Understanding Referral Patterns for Ovarian Cancer
March 14th 2011Primary care physicians are the entry point for care for many patients. They are often responsible for determining when additional expertise is needed and to which specialist a patient should go for additional care. Although studies have shown that gynecologic oncologists can improve surgical and survival outcomes for patients with ovarian cancer, the referral rate from primary care physicians to gynecologic oncologists remains relatively low.
Breast-Feeding May Boost Health of Cancer Survivors
March 14th 2011Female childhood cancer survivors should be encouraged to breast-feed as a health behavior that is protective against many late effects of cancer treatment, according to a review published online Jan. 21 in the Journal of Cancer Survivorship.
Timing of Hormone Therapy Influences Breast Cancer Risk
March 14th 2011For women taking postmenopausal hormone therapy, breast cancer risk is greater among users of estrogen-progestin formulations, and those who begin treatment earlier, according to a study published online Jan. 28 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
CDC: U.S. Teenage Birth Rate Declines, Reaches Low
March 14th 2011The U.S. teenage birth rate has resumed its decline, reaching a historic low in 2009, according to a report published in the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) February Data Brief.
Lower Risk of False Positive With Digital Mammography
March 9th 2011The risk of false-positive results is lower with digital mammography compared to screen-film mammography, with no significant difference in the cancer detection rate between the two, according to a study published in the February issue of Radiology.
Hyperprolactinemia Diagnosis Sufficient With Single Test
March 9th 2011One serum blood test is sufficient to diagnose hyperprolactinemia, and dynamic testing of prolactin secretion should be avoided, according to new guidelines published in the February issue of the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.
Alcohol Intoxication Increases Sleep Disruption in Women
March 8th 2011Alcohol intoxication elevates subjective sleepiness and disrupts sleep objectively in women more than in men, regardless of family history of alcoholism, according to a study published online Feb. 15 in Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research.
Oral Bisphosphonates May Lower Colorectal Cancer Risk
March 8th 2011Use of oral bisphsphonates ofr more than one year in postmenopausal women is associated with a 59 percent decrease in the relative risk of colorectoal cancer, according to a study published online Feb. 14 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
Researchers Explore Nature of Difficult Clinical Encounters
March 8th 2011Both patients and physicians can bring qualities to a clinical encounter that result in its being perceived as difficult, and patients involved in these types of encounters have worse short-term outcomes, according to research published online Jan. 25 in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.
Screening Tool Can Help Detect Bleeding Disorder in Women With Menorrhagia
March 2nd 2011Approximately 5% of women who seek medical assistance for menorrhagia from their primary care physicians or gynecologists never make their way to a hematologist, even though many of these women have such underlying hemostatic abnormalities as decreased von Willebrand factor (VWF), platelet dysfunction, and decreased coagulation factors. These women in turn are in danger of experiencing bleeding complications during surgery, childbirth, or other invasive procedures.
Distress Before Fertility Treatment Not Tied to Outcome
March 2nd 2011Emotional distress some women experience prior to undergoing fertility treatment appears to have no bearing on the likeihood that the treatment will result in a successful pregnancy, according to a literature analysis published Feb. 23 in BMJ.
Trastuzumab Tied to Disease-Free Survival at Four Years
March 2nd 2011In women with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive early breast cancer, treatment with trastuzumab for one year after chemotherapy is associated with significant disease-free survival at a four-year follow-up, according to a study published online Feb. 25 in The Lancet Oncology.
SSRI shows efficacy in reducing menopausal symptoms
March 1st 2011Escitalopram, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of anxiety and depression, significantly reduces the frequency, severity, and bother of hot flashes, according to study findings.
Does cigarette smoking increase breast cancer risk?
March 1st 2011In the latest study to attempt to determine whether cigarette smoking increases or decreases a woman's risk for breast cancer, researchers from Harvard University found that active smoking, particularly before giving birth for the first time, modestly increases the risk for the disease.
Recommendations on home birth issued by American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists
March 1st 2011The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recently issued a committee opinion stating that although the absolute risk associated with planned home births is low, published medical evidence shows that it is associated with a 2- to 3-fold increase in the risk for newborn death compared with planned hospital births.