leukemia by more than 50 percent. The study will be published in the June 13 edition of Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

Study sheds new light on how common painkillers prevent colon cancer

Building on earlier studies that have shown that common painkillers known as NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) can reduce the risk of colon cancer in healthy people, researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have identified a mechanism by which NSAIDs inhibit the development of colon cancer. Compared with normal cells, colorectal cancer cells have abnormally high levels of an immune system protein, IL-6. David Frank, MD, PhD, and his Dana-Farber colleagues have discovered that IL-6 triggers malignant growth by activating a protein called STAT1, which transmits signals that prevent the normal scheduled death of cells in the colon.

Aspirin, ibuprofen effective in protecting against breast cancer

Regular use of ibuprofen and aspirin inhibits the formation and growth of breast cancer, according to data published in the Proceedings for the 94th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR). The data, taken from the National Cancer Institute?s (NCI) Women?s Health Initiative (WHI) Observational Study, concluded that weekly doses of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) had a significant effect in reducing the risk of breast cancer.
?These results suggest that even women at high risk for breast cancer may be protected by taking NSAIDs,? explains Randall Harris, M.D., Ph.D., lead investigator of the study, professor of the division of epidemiology and biometrics at the Ohio State University. ?However, before usage guidelines for NSAIDs can be implemented, additional studies are needed.?