Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Abreast about the new cancer test?

New technology for simpler and painless breast cancer detection will not just aid in diagnosis but in the prevention of this deadly disease too

In 2005, the Australian pop music diva, Kylie Minogue was diagnosed with breast cancer. But today, having survived the mosttraumatic period of her life, she is proudly educating the world through awareness campaigns on breast cancer.

Kylie was just one of the millions who have had to fight to save their curves. The ‘symbol of women’s sexuality’is being increasingly associated with the “risks of contracting cancerous growth due to the changing lifestyle and preferences of modern women,” says Dr. Harsh Dua, Senior Oncologist at ApolloHospital. According to World Health Organization (WHO), more than a million women worldwide are diagnosed with breast cancer annually, and it is the lack of early-detection programmes that is increasing its incidence rate, particularly in developing countries. While preventionthrough a healthy diet, physical activity, control over alcohol intake and one’s weight could reduce its incidence, the latest technology in breast cancer detection – a simple blood test called the BCtect – devised by a team of Norwegian scientists, is, according to Dr. Bhawna Sirohi, Chief Medical Oncology, Max Healthcare, “a huge step forward in the fight against breast cancer.”

At a time when the medical world has been divided over the risks and benefits of existing screening tests that expose one to harmful cancercausing radiations, Dr. Sirohi says, “Current gold standard for screening for breast cancer is mammography, which has quite a few drawbacks including exposure to radiation. It is also not recommended for women less than 40 years of age. We see a lot of young patients, as young as 23 years old, with breast cancer in India. Some tumour types are poorly detected by mammography and it’s also difficult to detect very small tumours through mammography alone. BCtect can detect lobular breast cancer, and will also be useful in young women, usually with high breast density, where mammography is less effective in detecting breast cancers.” With about a 75% accuracy rate, early detection – even when the cancer is the size of a seed – “improves overall survival for the patient and also increases options for treatment like breast conserving surgery. The test only requires a small blood sample from the patient. Due to breast cancer, certain characteristic changes take place in women to be screened. It will need validation among Indians and I’m in contact with my colleagues in London. We plan to start a large prospective randomised trial in India as a research study with MRC’s (Medical Research Council, UK) support.”


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