The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2018 was awarded jointly to James P. Allison and Tasuku Honjo “for their discovery of cancer therapy by inhibition of negative immune regulation.”

“We can cure cancer with it”
Klas Kärre, member of the Nobel Committee, on the life-changing possibilities of this year’s Nobel Prize awarded discovery. Professor Kärre, member of the Nobel Committee for Physiology or Medicine, was interviewed by freelance journalist Lotta Fredholm following the announcement of the 2018 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

Louise Turner, 47, had a wonderful life before a sudden breast cancer diagnosis. In the battle to save her life, she needed to have both breasts removed. Afterwards, she set on a mission to reclaim her curves.

“Back in 2012, I was happily juggling family life with my husband Geoff, our two children Vanessa and Justin, and my career in vocational education.

Aged 41, life was full of sports on the weekends, evenings out, family events, friends, and plenty of love and laughter.

Then one day, I told a work colleague about the latest small lump I’d felt in my right breast.

Previously, I’d undergone …

Parmalat, the food giant behind Vaalia and Ski yoghurts, has ranked last in a study that examined the obesity prevention efforts of Australia’s biggest food and beverage manufacturers, scoring a derisory three out of 100.
With an alarming two-thirds of adults overweight or obese, Deakin University researchers ranked Australia’s top 19 food and drink companies based on health-related policies in areas such as product formulation, nutrition labelling and advertising to children.
Scores ranged from three to 71 out of 100, with four companies – Parmalat, Goodman Fielder (owner of Helga’s bread), Schweppes (Spring Valley juice) and Tru …

A radio presenter in the UK says she was forced to work throughout gruelling breast cancer treatment because her employer forced her to move to a freelance contract without sick pay.

Kirsty Lang told the Commons culture committee that the BBC instructed her to enter into a freelance arrangement in 2013, causing her to have to “work the whole way through’ radiotherapy treatment, or she would stop receiving an income.

Lang gave evidence alongside colleagues to the Commons culture committee to highlight the issue of workers being forced into freelance contracts.

As a result of being forced onto a freelance contract, the presenter …

The cost of medicines to treat diabetes, cancer, arthritis, asthma and eye disease will be slashed next week under a massive new round of Turnbull government subsidies.
The government will add 11 drugs to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme on April 1, saving Australian patients thousands of dollars, Health Minister Greg Hunt says.
The focus of the listings is a range of new and improved treatments for diabetes, a disease that afflicts up to 1.7 million Australians, with 280 new cases every day.

Toujeo, a new high-strength and longer-lasting form of insulin glargine that reduces night-time hypoglycaemia will …

There’s been debate for years over whether men should have PSA blood testing to screen for prostate cancer.

The problem with intensive PSA testing is that it’s inaccurate and over-detects cancers that won’t kill you, potentially resulting in unnecessary surgery or radiotherapy.

A new study has looked to see if having a single PSA test could make a difference, without the harm. Listen here… 

Deodorant, artificial sweeteners and makeup have all been rumoured to cause cancer but the Cancer Council is warning people not to believe everything you read online, as cancer myths flourish with the growth of online communication.
Director of Education and Research at Cancer Council WA, Terry Slevin, said the council has compiled a list of common cancer myths to address misinformation online.

“The capacity for these myths to be disseminated through the net, whether it’s through mass emails, Facebook and other tools, is a very efficient way of getting stories around,” he said.

Mr Slevin said the myths come about as a …

Scientists have linked more than 100 genes to an increased risk of breast cancer – paving the way for more personalised treatments, a study has said.

Scientists have linked more than 100 genes to an increased risk of breast cancer – paving the way for more personalised treatments, a study says.

A team at The Institute of Cancer Research in London identified a “treasure trove” of specific genes involved in raising a woman’s risk of developing the condition.

They also linked 32 genes to the length of time a woman survived the disease.

In the …

Early detection and improved treatments has led to nine in every 10 women diagnosed with breast cancer in Western Australia surviving the disease.

The Cancer Effect: Breast Cancer Relative Survival 1985 – 2014 report, released on Thursday, showed 91.5 per cent of women with breast cancer were alive five years after their diagnosis compared to 74 per cent of women in the 1980s.
The improved figures give Western Australia one of the best survival rates for breast cancer in the world.
In WA, breast cancer is the third most survivable cancer for women behind thyroid (98%) and melanoma (92%). Read more…

The increasing use of scalp-cooling machines in Australia is being credited with improved mental heath outcomes for cancer patients, allowing many to retain much of their hair despite chemotherapy treatments.
The machines super-cool the scalp and reduce some of the damage to the hair follicle that occurs during chemotherapy.

However, researchers from the University of Sydney said Australia still had a long way to go before use of the ‘cold caps’ reached the same level of the United States and Europe.

Frances Wilson is halfway through her chemotherapy treatment, after successful surgery at Ballarat’s St John of God Hospital following a breast …