7th Annual Complementary Medicine Conference A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO BREAST HEALT

[Guest guest]

> Breast Cancer Options

> 7th Annual Complementary Medicine Conference

> A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO BREAST HEALTH

> Sunday, April 13, 2008 l 8am-5pm

> OPENING PLENARY: Treating the Whole Person

> Panelists: Sheldon Feldman, MD; Doni , ND; Berliner RPh; Hope

> Nemiroff, survivor advocate

> Workshops: How the Breast is Affected by Toxins; Strategies for Wellness:

> Yoga, Meditation and Massage; Nutrition For Wellness and Cancer Prevention;

> Herbs and Supplements for Cancer and Cancer Risk Reduction; Breast Cancer

> Detection and Follow-up; The Latest Developments in Breast Cancer Treatment

and

> Risk Reduction; Assessing the Risk of Breast Cancer Recurrence: Oncotype DX

> Test/Estronex Test; Hormones & Health; Iodine Deficiency & Breast Disease; The

> Mind-Body Connection

> Contact: 845:339-4673

> www.breastcanceroptions.org/ComplementaryMedicineCo.asp

>

> High levels of estrogen associated with breast cancer recurrence

> http://www.aacr.org/home/about-us/news.aspx?d=964

> March 6, 2008

>

> PHILADELPHIA - Women whose breast cancer came back after treatment had

> almost twice as much estrogen in their blood than did women who remained

> cancer-free - despite treatment with anti-estrogen drugs in a majority of the

women -

> according to researchers in a study published in the March issue of Cancer

> Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention, a journal of the American Association

> for Cancer Research.

>

> The findings suggest that high levels of estrogen contribute to an increased

> risk of cancer recurrence, just as they lead to the initial development of

> breast cancer, said the study's lead author, Cheryl L. Rock, Ph.D., a

> professor in the Department of Family and Preventive Medicine at the

University of

> California, San Diego.

>

> " While this makes sense, there have been only a few small studies that have

> looked at the link between sex hormones in the blood and cancer recurrence, "

> she said. " This is the largest study to date and the only one to have

> included women taking agents such as tamoxifen to reduce estrogen's effect on

cancer

> growth.

>

> " What the results mean for women who have already been treated for breast

> cancer is that they should do as much as they can to reduce estrogen in their

> blood, such as exercising frequently and keeping weight down, " she added.

> " Taking anti-estrogen drugs like tamoxifen may not completely wipe out the

> hormone's effect in women who have high levels of estrogen. "

>

> Participants from this study were drawn from the larger Women's Healthy

> Eating and Living Study (WHEL), a dietary intervention trial that followed

3,088

> women who had been treated for early stage breast cancer but who were

> cancer-free at the time they enrolled. Participants were randomly assigned to

one of

> two groups - one that ate a " normal " healthy diet and the other that ate

> extremely high amounts of fruits, fiber, and vegetables - and were followed

for

> more than seven years. Breast cancer recurrence was about the same in each

> group, according to the results, published in 2007. Researchers interpreted

the

> findings to mean that a normal diet that incorporates the U.S. Department of

> Agriculture (USDA) guidelines for recommended amounts of fruits and

> vegetables is sufficient.

>

> In the current nested case-control study, 153 WHEL participants whose cancer

> had recurred were matched with 153 participants who remained cancer-free.

> These pairs were alike in terms of tumor type, body size, age, ethnicity, use

> of chemotherapy and other variables. Two-thirds of the participants were using

> tamoxifen, Rock said.

>

> When they enrolled, researchers tested the women's blood for concentrations

> of the steroid hormones estradiol (the primary human estrogen) and

> testosterone. They analyzed different forms of estradiol and testosterone in

the blood,

> such as how much was bound to transport proteins (such as to the sex hormone

> binding globulin, or SHBG) and how much was " free " circulating and able to

> enter a cell.

>

> Researchers found that higher estradiol concentrations, in all forms,

> significantly predicted cancer recurrence. Overall, women whose cancer came

back

> had an average total estradiol concentration that was more than double the

> average for women who remained cancer-free. Increased levels of testosterone

or

> SHBG levels were not associated with recurrence, contradicting the findings of

> several previous studies.

>

> Although genetic and metabolic factors likely influence the relationship

> between circulating sex hormones and risk of breast cancer recurrence, Rock

said

> the study provides solid evidence that higher concentrations of estradiol in

> the blood contribute to risk for breast cancer recurrence.

>

> The Walton Family Foundation, the National Cancer Institute, and the

> National Institutes of Health funded the study.

>

> # # #

> The mission of the American Association for Cancer Research is to prevent

> and cure cancer. Founded in 1907, AACR is the world's oldest and largest

> professional organization dedicated to advancing cancer research. The

membership

> includes nearly 27,000 basic, translational, and clinical researchers; health

> care professionals; and cancer survivors and advocates in the United States

> and more than 70 other countries. AACR marshals the full spectrum of expertise

> from the cancer community to accelerate progress in the prevention, diagnosis

> and treatment of cancer through high-quality scientific and educational

> programs. It funds innovative, meritorious research grants. The AACR Annual

> Meeting attracts more than 17,000 participants who share the latest

discoveries

> and developments in the field. Special Conferences throughout the year present

> novel data across a wide variety of topics in cancer research, treatment, and

> patient care. AACR publishes five major peer-reviewed journals: Cancer

> Research; Clinical Cancer Research; Molecular Cancer Therapeutics; Molecular

> Cancer Research; and Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention. Its most

recent

> publication and its sixth major journal, Cancer Prevention Research, is the

> only journal worldwide dedicated exclusively to cancer prevention, from

> preclinical research to clinical trials. The AACR also publishes CR, a

magazine

> for cancer survivors, patient advocates, their families, physicians, and

> scientists. CR provides a forum for sharing essential, evidence-based

information

> and perspectives on progress in cancer research, survivorship, and advocacy.

>

>

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