Kids’ ER Visits for Head Injuries Up

More U.S. children are being treated in emergency rooms for head injuries, a new study finds. Between 2001 and 2009, the number rose 60%. For the most part, researchers think that’s because people are more aware of the need to treat concussions. The study found that most injuries were linked with sports and other active pursuits, such as bicycling. About 71% of those injured were boys. About 71% were age 10 or older. Football and bicycling were the most common activities linked to brain injuries in boys. For girls, soccer, basketball and cycling caused most injuries. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released the report October 6. During the period covered by the study, the CDC launched a campaign to increase awareness about concussions. The campaign stressed the need to see a doctor if you have certain symptoms after a blow to the head.

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Panel Rejects PSA for Cancer Screening

PSA blood tests to screen for prostate cancer do more harm than good, an influential panel of experts says. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force released the report. This group advises the government and doctors on preventive care. In the past, the task force had said there was not enough evidence to advise men to get PSA tests or not. The new statement specifically advises against the tests for routine cancer screening. A high PSA level sometimes indicates that a man has prostate cancer. But other things can cause a high level. Men need to get a biopsy — a type of surgery — to find out the cause. Task force members looked at all previous research on the subject. One study estimated that 2 out of 5 cancers found after a PSA test were too slow-growing to ever cause harm. The task force concluded that PSA testing does not reduce death rates. And it found that testing causes harm.

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Study Tallies Risks for ‘DES Daughters’

Women exposed in their mother’s womb to the drug DES face a doubled risk of early breast cancer, among other health problems, a new study finds. These women also are twice as likely as average to have problems getting pregnant. DES was used for 30 years to help prevent miscarriages. But doctors later found out that it didn’t work. It also was linked to a rare form of cancer in the vagina. The new study looked more closely at other health risks. It included about 4,600 “DES daughters.” They were compared with 1,900 similar women whose mothers had not used DES. Researchers used surveys and medical records to track their health. When last surveyed, their average age was 48. DES daughters were more than twice as likely as the other women to have early menopause. They were twice as likely to have a pre-cancer found during a Pap smear.

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New MS Pill May Reduce Relapses

A new drug reduces the relapse rate for people with multiple sclerosis (MS), research suggests. Most MS drugs are injectable. The new one, teriflunomide, is taken as a pill. The study included 1,088 people who had “relapsing-remitting” MS. People with this form of the disease have periods with and without symptoms. People in the study were randomly divided into 3 groups. Two groups were assigned to take teriflunomide, in different doses. The third group took a placebo (fake pill). People took a pill each day for more than 2 years. In that time, both groups taking the real drug had 31% fewer relapses than those who got the placebo. Serious side effects were similar in all 3 groups. People who got the real drug were more likely to have some mild side effects. They also were more likely to have high levels of an enzyme that can indicate liver damage.

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Virus Causing More Throat Cancers

Cancers of the upper throat are increasing, and the main reason is a virus spread by sex, a new study finds. Human papilloma virus (HPV) causes cervical cancer. But it also can cause cancer in upper throat. This is called oropharyngeal cancer. It is also found in the tonsils and the base of the tongue. Rates of this cancer have risen 28% since 1988. And most of these tumors now carry HPV, the new study found. In the past, these cancers were most often linked to tobacco or alcohol abuse. Other types of head and neck cancer have declined in the last 20 years. The new study looked at stored tumor issue from 271 patients with oropharyngeal cancer. About 16% of the samples from the late 1980s carried HPV. By the early 2000s, 73% did. Researchers said the proportion of tumors with the virus tripled. Tumors without the virus were down by half.

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Active Bodies Less Friendly to Cancer

More and more research shows that the environment around cancer tumors can affect whether they grow and become a threat. And exercise can have an impact on that environment. USA TODAY wrote about this research focus in a group of articles published October 3. Exercise is especially helpful in the case of breast cancer. Women who exercise 30 minutes a day after menopause cut their chance of getting breast cancer by 20%. Staying active can help prevent obesity. Obesity increases breast cancer risk 30% to 50%. Exercise helps to stop long-term inflammation and control insulin. High levels of inflammation and insulin can fuel cancer growth. Exercise also reduces estrogen levels. This hormone spurs growth in many breast cancers. Scientists are still learning exactly how environment affects tumor growth. They hope research will lead to new treatments.

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