Prostate Cancer Symptoms Tips What is prostate cancer symptoms? We have tips about prostate cancer symptoms

Perelman students are spearheading a marrow donation drive at the University of Pennsylvania. Watch the video of their story here. 


Did you know that with one swab of your mouth, you can save another person's life?

This is National Marrow Awareness Month. Each year, 10,000 of cancer patients need a bone marrow transplant.* Unfortunately, only half of those patients get one due to a variety of issues, including donor availability.

A bone marrow transplant is a life-saving treatment for people with leukemia, lymphoma and many other blood cancers. First these patients undergo chemotherapy and sometimes radiation to destroy their diseased marrow. Then a donor's healthy blood-forming cells are delivered directly into the patient's bloodstream where they can begin to function and multiply.

The need for marrow donors is great. Patients need donors who are a genetic match and even with a registry of millions, many patients cannot find a match. Donors with diverse racial or ethnic backgrounds are especially needed.

The good news is that registering to become a bone marrow donor is easy.

To become a marrow donor, visit Be the Match Registry ®, of the National Donor Marrow Program. Complete the questionnaire, and register to receive your donation kit.

The donation kit includes instructions and materials to collect a swab of your cheek cells.
The commitment to donate is very important, but if you match a patient you have the right to change your mind before the donation. However, a late decision to not donate can be life threatening to a patient. Please think seriously about your commitment before joining the registry.

Bone Marrow and Stem Cell Transplantation at the Abramson Cancer Center
Abramson Cancer Center’s bone marrow and stem cell transplant clinicians and researchers have led the way nationally for years; both in the care of patients undergoing transplant and in the research of bone marrow transplant as a cancer treatment. Penn has one of the oldest and largest programs in the country and the team is putting that experience to work to offer the best possible treatment outcomes.

Today, there's more hope than ever for those who face a cancer diagnosis in which bone marrow or stem cell transplant is a treatment option.

Learn more about the Bone Marrow and Stem Cell Transplant Program at the Abramson Cancer Center.

*Statistic from National Marrow Donation Program

Perelman students are making a difference for marrow donation. Watch the video of their story here.

Reports in the last two weeks have focused on some negative aspects of alcohol consumption (click on links in each paragraph for more details.)

According to one report: "Just one drink per day for women -- two for men -- could lead to small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) and subsequently cause gastrointestinal symptoms like bloating, gas, abdominal pain, constipation and diarrhea."

Another report: Consumption of 3 to 6 alcoholic drinks per week is associated with a small increase in the risk of breast cancer...However, an individual will need to weigh the modest risks of light to moderate alcohol use on breast cancer development against the beneficial effects on cardiovascular disease to make the best personal choice regarding alcohol consumption."


I thought it might be useful in light of those recent reports to review some of the reported benefits of alcohol consumption:

Most recent reports:

Women who drink 15 grams or less of alcohol a day (the equivalent of one drink of any alcoholic beverage) at midlife may be healthier when older than women who do not drink at all, who consume more than two drinks a day, or who consume four drinks or more at the one time, according to a new study.

Among 13,894 women in the Nurses' Health Study, investigators prospectively examined alcohol use assessed at midlife in relation to "successful ageing," which was defined as survival to age 70 years, not having a major chronic disease (such as coronary disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes), and having no major cognitive impairment, physical impairment, or mental health problems. Only 11% of the women met these criteria.

The results indicate that moderate drinkers, especially those consuming wine and drinking regularly, were more likely to exhibit successful ageing. For average amount consumed, the largest benefit (an increase of 28%) was among women who reported 15.1 – 30 g of alcohol per day (an average of just over 1 to 2 ½ drinks per day), when compared with non-drinkers. The frequency of drinking was especially important: in comparison with nondrinkers, women who drank only on 1 to 2 days per week had little increase in their risk of successful ageing, but those drinking on at least 5 days per week had almost a 50% greater chance of successful ageing.

Older reports:


Men who drink alcohol every day have a lower risk of heart disease than those who drink less frequently, suggests research in the British Medical Journal.


A new study provides further evidence that alcohol, when consumed in moderation, reduces the risk of death, and not just that due to cardiovascular disease.

Red wine again linked to slowing Alzheimer's.

Resveratrol, a compound found in grapes, red wine and peanuts, can improve blood flow in the brain by 30 per cent, thereby reducing the risk of stroke.

A study published in Journal of the American Geriatrics Society finds that moderate alcohol intake (1-2 drinks/day for 3-6 days/week, depending on alcoholic content) may lead to increased quality of life and survival in older women. The study found that non-drinkers and women who rarely drank had a significantly higher risk of dying during the survey period than did women who drank moderately. Of those who survived, the women who drank the least reported the lowest health-related quality of life.

Participants who drank on average half a glass, or 1.5 ounces, of wine per day, over a long period, had a 40 percent lower rate of all-cause death and a 48 percent lower incidence of cardiovascular death, compared to the non-wine drinkers. Researchers said life expectancy was 3.8 years higher in those men who drank wine compared to those who did not drink alcoholic beverages. Life expectancy of wine users was more than two years longer than users of other alcoholic beverages.

Women who regularly enjoy an alcoholic drink or two have a significantly lower risk of having a non-fatal heart attack than women who are life-time abstainers.

Alcohol may protect against rheumatoid arthritis (RA), with three units a week exhibiting protective effects and ten units a week being more protective still.

Drinking up to half a glass of wine a day may boost life expectancy by five years—at least in men—suggests research published ahead of print in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.

A not-to-be missed- red wine summary here.

Moderate alcohol intake offers long-term cognitive protection and reduces the risk of dementia in older adults.

A study published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease suggests a protective effect of alcohol consumption on the risk of Alzheimer's disease, particularly in women who do not smoke.



More on red wine:


Red Wine

1. Drinking more than three glasses of red wine a week could cut the risk of colorectal cancer by almost 70 per cent.

2. Resveratrol, a polyphenol found in red wine, extended survival rates of mice and prevented the negative effects of high-calorie diets, says a new study. The study, described by an independent expert as potentially “the breakthrough of the year”, adds to a growing body of research linking resveratrol and red wine consumption to a range of beneficial health effects, including brain and mental health, and cardiovascular health.

3. Red wine and green tea halt prostate cancer growth

4. Drink Red Wine Daily For Best Results

5. Drinking Wine Protects Skin From Radiation

6. Lose Weight With Resveratrol?

“The physiological benefits of resveratrol are currently under intensive investigation, with recent work suggesting that it could be a good candidate for the development of obesity therapies.”

7. Resveratrol Neutralizes Toxicity of Proteins Related to Alzheimer's

November is National Pet Cancer Awareness month.
Cancer is remarkably similar in its incidence and treatment between humans and companion animals.
Christina Bach, MSW, discusses cancer in pets, signs and symptoms of cancer in pets, and treatment options to discuss with your pet’s veterinarian should your pet have cancer.

Learn more about cancer in pets.

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Light-skinned people who avoid the sun are twice as likely to suffer from vitamin D deficiency as those who do not, according to a study of nearly 6,000 people by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine. Surprisingly, the use of sunscreen did not significantly affect blood levels of vitamin D, perhaps because users were applying too little or too infrequently, the researchers speculate.

The study adds to a growing debate about how to balance the dangers of sun exposure with the need for appropriate levels of vitamin D to prevent bone diseases such as osteoporosis and rickets.

"It's not as simple as telling everyone to wear sunscreen," said dermatologist Eleni Linos, MD PhD. "We may instead need to begin tailoring our recommendations to the skin tones and lifestyles of individual patients. It's clearly a very complex issue."

Linos, who is now an assistant professor of dermatology at the University of California-San Francisco, was a Stanford resident when the research was conducted. She is the first author of the research, which will be published online Nov. 4 in Cancer Causes and Control. Assistant professor of dermatology Jean Tang, MD, PhD, is the senior author.

Vitamin D is produced by the skin in response to exposure to the ultraviolet rays in sunlight; too little of the vitamin causes bone weakening and rickets and possibly contributes to many other chronic diseases including cancer. Small amounts of vitamin D can also be acquired by drinking fortified milk, eating fortified breakfast cereals or eating fatty fish such as salmon, tuna and mackerel, as well as from over-the-counter dietary supplements. Although it's not clear exactly how many people may be deficient in the vitamin, experts believe about 30 to 40 percent of the United States population may be affected.

Linos and Tang analyzed population-base data from the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from 2003 to 2006. The survey included questions about sun-protective behavior, inquiring whether respondents frequently wore long sleeves, hats and sunscreen, and whether they sought out shade on sunny days. It also included each respondent's race, as well as their blood levels of a form of vitamin D called 25-hydroxyvitamin D.

The researchers found that Caucasians who avoided the sun with clothing or stayed in the shade had blood levels of vitamin D that were about 3.5 and 2.2 nanograms per milliliter lower than those who did not report such behavior. In contrast, the association between sun avoidance and reductions in vitamin D levels in Hispanic or African-American survey-takers was not statistically significant. "This may be explained by the inherent pigmentation in darker skin, which acts as natural sun protection," said Linos. (The researchers did not analyze Asians as a separate group.)

The researchers considered any respondent with blood levels of 20 nanograms per milliliter or below to be vitamin D deficient because lower levels have been associated with adverse health outcomes. They found that although about 40 percent of all survey participants were vitamin D deficient, the prevalence increased to 53 and 56 percent among those who wore long sleeves and stayed in the shade. Whites who wore long sleeves and stayed in the shade were twice as likely to be deficient in the vitamin as those who did not (odds ratios of 2.16 and 2.11, respectively).

Race affects vitamin D production because of differences in skin pigmentation. Highly pigmented skin protects against ultraviolet rays, but also leads to lower overall baseline levels of vitamin D in the blood and frequent vitamin D deficiency. In the current study, African-Americans who rarely took sun-protective measures had an average vitamin D blood level of about 14.5 nanograms per milliliter. Hispanics who didn't avoid the sun had an average level of about 19.7 and sun-loving Caucasians, about 26.4. In contrast, those who frequently stayed in the shade had average levels of 14, 19.2 and 22.8 nanograms per milliliter, respectively.

"This confirms that the issue of vitamin D supplementation is increasingly important." said Linos. She cautioned, however, against wholesale use of dietary supplements before more data has been generated; currently there are two large, randomized clinical trials testing the health effects of relatively high doses of vitamin D.

The real surprise came when Linos found that the reported use of sunscreen did not significantly affect vitamin D levels. Because sunscreens block the ultraviolet rays that trigger the vitamin's production, it seems that regular usage should lower vitamin D in the blood.

"This finding was both interesting and surprising," said Linos. The apparent contradiction is likely due to sunscreen users not using the protection effectively. "People are probably not applying it often or thickly enough," she said. "Often, people use sunscreen when they anticipate getting a lot of sun exposure, unlike others who spend time in the shade in order to avoid the sun."

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New research shows that following a vegetarian diet and exercising at least three times a week significantly reduced the risk of diabetes in African Americans, who are twice as likely to be diagnosed with diabetes when compared to non-Hispanic whites.

"These findings are encouraging for preventing type 2 diabetes in the black population, which is more susceptible to the disease than other populations," said Serena Tonstad, MD, a professor at Loma Linda University and lead author of the research, published in the October issue of Nutrition, Metabolism & Cardiovascular Diseases.

In addition to being at a greater risk for developing diabetes, black persons in the U.S. are also more likely to suffer from diabetes-related complications, such as end-stage renal disease and lower-extremity amputations, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

"A vegetarian diet may be a way to counteract the increased diabetes risk for the black population," Dr. Tonstad said.

Dr. Tonstad's research showed that, compared to non-vegetarian blacks, vegan blacks had a 70 percent reduced risk of diabetes, and lacto-ovo vegetarian blacks (those who consume dairy, but no meat) had a 53 percent reduced risk of diabetes. Dr. Tonstad said one explanation was the protection associated with foods typically consumed in higher amounts in a vegetarian diet. Fruits and vegetables have a high fiber content, which may contribute to a decreased occurrence of type 2 diabetes. In addition, whole grains and legumes (beans) have been shown to improve glycemic control and slow the rate of carbohydrate absorption and the risk of diabetes.

The study also showed that black participants who exercised three or more times a week, compared to once a week or never, had a 35 percent reduced risk of diabetes.

The findings used prospective data (following persons over time) of 7,172 black Seventh-day Adventists participating in Adventist Health Study-2. Adventists are a Protestant religious group that promotes vegetarianism and advocates abstinence from tobacco and alcohol, which results in less confounding (distortions) when studying associations between diet and disease. Participants were given a questionnaire that asked how often they consumed 130 foods and food groups. Participants were then categorized into a dietary category (vegan, lacto-ovo vegetarian, etc.) based on their responses.

The study also analyzed data of 34,215 non-black Adventists and found similar protections against diabetes for a vegetarian diet. These findings confirm results from past cross-sectional research (examining persons at one point in time) that showed a vegetarian diet offered protection against diabetes.

Regular physical activity is associated with a lower risk of suffering depression in old age. This is shown by one of the largest studies on elderly Europeans to have been carried out, by researchers at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, among others. Research also shows that self-determined motivation and perceived competence are i

"We do not yet know for sure what the causal relationship between physical activity and depression is like. What is clear is that elderly people who are physically active are less depressed, but higher levels of depression can also lead to less exercise, and this suggests there is a mutual influence," says Magnus Lindwall, docent (associate professor) in exercise and health psychology at the University of Gothenburg.

In a recently published study Lindwall, together with research colleagues, has studied 17,500 elderly people with an average age of 64 from 11 European countries who are taking part in the large EU-funded population study Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement (SHARE). The subjects in the study were followed up over a period of two and a half years, among other things with regard to physical activity and depression.

"This study is one of the first to look at both how physical activity affects future depression and vice-versa, and how change in physical activity is associated with change in depression over time," says Lindwall.

"An important question for the researchers to answer has been what motivates elderly people to be physically active. Modern motivational theories propose, for example, that individuals who feel that they are competent, that they can take decisions for themselves and have freedom of choice and that they feel social relatedness linked to physical activity experience a more internal and a less controlled form of motivation for exercise. . This form of motivation, unlike a non-self-determining external form of motivation, is also associated with the maintenance of long-term regular physical activity, which also improves the prospects for the positive effects that physical activity can have on both physical and mental health.

"Right now we are developing and testing a structured programme to increase motivation for physical activity among the elderly based on the theories that today has strong support in the research," says Lindwall.

The results support the recommendations to use physical activity as a powerful preventive measure against mental ill-health in the elderly.

"But regular physical activity is required, otherwise there is a great risk of the long-term favourable effects on health being lost. It is therefore important to identify the barriers, for example depression, that prevent the elderly from being physically active and focus on how to increase the motivation of elderly people for physical activity," says Lindwall.