Sunny Health

One of the greatest challenges we face in the fight against cancer probably lies in its detection. Simply put, if we can detect cancerous cells before they fully manifest, there is a good chance we can nip the problem in the bud.

It's easy to talk about it in this way. Implementing a system for such detection is another matter altogether. There are many obstacles we face in even attempting to do so. For one thing, it's not possible to take a one-size-fits-all approach. There are countless types of cancers out there, for which each is caused by variedly different conditions. More significantly, we have also yet to determine the cause of many cancers.

That's not to say we haven't made any headway.

For instance, research on cervical and colorectal cancer has yielded results, and we now have some insight as to how they work. Test kits for colorectal cancer have been available for some time. The Singapore Cancer Society distributes such kits every year during Colorectal Cancer Month. Also, vaccines for cervical cancer have also appeared. However, all that have been provided are the tools. We still need to take personal responsibility in screening for such diseases.

We're also still quite clueless as to how to prevent other cancers. To be fair, there are thousands of research projects concentrating on such endeavours now. From time to time, they yield useful results. Recently for example, a study at the University of Minnesota in the US showed that it could be possible to identify smokers' lung lancer risk with a simple test that screens their urine for certain biomarkers.

The study, which surveyed populations in China and Singapore, examined urine samples from subjects and found that a third of smokers who had the highest levels of a biological marker known as NNAL and a marker called cotinine, "were 8.5 times more likely to develop lung cancer than those with levels in the lowest third and similar histories of smoking."

In another unrelated study from Stanford University in California, US, researchers developed new technology which could make it possible in the future to screen people for cancer by just testing a drop of their blood. Currently, accurate cancer diagnosis requires surgical biopsies, which is used to remove lumps of tissue for lab analysis.

In this manner, cancer treatment can be enhanced as well, as the technology will allow "fast and easy monitoring of patient response to treatment." Also, despite focusing only blood cancers in the study, scientists are optimistic about its effectiveness in the technology's ability to detect solid tumors. In fact, they have already began testing it on head and neck tumours.

Hopefully, with the results of studies such as these, we'll be better equipped to help catch cancer before it has a chance to do any major damage. The ultimate goal of course would still be to prevent it from ever occuring in the first place.

Such studies underscore the urgent need for us to dedicate more resources towards cancer research. Its quite obvious that the research can move along at a faster pace when they have additional funding, better equipment and more manpower. This is why we should all try to support cancer research as much as we can, whether be it through a monetary contribution or encouraging our youth to consider a career in medical oncology.


References:

http://www.nccs.com.sg
http://news.yahoo.com/s/hsn/20090419/hl_hsn/urinetestcouldgaugesmokerslungcancerrisk
http://www.healthnews.com/medical-updates/successful-cancer-detection-from-a-single-
drop-blood-2950.html

Some strange news today.

According to a results of an European study, those who consumed fruits and vegetables had their risk of contracting colon cancer reduced, but smokers who did so seemed to experience the reverse effect!

The researched was done by the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM). Part of its report stated that those who consume 600g or more vegetables or fruit a day could have a 20 to 25 percent decreased change of developing colon cancer than people who eat 220g or less.

As for those who smoked, the report said that their chances of getting colon cancer increased with fruit and vegetable consumption.

Although it isn't my place to question research results, let me say however that it seems like the research only used data from surveys, which means that the results are not based on hard fact.

Even so, these results should not discourage smokers from eating fruits and vegetables but instead encourage them to stop smoking!

References:

http://www.asiaone.com/Health/News/Story/A1Story20090416-135596.html

We are all familiar with the motivational phrase, "Unity is Strength".

It seems that this applies to the realm of medicine as well, with recent research showing that a new five-in-one 'polypill' could substantially reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke in middle-aged and older people.

This discovery is HUGE. According to the latest statistics, Heart disease and stroke are the top two and four, respectively, causes of death in Singapore. It's a huge problem throughout the World as well, and we have long been finding a solution to it. Thus, if this medicine proves to be viable, we'll be able to tremendously improve our quality of life!

The medication contains a combination of aspirin, three blood pressure-lowering drugs, and a statin, which are revolutionary drugs used in the treatment of heart disease.

Of even greater importance is the fact that the cost of these polypills are expected to be cheap, as the patents of the various medications included have already expired and so they should be relatively cheap to produce.

It was estimated by the researchers, who are from McMaster University in Canada and St John's Medical College in Bangalore, India, that the fall in blood pressure and cholesterol levels triggered by the pill could potentially cut rates of heart disease by an astounding 62 per cent and of stroke by 48 per cent.

The polypill can't be released yet as more tests have to be performed with regards to its safety. But this may just prove to be a small hurdle, given that the individual drugs that form the pill have already been approved some time ago.

I personally hope to see this polypill on shelves soon. How would our lives be changed when we substantially negate our risk of getting heart disease and stroke? We may not know yet, but what is clear is that our lives will certainly be improved. No matter which way you look at it, that's always a good thing.

References:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/5078442/
Polypill-that-cuts-risk-of-heart-disease-and-stroke-could-save
-thousands-of-lives-a-year.html

http://www.moh.gov.sg/mohcorp/statistics.aspx?id=5526