An advanced, noninvasive urine test to both diagnose and monitor bladder cancer has the potential to not just make testing for the disease easier, but to save thousands of lives, says New York genetics expert Dr. Shashi Pawar.

Encouraged by the National Institutes of Health, researchers are fine-tuning the test that would allow pathologists to examine a urine sample for specific genes and genetic activity related to bladder cancer, rather than require the patient to undergo an invasive procedure like biopsy.

More than 70,000 people in the United States will be diagnosed with new cases of bladder cancer in 2009, says the National Cancer Institute. It’s the fourth most common type of cancer in men and the eighth most common in women, leading to roughly 14,000 deaths a year.

Experts have not yet been able to pinpoint what causes bladder cancer, but believe that both genetic and environmental factors come into play. These risk factors include:

Age. People under 40 rarely develop the disease.
Smoking. According to the American Cancer Society, smokers are more than twice as likely to suffer from bladder cancer than nonsmokers. Smoking can also be blamed for close to half of bladder cancer deaths.
Race. Whites have the highest bladder cancer rates; Asians the lowest.
Family or personal history. People with family members who’ve had bladder cancer are at increased risk. Recurrence is also common among those who’ve had the disease.
Being a man. Men are three times more likely to develop bladder cancer.

Studies have also found that people who have been infected with parasites common in the tropics, or have been treated with the drugs cyclophosphamide or arsenic, are also at increased risk. Certain industrial chemicals often used in the dye industry–aromatic amines, such as benzidine and beta-naphthylamine–have also been linked to the disease.

The artificial sweetener saccharin has been found to cause bladder cancer in animals, though there is no proof that it puts people at risk. Those with concerns should speak with their physician.

Common bladder cancer symptoms include blood in the urine; pain during urination; frequent urination; or frequently feeling the need to urinate without actually voiding.

If bladder cancer is suspected, a physician may order a combination of diagnostic exams. These may include laboratory urine tests; imaging like PET or CT scans; a procedure called cystoscopy, which requires a slender tube being snaked into the bladder; or surgical biopsy.

Health experts are hopeful, however, that the new urine test will help at least some patients avoid the more invasive diagnostic and staging techniques. The ease of the test could also help reduce healthcare costs.

"Any time you make testing easier, and less invasive, the patient benefits," said Dr. Pawar, who at Acupath works with a team of board-certified pathologists who specialize in uropathology–the science of diagnosing illnesses within the urinary tract. Acupath has also built a reputation on offering the latest advances in uropathology and related technologies.

"What’s also great is that this new advanced testing procedure is giving bladder cancer a spotlight," she added. "People don’t tend to talk about bladder cancer as much as other forms. But education about the disease needs to get out there."

About Dr. Shashi Pawar:
A diplomat of the American Society of Human Genetics and member of the Association of Molecular Pathology, Dr. Shashi Pawar serves as director of Genetics for Acupath Laboratories, Inc. Her more than 20 of experience in molecular genetics and molecular pathology includes working as a consultant for the Center for Human Genetics in Cleveland; a technical director of Genova Diagnostics; and holding several diagnostic laboratory directorships. Published in dozens of selective medical journals, her educational background includes a Ph.D. in biochemistry from City University of New York. She also served a clinical molecular genetics fellowship at Yale University and a clinical cytogenetics fellowship at Columbia University.
News Release Plainview, NY (PRWEB)

Most people, especially the astute lot would hate to review their alcohol abuse or use scenario and usually this is a good decision, for short term. Sad to say, the long duration of alcohol association can pilot the way to more problems, reality and mythically speaking.

Misuse or over use of alcohol can show us the way towards the development of an on-going and irreparable condition that can possible lead to an incurable "disease" for which recovery is a very difficult undertaking and considering the thought that this condition is far worst than getting drunk, is an idea that often misleads most of us. Most "assessments often make this situation gloomier by limitedly offering a treatment that can uniformly cater to all but nevertheless takes for granted the option of including either moderation or real recovery. Whatever research may say, we know from our real-life experience that people do keep on altering their patterns of alcohol use just the way they do with other persistent problems like smoking, weight loss, etc.

It is normally seen that both the symptoms appear together but any one on its own is some thing to be concerned about. The reasons can be attributed to feeling of alienation, lethargy and complete lack of any activity either mental or physical. Usually, when one reaches to this point, the standard approach is correcting the deficiency which can often lead the person back to the healthy manner of use, however, one thing that can speed up the process and be an aid towards achieving the most desired results is through counselling.

The re-establishment of a healthy and normal drinking consumption is the most common solution however, the most suggested option is the total seclusion of one’s self from drinking for about one to two years. By this means, many people chose not to go back to their old bad habits of drinking or even waved goodbye to drinking as they have found the satisfaction of living a successfully modified life. Alcohol addiction, or alcoholism, results when a person’s physical, emotional, and psychological being is permeated by alcohol and its consumption. Alcoholism is characterized by several typical withdrawal symptoms emanating from both mental and physical levels like tremors, seizures and blackouts and you would also find many alcohol-related break-downs in several important areas of life including financial, legal, vocational, marital, recreational, social and medical sectors. About a third of diagnosed alcoholics were found to have been drinking again but only to a moderate level.

It is more likely that during this stage, psychotherapy from a reliable specialist united with all the needed medical attention is required since the physical, social, emotional and psychological aspects of the person concerned have been marred. Recovery prospects are uncertain at best and outcomes vary but as always, motivation and a belief in personal efficacy, as opposed to "powerlessness," are the primary factors in success. Situations where the person is completely dependent on alcohol or is a victim of alcohol abuse can be restored to normal healthy limits when the individual drinks in moderation. As noted by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, in a one year span, American adults who were suffering from alcohol addiction with a number of about 58 percent were able to trim down the levels of their alcohol consumption in a moderate manner.

Be keen in looking for a respective treatment that offers a variety of options when you are in need of one for yourself or to anybody that you are concerned with, but be aware that you should not limit yourself towards engaging to such program that only offers a “one-size-fits-all” strategy. As much as possible, don’t ever indulge yourself or let anybody you know be a victim of treatments offering a single option since they cater to your condition which is not even considered a disease just like the way they homogeneously treat deadly diseases such as cancer in every types and stages.

Twenty-five diabetic patients will be given computers that connect them to health care providers to maintain an ongoing dialogue about their condition, and allow doctors to monitor their status, in a new patient-care experiment by Microsoft and the University of Miami, the Miami Herald reports.

Experts say the program – which could improve efficiencies by reducing the number of expensive hospital visits by the chronically ill – reflects Washington’s focus on reducing unnecessary costs as part of health reform (Dorschner, 6/11).

This information was reprinted from kaiserhealthnews.org with permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives and sign up for email delivery. © Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

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