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FDA approves new drug to treat advanced breast cancer

test tubes - pixabay - research

The Food and Drug Administration has approved Piqray (alpelisib) tablets to treat men and postmenopausal women whose advanced breast cancer is hormone receptor (HR)-positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-negative and PIK3CA-mutated.

Piqray is to be used in combination with the FDA-approved endocrine therapy fulvestrant. The PIK3CA-mutated, advanced or metastatic breast cancer (as detected by an FDA-approved test) is indicated following progression on or after an endocrine-based regimen.

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Cancer, the gift that keeps on giving: LVA and LNT on deck

UW pre-op

At UW Medical Center pre-op center with the awesome heated air blanket! This is what is on tap for me later today if all goes well.

“In the first procedure, called lymphovenous bypass, surgeons peer through a microscope and use minute instruments to connect blocked lymphatic vessels as small as 0.3 millimeters in diameter to a nearby vein. The bypass allows excess lymph fluid to flow more freely.

“In the second procedure, called lymph node transfer, surgeons microsurgically transplant healthy lymph nodes that have a rich blood supply to an area of lymphatic injury to re-establish lymphatic connections.”

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Yes, Virginia, you should eat your broccoli

Broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables (such as arugula, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, collard greens,  cauliflower, and kale) “contain a molecule that inactivates a gene known to play a role in a variety of common human cancers” although you can’t eat your way to cancer suppression.

Scientists at Harvard Medical School’s Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center discovered that an enzyme which plays a role in many cancers “can be inhibited with a natural compound found in broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables.” Their research is preliminary, focused on prostate cancer prone mice and human cells.

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