Death is Obsolete

Colonoscopy saves lives

Colon cancer is the third leading cause of cancer death among men and women in the United States, but some colon cancers can be prevented with regular testing.

March is National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, so there couldn’t be a better time to learn the facts about colon cancer and get tested. It could save your life.

Did you know that the rate of colorectal cancer (commonly known as colon cancer) has been decreasing for most of the past two decades?

One reason is because more people are getting screened for this disease, which is preventable, treatable and beatable.

Colon cancer, which almost always starts with a polyp — a small growth on the lining of the colon or rectum — does not usually cause symptoms until it is in a more advanced stage. Colon cancer screening can find and remove these growths before they turn into cancer.

But, many people are not getting the tests that could save their lives — perhaps because the procedure seems embarrassing.

But colon cancer screening tests aren’t that bad. Two different types of screening tests are available — those that find cancer and polyps and those that mainly find cancer and are less likely to find polyps.

Finding and removing polyps before they become cancerous stops colon cancer before it starts. Talk to your doctor about which test is right for you. Colonoscopy is often recommended because it looks at the entire colon, and because if a polyp is found, it can be removed during the procedure. Colonoscopy can be somewhat uncomfortable, but it is not painful.

If you are 50 or older, the American Cancer Society recommends that you talk to your doctor about getting tested, even if you have no symptoms of the disease. And if a parent or sibling has had colon cancer, you may need to start testing younger than 50.

If people got tested regularly when they should, half of all colon cancer deaths could be prevented. When colon cancer is found early and treated, the five-year survival rate is 90 percent.

Additionally, maintaining a healthy weight and lifestyle by eating lots of fruits and vegetables, limiting red and processed meat, limiting alcohol intake, being physically active most days of the week, and quitting or avoiding smoking will reduce a person’s risk of developing many cancers, including colorectal cancer.

For more information about steps you can take to prevent colon cancer, call the American Cancer Society at (800) 227-2345 or visit cancer.org/colon.

Plastic surgery really does make you “look” younger

People who had facial plastic surgery were estimated to be nearly nine years younger than their actual age after the procedures, according to a study published by the Archives of Facial Plastic Surgery.

The study, headed by Dr. Nitin Chauhan of the University of Toronto, included 60 patients (54 of them women), who ranged in age from 45 to 72, and divided them into three groups.

The first group had face and neck lifts, the second had face and neck lifts along with eyelid work, while the third group had face and neck lifts, eyelid work and forehead lifts. Volunteers from a class of medical students estimated patients’ ages from photographs.

The team says the students estimated patient ages to be about 1.7 years younger than their actual age before surgery but 8.9 years younger than their chronological age after surgery.

The change in perceived age varied based on the specific procedures performed, the authors say.

For the first group of patients, the average change in perceived age was 5.7 years, for the second group it was 7.5 years, and for the third group it was 8.4 years.

“That being said, patients and facial plastic surgeons are aware that our abilities are not limitless in the effort to combat age-related changes, despite increased sophistication and diversity in our rejuvenation techniques,” the study said.

Nano-scale robots kill cancer cells

A study from Harvard University announced they have developed a nano-scale robot, made entirely of folded DNA, that can target and kill cancer cells in the body. So far, these findings can only been observed in the laboratory, but these robots made of DNA reveal that a new caner treatment may the answer to curing cancer.

The folded DNA strands form a clamshell structure that can open and close, referred to as ‘DNA robots.’  In the presence of leukemia and lymphoma cells invitro, the researchers controlled the DNA robots to deliver antibodies to the cancer cells, which caused the cancer cells to self-destruct. Proving this concept is ground breaking for drug delivery systems and cancer treatments.

The DNA robots open and close, like a clam, in the presence of cancer cells.  The researchers have designed the DNA to unlock one end of the clam and open, when the lock comes into contact with a specific molecule, specific to the cancer cells.  When the DNA robot lock and the specific cancer cell molecule come into contact, the DNA robot unzips, releasing antibodies that stop the cancer cells’ growth.

These DNA robots take on the role of the immune system’s white blood cells, which target and destroy damaged or foreign cells.  Immune cells are designed to recognize viruses or other foreign invaders, and engulf them.  These DNA robots function using a similar mechanism.

This study has observed this outcome in the lab, so the next step involved injecting these DNA robots into animal models to see how the DNA robots function under different conditions.  In the animal models, there will be more challenges, such as maintaining sufficient levels circulating through the body, minimizing toxicity levels, and searching for accumulations.  These DNA robots are not cells, so they cannot reproduce in the body.  This technology is still years away from commercial use.

This study was published in the journal Science.

These DNA robots also have the potential to be effective in treatments for other conditions, like autoimmune diseases, which is when host immune cells attack other host cells.

FDA finds unsafe levels of lead in all lipsticks tested

From the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics

Lead in lipstick? Turns out, the ur­ban legend is true. In October 2007, the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics tested 33 popular brands of lipsticks at an independent lab for lead content.

The results: 61 percent of lipsticks contained lead, with levels ranging up to 0.65 parts per million. Lead-contaminated brands included L’Oreal, Cover Girl and even a $24 tube of Dior Addict. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration promised it would conduct an investigation, but dragged its feet in doing so.

It took nearly two years, pressure from consumers and a letter from three U.S. Senators, but in 2009 the FDA released a follow-up study that found lead in all samples of lipstick it tested, at levels ranging from 0.09 to 3.06 ppm – levels four times higher than the levels found in the Campaign study. FDA found the highest lead levels in lipsticks made by three manufacturers: Procter & Gamble (Cover Girl brand), L’Oreal (L’Oreal, Body Shop and Maybelline brands) and Revlon. Yet FDA has thus far failed to take action to protect consumers.

Breaking news: An expanded FDA study has found lead in hundreds of lipsticks at levels up to 7.19 ppm. Five of the 10 most lead-contaminated brands in the FDA study are made by L’Oreal USA. See the brands FDA tested here.

No Safe Dose 

The recent science indicates there is no safe level of lead exposure.

“Lead builds up in the body over time and lead-containing lipstick applied several times a day, every day, can add up to significant exposure levels. The latest studies show there is no safe level of lead exposure,” according to Mark Mitchell, MD, MPH, policy advisor of the Connecticut Coalition for Environmental Justice and co-chair of the Environmental Health Task Force for the National Medical Association.

“Lead is a proven neurotoxin that can cause learning, language and behavioral problems such as lowered IQ, reduced school performance and increased aggression. Pregnant women and young children are particularly vulnerable to lead exposure, because lead easily crosses the placenta and enters the fetal brain where it can interfere with normal development,” according toSean Palfrey, MD, a professor of pediatrics and public health at Boston University and the medical director of Boston’s Lead Poisoning Prevention Program. “Since recent science suggests that there is truly no safe lead exposure for children and pregnant women, it is disturbing that manufacturers are allowed to continue to sell lead-containing lipsticks.”

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states: “No safe blood lead level has been identified.” The agency suggests avoiding all sources of lead exposure, including lead-containing cosmetics. (Read CDC’s lead exposure prevention tips)


Status Update

The Campaign continues to pressure the FDA to set a maximum limit of lead in lipstick, based on the lowest lead levels manufacturers can feasibly achieve. Thus far the agency has failed to take action to protect consumers.

A state bill to ban lead from lipstick passed the California Senate in 2008, but died after a massiveindustry lobby effort.
What You Can Do 

Because lead is a contaminant not listed on lipstick ingredient labels, it’s next to impossible for consumers to avoid. But don’t let that dissuade you from doing something:

  • E-mail, call or write to the companies that make your favorite lipstick shades and tell them that lead-free products are important to you.
  • Write to L’Oreal to demand the company get the lead out of its products.

More Information 

Report: “A Poison Kiss: The Problem of Lead in Lipstick”

Science: Lead and other heavy metals

FAQs: Lead in lipstick

Laws: The FDA response to lead in lipstick

Campaign for Safe Cosmetics Letter to Dr. Linda Katz, Director of the FDA Office of Cosmetics and Colors (pdf) 
Press Releases
Hundreds of lipsticks contaminated with lead, reports new FDA study (Feb. 7, 2012)

FDA Study: Lead Levels in Lipstick Much Higher than Previously Reported (Sept. 1, 2009)

FDA fails to protect public: Remains silent about lead in lipstick (Feb. 9, 2009)

Beauty industry lobbies to keep lead in lipstick (June 26, 2008)

Sens. Kerry, Boxer and Feinstein call on FDA to establish maximum level for lead in lipstick (Dec. 3, 2007)

New product tests find lead in lipstick (Oct. 11, 2007)

Lack of sleep can lead to Alzheimer’s

The poorer your sleep, the more likely you may be to develop Alzheimer’s disease, according to a new study.

“We found that if people had a lot of awakenings during the night, more than five awakenings in an hour, they are more likely to have preclinical Alzheimer’s disease,” says researcher Yo-El Ju, MD, assistant professor of neurology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

Preclinical Alzheimer’s disease is the term given to people who have normal mental skills but show brain changes associated with the degenerative disorder.

Ju is due to present her findings on sleep problems and Alzheimer’s disease in April at the American Academy of Neurology’s annual meeting in New Orleans.

 to read this article in its entirety on WebMed, click here.

Lack of sleep can lead to Alzheimer’s

Colonoscopy saves lives

Colon cancer is the third leading cause of cancer death among men and women in the United States, but some colon cancers can be prevented with regular testing. March is National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, so there couldn’t be a better time to learn the facts about colon cancer and get tested. It could save …

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