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BCAC is thrilled a clinical trial involving American engineer Judy Perkins has led to her being declared free of breast cancer with what specialists are calling an extended remission. This wonderful news has come two years after she was told she had only three months to live.
The trial of the experimental therapy was carried out by the US National Cancer Institute. BCAC are aware there is still much to learn before scientists can turn this experimental therapy into a treatment.
This work is complex but it is wonderful that it has been perfected for this one breast cancer patient, and there is hope that ongoing research will see it eventually being extended to others - potentially those whose tumours appear packed with immune cells.
More women with the most common form of early stage breast cancer may not need chemotherapy and may instead rely on hormone therapies, according to a landmark study.
The findings in the study were based on a 21-tumor gene expression test which would also inform treatment decisions in real life.
BCAC says anecdotally there has been a perceived reluctance to use the Oncotype test in New Zealand because of concerns regarding its ability to accurately predict the risk of breast cancer recurrence and its cost. We are very pleased that these results will allay some of those concerns.
American researchers have hopes a new blood test they have developed may in the future be able to detect 10 types of cancer potentially years before someone becomes unwell.
The research team, with scientists from Cleveland Clinic's Taussig Cancer Institute and Standford University, say their test has been shown to pick up early signs of cancers including breast, ovarian, bowel and lung cancer. However, they note more work is needed before the results are conclusive and before the test can be used in the real world.
Recent research has found that changing to a low-fat diet may have a positive influence on breast cancer outcomes.
A study led by Dr Rowan T Chlebowski, PhD of the City of Hope National Medical Center in California found that, in a randomized clinical trial, a low-fat eating pattern was associated with lower risk of death after breast cancer.
The study followed earlier research conducted at 40 US clinical centres that enrolled participants from 1993 to 1998. Participants were 48,835 postmenopausal women with no previous breast cancer and dietary fat intake of greater than 32% according to a questionnaire.
BCAC says a new report highlights how desperately poor access to new and innovative medicines is in New Zealand.
The Medicines NZ Medicines Landscape 2017 report finds that New Zealand comes last out of 20 comparable OECD countries for access to publicly-funded new medicines.
The report says this means more than 230,000 patients in New Zealand are currently waiting for access to medicines that are not yet approved for public funding in this country.
The report highlights at least 80 medicines that are deemed to have a clinical benefit for patients and which have been recommended for public funding, but are not yet funded by the Government’s drug buying agency PHARMAC.
BCAC committee member, Louise Malone, attended the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium in December 2017 and gives us an update on the latest cutting-edge research into new targeted immunotherapy treatments.
As cancer researchers better understand the complex interchanges between tumour cells and immune cells and the microenvironment in which they operate, new targets for therapy are emerging.
Many charities rely on the time and expertise of volunteers to provide their services. Finding people with enough of both can be a challenge.
BCAC member group, Breast Cancer Support (BCS) has risen to that challenge, appointing a new governing team of seven multi-talented, enthusiastic and motivated women at its recent AGM.
BCS provides peer support services to women diagnosed with breast cancer and has nine support groups in Auckland, one in Christchurch, a local affiliate in Levin, and nationwide one to one support via its 0800 Help Line.
2018 Chair Helen Goudge has a professional background in marketing and publicity, and event management. She will utilise her skills to grow a membership base and organise fundraising activities.
In the most comprehensive study ever looking at the genetics of breast cancer, scientists have linked 110 genes to an increased risk of the disease.
The Institute of Cancer Research study used a pioneering genetic technique to analyse 63 areas of the genome that had previously been associated with the risk of breast cancer.
Finding the genes responsible for increased risk is not straightforward because small sequences of DNA can interact with completely different parts of the genome through a strange phenomenon known as ‘DNA looping’.
But the researchers used a technique called Capture Hi-C to study interactions between different regions of the genome.
New research from the UK shows how alcohol damages DNA in stem cells and helps to explain why drinking can increase your risk of cancer.
The study, by scientists at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge has been published in the journal Nature, and used mice to show how alcohol exposure leads to permanent genetic damage.
Scientists gave diluted alcohol (known as ethanol) to mice. They then used chromosome analysis and DNA sequencing to examine the genetic damage caused by acetaldehyde, a harmful chemical produced when the body processes alcohol.
They found that acetaldehyde can break and damage DNA within blood stem cells which leads to rearranged chromosomes and permanently altered DNA sequences in these cells.
Researchers in the US have identified two new genes associated with breast cancer: MSH6 and PMS2.
The new study suggests that each gene approximately doubles a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer by age 60. The two genes were previously known to cause Lynch syndrome, an inherited condition that raises the risk of colorectal, ovarian, stomach, and endometrial cancer.
This study shows that some women with Lynch syndrome are also more likely to develop breast cancer.
