Tag: 3/4/25

Categories : Cancer Metabolic DisordersTags : Leave a comment

Do Lifetime Body Weight Patterns Affect the Risk of Kidney Cancer?

On By ModernMedia

Study links higher body mass index at various ages across adulthood with greater risks of developing different types of kidney cancer.

Photo by I Yunmai on Unsplash

Excess weight in mid-life is a known risk factor for kidney cancer, but new research indicates that weight patterns throughout life may also affect an individual’s likelihood of developing this malignancy. The findings are published by Wiley online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society.

To assess weight patterns and their associations with kidney cancer and its different subtypes, investigators analysed data from 204 364 individuals from the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study, including body mass index (BMI) data when participants entered the study (an average age of 61.6 years), and prior BMI recordings at 18, 35, and 50 years of age. The team noted that there were 1,425 cases of kidney cancer, or renal cell carcinoma (RCC), among the study’s participants, with 583 having aggressive RCC and 339 having fatal RCC. The researchers also recorded the different subtypes of RCC, including clear cell RCC (541 patients), papillary RCC (146 patients), and chromophobe RCC (64 patients).

Higher BMI at any of the ages assessed was linked with higher risks of overall RCC and all subtypes (except chromophobe RCC), with a 10-40% higher risk for each 5-unit increase in BMI. Similar increased risks were linked to weight gain during adulthood that resulted in overweight or obesity, compared with maintaining normal BMI.

Also, long-term excess weight was associated with higher risks of overall RCC, aggressive RCC, fatal RCC, and clear cell RCC, but not papillary RCC and chromophobe RCC. Weight loss in which BMI was reduced by at least 10%, particularly later in life, was associated with a lower risk of RCC. Specifically, weight loss from age 18–35 years and after age 50 years was associated with 21% and 28% reductions in RCC incidence, respectively.

“These findings emphasise that maintaining a healthy weight across one’s lifetime is important for reducing RCC risk. More importantly, weight loss, even later in life, may offer protective benefits,” said lead author Zhengyi Deng, PhD, of Stanford University School of Medicine. “We should support initiatives that promote healthy weight maintenance and weight loss strategies. Some of these include lifestyle interventions, weight-loss programs, and emerging medical treatments for obesity; however, individuals should consult with their healthcare providers prior to initiation of any plan.” 

Source: Wiley

Categories : Lab Tests and Imaging Neurodegenerative DiseasesTags : Leave a comment

Could a Blood Test Rule out Future Dementia Risk?

On By ModernMedia

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have demonstrated how specific biomarkers in the blood can predict the development of dementia up to 10 years before diagnosis with high accuracy, among older adults living independently in the community.

A new study, published in Nature Medicine, has investigated the potential of specific biomarkers such as tau217, Neurofilament Light (NfL), and Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein (GFAP) to predict the occurrence of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease, up to ten years before an actual diagnosis in cognitively healthy older adults living in the community. 

Blood samples from more than two thousand

Previous research has suggested that these biomarkers could be useful in early dementia diagnostics, but most studies involved individuals who have already sought medical care for cognitive issues, due to cognitive concerns or cognitive symptoms, such as memory difficulties. 

A larger, community-based study, was necessary to determine the predictive value of biomarkers in the general population.

Led by researchers from the Aging Research Center of Karolinska Institutet in collaboration with SciLifeLab and KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, the study analysed blood biomarkers in more than 2100 adults aged 60+, who were followed over time to determine if they developed dementia.

At a follow-up ten years later, 17% of participants had developed dementia. The accuracy of the biomarkers used in the study was found to be up to 83%.

“This is an encouraging result, especially considering the 10-year predictive window between testing and diagnosis. It shows that it is possible to reliably identify individuals who develop dementia and those who will remain healthy,” says Giulia Grande, assistant professor at the Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Karolinska Institutet and first author of the study.

Promising biomarkers

“Our findings imply that if an individual has low levels of these biomarkers, their risk of developing dementia over the next decade is minimal”, explains Davide Vetrano, associate professor at the same department and the study’s senior author. “This information could offer reassurance to individuals worried about their cognitive health, as it potentially rules out the future development of dementia.”

However, the researchers also observed that these biomarkers had low positive predictive values, meaning elevated biomarker levels alone could not reliably identify individuals who would surely develop dementia within the next ten years. Therefore, the study authors advise against widespread use of these biomarkers as screening tools in the population at this stage.

“These biomarkers are promising, but they are currently not suitable as standalone screening tests to identify dementia risk in the general population,” says Davide Vetrano. 

The researchers also noted that a combination of the three most relevant biomarkers – p-tau217 with NfL or GFAP – could improve predictive accuracy.

“Further research is needed to determine how these biomarkers can be effectively used in real-world settings, especially for elderly living in the community or in primary health care services,” says Grande.

“We need to move a step further and see whether the combination of these biomarkers with other clinical, biological or functional information could improve the possibility of these biomarkers to be used as screening tools for the general population”, Grande continues.

The study was mainly funded by the Swedish Research Council, The Swedish Brain Foundation and The Strategic Research Area in Epidemiology and Biostatistics at Karolinska Institutet. The researchers declare that there are no conflicts of interest.

Source: Karolinska Institutet

Categories : Cancer Healthcare Politics and RegulationsTags : Leave a comment

Could Possible Budget Cuts Cost Cancer Patients’ Lives?

On By ModernMedia
Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana holding a copy of the 2025 Budget Speech. (Photo: Parliament of RSA via X)

The Department of Health’s 2025/26 Budget Vote is expected to focus on addressing the shortfall caused by the withdrawal of international funding from programmes combating communicable diseases such as HIV and TB. But as non-communicable diseases like blood cancer surpass infectious diseases, redirecting resources could further cripple screening, diagnosis, and treatment – putting more lives at risk.

Too Few Resources, Too Many Lives Lost

Palesa Mokomele, Head of Community Engagement and Communications at DKMS Africa, highlights the difficulties faced by blood cancer patients within the country’s healthcare system. “Nearly 80% of South Africans rely on a system already operating at full capacity, with many left with little more than hope due to limited access to care. Even before these new funding shifts, resources for blood cancer detection and treatment were critically scarce, contributing to the loss of more than 4000 lives each year.”

Illustrating how a lack of medical infrastructure creates additional barriers to life-saving care, she says, “The survival rate for a stem cell transplant is up to 50% with a matched unrelated donor and 61% with a matched related donor. Yet many healthcare facilities simply don’t have the resources to perform these procedures. As a result, most patients receive only medical management, which may not be enough to ensure survival. Given our population size, transplant activity remains critically low – only 139 of the required 600 transplants are performed on adults annually, and just 18 of the 250 needed for children.”

Finances Dictate Healthcare Choices

Beyond the overstretched and under-resourced public health sector, the financial burden on patients remains a major obstacle. “One in five South African households delays seeking healthcare simply because they cannot afford it,” notes Mokomele. “While the state covers the cost of a stem cell transplant from a matching donor, other essential expenses such as tissue typing, donor searches, and stem cell procurement are not covered. These out-of-pocket costs place treatment out of reach for many, leading to heartbreaking decisions and poorer outcomes.”

She adds that socio-economic challenges often make accessing care even harder for patients. “Being the sole breadwinner means some individuals struggle to take time off work for necessary treatment. In other cases, mothers face the impossible choice between continuing their own treatment or staying home to care for their children when no other support is available.”

Post-transplant Survival Challenges

Even for patients who manage to undergo a transplant, their survival remains at risk due to conditions in some public healthcare facilities. “Overcrowding and poor sanitation create dangerous environments for these highly immunocompromised patients,” warns Mokomele. “To safeguard their fragile health, they need access to clean water, proper sanitation, isolation, and balanced nutrition.”

She stresses that long recovery periods make it difficult for patients from distant areas to complete their care without proper housing at treating hospitals. “Without these accommodations, many are forced to abandon treatment, putting their survival at risk.”

“No patient should be denied life-saving treatment due to funding constraints. We urge government and the private sector to collaborate in strengthening blood cancer care, and we encourage the public to play their part by supporting fundraising initiatives that help bridge critical gaps in treatment access,” concludes Mokomele.

Go to https://www.dkms-africa.org/get-involved/donate-money to contribute to this cause.

Categories : Cardiovascular Disease ExerciseTags : Leave a comment

Preventable Cardiac Deaths during Marathons are Down

On By ModernMedia
Photo by Barbara Olsen on Pexels

While more people than ever are running marathons in the U.S., the risk of dying from a heart attack during a run has fallen dramatically in recent years. That’s a key conclusion from a new study by Jonathan Kim, associate professor in the Emory School of Medicine. Kim’s research is a follow-up to a study he published in 2012 — the first investigation into unexpected cardiac arrests during long distance running events.

The new findings, published in JAMA, indicate that, while the rate of marathon runners who suffer cardiac arrests remained unchanged, their chance for survival is twice what it was in the past. Far fewer marathon runners who suffer cardiac arrest are now dying of it.

“We continue to see media reports about unfortunate cases of cardiac arrest during long distance running events,” Kim says. “But, has the incidence of these events changed? Have there been changes in the most common causes of cardiac arrest? What are the factors associated with death and survival? It was a novel question to ask 13 years after our first analysis, and an important one because recreational running continues to increase in popularity.”

The challenge of finding data

More than 29 million people completed marathons in the U.S. between 2010 and 2023, triple the number of the previous decade, which Kim examined in his first study. There’s no central registry of race-related cardiac events, so for both studies, his team had to find their data through a range of sources, starting by contacting individual race directors.

“We leveraged a few sources including a comprehensive review of media reports,” Kim says. “We also had contact information for all race directors and were able to reach approximately 70% of them who helped and told us the number of events during this specific timeline, including if the individual died and the sex of the participant.”

The researchers used extensive public internet searches to identify and reach out to runners who survived cardiac arrests or next-of-kin to construct detailed profiles of as many cases as possible. “The vast majority of cases were identifiable by public search engines. And all of the deaths were as well,” he says.

Analyzing this extensive database, Kim found that while the rate of cardiac arrests was about the same during the two periods — .60 per 100 000 participants now versus .54 per 100 000 participants in the earlier period — the rate of deaths from these cases, however, fell by half: from .39 per 100 000 to .19 per 100 000. That’s about a 50% decline in the death rate since 2000–2009. As before, cardiac arrests remained far more common among men than among women and more common in marathons than half marathons.

The sport’s growing awareness of cardiac death risk

What led to the dramatic change in death rates? Kim thinks the whole sport has become more aware of the risks and of the need to have emergency services available to runners, a conclusion he reached after interviewing as many survivors as he could find. “What we found was that every one of those people got hands-on cardiopulmonary resuscitation, but the vast majority also had immediate access to an automated external defibrillator. That’s the difference,” he says.

That survival rate is comparable to the cardiac arrest survival rate in other public places that now make defibrillators routinely available such as airport and casinos, which have seen similar declines in deaths.

Kim says his findings offer additional evidence of how important it is to make CPR training available to race participants and to strategically place defibrillators along the racecourse. It’s also important, he says, to better identify the most vulnerable in a population before they run a race.

“These are more often potentially preventable events,” he says. “Being able to identify people, more commonly older individuals with unrecognized cardiovascular risk factors, doesn’t mean they can’t run a race. Rather, it affords the opportunity to improve primary preventive cardiovascular care and potentially further reduce the risk of cardiac arrest during these events. The incidence of sudden cardiac arrest during long-distance races hasn’t changed in over twenty years. I think this is an important arena of future research.”

Source: Emory Health Sciences