Bone drug hope for breast cancer patients

Doctors were mostly hoping to prevent complications and relapses when they gave young women a medicine to keep their bones strong during breast cancers treatment. Seven years later, they found it did more than that: The bone drug improved survival, as much as much chemotherapy does. The study found a 37 percent lower risk of death among women who received the bone drug, Zometa. In absolute terms, it meant that 4 to 5 more women out of every 100 were alive seven years later. It’s especially impressive considering that the women took the drug, given as an infusion every six months, for only three years.

Zometa (zow-MAY-tuh) should now be offered to all patients like those in this study – younger women forced into early menopause by hormone-blocking cancer treatments, some specialists said. Bone drugs called bisphosphonates have long been sold for treating osteoporosis. Those are daily pills. Zometa, made by the Swiss company Novartis AG, is given intravenously to treat breast cancers that has spread to the bone. All had surgery followed by hormone blockers, and half also received Zometa. Now, with seven years of follow-up, researchers see that Zometa not only helped keep cancer from coming back, but also improved survival. There were 33 deaths among women given the bone drug and 49 among those not treated with it. That magnitude of benefit is comparable to many chemotherapy treatments. Researchers think because Zometa strengthens bones, it’s tougher for cancer to spread there and the drug may also have direct effects against circulating cancer cells or microscopic tumors.

Zometa’s side effects were mostly fever and bone and joint pain, and doctors saw no cases of jawbone decay, a serious problem long linked to bisphosphonates. Zometa costs more than $1,000 in the U.S. and about half as much in Europe, though the price may drop when its U.S. patent expires in 2013. Novartis helped pay for the study and Gnant consults for the company. The bone drug proved disappointing though in a large study last year in postmenopausal women, who account for three-fourths of all breast cancers. But there was a glimmer of hope in the oldest patients.

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Down Syndrome Symptoms

Identify The Down Syndrome Symptoms and Its Effect to The Health Problem

Down syndrome symptoms are difference for each person and they can range from mild to severe. Down syndrome is a genetic disorder which affects especially children. It is a congenital condition caused by an extra chromosome. This happens in the early stages of pregnancy. Having this extra chromosome usually slows the development of the brain and body. As stated above that down syndrome symptoms may vary from person to person and not all patients would have the same features, but symptoms which are known to be common among most, such as a flat face, a short neck and usually have some degree of intellectual disability. Here we will discuss about down syndrome symptoms of children and the health problem might a children have with down syndrome.
The down syndrome symptom in the children can be widely recognized. The physical symptoms are the head may be smaller than normal and abnormally shaped and it may be around with a flat area on the back. The inner corner of the eyes may be rounded instead of pointed. Children with down syndrom symptoms usually have flattened nose, small mouth, small ears, excessive skin at the nape of the neck, white spots on the colored part of the eye, also wide and short hands with short fingers. While mentally symptoms is mentaly retardation. Another symptoms are in heart disease,one of their health problem. Such as difficulty breathing, cough, chest pain, and usually leg swelling.
We should be sensitive and careful when we find down syndrom symptoms of our children. Because down syndrom can give effect one or more of the following health conditions: heart defects. Almost half of babies with Down syndrome have heart defects. Some defects are minor and may be treated with medications, while others require surgery. Next is vision problems. More than 60 percent of children with Down syndrome have vision problems, including crossed eyes (esotropia), near- or far-sightedness and cataracts. Then, hearing loss. Hearing loss may be due to fluid in the middle ear (which may be temporary) and/or defects involving the middle or inner ear. Next is infections. Children with Down syndrome tend to have many colds and ear infections, as well as bronchitis and pneumonia. And memory loss. Adults with Down syndrome tend to develop Alzheimer’s disease at an earlier age than unaffected individuals. However, children with Down syndrome usually can do most things that any young child can do, such as walking, talking, dressing and being toilet-trained. However, they generally start learning these things later than unaffected children.
To care for and deal with a case of Down Syndrome symptoms in children, you will need all the help and skill you can get from trained professionals. You will need to follow their advise and remember that this is not something that you can manage alone. Counselors and support groups are not only and important but an essential part of rehabilitation and treatment. Speech therapy and occupational are in fact available, without any charge for patients of Down Syndrome symptoms in some countries. Some studies suggest that women who have certain versions of some genes that affect how their bodies metabolize (process) the B vitamin folic acid may be at increased risk for having a baby with Down syndrome .So, as a good parents, we have to able to identify earlier about down syndrom symptoms that maybe hapen to our children. We can read a lot about its information in the internet or consult to the doctors.