Dense breasts on a mammogram? What to know and do
You’re staring at a letter from your mammography facility. Your breast exam was normal, great. But then you see a note on the bottom: you have high breast density, which could put you at higher risk for breast cancer in the future. Now what?
“The finding of dense breasts on a mammogram can be stressful and confusing for patients,” says Dr. Toni Golen, acting editor in chief of Harvard Women’s Health Watch. It’s information that may concern them, but they don’t know what to do about it.
What is breast density?
Breasts are composed of:
lobules, which produce milk
ducts, tubes that carry milk ...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - October 1, 2019 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Kelly Bilodeau Tags: Breast Cancer Health Tests and procedures Women's Health Source Type: blogs
Common hormonal treatments linked to abnormal heart rhythms and sudden death in men being treated for prostate cancer
Treatments for advanced prostate cancer that suppress testosterone, a hormone (also called an androgen) that drives the malignant cells to grow and spread, are collectively referred to as androgen deprivation therapies, or ADT. These therapies can significantly extend lifespans in men who have the disease, but they also have a range of challenging side effects.
In 2004, Dr. Marc Garnick, Gorman Brothers Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and editor in chief of HarvardProstateKnowledge.org, reported that in some men, an ADT drug called aberelix lengthens the time it tak...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - September 20, 2019 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Charlie Schmidt Tags: Health Living With Prostate Cancer Men's Health Prostate Health Prostate Knowledge Treatments HPK Source Type: blogs
We Need to Talk about Wound Care in Transgender Women Healing From a Vaginoplasty
By: Matt Hopper A lot of transgender women who undergo a vaginoplasty report being frustrated with the health care system and lack of competent practitioners who can provide quality care for gender-affirming procedures (medical procedures that affirm a transgender person’s gender identity). These procedures, such as hormone therapy, “top” surgery (i.e. mastectomy, breast implants, etc.),
The post We Need to Talk about Wound Care in Transgender Women Healing From a Vaginoplasty appeared first on Johns Hopkins Nursing Magazine. (Source: Nursing Blogs at Johns Hopkins University)
Source: Nursing Blogs at Johns Hopkins University - May 31, 2019 Category: Nursing Authors: Editor Tags: Health Equity On the Pulse LGBT postoperative transgender Source Type: blogs
Fight Aging! Newsletter, April 15th 2019
In this study, we found that senescent chondrocytes isolated from OA patients secrete more EVs compared with nonsenescent chondrocytes. These EVs inhibit cartilage ECM deposition by healthy chondrocytes and can induce a senescent state in nearby cells. We profiled the miR and protein content of EVs isolated from the synovial fluid of OA joints from mice with SnCs. After treatment with a molecule to remove SnCs, termed a senolytic, the composition of EV-associated miR and protein was markedly altered. The senolytic reduced OA development and enhanced chondrogenesis, and these were attributable to several specific differenti...
Source: Fight Aging! - April 14, 2019 Category: Research Authors: Reason Tags: Newsletters Source Type: blogs
Growing Muscle and Strengthening Bone in Mice with a Follistatin-Like Molecule
In today's research materials, the authors report on the use of follistatin-like molecules to enhance bone density and increase muscle mass in mice. Myostatin and follistatin are well known to control muscle growth, and are consequently among the most promising targets for near future gene therapies. Either inhibition of myostatin, which can be achieved via antibody therapies in addition to gene therapies, or upregulation of follistatin can be used to deliver increased muscle growth in mammals. There are natural myostatin loss of function mutants in many species, including a few humans, and a range of heavily muscled engin...
Source: Fight Aging! - April 10, 2019 Category: Research Authors: Reason Tags: Medicine, Biotech, Research Source Type: blogs
Weekly Overseas Health IT Links – 9th February, 2019.
Here are a few I came across last week.Note: Each link is followed by a title and few paragraphs. For the full article click on the link above title of the article. Note also that full access to some links may require site registration or subscription payment.-----https://www.healthdatamanagement.com/news/messages-in-patient-portal-help-predict-medication-discontinuationPatient portal helps predict medication discontinuation By Greg SlabodkinPublished February 01 2019, 7:19am ESTResearchers say electronic communication between patients and providers via an online portal can indicate their potential for stopping therapy.A t...
Source: Australian Health Information Technology - February 9, 2019 Category: Information Technology Authors: Dr David G More MB PhD Source Type: blogs
Preserving fertility during cancer treatments
Cancer treatment — and cancer itself — can threaten fertility. This is a tremendously important survivorship issue for many people. As an oncologist, I’m often asked questions about preserving fertility during cancer treatment. If this issue affects you, here is an overview of key options.
When should you talk to your cancer team about fertility?
Future children may not be foremost on your mind when you are diagnosed with cancer. Soon afterward, though, it’s worth talking to your doctor about fertility issues, if this is important to you now or might one day become important.
Your doctor can explain:
the risk that...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - February 4, 2019 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Ann Partridge, MD, MPH Tags: Cancer Fertility Infertility Source Type: blogs
Alternative therapies for cancer
This study was not designed to directly compare non-conventional therapies with conventional ones, and the results do not mean that all unproven remedies are useless. In fact, an unproven treatment may become conventional if rigorous research proves its worth. There are many types of alternative treatments (including herbs, vitamins, homeopathy, yoga, and acupuncture) that might have different effects and have not yet been well studied. Importantly, this study did not examine the interaction of conventional and alternative treatments (which in some cases may cause problems).
In addition, this study did not actually find th...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - February 1, 2019 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Robert H. Shmerling, MD Tags: Cancer Complementary and alternative medicine Health Source Type: blogs
Hormonal therapy for aggressive prostate cancer: How long is enough?
This study reaffirms what many clinicians have put into practice: longer duration hormonal therapy in appropriately selected patient populations provides a greater benefit,” said Dr. Marc Garnick, the Gorman Brothers Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and editor in chief of HarvardProstateKnowledge.org. “Prior studies using three years of hormonal therapy have also shown this, but it is important to recognize that some men may have significantly delayed return of the body’s testosterone upon completion of the therapy — a fact that needs to be discussed when con...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - January 28, 2019 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Charlie Schmidt Tags: Health Living With Prostate Cancer Prostate Knowledge Treatments HPK Source Type: blogs
‘Cultural Humility’ Impacts Patient Safety for Transgender Women Healing From a Vaginoplasty
By: Matt Hopper A common theme among transgender women who undergo a vaginoplasty is their frustration with the health care system and lack of confidence that practitioners can or will provide quality care for gender-affirming procedures (medical procedures that affirm a transgender person’s gender identity). These medical procedures, such as hormone therapy, “top” surgery (i.e.
The post ‘Cultural Humility’ Impacts Patient Safety for Transgender Women Healing From a Vaginoplasty appeared first on Johns Hopkins Nursing Magazine. (Source: Nursing Blogs at Johns Hopkins University)
Source: Nursing Blogs at Johns Hopkins University - January 17, 2019 Category: Nursing Authors: Editor Tags: Health Equity On the Pulse LGBT postoperative transgender Source Type: blogs
Should We Integrate " Longevity Medicine " into Mainstream Care
More than 12 years ago, I posted a blog note about the field of anti-aging medicine, longevity and its practitioners (see:Anti-Aging, Longevity Medicine, and Lab Testing) that included the following paragraph:Just to frame the issue and get your attention, annual revenue from the anti-aging industry is estimated to be $56B -- this includes products such as anti-aging cream and botox injections. Need to find an anti-aging physician? No problem. Here is the link to the home page of theAmerican Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine (A4M). It's not too late to attend the 14th Annual International Congress on A...
Source: Lab Soft News - January 2, 2019 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: Bruce Friedman Tags: Clinical Lab Testing Healthcare Business Lab Industry Trends Lab Standards Medical Research Preventive Medicine Quality of Care Source Type: blogs
Hormone therapy for depression: Are the risks worth the benefits?
When you think of menopause, you might think of hot flashes and night sweats. But many women also experience symptoms of depression. The risk of depression doubles or even quadruples during the menopausal transition, which has researchers looking for ways to address — or even prevent — the problem.
One study published in JAMA Psychiatry found that hormone therapy may help ward off symptoms of peri- and postmenopausal depression in some women. Researchers found that perimenopausal and early postmenopausal women who were treated with hormones were less likely to experience symptoms of depression than women in the study w...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - November 16, 2018 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Kelly Bilodeau Tags: Anxiety and Depression Health Menopause Source Type: blogs
“News (Hot) Flash: Sex, Drugs and Menopause” Recap – 2010 Breakfast Series
Our panel this morning discussed the issues surrounding how the WHI results were interpreted and communicated to women and their health care providers. We recognize that hormones are not appropriate for all women, and look forward to hosting a future panel that highlights alternatives.
The speakers have a variety of backgrounds and experiences (and genders), and we aim to promote diversity of voices.
This was not normal breakfast conversation.
Today was a jolting – and disruptive – talk about what happens to women’s bodies when they age. (Who knew that if you’re menopausal and you don’t take your hormones, your v...
Source: Disruptive Women in Health Care - September 25, 2018 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: dw at disruptivewomen.net Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: blogs
New blood test may someday help guide the best treatment for aggressive prostate cancer
Tumors that spread, or metastasize, in the body shed cells into blood that doctors can scrutinize for insights into what a patient’s cancer might do. Analyzing these so-called circulating tumor cells (CTCs) isn’t part of routine care yet, in part because they’re so hard to pick out of the millions of normal cells in a blood sample. Still, scientists are making progress in this area. And in June, a research team reported that treatment decisions made on the basis of CTC testing had increased lifespans in men with an aggressive type of metastatic prostate cancer.
Doctors usually treat metastatic prostate cancer with d...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - August 1, 2018 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Charlie Schmidt Tags: Cancer Health Men's Health Prostate Health Source Type: blogs
Systematic review: puberty suppressing drugs alone do not alleviate gender dysphoria
By Christian Jarrett
Clinicians treating teenagers with gender dysphoria, the teens themselves, and their parents, are faced with a dilemma – puberty suppressing drugs and hormonal treatments will likely make it easier for the adolescent to gender transition in due course, and the earlier that process begins, the more effective it is likely to be. However, intervening earlier comes with a greater risk that the teen may later de-transition (that is, change their mind about wanting to transition to the other gender), leaving them with potentially irreversible bodily changes caused by the hormonal treatment.
According to a...
Source: BPS RESEARCH DIGEST - July 23, 2018 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: BPS Research Digest Tags: biological Gender Mental health Source Type: blogs
