Category:
Take Carcinoma Out of DCIS and Ease Off Treatment
January 21, 2010 — The term carcinoma in the phrase ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is misleading and troubling and ought to be dropped, or at least its dropping should be considered, suggest some recent editorials in major journals.

Both editorials also suggest that DCIS is a possible candidate for management by active surveillance, a treatment strategy of growing importance in prostate cancer in which low-risk patients do not receive radiotherapy or surgery unless they progress to higher risk.

However, unlike in prostate cancer, where active surveillance and a revised sense of what is acceptable management in low-risk patients have been gaining strength for a number of years at multiple North American centers, these potential changes for DCIS are still at an early stage. And, at this point, much of the push for DCIS changes — proposed and actual — appears to be emanating from 1 center in particular, the University of California in San Francisco (UCSF).

Category: Diet & Exercise
THE ANTI-CANCER DIET

Some foods actually contribute to the development of cancer; other foods lessen the risk. The following anti-cancer diet greatly lowers your risk of colorectal cancer and nearly all other types of cancers. It can also prevent cardiovascular disease. For people with a genetic tendency toward colorectal cancer, it is not just an option, it's a lifesaving necessity.

Category: Medical Studies
The Clinical Significance of Cytokeratin-Positive Cells in Lymph Nodes at the Time of Mastectomy Fro

. . . Conclusions: Epithelial cells may be present in the lymph nodes draining a site of recent breast biopsy in the absence of invasive carcinoma, indicating that these are an artifact of recent surgery and not of micrometastatic disease.

Category: Diet & Exercise
The Everything Guide to Tea

Is it true that tea has more antioxidants than almost any whole fruit or vegetable?
Yes -- sort of. Tea is an excellent source of antioxidants. While it's hard to make a general comparison, a rough estimate suggests that two servings of tea equal one serving of your average antioxidant-packed veggie.

Category: Medical Studies
The relevance of occult axillary micrometastasis in ductal carcinoma in situ: a clinicopathologic st

Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) represents 20% of newly diagnosed breast carcinoma cases. Historically, the incidence of axillary metastasis in DCIS has been small (1-2%) and its significance has been debated. It is widely known that serial sections of lymph nodes coupled with keratin immunohistochemistry (IHC) increases identification of micrometastasis. The advent of sentinel lymph node evaluation underscores the need to reevaluate the significance of occult micrometastases in DCIS.

Category: Medical Studies
The role of aromatase inhibitors in the adjuvant treatment of breast carcinoma: the M. D. Anderson C

BACKGROUND: The authors examined the published evidence on the use of aromatase inhibitors (AIs) in the adjuvant setting in postmenopausal, hormone receptor-positive patients, and they provide recommendations for clinical management in 3 different situations: newly diagnosed women, women who have already received tamoxifen for 2-3 years, and women who have completed 5-years of tamoxifen and are disease free.

Category: Medical Studies
Therapies for DCIS - List
Results of search at PubMed

Category: Miscellaneous
Treating Node-Negative, Receptor-Positive DCIS?

We have a 50-year-old woman in our clinic with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), estrogen- and progesterone-receptor-positive, with multiple foci of microinvasion (< 2 mm). She was treated with mastectomy and axillar dissection; all 15 nodes were negative. Is there a role for adjuvant therapy in this case?

Category: Medical Studies
Treatment uses body's immune system

A new study of women diagnosed with ductal carcinoma in situ may have uncovered important clues that will lead to personalized treatment.

DCIS is a common form of cancer in which malignant cells develop within the milk ducts of the breast. Currently, a woman who is diagnosed chooses either a lumpectomy with radiation treatment or has a mastectomy.

But a study of nearly 1,200 women at 63 San Francisco area hospitals uncovered three "biomarkers" that may help doctors determine how aggressively they should treat each patient. Of women with all three markers, 20 percent developed an invasive cancer within eight years. Of those with none of the markers, only 4 percent developed invasive cancer.

If the findings are confirmed, such differences may help women choose a more appropriate treatment, experts said.

"At this point in time we're probably overtreating people and undertreating people," said Dr. Karla Kerlikowske, a professor of medicine, epidemiology and biostatistics at the University of California San Francisco. "If we can define a woman's risk a little better, then we can personalize what they want to do."

Category: Medical Studies
Understanding Your Pathology Report

I'll tell you a little bit about basic breast cancer pathology, because obviously can't make all of you pathologists, nor do I intend to, and then I’ll tell you how to better decipher your pathology report.