Breast Cancer: Study Says Timing of HRT May Reduce Risks

The HRT debate continues with new evidence showing that when in your natural life cycle you begin hormone therapy could make all the difference  in terms of it’s safety. Here’s what every woman must know…

By Colette Bouchez

Could the number of years that pass between the start of menopause and the start of hormone therapy influence your risk of breast cancer? That’s the intriguing question posed by a new study, published  this weekend in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

Here, researchers from  England’s Oxford University examined epidemiologic data from over 1 million women,  with the idea of calculating  the risk of breast cancer in relation to the menopausal time frame during which these  women began hormone therapy.

What the study found: Women who started hormone therapy five years or more after menopause, had little or no increased risk of breast cancer, regardless of the type of hormone therapy used , how long they used it, or whether or not they were overweight or even obese – both contributing risk factors to breast cancer. 

By comparison, women who started hormone therapy just before, or soon after menopause began, were at greater overall risk for developing breast cancer.

“A new finding of this study, which has been little investigated previously, is that the interval between menopause and starting hormonal therapy has a substantial effect on breast cancer risk,” says lead study author Valerie Beral, FRS.

According to breast cancer specialist Julia A. Smith, MD, PhD, the study provides us with an important piece of the breast cancer risk factor puzzle.

“Large epidemiological studies like this one don’t  necessarily give us answers, but they do help us understand where to look  for answers – and this study has done that by reiterating  the importance of timing in the relationship between hormones and  breast cancer ,” says Smith, director of the NYU Cancer Institute Breast Cancer Screening and Prevention Program and the director of the Lynne Cohen Cancer Screening and Prevention Clinic for High Risk Women at Bellevue Hospital Center, and Breast Cancer Preventive Care Program at the NYU Clinical Cancer Center.

Indeed, Smith says that while we have long known that hormones definitely play some  role in breast cancer, it’s in the understanding of how they interplay with many other factors in our life and our health that will ultimately give us the kind of information that we need to nail down each individual woman’s risk profile.

“What’s been clear is that there is a delicate and intricate interplay between all the sex hormones and the risk of breast cancer – so much so that I don’t believe we will ever find a single correlation that is the answer for all women;  and this is why timing of hormone treatment has come to light as such an important issue – it gives us one more very important piece of the personal risk factor puzzle,” says Smith.

More study specifics

To arrive at their conclusions, the researchers looked at the health records of some 1,129,000 women in relation to their use of hormones and their relative risk of breast cancer.  They  compared  women who did not use hormones, to those who did, and most importantly, calculated the timing  at which hormone use began in relation to the start of menopause.  They also looked at various types of hormone therapy, including estrogen only and estrogen/progestin combinations.

What they found:  After adjusting for other contributing risk factors (such as family history) the researchers found that the relative risk for breast cancer was higher among those women who had begun hormonal therapy during the perimenopause ( the time leading up to menopause) or soon after menopause began, than it was for women who waited 5 years or more to start hormone therapy.  This held true both for women using estrogen –only formulations, or for those using combination hormone therapies.

How great was the increased risk?  In women who did not use hormone therapy the risk of breast cancer was approximately .30 % while the risk among hormone users was as high as .61% in those who started hormone therapy either before or within the first 5 years of menopause.  The risk for those who began hormone therapy 5 years or more after menopause was almost equal to those who never used hormones.

The question that now remains, however, is why the timing of hormone therapy  appears to have such a crucial impact. Smith believes it may be linked to the logic of not interfering with natural body changes while those changes are taking place.

“Giving a woman hormones at the start of menopause – a time when her body is not just experiencing  a loss of estrogen and progesterone, but a decrease in many different hormones – may cause the kind of imbalance that ultimately increases her risk of  not just breast cancer, but possibly other hormone related cancers,” says Smith.

“We need to ask ourselves how much do we really need to interfere with the body’s natural processes at a time when those processes are changing,” she adds.

Indeed, we have learned in the past that young women in early puberty, whose breasts are undergoing development, are at greatest risk for the ill effects of  chemical pollutants tied to breast cancer.  Similarly, it may be that when a woman’s body is undergoing similar kinds of hormonal shifts on the other end of the age spectrum, her breast cells may also be more susceptible to influence from outside factors, including hormone use.

“There are enormous  complexities and so much we do not yet understand – but one key thing that is coming to light is that the timing of when  in our natural life cycle we choose to supplement  natural losses may  play a critical role in the outcome,  or the effects of what we are supplementing,” says Smith.

In an editorial that accompanied the study, Rowan T. Chlebowski, M.D., Ph.D., of Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center and Garnet Anderson from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center noted that the new research is critical since it  provides substantial support for similar findings from the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) – a massive study of more than 1 million US women.   He also added that the similarities between the patterns of breast cancer risk in both large groups of women increases the validity of both sets of results.  This is particularly important in light of the fact that both groups of researchers used different methods of calculation, yet arrived at similar conclusions.

For the latest health, beauty and style advice for women over 40 subscribe to RedDressDiary - It's Free! And be sure to check out CheapChicDiary.com for money saving beauty and style tips! Originally published in the Examiner.com -Copyright 2011 ColetteBouchez  All Rights Reserved

The owners or contributors to this blog may or may not benefit from the products and information featured herein.

Want To Lose Weight? Turn Down The Heat!

A new study shows that keeping your thermostat too high in winter could be keeping you from losing weight!  Here’s what you need to know!

By Colette Bouchez

Could losing weight be as easy as turning down your thermostat? It could be, at least according to a new study just published in the journal Obesity Reviews.

Here, researchers from the University of Cambridge Metabolic Research Laboratories in England offer important new evidence that reduced exposure to cold temperatures may impact the body’s ability to maintain a healthy weight.

"Research into the environmental drivers behind obesity, rather than the genetic ones, has tended to focus on diet and exercise – which are undoubtedly the major contributors. However, it is possible that other environmental factors, such as winter indoor temperatures, may also have a contributing role. This research therefore raises the possibility for new public health strategies to address the obesity epidemic." says lead author Dr. Fiona Johnson, of UCL Epidemiology & Public Health.

Indeed, the study points out that as the average indoor temperatures in both the US and the UK have been steadily increasing, that rise correlates just a little too well with the rising rate of obesity.

But it’s not just pure observation driving the research. Indeed, experts say there is some solid science behind the idea that temperature affects our metabolism – and that in turn affects our ability to control our weight.

How does it work? Research suggests that that exposure to seasonal cold helps keep our metabolism running at a faster, higher rate than it normally does when the body is warm and comfy. And this, say experts, means calories burn more quickly and easily.

Brown Fat Vs White Fat: How You Lose Weight

Perhaps even more important, however, the study authors point out that exposure to colder temperatures may change our ratio of brown fat to white fat – a factor that could make a difference how much overall fat we maintain. Indeed, brown fat differs from white fat in that it has the ability to be burned in order to create body heat. And in fact the body stores brown fat to have as a ready supply of energy.

However, recent studies suggest that increased time spent in warm conditions may mean the body maintains less brown fat – and that means we lose some of our ability to burn calories. The end result: We can gain weight even if we aren’t eating more.

Study co-author Marcella Ucci, UCL Bartlett School of Graduate Studies, says: "The findings suggest that lower winter temperatures in buildings might contribute to tackling obesity as well reducing carbon emissions."

The idea that cold may induce weight loss is not entirely new. In fact, former NASA scientist and entrepreneur Ray Cronise researched the impact of temperature on weight in astronauts and found that being a bit on the chilly side does indeed speed up metabolism, making it easier to burn calories.

Moreover, he says you don’t have to freeze and shiver in order to see the effects. Reportedly his research found that regularly exposing your body to 60 degree temperatures may give your metabolism enough of a boost to impact your ability to lose weight.

Tim Ferriss, author of the The 4 Hour Body is another proponent of what he calls “thermal dieting” – the use of temperature to control metabolism. He recently told ABC News “If you make it cold, the body will do everything it can to get back to 98.6. And it has to burn calories to do that -- heat equals calories."

A Word of Caution

While exposing yourself to colder temperatures may help you lose weight, it’s important to remember that some health conditions – particularly those caused by heart disease – can be exacerbated by extreme temperature changes, particularly sudden exposure to cold. In some people, exposure to cold temperatures may even cause a heart rhythm abnormality that could be fatal.

That said, if you want to turn down the thermostat a notch or two, it probably won’t harm you – and it might just help you to lose an extra pound or two. And oh yeah, your heating bills will be lower too!

Reprinted with permission from  Examiner.com

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Cervical Cancer: Good Nutrition, Regular Screenings & Safe Sex Can Protect You

January is Cervical Cancer Awareness Month – and it packs a powerful message no woman can afford to ignore. Here’s what you need to know …

By Colette Bouchez

As we spin head first into a brand new year – and a brand new list of resolutions we’re eager to tackle- it’s easy to let some of life’s more mundane tasks slip by - especially health screenings.

Which is one reason why health awareness months can serve such a strong and powerful purpose: They remind us of the importance of taking care of our health and move us in the direction of preventive care.

If you’re a woman, never is this more true than it is right now during January, the month dedicated to cervical cancer awareness - a disease which, while it affects some 12,00 women a year, can be prevented!

Indeed, with the help of 2 important cervical cancer screening tools – the Pap smear (which looks for abnormal cells within the cervix) and the HPV test ( which detects the human papillomavirus, the leading cause of cervical cancer ) your doctor has the power to not just detect this disease at its earliest, most easily treated stages, but in many instances detect the kind of pre-cancerous cell changes that, once treated, can stop this disease from ever occurring.

Cervical Cancer: What You Should Know

Though it has a specific name, your cervix is actually the lower portion of your uterus. Here, the tissue is lined with a layer of cells that develop, grow and die, and are replaced by new cells, in a cycle that lasts anywhere from 7 to 14 days. The continuing turnover of these cells is one factor that determines cervical health

When, however, due to any number of health challenges these cells come under attack - including infection with the HPV virus - that normal life cycle becomes disrupted. Cells don’t die as they should, and as a result they begin to build up, causing the lining of your cervix to thicken and change in both shape and form. This cell “overgrowth” is known as “dysplasia” – a condition said to affect between 250,000 and 1 million women a year.

Fortunately, for some women dysplasia – even that caused by HPV - can revert to normal on its own. When your immune system is strong, and you are healthy, you simply overcome the HPV virus – or whatever factor is causing the cell build-up - and the dysplasia stops.

For a significant number of women, however, this isn’t the case. For these women, the HPV, if present, does not go away, and the dysplasia – regardless of the cause – continues to worsen. Eventually, if not stopped, these cell changes lead to the development of cervical cancer, which can progress at an alarmingly fast rate.

Unfortunately, the treatment for late stage cervical cancer involves removing not just the cervix, but the entire uterus and usually the ovaries , which is often followed by either chemotherapy, radiation or a combination of both.

The Good News:  Studies show that if  you catch those cervical cell changes early on,  not only can the dysplasia be treated but in doing so the cancer can be prevented. If early cancer is detected, treatment is equally successful.

Treatments for dysplasia or early cervical cancer can include either electro cauterization or laser vaporization (both work to burn away or vaporize the pre-cancer or early stage cancer cells.)  Other treatments also include  the Leep procedure (which uses electrical current passed through thin wire loop to remove the abnormal tissue) or a “cone” biopsy (which removes a wedge shaped piece of the cervix containing the bad cells). 

Preventing Cervical Cancer: What Else You Can Do

While having regular Pap smears and tests for HPV are two ways to protect your fertility, since the HPV virus is sexually transmitted, if you are not in a monogamous relationship (or your partner is not monogamous) you might also want to consider the protection of Gardasil – the first and only vaccine shown to protect against HPV. Although when it first appeared on the scene Gardisil was recommended only for young women, today it is also being recommended for any sexually active middle aged women as well.

Although the vaccine has been the subject of some controversy – with some women having experienced life –threatening and life-changing side effects – to date the vast majority of who have had the Gardasil vaccine appear to suffer no serious side effects or lasting problems.

If, however, you don’t want to get the vaccine, then practicing safe sex is a must – and using condoms is essential.

Perhaps most important to remember is that good nutrition can also make an important preventive difference in protecting against both cervical cancer and the effects of HPV . And there are a number of key vitamins that can help  protect against the cell changes that lead to dysplasia – or in some instances even reverse dysplasia once it begins.

Among the most important are Vitamins C, E, and beta carotene ( vitamin A) , plus other carotenoids found in fruits and vegetables such as carrots, apricots, squash and cantaloupe.

What do all these nutrients have in common?  They are  all antioxidants, natural chemicals which enhance immune system function. And according to experts this could hold the key to protecting cervical cells from undergoing unhealthy changes.

How Vitamins Can Protect You From Cancer

Indeed, in a study at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City, researchers found that women who had cervical dysplasia routinely had lower blood levels of both beta carotene and vitamin E when compared to healthy women. Moreover, there was also a direct correlation between the amounts of beta-carotene and vitamin E in the blood, and the stage of cervical abnormality – with the more advanced cases having the more significant nutrient deficiencies.

Likewise, a previous study also conducted at Albert Einstein, found that women who consumed less than 30 mg of vitamin C daily were 10 times more likely to develop cervical dysplasia than women who consumed more.

In studies elsewhere, doctors showed that topically applying vitamin A directly into the cervix was able to reverse cell changes associated with dysplasia in up to 50% of women

Still another key nutrient is folic acid or vitamin B9. How can this help? As you read earlier, cells lining the cervix renew themselves every 7 to 14 days – and in the process continually form new DNA.   When the body is short on folic acid,  studies show that abnormalities in DNA formation can occur – and that can mean a higher risk of dysplasia.

Conversely, keep your folic acid levels high – at least 400 mcg per day – and you may keep your DNA production humming along in a normal and healthy fashion.

So, along with regular screenings, practicing safe sex, and the addition of these nutrients to your diet, you not only have the power to reduce your risk of cervical cancer, but maybe even eliminate that risk entirely.  And that’s the kind of awareness that can make a real difference in your life!

Copyright by Colette Bouchez 2011 - All Rights Reserved. In addition to US Copyright, the text of this FERTILITY BLOG is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License. All Formatting and style elements of this page are not available under this license and Colette Bouchez retains all rights in those elements. The owners and contributors to this blog may or may not benefit from the products, services or treatments mentioned herein.

Can Soap Be The Link To Curing Cancer?

Could soap hold the key to killing cancer cells? A new study says it just might be so! Here's what you need to know .... 

By Colette Bouchez

If a group of Japanese researchers are right, the same “science” behind why soap cleans our clothes just might hold the key to killing cancer cells. 

As wild as this sounds, it’s the solid premise behind a new study being released today in the journal Science Transistional Medicine.  It’s here that researchers offer proof that the same method that soap uses to trap dirt, grime and grease embedded in your gym socks and ultimately flushes it down the drain, so too can this same technology be used to target cancer cells and send them on their way. 

The concept revolves around something called “micelles” – molecules that develop from a soapy substance and work to actually surround grease and grime, trap it and pull it from our clothes.   In the new study researchers show how ordinary detergent micelles can be chemically modified to deliver a “ drug-laced arrow right to the heart of cancer cells.” 

A Japanese team of researchers led by  Mami Murakami designed micelles that were later shown to have the ability to release right on target a platinum based cancer-killing drug directly into the heart of the cells DNA – where the cancer originates.  Because they target the “heart” of the cancer cell, they believe the micelle delivery system overcomes certain types of drug that occur when medicines try to get through cell layers – and can’t.  Drug resistance is, in fact, a major obstacle in cancer treatment.

So what’s a micelle – and how does it do the “dirty work”? 

Experts say a micelle forms when certain molecules – including soaps and detergents – are mixed with water.  As they form  micells are able  literally entrap chemotherapy drug agents used to kill cancer cells, and then carry the cancer killing drugs directly to the tumor. Once there, the cancer cells literally suck up the micelles – and the next thing you know, the damaged DNA -and the cancer - is gone. 

The question of course that remains is whether or not driving the drug to the heart of the cancer cell will have any better outcome  - in terms of the drugs effectiveness. 

Certainly in the development of a treatment known as "brachytherapy" doctors proved that delivering radiation "seeds" directly to prostate cancer cells worked better than wide spread radiation that attacked the entire groin. 

And now again,  the new study shows that this targeted approach involving micelles also works for chemotherapy drugs.   Indeed, the researchers report that when encountered by the micelles, the cancer cells succumbed more easily and more quickly to the treatment than they did using other delivery systems . This they say is partly due to the activity of  micelle itself and partly because  the micelles are able to sneak past the defense proteins that normally  surround a cancer cell and frequently deactivate the treatment before it has a chance to get to the actual diseased cells. 

So, is this the magic cancer  bullet we’ve all been looking for? Probably not - at least not yet anyway.  And there is a long way to go before we know for sure if this approach works equally well on all chemotherapeutic drugs or even all cancers. Certainly it is the killing power of the drug - and not it's delivery system - that determines if a cancer treatment works.

But , that said, it is a positive step forward towards a destination that we just can’t reach soon enough. 

For the latest health, beauty and style advice for women over 40 subscribe to RedDressDiary - It's Free! And be sure to check out CheapChicDiary.com for money saving beauty and style tips!

Copyright by ElleMedia Network 2011 - All Rights Reserved. In addition to US Copyright, the text of this RedDressDiary article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License. All formatting and style elements of this page are not available under this license, and Colette Bouchez retains all rights in those elements.  The owners and contributors to this blog may or may not benefit from the information, products or treatments that appear on these pages.

Study: New Natural Treatment Promises To Increase IVF Success Rate & Stop Miscarriage

A new study found that a simple natural oil emulsion could be the key to a more successful IVF. Here’s what you need to know…

By Colette Bouchez

If a group of British researchers are right, older women looking to increase their odds of a successful IVF – while also  reducing their risk of miscarriage - could be as easy as using a simple, inexpensive soy-based oil treatment one week prior to when your fertility procedure takes place.

That’s the conclusion of some new research being presented later this week at the British Fertility Society Meeting in Dublin , Ireland on January 6^th.

Here researchers from Care Fertility, an IVF clinic in Nottingham, England will present evidence that an intravenous treatment using a prescription-only soy-based oil known as Intralipid prior to an IVF procedure , dramatically increases pregnancy success rates while reducing the risk of miscarriage.

Dr. George Ndukwe, of the Care Fertility Clinic in Nottingham where the study was conducted, told the Daily Mail: “Every day in my clinic I see women who have had numerous IVF cycles all with the same negative outcome and no baby. We are now devoting our attention to finding answers when nature goes wrong.”

According to Ndukwe and his team at least some of those answers can be found in Intralipid, the soy based fatty acid that researchers say plays a role in helping a newly implanted embryo attach to the mother’s uterus and begin to thrive.

The Study: Research  on Intralipid involved 96 women – average age 37 - all of whom experienced at least 6 previous failed IVF attempts. Fifty of the women in the group received infusions of the soy-based oil, given by intravenous drip about a week before their IVF was to take place. Forty six of the women received no treatment.

All the women subsequently underwent an IVF procedure, which included removing their eggs, combining them with sperm in a laboratory dish , and then implanting the resulting embryo into the woman’s uterus.

The Result: Fifty percent of the women who received the Intralipid infusions achieved successful pregnancies, compared to just 9 percent of those not treated.

In terms of miscarriage, just two women who received Intralipid miscarried (about 8 percent) compared to seven miscarriages in the group who did not receive the infusions (about 64 percent).

What is Intralipid – And Can It Help You?

So what is this seemingly “magic” fluid called Intralipid? Lest you think it’s a brand new “miracle” drug, guess again. Intralipid was approved by the FDA in 1962 to help correct an essential fatty acid and calorie deficiency in those who are unable to eat normally – either due to gastrointestinal difficulties or the inability to swallow.

It consists of 20% Soybean Oil, 1.2% Egg Yolk Phospholipids, 2.25% Glycerin, and Water . Given as an intravenous infusion it bypasses the stomach and goes directly into the bloodstream to supply the body with several essential fatty acids. These are substances required for many biological functions, including reproduction – but they can’t be made by the body. As such they must be obtained via food, supplements, or in this case the intravenous infusion.

Reduce Inflammation – Get Pregnant Easier

Although the new study surrounding the use of Intralipid for fertility purposes is new, it’s important to point out that previous studies have  found that other sources of essential fatty acids have had similar fertility-related results.

Indeed, in one study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, researchers found that simply adding more foods high in an essential fatty acid known as Omega 3 to the diet had enough of an impact on reproduction to kick start ovulation in women with PCOS ( poly cystic ovary syndrome) who were not ovulating at all.

Other studies have shown that foods rich in omega 3 fatty acids ( like cold water fish, flax seeds and walnuts) can encourage a healthy conception in all women by reducing inflammation that can frequently impact the production of fertility hormones, as well as cause inflammation within the uterus that could result in pregnancy loss.

Indeed, Dr. Ndukwe suggests  - and many fertility experts agree - that a leading cause of infertility in women today is  related to inflammation, often the result of undiagnosed immune system malfunctions. This, he believes causes an excess production of white blood cells (called natural killer cells) which he says ‘fight’ the pregnancy by triggering the production of  chemicals that attack the placenta or the embryo. And indeed, abnormally high levels of white blood cells have been shown in some studies to increase the risk of miscarriage.

In fact, currently the arthritis drug Humira – which reduces inflammation - is being used by some fertility experts to boost pregnancy rates in some women suspected of having inflammatory –related infertility. Moreover, Professor Siobhan Quenby, of Solihull Hospital and Warwick University, in England, has already successfully used an anti-inflammatory  asthma drug to curb the immune response in a pilot trial of women plagued with chronic pregnancy loss.

And of course, there is the old standby of taking one baby aspirin a day beginning two weeks prior to conception and continuing throughout the first trimester, to reduce the risk of miscarriage – a regimen long prescribed by many fertility doctors.  The active ingredient in the baby aspirin: the anti-inflammatory compound salicylic acid.

But it’s also important to remember that  studies show that for many women, simply increasing their intake of essential fatty acids – particularly Omega 3 fatty acids – either via diet or supplements, can have a similar positive impact on reducing inflammation, while increasing conception rates and decreasing the risk of miscarriage in women who do conceive.

Moreover, once you do get pregnant, studies also show that  essential fatty acids reduce the risk of premature birth while helping women avoid pre-eclampsia and possibly post partum depression after birth.

Is Intralipid Right For You?

The new study on  Intralipid reports that the treatment is easily tolerated, has few side effects and is relatively cheap to administer. So in this respect, it may be worth talking to your doctor about adding it to your IVF regimen.

At the same time, however, remember that Mother Nature offers similar results via foods and nature-based supplements of essential fatty acids, including Omega 3’s as well as fatty acids known as linoleic acid and gamma linoleic acid, otherwise known as GLA.

To learn more about the power of all anti inflammatory essential fatty acids to boost your fertility naturally, as well as increase the success of your IVF procedures and reduce your risk of miscarriage visit www.GreenFertilty.com – or pick up a copy of Green Fertility: Nature’s Secrets for Making Babies.

Colette Bouchez is the co-author of Green Fertility: Nature’s Secrets for Making Babies. 

Copyright by Colette Bouchez 2010 - All Rights Reserved. In addition to US Copyright, the text of this FERTILITY BLOG is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License. All Formatting and style elements of this page are not available under this license and Colette Bouchez retains all rights in those elements.