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Check for ‘hot spots’
October 2009
CINCINNATI - HealthDay News noted areas of deleted genetic data in key DNA may predict whether a person will develop colon cancer, a study finds.
These "hot spots" in the AMACR gene in human tissue may show how aggressive the cancer could be, states the PLoS Genetics report.
"From colon tissues, we've identified two types of genetic deletions that may allow us to predict whether people will have a good/bad cancer outcome," study lead author Xiang Zhang, a University of Ci ncinnati environmental health research associate, stated.
"If a person carries one of the deletions, it may predispose him or her to a more aggressive type of colon cancer."
AMACR breaks down certain fatty acids found only in plant-eating animals.
Red meat and dairy products can have these plant-derived fatty acids, which can hasten cancer development and growth, prior study found.
Scientists said such genetic findings could assist people in making healthier lifestyle choices.
Senior author Shuk-mei Ho, chairwoman of the school’s environmental health department, added, "We need to pay closer attention to how the environment we live in and the things we put in our bodies interact with our genetic makeup to influence our cancer risk."
ST. LOUIS - ScienceDaily noted chronic sleep deprivation in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease makes Alzheimer's brain plaques appear earlier and more often, Washington University School of Medicine scientists report. They found that orexin, a protein that helps regulate the sleep cycle, seems involved directly in the rise. Neurodegenerative ills like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's often disrupt sleep. These findings are some of the first signs that sleep loss could play a role in the genesis of such woes. "Orexin, or compounds it interacts with, may become new drug targets for treatment of Alzheimer's," says senior author Dr. David M. Holtzman, professor/chair of the Dept. of Neurology at the School of Medicine and neurologist-in-chief at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. "The results suggest we may need to prioritize treating sleep disorders not only for their many acute effects but also for potential long-term impacts on brain health."
ROCHESTER, MN - Passing kidney stones can be very painful. Patients who’ve suffered stones have a 50% chance of a repeat within 10 years. The Mayo Clinic Health Letter reveals stones are crystal-forming minerals in the urine. Normal urine has substances which inhibit crystal formation. If urine is too concentrated, or if crystal-preventing compounds aren't working properly, crystals may gather gradually and form one or more stones. Most stones pass naturally through the ureters - tubes that connect the kidney to the bladder - through the bladder and out in urine. Passing a stone may take hours or weeks. Most often, it takes 7-14 days. Larger stones can cause extreme pain, typically on the side and the back, just below the rib cage and down to the lower abdomen and groin. There are treatment options, from pain management to surgical removal. It depends somewhat on stone makeup. Drinking at least 12 cups of fluid - preferably water - a day is the most basic way. Limit meat intake. Get adequate calcium. Avoid excess vitamin D. Limit spinach, beets, chocolate, peanuts, and potatoes - an important strategy for those with calcium oxalate stones.
LOS ANGELES - ScienceDaily reported ADAGIO (Attenuation of Disease Progression with Azilect Given Once Daily) was an 18-month study with a design called "delayed start." Patients are randomized to start treatment early or late, and scientists see if early treatment alters the outcome at final visit, when patients in both groups are on the same treatment. ADAGIO showed previously untreated Parkinson’s patients randomized to initiate therapy with rasagiline (Azilect®) 1mg per day had benefits at 18 months which weren’t achieved when the drug was initiated at nine months. The study examined 1- and 2mg doses of rasagiline using a rigorous design that included three primary endpoints. The 1mg dose met all three primary endpoints. The 2mg dose didn’t. Dr. C. Warren Olanow, professor and chairman emeritus, Dept. of Neurology at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, was the principal investigator. "The finding …indicates these benefits aren’t simply due to a symptomatic effect of the drug and are consistent with the possibility the drug is disease-modifying."
CAMBRIDGE, MA - Schizophrenia may blur the boundary between internal/external realities by overactivating a brain system involved in self-reflection, and causes an exaggerated focus on self, an MIT and Harvard brain imaging study found. The traditional view of schizophrenia is the disturbed thoughts, perceptions and emotions that characterize it are caused by disconnections among the brain regions that control these different functions. This study, online at the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, found schizophrenia also involves excess connectivity between the so-called default brain regions, which are involved in self-reflection and become active when we’re thinking about nothing, or thinking about ourselves. "People normally suppress this default system when they perform challenging tasks; we found schizophrenia patients don’t do this," said John Gabrieli, a professor in the McGovern Institute for Brain Research at MIT,one of the study’s 13 authors. "We think this could help to explain cognitive and psychological symptoms of schizophrenia." He hopes the research might lead to predicting or monitoring individual patients’ response to treatments for this mental illness, which occurs in about 1% of the population. Schizophrenia has a strong genetic part, and first-degree relatives of patients are 10 times more likely to develop it than the general population.
PARIS - People with a particular gene variant may be more likely to develop brain tumors, and at an earlier age, than people without the gene, states a study in the journal Neurology. The study had 254 people with brain tumors and 238 without. Those with tumors had glioblastoma multiforme, the most common brain cancer. People with this type of tumor survive an average 12-15 months. Through blood samples, scientists looked at the tumor suppressor TP53 gene; it acts as a tumor suppressor and is involved in preventing cancer. People younger than 45 with brain tumors were more likely to have the Pro/Pro gene variant than older people with brain tumors or healthy participants - 20.6% of young people with brain tumors had the gene variant versus 6.4% of older people with brain tumors and 5.9% of healthy participants. "Eventually, we may use this knowledge to help identify people with a higher risk of developing brain tumors at an early age. However, the risk of this population remains low, even multiplied by three or four because these brain tumors are infrequent in young people," said study author Dr. Marc Sanson, of the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research. The study was supported by the Public Assistance Hospitals of Paris.
ANN ARBOR, MI - HealthDay News noted a study shows older Americans back having family members enroll them in disease research should they not be able to decide themselves, Findings from a University of Michigan (UM) study would be especially helpful in studying people with Alzheimer's disease, which often impairs decision-making, making people unable to give proper consent to be studied. The survey of people 51 and older found at least 68% believed family surrogates should be able to give consent for a mentally incapacitated loved one to aid research. About three in five said they would want their own loved ones to give the OK to be studied if they couldn’t decide. Federal law allows legally authorized representatives of adults to give "surrogate consent" when necessary. Who qualifies as such is up to the states, and state policies often are murky. Study lead author Dr. Scott Y. H. Kim, associate professor of psychiatry at UM’s Medical School, stated, "We wring our hands about this issue in ethics circles, but people seem to understand we need to do research to find ways of treating Alzheimer's."
MILWAUKEE - An article and editorial in the Journal of Neurosurgery claims compelling evidence the "combination" of air bags and seat belts yields the best protection against spine fractures in motor vehicle crashes. This study examined records of more than 20,000 crash victims 16 and older at Wisconsin hospitals after car or truck crashes 1994-2002. The continued burden of spine fractures after motor vehicle crashes and the editorial were at thejns.org/toc/spi/current. Article authors were Drs. Marjorie Wang, Frank Pintar, Narayan Yoganandan, and Dennis Maiman, of the Dept. of Neurosurgery, Medical College of Wisconsin. The editorial was written by Dr. Charles Tator, Division of Neurosurgery, Toronto Western Hospital/University of Toronto. "Motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of (SCI) in the U.S. for people 65 and younger, and spine fractures are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality," said Dr. Wang. Of the 2,530 patients with spine factures in this study, 64 died in the hospital. Dr. Wang et al. analyzed the data and figured incidence of spine fractures with air bag and seat belt usage. A seat belt and air bag was tied to a lower risk of a spine fracture, including more severe fractures.
BALTIMORE- A study by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found 38% of Medicare beneficiaries are accompanied to routine medical visits. These beneficiaries tended to be older, sicker, and less educated but more satisfied with their healthcare provider versus unaccompanied patients. The study was in the Archives of Internal Medicine. "We found patients were more satisfied with their care when visit companions were actively involved in the communication between patient and provider," said Dr. Jennifer L. Wolff, assistant professor in Bloomberg’s Dept. of Health Policy and Management. "Our findings suggest visit companions could be an important resource for vulnerable older adults - a population that tends to have more chronic conditions and utilizes more healthcare services."
LEXINGTON, KY - Female victims of domestic violence have a 40% higher risk of postpartum depression, a study noted by MedPage Today showed. Those who suffered physical or sexual abuse, or stalking, as an adult were significantly more likely to have postpartum depression than women who didn’t experience any abuse, said Dr. Matt Garabedian, maternal/fetal medicine fellow at the University of Kentucky. Women who said they were physically or sexually abused as a child also had a higher risk of postpartum depression, he told attendees at a Society for Maternal/Fetal Medicine meeting. "Our data highlight the need to screen for all types of abuse among pregnant women and, when seen, provide increased surveillance in the postpartum period," he said. Dr. Garabedian and his team examined data from 3,331 predominantly white women who had given birth and were part of the Kentucky Women's Health Registry. Exposure to intimate partner violence and postpartum depression were self-reported by questionnaire: 18.7% of women noted a history of postpartum depression and 44.9% reported some form of abuse in childhood or adulthood; 24.4% who noted exposure to intimate partner violence said they had a history of postpartum depression.
BOSTON - Reuters Health disclosed the way older adults with advanced cancer live their last days seems to vary based on race, a study suggests. It found that of nearly 41,000 older Americans with terminal cancer, black and Asian patients were less likely than white or Hispanic patients to enter a hospice program. Conversely, they were more likely to be hospitalized often or admitted to an intensive care unit near the end of their lives. They were more likely than whites or Hispanics to die in the hospital, the study in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society found. Reasons for the discrepancies remain unclear, states the team led by Dr. Alexander K. Smith, of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. The patients studied were 65 or older and insured through Medicare. Even when the team accounted for other factors - like patients' incomes and health - race itself was still related to end-of-life care. Black patients were 9% less likely than whites to enroll in a hospice program; Asian patients were 24% less likely. They were 26% and 17% more likely, respectively, to be hospitalized at least twice in their last month of life.
COLUMBUS, OH - In relationships built on trust, a bad first impression can be harder to overcome than a betrayal that occurs after ties are established, a study suggests. While betrayal is never good for a relationship, results show early violations can be more devastating, and plant seeds of doubt that may never go away, said Robert Lount, co-author of the study and assistant professor of management/human resources at Ohio State University’s Fisher College of Business. "First impressions matter when you want to build lasting trust," Lount said. "If you get off on the wrong foot, the relationship may never be right again completely. It’s easier to rebuild trust after a breach if you already have a strong relationship." While the importance of first impressions may seem obvious, Lount said there’s still a common theme in popular culture that suggests many great relationships start off badly. "Our results fly in the face of this Hollywood notion of hating someone at first sight but then developing a wonderful, passionate relationship," he said. "The likelihood of that happening in real life is pretty low." The study was in the journal Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin.
BETHESDA, MD - Cataract surgery doesn’t increase the risk of progressive age-related Macular Degeneration (MD), a large trial posted by MedPage Today found. The frequency of neovascular age-related MD geographic atrophy, and central geographic atrophy didn’t differ between patients who had cataract surgery and those who didn’t, Dr. Emily Y. Chew, of the National Eye Institute, and hear team wrote online at Ophthalmology "This is the only prospective study in which the severity of age-related (MD) was documented before and after cataract surgery in a large number of cases with more than five years of regular follow-up," the authors said. "These data,are contrary to that of previously reported results, may provide some reassurance to patients with age-related (MD) who are considering cataract surgery." Dr. Chew and colleagues reviewed data from the Age-Related Eye Disease Study, with 4,577 patients who were followed every six-months for as long as 11 years. Participants were 55-80 at enrollment, with best-corrected visual acute of 20/32 or better in at least one eye.
ST. LOUIS - ScienceDaily noted chronic sleep deprivation in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease makes Alzheimer's brain plaques appear earlier and more often, Washington University School of Medicine scientists report. They found that orexin, a protein that helps regulate the sleep cycle, seems involved directly in the rise. Neurodegenerative ills like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's often disrupt sleep. These findings are some of the first signs that sleep loss could play a role in the genesis of such woes. "Orexin, or compounds it interacts with, may become new drug targets for treatment of Alzheimer's," says senior author Dr. David M. Holtzman, professor/chair of the Dept. of Neurology at the School of Medicine and neurologist-in-chief at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. "The results suggest we may need to prioritize treating sleep disorders not only for their many acute effects but also for potential long-term impacts on brain health."
ROCHESTER, MN - Passing kidney stones can be very painful. Patients who’ve suffered stones have a 50% chance of a repeat within 10 years. The Mayo Clinic Health Letter reveals stones are crystal-forming minerals in the urine. Normal urine has substances which inhibit crystal formation. If urine is too concentrated, or if crystal-preventing compounds aren't working properly, crystals may gather gradually and form one or more stones. Most stones pass naturally through the ureters - tubes that connect the kidney to the bladder - through the bladder and out in urine. Passing a stone may take hours or weeks. Most often, it takes 7-14 days. Larger stones can cause extreme pain, typically on the side and the back, just below the rib cage and down to the lower abdomen and groin. There are treatment options, from pain management to surgical removal. It depends somewhat on stone makeup. Drinking at least 12 cups of fluid - preferably water - a day is the most basic way. Limit meat intake. Get adequate calcium. Avoid excess vitamin D. Limit spinach, beets, chocolate, peanuts, and potatoes - an important strategy for those with calcium oxalate stones.
LOS ANGELES - ScienceDaily reported ADAGIO (Attenuation of Disease Progression with Azilect Given Once Daily) was an 18-month study with a design called "delayed start." Patients are randomized to start treatment early or late, and scientists see if early treatment alters the outcome at final visit, when patients in both groups are on the same treatment. ADAGIO showed previously untreated Parkinson’s patients randomized to initiate therapy with rasagiline (Azilect®) 1mg per day had benefits at 18 months which weren’t achieved when the drug was initiated at nine months. The study examined 1- and 2mg doses of rasagiline using a rigorous design that included three primary endpoints. The 1mg dose met all three primary endpoints. The 2mg dose didn’t. Dr. C. Warren Olanow, professor and chairman emeritus, Dept. of Neurology at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, was the principal investigator. "The finding …indicates these benefits aren’t simply due to a symptomatic effect of the drug and are consistent with the possibility the drug is disease-modifying."
CAMBRIDGE, MA - Schizophrenia may blur the boundary between internal/external realities by overactivating a brain system involved in self-reflection, and causes an exaggerated focus on self, an MIT and Harvard brain imaging study found. The traditional view of schizophrenia is the disturbed thoughts, perceptions and emotions that characterize it are caused by disconnections among the brain regions that control these different functions. This study, online at the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, found schizophrenia also involves excess connectivity between the so-called default brain regions, which are involved in self-reflection and become active when we’re thinking about nothing, or thinking about ourselves. "People normally suppress this default system when they perform challenging tasks; we found schizophrenia patients don’t do this," said John Gabrieli, a professor in the McGovern Institute for Brain Research at MIT,one of the study’s 13 authors. "We think this could help to explain cognitive and psychological symptoms of schizophrenia." He hopes the research might lead to predicting or monitoring individual patients’ response to treatments for this mental illness, which occurs in about 1% of the population. Schizophrenia has a strong genetic part, and first-degree relatives of patients are 10 times more likely to develop it than the general population.
PARIS - People with a particular gene variant may be more likely to develop brain tumors, and at an earlier age, than people without the gene, states a study in the journal Neurology. The study had 254 people with brain tumors and 238 without. Those with tumors had glioblastoma multiforme, the most common brain cancer. People with this type of tumor survive an average 12-15 months. Through blood samples, scientists looked at the tumor suppressor TP53 gene; it acts as a tumor suppressor and is involved in preventing cancer. People younger than 45 with brain tumors were more likely to have the Pro/Pro gene variant than older people with brain tumors or healthy participants - 20.6% of young people with brain tumors had the gene variant versus 6.4% of older people with brain tumors and 5.9% of healthy participants. "Eventually, we may use this knowledge to help identify people with a higher risk of developing brain tumors at an early age. However, the risk of this population remains low, even multiplied by three or four because these brain tumors are infrequent in young people," said study author Dr. Marc Sanson, of the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research. The study was supported by the Public Assistance Hospitals of Paris.
ANN ARBOR, MI - HealthDay News noted a study shows older Americans back having family members enroll them in disease research should they not be able to decide themselves, Findings from a University of Michigan (UM) study would be especially helpful in studying people with Alzheimer's disease, which often impairs decision-making, making people unable to give proper consent to be studied. The survey of people 51 and older found at least 68% believed family surrogates should be able to give consent for a mentally incapacitated loved one to aid research. About three in five said they would want their own loved ones to give the OK to be studied if they couldn’t decide. Federal law allows legally authorized representatives of adults to give "surrogate consent" when necessary. Who qualifies as such is up to the states, and state policies often are murky. Study lead author Dr. Scott Y. H. Kim, associate professor of psychiatry at UM’s Medical School, stated, "We wring our hands about this issue in ethics circles, but people seem to understand we need to do research to find ways of treating Alzheimer's."
MILWAUKEE - An article and editorial in the Journal of Neurosurgery claims compelling evidence the "combination" of air bags and seat belts yields the best protection against spine fractures in motor vehicle crashes. This study examined records of more than 20,000 crash victims 16 and older at Wisconsin hospitals after car or truck crashes 1994-2002. The continued burden of spine fractures after motor vehicle crashes and the editorial were at thejns.org/toc/spi/current. Article authors were Drs. Marjorie Wang, Frank Pintar, Narayan Yoganandan, and Dennis Maiman, of the Dept. of Neurosurgery, Medical College of Wisconsin. The editorial was written by Dr. Charles Tator, Division of Neurosurgery, Toronto Western Hospital/University of Toronto. "Motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of (SCI) in the U.S. for people 65 and younger, and spine fractures are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality," said Dr. Wang. Of the 2,530 patients with spine factures in this study, 64 died in the hospital. Dr. Wang et al. analyzed the data and figured incidence of spine fractures with air bag and seat belt usage. A seat belt and air bag was tied to a lower risk of a spine fracture, including more severe fractures.
BALTIMORE- A study by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found 38% of Medicare beneficiaries are accompanied to routine medical visits. These beneficiaries tended to be older, sicker, and less educated but more satisfied with their healthcare provider versus unaccompanied patients. The study was in the Archives of Internal Medicine. "We found patients were more satisfied with their care when visit companions were actively involved in the communication between patient and provider," said Dr. Jennifer L. Wolff, assistant professor in Bloomberg’s Dept. of Health Policy and Management. "Our findings suggest visit companions could be an important resource for vulnerable older adults - a population that tends to have more chronic conditions and utilizes more healthcare services."
LEXINGTON, KY - Female victims of domestic violence have a 40% higher risk of postpartum depression, a study noted by MedPage Today showed. Those who suffered physical or sexual abuse, or stalking, as an adult were significantly more likely to have postpartum depression than women who didn’t experience any abuse, said Dr. Matt Garabedian, maternal/fetal medicine fellow at the University of Kentucky. Women who said they were physically or sexually abused as a child also had a higher risk of postpartum depression, he told attendees at a Society for Maternal/Fetal Medicine meeting. "Our data highlight the need to screen for all types of abuse among pregnant women and, when seen, provide increased surveillance in the postpartum period," he said. Dr. Garabedian and his team examined data from 3,331 predominantly white women who had given birth and were part of the Kentucky Women's Health Registry. Exposure to intimate partner violence and postpartum depression were self-reported by questionnaire: 18.7% of women noted a history of postpartum depression and 44.9% reported some form of abuse in childhood or adulthood; 24.4% who noted exposure to intimate partner violence said they had a history of postpartum depression.
BOSTON - Reuters Health disclosed the way older adults with advanced cancer live their last days seems to vary based on race, a study suggests. It found that of nearly 41,000 older Americans with terminal cancer, black and Asian patients were less likely than white or Hispanic patients to enter a hospice program. Conversely, they were more likely to be hospitalized often or admitted to an intensive care unit near the end of their lives. They were more likely than whites or Hispanics to die in the hospital, the study in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society found. Reasons for the discrepancies remain unclear, states the team led by Dr. Alexander K. Smith, of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. The patients studied were 65 or older and insured through Medicare. Even when the team accounted for other factors - like patients' incomes and health - race itself was still related to end-of-life care. Black patients were 9% less likely than whites to enroll in a hospice program; Asian patients were 24% less likely. They were 26% and 17% more likely, respectively, to be hospitalized at least twice in their last month of life.
COLUMBUS, OH - In relationships built on trust, a bad first impression can be harder to overcome than a betrayal that occurs after ties are established, a study suggests. While betrayal is never good for a relationship, results show early violations can be more devastating, and plant seeds of doubt that may never go away, said Robert Lount, co-author of the study and assistant professor of management/human resources at Ohio State University’s Fisher College of Business. "First impressions matter when you want to build lasting trust," Lount said. "If you get off on the wrong foot, the relationship may never be right again completely. It’s easier to rebuild trust after a breach if you already have a strong relationship." While the importance of first impressions may seem obvious, Lount said there’s still a common theme in popular culture that suggests many great relationships start off badly. "Our results fly in the face of this Hollywood notion of hating someone at first sight but then developing a wonderful, passionate relationship," he said. "The likelihood of that happening in real life is pretty low." The study was in the journal Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin.
BETHESDA, MD - Cataract surgery doesn’t increase the risk of progressive age-related Macular Degeneration (MD), a large trial posted by MedPage Today found. The frequency of neovascular age-related MD geographic atrophy, and central geographic atrophy didn’t differ between patients who had cataract surgery and those who didn’t, Dr. Emily Y. Chew, of the National Eye Institute, and hear team wrote online at Ophthalmology "This is the only prospective study in which the severity of age-related (MD) was documented before and after cataract surgery in a large number of cases with more than five years of regular follow-up," the authors said. "These data,are contrary to that of previously reported results, may provide some reassurance to patients with age-related (MD) who are considering cataract surgery." Dr. Chew and colleagues reviewed data from the Age-Related Eye Disease Study, with 4,577 patients who were followed every six-months for as long as 11 years. Participants were 55-80 at enrollment, with best-corrected visual acute of 20/32 or better in at least one eye.