TUESDAY, May 22 (HealthDay News) — Colonoscopies helped doctors detect a high rate of curable cancer in elderly people who had the screening for the first time, a new study indicates.
The findings suggest that screenings should be made available to otherwise healthy elderly people who have never been tested, Dr. Therese Kerwel, research fellow at Grand Rapids Medical Education Partners, and colleagues from Spectrum Health Medical Group in Grand Rapids, Mich., concluded.
By Randy Dotinga
HealthDay Reporter
MONDAY, May 21 (HealthDay News) — New research confirms that sigmoidoscopies — less-invasive alternatives to colonoscopies that don’t require sedation — are effective in lowering the risk of colon cancer.
Having the procedure lowered the risk of getting a colon cancer diagnosis by 21 percent and the chances of dying from the disease by 26 percent, the researchers reported.
TUESDAY, May 15 (HealthDay News) — Black and Hispanic Americans are far more likely than whites to develop precancerous colorectal polyps, a new study finds.
Researchers analyzed data from more than 5,000 men and women aged 50 and older who had a first-time colonoscopy screening at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center in New York City between 2006 and 2010. None of the patients had signs or symptoms of colorectal (colon) cancer at the time of the screening.
By Randy Dotinga
HealthDay Reporter
MONDAY, May 14 (HealthDay News) — A preliminary new study suggests that patients who get virtual colonoscopies — alternatives to regular colonoscopies — might avoid the unpleasant task of bowel-cleansing with laxatives beforehand.
However, this study of 605 people found that the laxative-free virtual colonoscopies were less effective at detecting small malignancies than regular colonoscopies. Not surprisingly, patients who underwent the laxative-free procedure preferred it.
MONDAY, May 14 (HealthDay News) — Widely used blood pressure medications called beta blockers do not cut a person’s odds of developing colon cancer, a new study contends.
Beta blockers, which include drugs such as alprenolol, carvedilol, propranolol and atenolol, are commonly prescribed to older adults for high blood pressure and heart conditions.
WEDNESDAY, May 9 (HealthDay News) — Differences in screening account for much of the disparity in both colorectal (colon) cancer incidence and death rates between white and black Americans, a new study says.
The screening differences are responsible for 42 percent of the gap in cancer incidence and 19 percent of the disparity in death rates, according to the study.
By Steven Reinberg
HealthDay Reporter
TUESDAY, April 10 (HealthDay News) — Although a colonoscopy is considered the “gold standard” for colon cancer screening, a new study finds that many patients are reluctant to have the test.
Patients are more likely to opt for a simple fecal occult blood test — a brief part of a medical exam — that checks for bleeding, which can be a sign of colon cancer, the researchers said.
WEDNESDAY, April 4 (HealthDay News) — Obese white women are less likely than normal-weight white women or blacks of any weight or gender to seek potentially life-saving colon cancer screenings, according to a new study.
This reluctance is especially serious because obesity is associated with a higher risk for colon cancer and an increased risk of death from the disease, noted study leader Dr. Nisa Maruthur, an assistant professor in the general internal medicine division at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore.
WEDNESDAY, April 4 (HealthDay News) — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration says it has confirmed another counterfeit version of the cancer drug bevacizumab, most commonly known as Avastin, is being sold in the United States.
This time, the counterfeit product — which the FDA says contains no active ingredient — is posing as injectable Altuzan (bevacizumab) 400 mg/16ml, a Roche cancer medication that is approved for use in Turkey but not in the United States.
TUESDAY, April 3 (HealthDay News) — A noninvasive stool test could help doctors detect early stage colorectal cancer and precancerous growths, a new study says.
The test might help minimize false-positive results and prevent deaths associated with this type of cancer, said researchers at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., and Exact Sciences, the company developing the test.
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