PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Early detection window when pancreatic cancer is in the family

2014-10-14
(Press-News.org) Pancreatic cancer likely takes between 10 and 20 years to develop, providing the potential for a very "broad window" of intervention if detected early, which may be possible for people who inherit a predisposition, say Australian clinical researchers.

Dr Jeremy Humphris and Professor Andrew Biankin1, from Sydney's Garvan Institute of Medical Research, analysed medical histories and tumour samples taken from a cohort of 766 pancreatic cancer patients, operated on between 1994 and 20122. Roughly 9% of these patients had a first-degree relative (parent or sibling) with pancreatic cancer, a figure consistent with other studies.

Patients with close relatives were shown to be more far more likely to have at least one other form of cancer, as were relatives. In 71% of affected parent-child pairs, the child was around 12 years younger at diagnosis, which may reflect an inheritance phenomenon known as 'anticipation'. Active smokers were 10 years younger than the norm at diagnosis (as opposed to 5 years younger in patients who had not inherited the disease).

In a paper just published online in Cancer, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, the authors suggest that it should now be possible to identify novel susceptibility genes, and at the same time design risk management and screening programs for the genetically susceptible group.

Pancreatic cancer is a lethal disease with a 5-year survival rate of less than 5%. Most patients cannot be saved because diagnosis comes only after the disease is advanced or has spread. Long-term survivors are those who have small tumours which can be totally removed, and whose lymph nodes are clear of disease.

The greatest known risk factors are cigarette smoking and a family history of the disease. Other risk factors include diabetes and obesity and, to a lesser extent, alcohol consumption.

"Our findings suggest that when we're assessing someone, it's important to understand the family history – not just of pancreatic cancer, but other malignancies too," said Dr Jeremy Humphris.

"Smoking led to a much earlier onset of disease, so obviously you would counsel against smoking, especially in those who are genetically susceptible." Professor Andrew Biankin concurred, observing that "a better understanding of the clinical features of genetically at-risk individuals will help us identify susceptibility genes as well as those who might benefit from genetic counseling and screening for detection of early disease".


INFORMATION: 1. While still a member of Faculty at the Garvan Institute, Professor Biankin is also Regius Professor of Surgery at the University of Glasgow in Scotland and is based at the Wolfson Wohl Cancer Research Centre.

2. Collection of tumour samples and patient histories was undertaken by the Australian Pancreatic Genome Initiative (APGI). APGI is the Australian arm of the International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC), and aims to catalogue all the genetic changes in pancreatic cancer by analysing the biological material from patients diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. The APGI brings together the expertise of pancreatic cancer scientists and healthcare professionals across Australia, and is dedicated to improving outcomes for pancreatic cancer patients and their families.


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Seniors run for the suburbs in their golden years

2014-10-14
Montreal, October 14, 2014 — By 2040, there will be more than three times the number of Americans aged 80+ than there were in 2000. Condo towers crowding city skylines seem to reflect builders' hopes that the grey set will head to urban centres for increased services and better transit options. But new research from Concordia University suggests that the opposite is more likely to occur. In a study recently published in the Journal of Transport Geography, researcher Zachary Patterson uses census data to map seniors' moving habits. What emerges is a clear pattern: ...

NASA's Aqua satellite sees Extra-Tropical Storm Vongfong pulling away from Hokkaido, Japan

NASAs Aqua satellite sees Extra-Tropical Storm Vongfong pulling away from Hokkaido, Japan
2014-10-14
NASA's Aqua satellite passed over Extra-Tropical Storm Vongfong on Oct. 4 as it was moving away from Hokkaido, Japan, the northernmost of the big islands. Vongfong transitioned into an extra-tropical storm early on Oct. 4 as its core changed from warm to cold. The MODIS or Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer instrument aboard NASA's Aqua satellite captured a visible image of Tropical Storm Vongfong over Japan on Oct. 14 at 03:15 UTC as it was southeast of the island of Hokkaido, Japan. The image showed that south of the center of circulation was almost devoid ...

Future computers could be built from magnetic 'tornadoes'

2014-10-14
Magnetic materials form the basis of most hard disc drives as they are able to store data. A team from the University of Sheffield's Faculty of Engineering have been investigating whether they could also be used to perform calculations, and so take on the role of a computer's central processing unit (CPU). Lead researcher, Dr Tom Hayward, explains: "Magnetic materials are useful for data storage because they can retain information without consuming energy. A computer built around a CPU made of magnetic materials should be much more power efficient than existing technologies, ...

Institutional rearing may increase risk attention-deficit disorder

2014-10-14
Philadelphia, PA, October 14, 2014 – Over the past decades, we have seen numerous tragic examples where the failure of institutions to meet the needs of infants for social contact and stimulation has led to the failure of these infants to thrive. Infancy and childhood are critical life periods that shape the development of the cortex. A generation of research suggests that enriched environments, full of interesting stimuli to explore, promote cortical development and cognitive function. In contrast, deprivation and stress may compromise cortical development and ...

New discovery will enhance yield and quality of cereal and bioenergy crops

New discovery will enhance yield and quality of cereal and bioenergy crops
2014-10-14
ST. LOUIS, MO – October 13, 2014 –A team of scientists led by Thomas Brutnell, Ph.D., director of the Enterprise Rent-A-Car Institute for Renewable Fuels at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center have developed a new way of identifying genes that are important for photosynthesis in maize, and in rice. Their research helps to prioritize candidate genes that can be used for crop improvement and revealed new pathways and information about how plants fix carbon. The findings, published in "Comparative analyses of C4 and C3 photosynthesis in developing leaves of ...

Scientists link ALS progression to increased protein instability

Scientists link ALS progression to increased protein instability
2014-10-14
LA JOLLA, CA—October 13, 2014—A new study by scientists from The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI), Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and other institutions suggests a cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. "Our work supports a common theme whereby loss of protein stability leads to disease," said John A. Tainer, professor of structural biology at TSRI and senior scientist at Berkeley Lab, who shared senior authorship of the new research with TSRI Professor Elizabeth Getzoff. Getzoff, Tainer and ...

Taking infestation with a grain of salt

Taking infestation with a grain of salt
2014-10-14
Twenty years ago, biologists Kathy Boyer and Joy Zedler, then researchers at San Diego State University, speculated that too many insects feeding on cordgrass in the marshes of San Diego Bay could endanger the grass, and in turn endanger the bay wildlife that relies on it. Picking up where Boyer and Zedler left off, SDSU biologist Jeremy Long is currently further exploring the dimensions of this relationship. What he's found so far suggests that it's not a simple as saying too many insects spell death for a host plant. Instead, his research suggests a complex interplay ...

Fermented milk made by Lactococcus lactis H61 improves skin of healthy young women

2014-10-14
Philadelphia, PA, October 13, 2014 – There has been much interest in the potential for using probiotic bacteria for treating skin diseases and other disorders. Japanese researchers have now found that milk that has been fermented using a probiotic dairy starter can also benefit the skin of young healthy women, reports the Journal of Dairy Science®. Probiotics have been defined by the Food and Agriculture Organization-World Health Organization as "live microorganisms which, when administered in adequate amounts, confer a health benefit to the host." "Although ...

Study reveals how deadly MERS virus enters human cells

2014-10-14
ITHACA, N.Y. – Cornell University researchers have uncovered details of how the deadly Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) enters host cells, and offer possible new avenues for treatment. The study, appearing online this month in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, discovered that a common protease enzyme known as furin activates the MERS-CoV to fuse with cell membranes and enter host cells. The researchers, Gary Whittaker, Cornell professor of virology, and Jean Millet, a postdoctoral associate in Whittaker's lab, suggest ...

Turtle tumors linked to excessive nitrogen from land-based pollution

2014-10-14
Hawai'i's sea turtles are afflicted with chronic and often lethal tumors caused by consuming non-native algae "superweeds" along coastlines where nutrient pollution is unchecked. The disease that causes these tumors is considered the leading cause of death in endangered green sea turtles. The new research was just published in the scientific journal PeerJ. Turtles that graze on blooms of invasive seaweeds end up with a diet that is rich in a particular amino acid, arginine, which promotes the virus that creates the tumors. Scientists at the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Warming temperatures impact immune performance of wild monkeys, U-M study shows

Fine particulate air pollution may play a role in adverse birth outcomes

Sea anemone study shows how animals stay ‘in shape’

KIER unveils catalyst innovations for sustainable turquoise hydrogen solutions

Bacteria ditch tags to dodge antibiotics

New insights in plant response to high temperatures and drought

Strategies for safe and equitable access to water: a catalyst for global peace and security

CNIO opens up new research pathways against paediatric cancer Ewing sarcoma by discovering mechanisms that make it more aggressive

Disease severity staging system for NOTCH3-associated small vessel disease, including CADASIL

Satellite evidence bolsters case that climate change caused mass elephant die-off

Unique killer whale pod may have acquired special skills to hunt the world’s largest fish

Emory-led Lancet review highlights racial disparities in sudden cardiac arrest and death among athletes

A new approach to predicting malaria drug resistance

Coral adaptation unlikely to keep pace with global warming

Bioinspired droplet-based systems herald a new era in biocompatible devices

A fossil first: Scientists find 1.5-million-year-old footprints of two different species of human ancestors at same spot

The key to “climate smart” agriculture might be through its value chain

These hibernating squirrels could use a drink—but don’t feel the thirst

New footprints offer evidence of co-existing hominid species 1.5 million years ago

Moral outrage helps misinformation spread through social media

U-M, multinational team of scientists reveal structural link for initiation of protein synthesis in bacteria

New paper calls for harnessing agrifood value chains to help farmers be climate-smart

Preschool education: A key to supporting allophone children

CNIC scientists discover a key mechanism in fat cells that protects the body against energetic excess

Chemical replacement of TNT explosive more harmful to plants, study shows

Scientists reveal possible role of iron sulfides in creating life in terrestrial hot springs

Hormone therapy affects the metabolic health of transgender individuals

Survey of 12 European countries reveals the best and worst for smoke-free homes

First new treatment for asthma attacks in 50 years

Certain HRT tablets linked to increased heart disease and blood clot risk

[Press-News.org] Early detection window when pancreatic cancer is in the family