22Feb 2023 by Janice Holland
Immunotherapy Given Before Target Therapy Improves Advanced Melanoma Survival Rates

Immunotherapy Given Before Target Therapy Improves Advanced Melanoma Survival Rates

Main
A new clinical trial has found that the order in which cancer treatments are administered can be the difference between life and death in people with advanced melanoma. The study, published September 27 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, found a clear benefit for those who received immunotherapy before targeted therapy to treat their skin cancer — so much so that the trial was stopped early.Investigators found that for patients with melanoma who have a mutation in the BRAF gene, specifically a BRAF V600 mutation, immunotherapy is the better initial approach than drugs that specifically target this mutated pathway.Advances in Treating Metastatic Melanoma Have Been ‘Nothing Short of Remarkable’Melanoma is the fifth most common cancer in the United States, and it develops in about 1 in 38 white people, 1…
Read More
22Feb 2023 by Janice Holland
Lifting Weights Linked With Living Longer

Lifting Weights Linked With Living Longer

Main
Can building our muscles help us live longer? According to new research, the answer is yes. Investigators found that regularly lifting weights was linked to a lower risk of death from any cause, with the exception of cancer. Their findings were published online on September 27 in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.“Older adults who participated in weight lifting exercise had significantly lower mortality before and after factoring in aerobic exercise participation, and importantly, those who did both types of exercise had the lowest risk,” says lead author Jessica Gorzelitz, PhD, researcher in the division of cancer epidemiology and genetics at the National Cancer Institute, and assistant professor of health promotion at the University of Iowa in Iowa City. These findings provide strong support for the current Physical Activity Guidelines…
Read More
22Feb 2023 by Janice Holland
People Diagnosed With Early Onset Dementia Are at Higher Risk for Suicide

People Diagnosed With Early Onset Dementia Are at Higher Risk for Suicide

Main
The risk of suicide is nearly seven times higher after a diagnosis of young-onset (under the age of 65) dementia, according to a new UK study published online October 3 in JAMA Neurology. The risk of suicide was also higher within the first few months of diagnosis and in people who had previously been diagnosed with depression or anxiety.“These findings suggest that memory clinics should particularly target suicide risk assessment to patients with young-onset dementia, patients in the first few months after dementia diagnosis, and patients already known to have psychiatric problems,” said the study's lead author, Danah Alothman, BMBCh, MPH, of the University of Nottingham, in a press release.“The findings of this study are important for helping to raise public awareness about how devastating it is to receive a…
Read More
22Feb 2023 by Janice Holland
Study Shows Depression Affects IBD Patients and Their Siblings

Study Shows Depression Affects IBD Patients and Their Siblings

Main
Living with a chronic condition like Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis — both forms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) — impacts every aspect of a person’s life. Not only do these illnesses affect physical health, they also take their toll on mental and emotional health.Research shows mental health struggles among those living with IBD are common. People with IBD are 2 to 3 times more likely to have depression and anxiety than the general population, the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation reports.It’s easy to see how symptoms of IBD, including severe diarrhea, chronic pain, fatigue, and loss of appetite, could lead to social isolation and feelings of depression. But recent research suggests the relationship between the two conditions may be a bit more complex than that.A new study, published in April 2022 in…
Read More
21Feb 2023 by Janice Holland
1 in 3 Heart-Related ER Visits Are Caused by Uncontrolled Blood Pressure

1 in 3 Heart-Related ER Visits Are Caused by Uncontrolled Blood Pressure

Main
More than 1 in 10 adults treated for heart problems in U.S. emergency rooms have what’s known as essential hypertension, a type of high blood pressure that isn’t caused by a specific medical condition, a new study suggests.Essential hypertension is the most common cause of heart-related emergencies for women, accounting for 16 percent of cases, and the second-most common cause for men, making up almost 11 percent of cases, according to study findings published September 8 in the Journal of the American Heart Association. The study examined nationally representative data on more than 20 million emergency department visits from 2016 to 2018.The good news for patients is that most people treated in U.S. emergency rooms for essential hypertension and other heart problems survive. Overall, just 2.2 percent of patients die in…
Read More
21Feb 2023 by Janice Holland
Type 1 Diabetes Cases Set to Double Worldwide by 2040

Type 1 Diabetes Cases Set to Double Worldwide by 2040

Main
Worldwide, the number of people diagnosed with type 1 diabetes is on track to double to more than 17 million by 2040, according to a new study.An estimated 8.4 million people were living with the condition worldwide last year, according to study results published September 13 in the Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology. Another 3.7 million people would have been alive last year if type 1 diabetes hadn’t prematurely ended their lives, the study also found.The study results suggest that this disease — which used to be called juvenile diabetes — is no longer predominantly a childhood condition. Half the new cases diagnosed last year were found in people older than 39. And far more new cases got diagnosed in adults — 316,000 — than in children and adolescents — 194,000.This suggests…
Read More
21Feb 2023 by Janice Holland
A Q&A on Tirzepatide (Mounjaro), a Novel Diabetes Drug, With the ADA’s Dr. Robert Gabbay

A Q&A on Tirzepatide (Mounjaro), a Novel Diabetes Drug, With the ADA’s Dr. Robert Gabbay

Main
Tirzepatide, a drug approved for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, could be on its way to becoming a new drug to treat obesity as well, now that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted it a Fast Track designation.Marketed for type 2 diabetes as Mounjaro, the drug can lead to dramatic weight loss and a significant reduction in A1C, or average blood sugar levels, in people with type 2 diabetes. Mounjaro is now commercially available for that group, says Maggie Pfeiffer, the associate director of Lilly Diabetes Communications (Eli Lilly and Company manufactures the drug). This once-weekly injection was approved by the FDA as a new class of medication for people with type 2 diabetes on May 13, 2022.On October 6, 2022, Eli Lilly announced in a…
Read More
21Feb 2023 by Janice Holland
Global Rates of Liver Cancer Could Rise by More Than 50 Percent by 2040

Global Rates of Liver Cancer Could Rise by More Than 50 Percent by 2040

Main
Primary liver cancer was among the top three causes of cancer death in 46 countries in 2020, and the number of people diagnosed with or dying from primary liver cancer per year could rise by more than 55 percent by 2040, according to a new global analysis. To avoid this increase, countries need to lower the annual rate of liver cancer incidence and death by at least 3 percent, according to the findings, published on October 5 in the Journal of Hepatology.“Liver cancer causes a huge burden of disease globally each year,” senior author Isabelle Soerjomataram, MD, PhD, deputy branch head of cancer surveillance for the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer in Lyon, France, said in a release. “It is also largely preventable if control efforts are…
Read More
21Feb 2023 by Janice Holland
Hot Flashes Most Likely to Send Women to Seek Treatment, According to Poll

Hot Flashes Most Likely to Send Women to Seek Treatment, According to Poll

Main
Hot flashes are the most commonly cited reason for seeking menopause treatment, and the impetus for more than 3 out of 5 women to talk to their healthcare provider, according to a new poll of 601 women conducted by Everyday Health in October 2022. If you’ve ever experienced a hot flash yourself, it’s not hard to understand why it was voted most likely to send women to the doctor, says Stephanie S. Faubion, MD, medical director of the North American Menopause Society (NAMS) and director of the Office of Women’s Health at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida.“Hot flashes can be incredibly disruptive; some women literally have to stop what they are doing to get past it,” says Dr. Faubion. On top of being extremely uncomfortable, they’re unpredictable, she adds.“Bothersome” doesn't begin to describe…
Read More