On the pulse

Cancerkin's News Update.....

Hyde Park Walk 2011

Thank you to everyone who came along on Sunday to take part in the Hyde Park Walk! We had a fantastic turnout of walkers, joggers and runners on our big day out in the Park. Crowds of families, friends, and even a troupe of ballerinas gathered early on Sunday morning at the Hyde Park Bandstand before setting off round the Serpentine to show their support for women affected by breast cancer. We were lucky enough to escape the rain, with sunny spells and a cool breeze making for perfect walking conditions, and all thoroughly enjoyed the day!

To see photos from the walk, head to our Flickr or Facebook pages now! Please tag your friends and ‘like’ the photos and the Cancerkin page while you’re there. We’d love you to share your pictures and your experiences of the day with us, so please contact me at l.smith@cancerkin.org.uk – the best stories and photos will be posted online!

Our wonderful walkers are now busy collecting their sponsorship money – thank you to those who have already sent theirs in! We have already raised almost £17,000 and this total is climbing every day. Please note that the deadline for returning monies is Monday 15th August. On this day we will count up the grand total and announce our top three fundraisers. Each winner will be awarded with luxury products kindly donated by Floris. Please remember to make all cheques payable to Cancerkin and avoid sending cash in the post. Please contact l.smith@cancerkin.org.uk if you have any queries about sponsorship.

June lectures at Cancerkin

Next Tuesday, 28th June from 11am – 1pm, we are pleased to welcome Dr Anmol Malhotra MB BS BSc(Hons) MRCP FRCR, Consultant Radiologist and Clinical Lead at the Royal Free Hospital who will give a lecture on recent developments in breast imaging at our second June lecture. This special event at the Cancerkin Centre is open to all patients and supporters and we would love to see you there. Spaces are limited so please contact Una on 0207 830 2323 or u.reynolds@cancerkin.org.uk if you are interested in attending.

Cancerkin’s latest addition…

We are thrilled to welcome our new finance officer Intern, Krupi Mehta, to the Cancerkin Team. Krupi has just graduated from the University of Westminster with a first class honours degree in Accounting and Business Management and she will now be assisting with our finances, accounts and IT over the next few months. Congratulations on your degree and welcome to Cancerkin, Krupi!

Therapies update…

Please note that pilates classes will be taking a break over the summer. The last session before the break will be on Thursday 7th July 2011 at 1.30pm, and classes will recommence on Thursday 8th September 2011 at 1.30pm.

In the News.....

Can a low carb diet prevent or slow cancer?

Many different theories exist about how our diets and the food we eat can affect our risk of developing cancer or can impact upon the growth of cancerous tumours. The latest research to emerge on the topic was published last week in the journal Cancer Research and suggests that a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet could help to slow the growth of tumours and even prevent cancer from developing.

Scientists in Canada reached this conclusion firstly by looking at the effects of two different diets on a group of mice that had cancer. One group of mice was given a typical Western diet, composed of 55 per cent carbohydrate, 23 percent protein and 22 percent fat. Another was given a low-carb, high-protein diet made up of 15 percent carbohydrate, 58 percent protein and 26 percent fat. The growth of tumours was found to be slower in the mice on the low-carb diet than those on the Western one. Researchers then repeated the same experiment on mice who were genetically predisposed to breast cancer. Of these mice, almost 50 percent of those on the Western diet developed breast cancer within their first year of life and only one mouse in this group reached the full life span of two years. None of the mice on the low-carb diet developed breast cancer as quickly and more that 50 percent reached or exceeded normal life expectancy. Lead researcher, Dr Gerald Krystal suggested that the reason behind the study’s results was related to the fuel cancer cell required for growth. Tumour cells need more glucose than healthy cells to grow and a low-carbohydrate diet may help to deprive tumour cells of both glucose and insulin, slowing their development. He also speculated that a low-carbohydrate, high-protein diet may boost the immune system's ability to kill cancer cells.

As always, such claims must be approached with caution. In response to the study, Cancer Research UK was quick to highlight that the research is still in its infancy. Jessica Harris, senior health information officer at Cancer Research UK, said: "This study was done in mice, so it doesn't tell us whether such a diet would have a similar effect in humans. There is a substantial amount of evidence that eating a healthy, balanced diet that's high in fibre, fruit and vegetables and low in red and processed meat, saturated fat and salt could reduce the risk of developing certain types of cancer, but it's far too soon to add this dietary pattern to the list."

To read more from CRUK, please click here.

Earlier menarche means increased risk of breast cancer…

Through its Breakthrough Generations Study, which is currently following over 110,000 women living in the UK over a number of decades, breast cancer research charity Breakthrough Breast Cancer has found that teenage girls, particularly those from a lower socio-economic background, are starting their periods earlier. As reported in On the pulse last October, this is a worrying trend, as much research has shown that early menarche is linked to an increased risk of developing breast cancer.

Data collected in the study shows that, generally, in girls born in the late 1980s and 1990s, the age at which they have their first period has dropped. In girls born before this time, the average age of menarche had remained the same for several decades. In girls born at the start of the 20th century, the average age was 13.5 years, then 12.6 years for those born in the 1940s. This age remained the same until it dropped again to 12.3 years for girls born in the 1980s. The drop in age has been found to be most pronounced in those from a poorer background. The age at which a girl’s periods start is linked to their body weight. In a society struggling with childhood obesity, the drop in age may well be related to increasing numbers of overweight children, particularly in lower socio-economic backgrounds.

Study author Danielle Morris, from The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) in Sutton, Surrey, said: “These results suggest that girls, particularly from poorer backgrounds, are starting their periods younger. While we don’t know all the reasons behind this, changes in diet may have played a part. This decrease is important because the age at which a girl starts her periods can influence her chances of developing breast cancer later in life.” Professor Anthony Swerdlow, from the ICR and co-leader of the Breakthrough Generations Study, added: “Incidence of breast cancer has risen progressively over a long time in the UK. We think these changes have come about through a combination of factors each of which individually makes a small difference. Understanding how these factors influence a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer should allow us to develop strategies for preventing the disease in the future.”

To read more from Breakthrough Breast Cancer’s website, please click here.

Laura Smith

24th June 2011