Mastectomies on the Rise
More women may be moving toward
a mastectomy because of new techniques
for detecting breast cancer. Researchers
attribute the shift to the use
of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
that is able to detect more possible cancerous
growth, compared with mammography.
The use of MRI scans began
increasing around 2003.
The study looked at >5400 women
who had the surgery at the Mayo Clinic
from 1997 to 2006. The women who
chose mastectomy over lumpectomy
dropped to 30% in 2003 from 45% in
1997. The rate rose, however, in 2006
to 43%. The findings, presented at
the May 2008 annual meeting of the
American Society of Clinical Oncology,
found that, among women having
breast surgery from 2003 to 2006, 52%
who had an MRI prior to the operation
chose mastectomy, compared with
38% of the women who did not have
the test, according to a study author
Matthew P. Goetz, MD.
The researchers noted that the mastectomy
rate rose after 2003 even
among patients who had not had an
MRI. Dr. Goetz said that other factors
involved in the increase may include
improved techniques for breast reconstruction
and genetic testing to identify
women likely to have a recurrence.
Race Does Not Affect Incontinence
Black women are less prone than
white women to have bladder control
problems. When they do, however, the
condition tends to be worse.
The study included 1922 black women
and 892 white women from 3 Michigan
counties who were surveyed over
the phone. The researchers found that
urinary incontinence was approximately
half as common among black women,
compared with white women. The results
showed that black women had
worse symptoms, reporting greater
amounts of urine leakage attributed to
urge incontinence. White women more
often had stress incontinence, however.
The findings were reported recently in
The Journal of Urology.
Vitamin D Deficiency,
Back Pain Linked
Women aged 65 and older may be at risk for back pain
if they do not get enough vitamin D, according to research
published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society
(May 2008).
To investigate the relationship between vitamin D deficiency
and its association with a number of health problems,
the researchers looked at the blood levels of vitamin
D in 958 individuals. The study group included 58% of the
women and 27% of the men who had atleast some moderate
pain in at least one region of the body.
The results indicated no relationship between vitamin D
levels and pain in men. Women with vitamin D deficiency,
however, were almost twice as likely to have back pain
that was moderate or worse, but vitamin D status was not
associated with pain in other parts of the body.
Quit Smoking,
Live Longer
New research gives women another reason to quit smoking.
The findings, reported in the Journal of the American Medical
Association (May 7, 2008), indicated that women who stop smoking
have a 21% lower risk of dying from coronary heart disease
within 5 years of putting out their last butt.
The data are a continued follow-up on the Nurses’ Health Study.
The research showed that current smokers had almost 3 times
the risk of overall mortality, compared with women who never
smoked. Women who began smoking earlier in life faced greater
risk of death from respiratory disease and from any smoking-related
disease.
A smoker’s risk of dying returned to the level of a nonsmoker 20
years after quitting. The overall risk dropped 13% within the first 5
years of quitting. A majority of the excess risk of dying from coronary
heart disease disappeared with 5 years of abstaining.
Leisure Activities May Keep Depression at Bay
A survey of 1501 women found that
leisure-time activity weekly may stave off
depression. Of the participants, 30% had
depression symptoms. The amount of exercise
women got (eg, on the job, doing
housework) did not affect their mood.
Some social factors did, however.
Women who were discouraged from
exercising were more prone to depression,
compared with women who exercised
with a family member. The participants
who reported at least 3.5 hours
a week of leisure-time activity were less
prone to depression, and vigorous activity
appeared to have a more powerful effect.
The women who reported being persuaded
against exercising were more
likely to be depressed. The depression
risk was even greater with the frequency
the women were discouraged
from exercising, reported the researchers
in the online May 6, 2008, issue of
the International Journal of Behavioral
Nutrition and Physical Activity.
F A S T F A C T : A baby girl born in the United States in 2004 could expect to live 80.4 years.
