Some myths about breast cancer

            ANN ARBOR , MI - Newswise noted one in seven women will develop breast cancer, but how much do most women know about this disease? Breast cancer specialists from the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center say misconceptions often cause women more anxiety than necessary. In some cases, the fear paralyzes women and prevents them from seeking care that could lead to successful treatment. Here are some of the most common myths: 1. You only get breast cancer if you have a family history. 2. I’m too young to worry about breast cancer. 3. If I’m diagnosed with breast cancer, it means I’m going to die. Doctors are doing quite well at treating breast cancer, with 10-year survival rates currently at 85-90%. When caught early, up to 98% of women survive at least five years. 4. I’ve made it five years as a survivor, so my breast cancer won’t return. 5. Chemotherapy will make me nauseated and I will be vomiting all the time. 6. If I have a breast lump, it’s cancer. 7. Herbal remedies and dietary supplements can help treat breast cancer. 8. I eat a healthy diet, which will make me immune to breast cancer.

            BIRMINGHAM , AL - Despite long-term global warming, parts of the U.S. this winter are experiencing cooler and dryer weather - and the eye irritation that often accompanies it. “The tear film bathing the cornea and outer eye evaporates faster in dry conditions, which causes burning, tearing, redness, and discomfort,” said Adam Gordon, associate professor at the University of Alabama School of Optometry. “This makes eyes more susceptible to allergies, since environmental allergens aren’t washed out effectively.” In addition to the outside air, enclosed spaces with dry heat, such as shopping malls, tend to aggravate dry, sensitive eyes. Artificial tears can provide temporary relief, but if symptoms persist, switching from contacts to glasses, administering prescription eye drops, and blocking tear ducts may be necessary, Gordon said.

            KINGSTON , RI - Reuters Health noted high-fiber whole grains may help dieters lose weight while gaining some nutrients, research suggests. In a six-month study of 180 overweight adults, researchers found whole grain cereals helped people lose weight and boost intake of magnesium, fiber, and vitamin B-6, which was higher than that of dieters who cut calories but didn’t eat whole grain cereal. The implication, say researchers, is fiber-rich cereals can help people cut calories and maintain or improve quality of their diet. The study funded by Kraft Foods Inc. was in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association. A problem with cutting out calories or certain foods to shed pounds is nutrients can be lost from the diet. These findings suggest whole grain cereals can help prevent some of these losses, said Dr. Kathleen Melanson, assistant professor of nutrition science at the University of Rhode Island , and study lead author. She and her team compared three strategies: exercise only; exercise plus a reduced-calorie diet that emphasized whole grain cereals; and exercise plus a low-cal diet that excluded cereals. Randomly, they assigned 180 overweight, sedentary men and women to one of the three groups. Those in the "cereal" group were given packets of whole grain breakfast cereal and told to eat a serving twice a day for the first half of the study, then once a day for the remaining time. In the end, both diet groups lost more weight than the exercise-only group, with dieters in each dropping roughly 12 pounds, on average. The cereal group cut down on saturated fat to a greater extent and bumped up their fiber, magnesium, and B-6 intake.

            LOS ANGELES - MedPage Today reported physicians prescribe medications too often without clear instructions about how to use them and what to watch out for, an observational study found. Physicians offered adequate directions for fewer than 60% of all new medications prescribed and informed patients about duration of use and adverse effects only about 33% of the time, found Dr. Derjung Tarn, of the University of California / Los Angeles , and colleagues. This study showed "spotty" physician compliance, with a likelihood of poor patient compliance, about the how and why of new medication prescriptions, researchers wrote in Archives of Internal Medicine. The overall quality of doctor-patient communication was poor and could contribute to patient misunderstandings, worsening disease, failure of treatment, adverse effects, drug overdose, unnecessary hospitalization, and higher healthcare costs, they wrote. The study combined patient and physician surveys with transcribed taped office visits from 185 outpatient visits in which physicians wrote 243 new prescriptions. The medications included 46 cardiovascular drugs, 42 ENT preparations, 35 analgesics, 35 antibiotics, 21 dermatologic creams, 21 psychiatric drugs, and 11 pulmonary medications. The study included 16 family physicians, 18 internists, and 11 cardiologists in two Sacramento , CA healthcare systems. Patients' mean age was 55, half were male, most had some college education, most were white, just more than half were Kaiser Permanente patients, and 75% had a prior visit to the prescribing physician.

            BOSTON -  Newswise noted scientists at the Schepens Eye Research Institute affiliate of Harvard Medical School say a visual aid they invented promises to improve visual abilities of people with tunnel vision. In the first study to evaluate this small high-tech device, the team saw significant gain in the effectiveness and speed with which visually-impaired patients found objects. The study in Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science shows this device, which has a tiny camera, pocket-sized computer, and transparent computer display on a pair of glasses, may offer the most effective aid to date for these patients. “We are very pleased with the results of this first evaluation and hope with further study and refinement, we may soon make this device available for the public,” says low vision expert Dr. Eli Peli, the inventor, a senior scientist at Schepens, and a professor of ophthalmology at Harvard Medical School and the senior author of the study. About one in 200 Americans over age 55 suffers from tunnel vision, as a result of diseases such as retinitis pigmentosa (RP) and glaucoma. RP can begin to affect vision in one’s teen years and may become quite severe tunnel vision by middle age. Residual tunnel vision occurs when peripheral or side vision is destroyed, leaving only a small window of central vision.

            LONDON - Newswise noted some factors, including maternal infection during pregnancy, very preterm birth, and certain findings on brain MRI scans were correlated with Cerebral Palsy (CP), stated a study in the Journal of the American Medical Association. MRIs have been reported for specific clinical CP subgroups or lesion types but not in a large population of children with all CP subtypes. More data about CP causes could help identify preventive strategies, background data noted. Dr. Martin Bax, of Imperial College London, and Chelsea & Westminster Hospital/London, and colleagues examined the correlates of CP in a sample and compared clinical findings with information available from MRI brain scans. The study included 585 children with CP born 1996-1999; 431 children were clinically assessed and 351 had a brain MRI scan at 18 months or later. The research was done at eight European study centers. Researchers found 39.5% of the mothers reported an infection during the pregnancy, including 19.2% who reported a urinary tract infection and 15.5% who took antibiotics during the pregnancy. Fifty-one children (12%) were known to be from a multiple pregnancy, with 48 from a twin pregnancy and three from a triplet pregnancy. This compares with a population rate of multiple pregnancy of about 1.5%. In addition, 235 children (54%) were born at term, 47 children (10.9%) were very preterm (born less than 28 weeks gestation), 69 (16%) were born between 28 and 31 weeks, and 79 (18.3%) were born between 32 and 36 weeks gestation. Emergency cesarean deliveries were performed in 32.3% of births.