Wednesday, 19 June, 2013

By going public about her preventive mastectomy, Jolie sought to raise awareness of the most radical form of cancer prevention: surgical removal. But how widely does her example apply? Can genetic sequencing help in cancer treatment?

Viruses can act like “intelligent agents” against cancer. Some viruses home in on cancer cells; others can only reproduce in them. While making more virus, the tumor cell dies. Then the new virus infects more cells. Is this real progress in the war on cancer?

People with a genetic case of dwarfism in Ecuador don’t get cancer or diabetes, and a new study links that benefit to the genetic changes we see when calories are severely restricted. Could blocking growth hormone in adulthood lead to serious health benefits?

Until now, getting a picture of genetic change in a tumor over time has been next to impossible. A new study reveals that cancer’s genetic tangle gets more complicated with time.

Skin cancer is rising faster than the price of oil (almost). How can you identify skin cancer? How can you protect yourself? Is ozone loss one of the causes? Does sunscreen prevent melanoma?

Up to 20 percent of cancers are caused by a viral infection. A new study turns cancer-causing viral proteins into a homing beacon to attract radioactive isotopes that kill tumor cells.

Jack Kevorkian forced us to confront the fears and hopes of terminal illness. What’s happened with “right to die” laws in Oregon and the Netherlands? Can “dignity therapy” ease the pain of dying?

The bad news: New science suggests nicotine, not just tar, is the smoking gun in cigarette-related disease. The good news: There are plenty of ways to quit.

Enzyme that helps cancer cells move to a new location is found.

Throw a curve ball. Evade the rainstorm. And don’t get mouth cancer. It’s all in an afternoon’s ball game.

African science produces cancer drug, dust, rain and desertification and linguist Joseph Greenberg.

Angiogenesis factors could control cancer, maybe. How do cancers create their own blood supply?