Women who consume higher amounts of calcium and vitamin D may have a lower risk of developing premenopausal breast cancer, according to a report in Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.Data from animal studies have linked calcium and vitamin D to breast cancer prevention, according to background information in the article. However, epidemiologic studies on humans have been less conclusive.Jennifer Lin, Ph.D. [click link for full article]

Substituting soy nuts for other protein sources in a healthy diet appears to lower blood pressure in postmenopausal women, and also may reduce cholesterol levels in women with high blood pressure, according to a report in Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.The American Heart Association estimates that high blood pressure (hypertension) affects approximately 50 million Americans and 1 billion individuals worldwide. [click link for full article]

Avastin (bevacizumab), significantly improves the time patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) live without their disease advancing (”progression free survival”) when added to cisplatin/gemcitabine chemotherapy, compared with chemotherapy alone. NSCLC is the most common form of the disease and accounts for more than 80 percent of all lung cancersii, with histology other than squamous cell as the most common subtype accounting for approximately 60 percent of NSCLC cases. [click link for full article]

Clinicians at Edward Hospital here are using Trilogy® technology from Varian Medical Systems (NYSE: VAR) to offer some cancer patients a novel treatment that adapts to changes in the tumor so that more healthy tissue can be preserved. This is particularly promising in the treatment of lung cancer, when breathing is already compromised and the doctor must spare as much healthy lung tissue as possible. [click link for full article]

For the first time, a group based cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) intervention has been demonstrated to markedly increase acceptance and adherence to CPAP treatment for sufferers of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).The results of the Australian based study, published in the international publication Sleep, found at one month 77% of participants exposed to the intervention used CPAP for a least four hours a night, compared with 31% in the treatment as usual group. [click link for full article]

A new study examining the overall and gender-related effects of LAP-BAND System surgery (LAGB) on insulin resistance, body composition, and metabolic risk markers six months post-surgery has found significant improvements in insulin resistance. The improvements occurred despite continuing obesity.The results are from the study entitled Insulin Resistance, Metabolic Risk Factors and Body Composition Six Months after LAP-BAND System Surgery. Joan F. [click link for full article]

A new study finds that exposure to a chemical component of diesel exhaust particles can compromise the ability of resistance arteries to regulate blood flow to bone marrow. Post-menopausal females, the elderly and males are most likely to be impacted, according to a new vascular biology study — using an animal model — presented at the 120th Annual Meeting of The American Physiological Society (APS; http://www.the-aps. [click link for full article]

Louis J. Ignarro, Ph.D. (Beverly Hills, Calif.), distinguished professor of pharmacology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and winner of the 1998 Nobel Prize in medicine, has been elected to the American Philosophical Society.Founded in 1743 by Benjamin Franklin, the American Philosophical Society is the country’s oldest learned society, recognizing extraordinary achievements in science, letters and the arts. [click link for full article]

Doctors have a key role in detecting the signs of child abuse and neglect, and in ensuring such cases are well documented and reported to the appropriate public agency to protect the children involved. The issues are discussed in a Seminar published in this week’s edition of The Lancet. [click link for full article]

Childhood obesity is widely recognised as a major contributor towards cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, sleep disorders, and psychological and social problems. The China National Nutrition and Health survey in 2002 revealed that the prevalence of overweight individuals has increased overall by 39% in the past ten years.In Xi’an City, where the new study was conducted, 20% of the adolescents were found to be overweight, a rate similar to that observed in many western countries. [click link for full article]