Cholecystectomy and right colon cancer in Puerto Rico
Article Abstract:
Previous reports have suggested that patients who have their gallbladders removed have an increased risk of colon cancer. To further investigate this relationship, a case-controlled study of 200 patients with cancer of the caecum or ascending (right) colon were investigated and compared with 200 control subjects matched for age, sex, and neighborhood (to ensure similar socioeconomic status). Twenty-four of the cancer patients had cholecystectomy (removal of the gallbladder) prior to diagnosis of cancer; only 12 individuals in the control group cholecystectomies. In most cases, the cholecystectomy preceded the development of the cancer by about five years. The results indicate the relative risk of right colon cancer among cholecystectomy patients to be about 2.14 times that of control subjects. Another significant risk factor identified by the study was a significantly lower intake of vegetables and cereal fiber by the patients with colon cancer. The association of gall bladder removal and cancer is thought to arise from an alteration of the delivery of bile salts to the intestines caused by the operation. In a normal individual, the gall bladder contracts after a meal is eaten, and bile salts are mixed with food, where they serve to emulsify dietary fat. However, in individuals with no gall bladder, the liver dribbles bile salts into the intestine continuously. It is thought that this constant exposure to the bile salts, without food for the majority of the time, promotes the development of cancer within the colon. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)
Publication Name: Cancer
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0008-543X
Year: 1990
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A Phase II randomized trial of megestrol acetate or dexamethasone in the treatment of hormonally refractory advanced carcinoma of the prostate
Article Abstract:
Prostate cancer is the third leading cause of cancer deaths in men; over 100,000 new cases will be diagnosed in the United States this year, and almost 30,000 men will die of the disease. Unfortunately, many patients have incurably advanced disease at the time of diagnosis. Hormonal therapy may provide symptomatic relief for 60 to 70 percent of newly diagnosed patients with advanced disease. However, subsequent hormonal treatments are generally ineffective. Since some anecdotal evidence pointed to dexamethasone and megestrol acetate as having some benefit, an attempt was made to rigorously evaluate the effects of these agents in a randomized trial involving 29 patients with advance prostate cancer refractory to conventional hormonal treatment. The results indicate that measurable responses to hormonal treatment are uncommon and the best response achieved by most patients is disease stability. In this study, the median survival was nine months, which is comparable to conventional treatments. Megestrol acetate and dexamethasone appear to be of little or no value in the treatment of advanced prostate cancer. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)
Publication Name: Cancer
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0008-543X
Year: 1990
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