Recent Blog Articles
Tick season is expanding: Protect yourself against Lyme disease
What? Another medical form to fill out?
How do trees and green spaces enhance our health?
A muscle-building obsession in boys: What to know and do
Harvard Health Ad Watch: New drug, old song, clever tagline
Concussion in children: What to know and do
What color is your tongue? What's healthy, what's not?
Your amazing parathyroid glands
When — and how — should you be screened for colon cancer?
Co-regulation: Helping children and teens navigate big emotions
Cancer Archive
Articles
Skin Biopsy
What is the test?
Doctors take biopsies of areas that look abnormal and use them to detect cancer, precancerous cells, infections, and other conditions. For some biopsies, the doctor inserts a needle into the skin and draws out a sample; in other cases, tissue is removed during a surgical procedure.
For this test, abnormal areas of skin are removed to test for cancer or other skin diseases.
Stereotactic Biopsy of the Breast
What is the test?
Stereotactic biopsy of the breast is a special type of large core needle biopsy. It is one method of guiding the biopsy needle to the desired location in the breast. Core needle biopsy can also be guided by ultrasound or by the standard x-ray techniques used in mammography. Large core needle biopsy is often the diagnostic method of choice to evaluate abnormalities that are visible on a mammogram but cannot easily be felt by hand.
Core needle biopsy may not be suitable for women who have:
Psoriasis and cancer: What’s the link?
An analysis of studies found an association between people with psoriasis and an increased risk of developing several types of cancer. While this does not establish a definitive link, psoriasis is a relatively common condition and those who have it should be aware of its implications.
Suffering from "chemo brain"? There's hope and many things you can do
Over the past decade, research has revealed that the majority of patients treated for cancer experience difficulties with memory, attention, concentration, and thinking. There are several lifestyle actions that can help improve these symptoms, as well as certain medications.
Government advisory board recommends against screening for pancreatic cancer
Research we're watching
Screening symptom-free adults for pancreatic cancer doesn't appear to reduce deaths from the disease, according to a new analysis by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF). The group advises against recommending screening in this group.
Pancreatic cancer is relatively uncommon, but the prognosis for people who get it is often poor, because it is frequently found at an advanced stage. This has made it the third most common cause of deaths from cancer in the United States. It was hoped that screening for the disease would enable doctors to spot cases earlier, when they might be easier to treat. However, the USPSTF reviewed findings on pancreatic cancer screening in people without symptoms and determined that there is no evidence that screening in this group — or treating cases of pancreatic cancer found on screening tests — reduces deaths from the disease. The task force concluded that the benefits of screening do not outweigh the potential harms.
Women with post-traumatic stress disorder may be at higher risk for ovarian cancer
Research we're watching
Could a traumatic experience raise the risk of ovarian cancer? Researchers at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Moffitt Cancer Center found that women who remembered experiencing six or more symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) had double the risk of later developing ovarian cancer, compared with women who had not reported PTSD symptoms. They were also more likely to develop a more aggressive form of the cancer. The researchers looked at data from more than 50,000 women who participated in the Nurses' Health Study II. Early in the study, women were asked to identify their most stressful life experience and any PTSD symptoms they had experienced following that event. Researchers then looked to see which of the women went on to develop ovarian cancer. The study, published Sept. 5 in Cancer Research, found higher cancer risk persisted even if a woman's PTSD symptoms had occurred decades in the past. Past animal research suggests that stress hormones may spur tumor growth.
Image: martinedoucet/Getty Images
Is it time to stop skimming over full-fat dairy?
For years, the conventional wisdom about dairy is that we should be eating less of it, and when we do have any it should be low-fat or fat-free. But more recent research suggests that some full-fat dairy in our diets could in fact be beneficial, though the type of dairy still matters.
Don't give up on grains
Whole grains contain fiber and nutrients that can help your health.
It's a low-carb world, and many people are pushing grains off their plate in an effort to control their waistline. But they may be doing their body a disservice. Whole grains have some unique properties that make them a valuable addition to the diet. Not only do they contain a host of nutrients, such as iron, B vitamins, copper, zinc, and magnesium, but studies have linked diets rich in whole grains to a lower risk of colon cancer, which is a growing health threat for many younger Americans.
"The main benefit of whole cereal grains, such as wheat, oats, and barley, is in the fiber," says Teresa Fung, adjunct professor in the Department of Nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. "Cereal fiber is different from vegetable fiber or bean fiber."
Stay ahead of skin cancer
Learn to spot an actinic keratosis before it becomes cancerous.
About 58 million people have at least one actinic keratosis (AK), a precancerous skin growth caused by too much sun exposure.
Yet most people don't see the potential danger in these lesions because they are small, with few if any annoying symptoms, and can go away almost as fast as they appear.
Colorectal cancer screening before age 50?
Recent Blog Articles
Tick season is expanding: Protect yourself against Lyme disease
What? Another medical form to fill out?
How do trees and green spaces enhance our health?
A muscle-building obsession in boys: What to know and do
Harvard Health Ad Watch: New drug, old song, clever tagline
Concussion in children: What to know and do
What color is your tongue? What's healthy, what's not?
Your amazing parathyroid glands
When — and how — should you be screened for colon cancer?
Co-regulation: Helping children and teens navigate big emotions
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