cancer

Celebrating My 50th Birthday Cancer-Free

Posted on 09/18/2012 by Ian Cunningham | AARP Blog Author | Comments

Personal HealthThe following is a guest post by Jerry Bembry, journalism professor at Morgan State University. I turned 49 a year ago today. At the time, I considered all the exciting things I wanted to do leading up to my 50th birthday. “Fifty to Fifty,” was what I called my plan, and I began writing down the 50 things I wanted to do before hitting the half-century mark: “Take a cross-country drive, visit the six remaining states that I’ve never been …

Aspirin and Cancer: It May Help With Prostate, Not With Breast

Posted on 08/28/2012 by Candy Sagon | Personal Health and Well-being | Comments

Bulletin Today | Personal HealthTwo new studies, published Monday in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, offer contrasting news about aspirin’s potential role in cancer prevention and treatment. Men who were being treated for prostate cancer and were taking aspirin for other medical conditions were less likely to die of their cancer than were men who were not taking aspirin, The New York Times reports. On the other hand, taking aspirin did not appear to protect postmenopausal women from developing breast cancer, according to Health …

Grapefruit Juice Could Help Cancer Patients…And Save Them Money

Posted on 08/8/2012 by Candy Sagon | Personal Health and Well-being | Comments

Bulletin Today | Personal HealthGrapefruit juice can interfere with a lot of prescription and nonprescription drugs, but cancer researchers found that the tart juice helps the body absorb more of a promising medication, reducing side effects and saving patients money because they need smaller doses. Cancer researchers at the University of Chicago found that a glass of grapefruit juice increased the body’s uptake of a powerful drug called sirolimus, which allowed doctors to cut the drug dosage by a third to get the same …

Lupe Ontiveros: A Voice for the Disenfranchised

Posted on 07/30/2012 by gabrielazabalua | AARP Blog Author | Comments

LegacyLupe Ontiveros cleaned toilets, terrorized her daughter-in-law and killed Tejana superstar Selena — all in the movies, of course. She poured her soul into every role, bringing respect and dignity to the poorest maid, humor and heart to the most despised character. But what I loved about Lupe, who died July 26 of cancer at age 69, was her passion as a mother, a mentor and an advocate; how she turned stage and screen into bully pulpits for the causes …

Prostate Surgery: For Older Men, Waiting May Be Better

Posted on 07/23/2012 by Candy Sagon | Personal Health and Well-being | Comments

Bulletin Today | Personal HealthFor men in their 60s who are diagnosed with early-state prostate cancer, surgery doesn’t help them live significantly longer than those who wait and monitor the slow-growing disease, a landmark new study finds. Prostate cancer affects one in six men, but surgery often causes serious side effects, including urinary incontinence and sexual dysfunction. The results of the federally funded study suggests that a more conservative approach might be better, especially for men with a PSA reading under 10 ng per …

The Takeaway: Eat Fish to Lower Colorectal Cancer Risk

Posted on 05/11/2012 by Elizabeth Brown | Brooklyn, NY | Comments

News RoundupsNot only is fish great for your brain, it could also lower your risk of rectal and colon cancers, doctors say. A team from Xijing Hospital in China analyzed 41 past studies on the link and found regular consumption of fish tied to a 12 percent lower risk of developing or dying from colorectal cancer.