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The use of antiestrogen supplements in women with breast cancer may decrease the risk for melanoma, according to a study published in Cancer Prevention Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

Data from 7360 women with breast cancer between 1980 and 2005 were analyzed by Christine Bouchardy, MD, PhD, professor at the University of Geneva and head of the Geneva Cancer Registry, and colleagues. Antiestrogen therapy was given to 54% of these women.

Recently, the European Commission approved Avastin (bevacizumab) as a front-line treatment for women with advanced ovarian cancer when used in combination with standard chemotherapy.

Approximately 220,000 women are diagnosed and 140,000 women die of ovarian cancer each year globally. Prior to the approval of bevacizumab, ovarian cancer treatment had been limited to surgery and chemotherapy.

The American Cancer Society (ACS) has revised its guideline development process. The new methods align with new principles from the Institutes of Medicine (IOM) by:

When breast cancer patients’ doctors comanage their care with other specialists, the patients report greater satisfaction with their care. However, not all specialists are likely to share decision making with other physicians, according to a new study in Health Services Research.

 “Breast cancer is typically a condition that is managed by multiple specialists. Often a surgeon is involved as well as a medical oncologist, radiologist and primary care physician,” said Katherine Kahn, MD, and senior author of the study.

A recent study reports 36% of women quit breast cancer therapy early due to the medications’ side effects, which are more severe and widespread than previously known. Plus, the Northwestern Medicine research reveals a disparity between what women tell their physicians regarding side effects and what women actually experience.

New research shows that breast cancer survivors may face problems with cognitive abilities several years after therapy, regardless of whether they received chemotherapy plus radiation or radiation only. The study, published early online in Cancer, indicates possible common and treatment-specific ways in which cancer treatments negatively affect cancer survivors’ cognitive skills.

The holidays mean family, fun, and festive foods. Some foods are sweet, some foods are salty, and some holiday foods may even help fight cancer. “While these so-called holiday foods are delicious to eat, they can also have the added bonus of containing cancer-preventing nutrients,” says Stephanie Meyers, MS, RD/LDN, nutritionist at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston. The following is a list of foods and recipes that should be on your menu this holiday season.

Go Nutty

More than one-third (34%) of women with secondary breast cancer are unnecessarily encumbered by uncontrolled pain, according to new research by Breast Cancer Care and the University of Southampton.

The study, led by the Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences, professor Jessica Corner, was published in the Journal of Pain and Symptom Management.

Of the 235 women included in the study, researchers found:

A new research institute at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center is intended to create effective new cancer medications and corresponding diagnostics using fundamental discoveries and modern technologies, according to Raymond DuBois, MD, PhD, MD Anderson’s executive vice president and provost.

Three million people in the U.S. are affected by lymphedema. Often times, it is believed that exercise induces or worsens lymphedema. However, after reviewing the literature, researchers say the exercise benefits outweigh the risks for breast cancer survivors and patients with lymphedema.

A professor in the Sinclair School of Nursing, Jane Armer, says patients at risk for lymphedema can exercise if they closely monitor their activities.