Arthrobotrys oligospora doesn't live a charmed life; it survives on a diet of roundworm, which isn't all that appealing, but the discovery of a team led by Mingjun Zhang, an associate professor of biomedical engineering at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, could give the fungus's life more purpose—as a cancer fighter. 

They discovered that nanoparticles produced by A. oligospora hold promise for stimulating the immune system and killing tumors. 

Various drugs companies have tried to produce antibodies that bind to the type 1 insulin-like growth factor, or IGF-1, receptor on the cell surface, which has a critical part to play in the development of cancer - but have had little success.

Understanding more about how these antibodies work may help explain why only some cancer patients are helped by IGF-1 blockers during clinical tests. 

New research found a more than four-fold increase in the incidence of breast cancer in women with neurofibromatosis-1 (NF1), which adds to evidence that women with this rare genetic disorder may benefit from early breast cancer screening (mammograms) beginning at age 40, and manual breast exams as early as adolescence.

Of about 250,000 women enrolled in an integrated healthcare delivery system, increased CT utilization between 2000 and 2010 could mean an increase in the risk of breast cancer for certain women, including younger patients and those who received repeat exams. According to the study presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA), nuclear medicine examinations may also contribute to increased breast cancer risk. 

CT uses ionizing radiation in the form of X-rays to produce cross-sectional images of the body. In nuclear medicine imaging, a radiopharmaceutical—a compound that includes a small amount of a radioactive material—is delivered inside the body to help visualize internal organs.

Though breast cancer death rates have been in decline for 20 years, black women had higher death rates than other demographics in the newest Centers for Disease Control report covering 2005-2009. Breast cancer remains the most common cancer and is the second leading cause of cancer death among U.S. women, about 40,000 deaths annually.  

Alcohol is categorized as a class 1 cancer-causing substance. Does that make it as dangerous as other proven human carcinogens such as benzene and heavy cigarette smoking? Generally, no. However, it doesn't mean that the findings should be overlooked, especially with regard to certain types of cancers. Not surprisingly, the risk tends to increase with the overall amount of ethanol consumed and, with certain cancer types, females are more at risk. How small amounts affect anything, however, has not been quantified.

Dr.

Entertainer Andy Williams died this week  following his year-long battle with bladder cancer. Over 10,000 people are diagnosed with bladder cancer every year in the UK but recent research from Action Bladder Cancer showed that one quarter (25%) of UK men and women wouldn't know what a sign of possible bladder cancer might be. 

New research may offer some hope to women whose fertility has been compromised by the side-effects of cancer therapy or by premature menopause.

In a new study, researchers from Monash University and Prince Henry's Institute of Medical Research found that two proteins, PUMA and NOXA, cause the death of egg cells in the ovaries.

Blocking the activity of the proteins may lead to new strategies to protect women's fertility.

They focused their studies on primordial follicle oocytes, egg cells which provide each woman's lifetime supply of eggs. Low numbers of these egg cells can also cause early menopause. 

Too hot to grill outside?  Too cold?  Stuck in a New York City Restaurant?  

Here is how you pan fry a steak.  Put a bunch of salt and pepper on it, some butter too.  Heat an oven to 450 degrees.  Iron skillet too, as hot as you can get it on a stove. Once both are hot, throw the steak in there and disabled the smoke alarm. Cook it for two minutes or so, then flip it over, take it off the stove and stick the whole thing in the oven for maybe 6 minutes.  

Result; a delicious pan-friend steak as good as anything as you will get in a restaurant; and up to a 40% increased risk of prostate cancer, according to a new study in Carcinogenesis which, you can tell by the name, is a pretty scary magazine.