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A new technique of evaluating liquid-based Pap smears has been developed to identify confirmed disease-specific mutations in patients with uterine and ovarian cancers. The new technique identified most uterine and some ovarian cancers and importantly, produced no false positive screens among normal, noncancer controls.
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High-risk, early breast cancer patients treated on a dose-intense chemotherapy protocol were randomized to receive thrice weekly epoetin alfa or not. As compared with controls, hemoglobin levels were maintained and fewer red cell transfusions were required. Furthermore, there did not appear to be any detriment in progression-free or overall survival. However, venous thrombotic events occurred more frequently. The use of erythropoiesis-stimulating agents in the adjuvant setting remains unsettled.
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There is a known association of obesity and glucose intolerance with pancreatic cancer but whether this is due to the effect of high glucose itself, insulin resistance, or pancreatic ß-cell dysfunction is unknown. In an epidemiological, nested, case-control analysis drawn from five large prospective cohorts, measures of insulin resistance were independently associated with pancreatic cancer risk, but this was not true for measures of hyperglycemia or ß-cell dysfunction alone.
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In this sample of 102 consecutive Dutch patients with heavy menstrual bleeding, the overall prevalence of an underlying bleeding disorder was 29%, with the most common being disorders of platelet function.
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Compared to cancer patients who were never married, divorced, widowed, or separated, married patients are significantly more likely to present at an earlier stage, undergo therapy with definitive or curative intent, and live longer among each of the 10 most common cancers killers in the United States.
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Medications for Risk Reduction of Breast Cancer in Women
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Evidence-based updates in primary care medicine By Louis Kuritzky, MD
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In this randomized, controlled trial, three low doses of fluoride demonstrated no significant positive effect on bone mineral density or markers of bone turnover over placebo.
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In a recent case-control study involving more than 1000 patients whose fetus's had neural tube defects, analysis of their dietary intake showed a protective effect of folic acid in diabetics and in the overall population, but not in obese patients.
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In a retrospective review of adjuvant chemotherapy for elderly (≥ 75 years) patients with stage III colon cancer, performance status and comorbidities were important treatment decision factors. Disease recurrence rates were not different for those who received adjuvant treatment vs those who did not, but 1-year and 5-year survival was significantly better for the treated group. The difference at 5 years remained apparent in multivariate analysis controlling for age, performance status, and comorbidities.
