It is increasingly clear that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is going to transform our lives in myriad ways, from weather prediction to military planning and in innumerable medical applications. I recently encountered first-hand a new, significant advance – the use of AI to improve the detection of lesions during colonoscopies.
colon cancer
The risk of colon cancer from nitrite-preserved meat has been debated for so long that even the preserved meat has gone bad. A new study tries to back up this claim -- and fails miserably.
A new study claims that artificial sweeteners decrease the risk of cancer recurrence or mortality by more than 20%. This result is intriguing but ultimately unconvincing.
Colon cancer kills more than 50,000 Americans each year. One in 22 men and one in 24 women will be diagnosed with colon cancer in their lifetime. Currently, patients rely on colonoscopies to detect pre-cancerous growths called polyps. But doctors from John Hopkins University have discovered two digestive bacteria that form a film on the colon — months before the polyps appear.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is on a recent publishing push. It involves cancer prevention efforts, promotion of current statistics and encouragement of comprehensive plan implementations -- on all governmental, personal and public fronts.
A new study in NEJM shows that the Vitamin D and calcium do not lower the risk of recurrent colon polyps as had been hoped. Previous data suggested that Vitamin D and calcium could reduce the risk of neoplastic lesions, but this did not translate in humans as it had in animals. This should not surprise anyone.
In microbiome research, it's still too early to determine what is correlation and what is causation. However, some researchers are finding ways to use correlation effectively. One way is to improve screening for colorectal cancer, and a new study finds this may help in treatment, too.
The latest in health news: Vitamin B supplementation could help reduce first stroke in adults with hypertension, strength training for the elderly key to good health, and cancer survival rates improving across the board
For years, we ve been hearing about how the obesity epidemic will pose an ever-greater public health threat if we don t somehow manage to slow it down. Obesity puts one at risk for diabetes, debilitating arthritis
Colon cancer is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the US. In 2014, more than 96,000 people developed new cases, and there will be an estimated 50,000 deaths.
It is also one of the most preventable cancers: if all Americans followed recommendations about getting a colonoscopy, the death rate from colorectal cancer (CRC) would plummet. However, current methods, as well as patient fear, are common reasons why people do not undergo this crucial test.
One of the main themes in medicine over the past year or two has been the value (or lack of same) of screening as a tool to prevent early death.
Accepted medical practices have been challenged, as data become available that are not only counterintuitive, but in some cases almost heresy.
Examples include:
Is routine mammography harmful or helpful?
Should the prostate specific antigen (PSA) test be used at all?
Do annual exams save lives?
We have written about these issues frequently- mammography, the PSA test, annual physicals. The above links give a good summary of our take on each of these issues.
Colorectal cancer (CRC), or colon cancer, is the third most common cancer worldwide, and the second leading cause of cancer death. According to the Colon Cancer Alliance, the exact