Colorectal Cancer

The Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday approved a new drug for cleansing the colon before colonoscopy exams that requires drinking only 10 ounces of the product, not the 2 liters required with some current products such as Go Lightly. The patient must drink other fluids as well, but that can be water, soda or other pleasant-tasting liquids. The new cleansing agent, called Prepopik, is expected to be marketed by October, according to the manufacturer, Ferring Pharmaceuticals Inc. of Parsippany, N.J. Colorectal cancer is the third-most common type of cancer in the United States and the second leading cause of cancer deaths.

The links between sleep and cancer are now so many, you could build a chain. A new study has found that for men who suffer insomnia and unwelcome wakefulness, the risk of prostate cancer is greater than for those whose sleep is undisrupted. That research expands on a growing body of evidence that men and women whose sleep is short, broken or of poor quality are at higher risk of developing a wide range of cancers. Research has long linked overnight shift work -- and the circadian rhythm disruptions that are common with it -- as a risk factor for breast cancer and endometrial cancers in women.

In treating cancer, every bit of knowledge could help. Now researchers have found that adding the experimental drug Zaltrap in a chemotherapy regimen may slightly prolong survival in patients with advanced colorectal cancer and slow the progression of the disease, companies Sanofi and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals announced Monday. The companies said data from a clinical trial, in which 1,226 patients on chemotherapy received Zaltrap (generic name: aflibercept) or a placebo, will be presented at a conference this month.

Better cancer treatments and an aging population will push the number of cancer survivors in the U.S. to nearly 18 million by 2022, according to a new report from researchers at the National Cancer Institute. As of January 2012, there were 13.7 million survivors of bladder, breast, colorectal, kidney, lung, prostate, thyroid and other cancers, the report says. Over 10 years, that figure is projected to grow 31% to 17,981,391, the researchers estimate. Today, the biggest group of cancer survivors is women who had breast cancer (22%)

Taking a low-dose aspirin prior to having a fecal occult blood test appears to increase the ability of the test to detect colorectal cancer, according to a new study. The fecal occult blood test, which looks for blood in the stool, is a common test used to detect colon cancer because advanced colorectal tumors often bleed. Moreover, use of low-dose aspirin is a common practice in people ages 55 and older because studies show the therapy can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer.

The doctor will see you now – and she has four legs and a tail. That’s right. Japanese researchers have trained an 8-year-old Labrador retriever to diagnose colorectal cancer by smelling a patient’s breath and/or poop. The Lab (who previously worked as a water rescue dog)  had an overall accuracy of 95% when using the breath test and 98% for the stool test, according to a study published Monday in the journal Gut. To train the dog, researchers first let her sniff a breath sample from a patient with colorectal cancer.

Colorectal cancer kills more than 55,000 Americans each year. It's a cancer of the colon and/or rectum, which are both part of the large intestine. Here are some more facts--and suggestions to lower your risk: * Anyone can get colorectal cancer, but it usually strikes people older than 50. * Colorectal cancer is the No. 2 cause of death from cancer. (Lung cancer is No. 1.) * Get screened regularly after age 50. These tests can find noncancerous tumors--polyps--that sometimes turn into cancer.

Increased screening during the last decade for colorectal cancer, the nation's second-leading cause of cancer deaths, has put a sharp dent in the prevalence of the disease and in the number of deaths resulting from it, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday. As screening for the disease among those ages 50 to 75 increased from half to two-thirds of that population, the prevalence rate fell from 52.3 cases per 100,000 in 2003 to 45.4 per 100,000 in 2007. The death rate fell from 19 per 100,000 to 16.7 per 100,000 during the same period, the agency reported in its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report . Those declines represent 66,000 fewer cancers during the period and 32,000 fewer deaths, the agency found.

Pour yourself a nice big bowl of whole-grain cereal. A study finds that diets high in fiber, particularly from cereal and whole grains, may reduce the risk of colon cancer. The study, released online today in the British Medical Journal , is a meta-analysis of 25 studies that examined the relationship between dietary fiber and colorectal cancer, the third most common type of cancer diagnosed among men and women in the U.S., according to the American Cancer Society. Previous studies have shown that dietary fiber may decrease colorectal cancer risk, but the authors of this study said it's not apparent whether certain types of fiber are key. After analyzing these papers they found that for every 10 grams of dietary fiber and cereal fiber there was a 10% reduced risk of colorectal cancer.

Contrary to popular belief among physicians and patients, the family of hypertension drugs known as beta-blockers does not prevent development of colon and rectal cancer, German researchers reported Monday. In fact, long-term use of the drugs might even be associated with an increased risk of developing an advanced form of the disease, they said. Beta-blockers are a family of drugs that reduce blood pressure and improve heart function by reducing the body's response to stress hormones such as epinephrine and norepinephrine.

Steadily reducing sodium in the foods we buy and eat could save a half-million Americans from dying premature deaths over a decade, says a new study. And a more abrupt reduction to 2,200 milligrams per day--a 40% drop from current levels--could boost the tally of lives saved over 10 years to 850,000, researchers have projected. The new estimates, published Tuesday in the American Heart Assn.'s journal Hypertension , are the results of three separate teams crunching the numbers at the request of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

There's a lot of talk these days about the role of gut bacteria in disease and health. The latest report in that area: a study in Nature that finds differences between the bacteria growing in the guts of people who have diabetes and those who don't. The Chinese and European authors of the study used DNA analysis to figure out the bacterial populations inside 345 Chinese people. They found that people with diabetes had mild gut disturbances. They had fewer bacteria that make a compound called butyrate, for example.

The Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday approved a new drug for cleansing the colon before colonoscopy exams that requires drinking only 10 ounces of the product, not the 2 liters required with some current products such as Go Lightly. The patient must drink other fluids as well, but that can be water, soda or other pleasant-tasting liquids. The new cleansing agent, called Prepopik, is expected to be marketed by October, according to the manufacturer, Ferring Pharmaceuticals Inc. of Parsippany, N.J. Colorectal cancer is the third-most common type of cancer in the United States and the second leading cause of cancer deaths.

As health authorities make increasing headway in treating infectious diseases in the developing world, they may be trading one problem for another. As people in those countries live longer, they become more likely to develop chronic diseases such as cancer, heart disease and diabetes. A new report by the World Health Organization's International Agency for Cancer Research (IARC) suggests that the incidence of cancer worldwide will grow by 75% by the year 2030, nearly doubling in some of the developing countries.

Many poetic tributes have been made to Robin Gibb, the beloved singer who passed on Sunday after a long battle with cancer, including some 140-character thoughts from his Hollywood admirers. "We have lost a truly brilliant musician today. One of my idols. My heart goes out to the Gibb family in this time of sorrow...RIP Robin," wrote Justin Timberlake, who famously portrayed Robin several times on "Saturday Night Live" alongside Jimmy Fallon's Barry Gibb. An embattled John Travolta spoke out (despite his ongoing masseuse scandal)

Contrary to popular belief among physicians and patients, the family of hypertension drugs known as beta-blockers does not prevent development of colon and rectal cancer, German researchers reported Monday. In fact, long-term use of the drugs might even be associated with an increased risk of developing an advanced form of the disease, they said. Beta-blockers are a family of drugs that reduce blood pressure and improve heart function by reducing the body's response to stress hormones such as epinephrine and norepinephrine.

A single sigmoidoscopy between ages 55 and 64 can reduce deaths from colorectal cancer by at least 43%, British researchers reported Tuesday. The results from the first large randomized trial of sigmoidoscopy show that it is a more effective tool than mammography for breast cancer or PSA tests for prostate cancer, and confirm current U.S. guidelines suggesting regular sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy to screen for colorectal cancer. "If sigmoidoscopy can yield these results, colonoscopy should yield even better results" because it explores the entire bowel, said Dr. Eric Esrailian, a gastroenterologist at UCLA's Reagan Medical Center.

A medication for people with advanced colorectal cancer who have exhausted all other treatment options appears to slow tumor growth and extend life, according to new data. Bayer HealthCare, the makers of regorafenib, said it would seek Food and Drug Administration approval of the medication this year. If approved, regorafenib would be the first new treatment for colorectal cancer in more than five years. Although chemotherapy and other medications can extend life in people with metastatic cancer (cancer that has spread throughout the body)

Robin Gibb has awoken from a nearly two-week-long coma as the former Bee Gees star continues to surprise in his battle with colorectal cancer.  As The Times reported about a week ago, Gibb was hospitalized -- gravely ill with pneumonia and in a coma -- with his wife, children and brother Barry Gibb standing vigil at his bedside.  But on Sunday, his family was celebrating. An update on Gibb's Facebook page detailed the latest developments, saying: "The remarkable Robin Gibb has confounded" his doctors "with his indomitable fighting spirit and remarkable physical endurance.