ONS Connect - January 2008 - (Page 9)

favorable effects on liver enzymes. Coffee also has been related to a reduced risk of liver disease and cirrhosis, which can lead to liver cancer. Although a cause-and-effect relationship between coffee and liver cancer cannot be determined based on the data, the current analysis provides evidence of a protective effect of coffee drinking on the liver. Bravi, F., Bosetti, C., Tavani, A., Bagnardi, V., Gallus, S., Negri, E., et al. (2007). Coffee drinking and hepatocellular carcinoma risk. Hepatology, 46(2), 430– 435. Carbohydrates may Be Used as a New Cancer Biomarker N umerous studies comparing normal and tumor cells have shown that changes in complex carbohydrates, also know as glycans, on the cell correlate with cancer development. Com- pared to molecular proteins, molecular glycans are extremely abundant, and recent advances in technology have allowed the effective systematic study of the structures. Like genes and proteins, complex carbohydrates may be altered as cancer develops. A new $15.6 million, five-year initiative will focus on the important, understudied class of molecules. One of the most promising cancer biomarkers in development today is a glycoprotein known as GP73, a marker for liver cancer. GP73 is expected to be validated through the National Cancer Institute’s Early Detection Research network in the coming months. Because glycans are more complex than DNA or proteins, efforts to study the molecules on a large scale have been slowed. But recent advances in technologies such as the development of glycan arrays have made the initiative feasible. Information about glycans could improve the utility of protein-based biomarkers in use today, including prostate-specific antigen for prostate cancer and CA-125 for ovarian cancer. According to researchers, both proteins have glycan components, and analyzing their molecular features together may yield useful information for physicians and patients. National Cancer Institute. (2007). Testing carbohydrates as cancer biomarkers. Retrieved November 5, 2007, from http://www .cancer.gov/ncicancerbulletin/NCI_Cancer_ Bulletin_082107/page6 Contributing Editor Deborah McBride, RN, MSN, CPON ®, is a nurse at the Kaiser Permanente Oakland Medical Center and a faculty member at Samuel Merritt College in Oakland, CA. JANUARY 2008 ONS CONNECT 9 http://www.cancer.gov/ncicancerbulletin/NCI_Cancer_Bulletin_082107/page6 http://www.cancer.gov/ncicancerbulletin/NCI_Cancer_Bulletin_082107/page6 http://www.cancer.gov/ncicancerbulletin/NCI_Cancer_Bulletin_082107/page6

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ONS Connect - January 2008 Contents Editor's Note Just In Up Front You Tell Us Up Close & Professional Web Connect Capitol Connection Notice Nursing Now Caregiver Care Five Minute In-Service New Treatments, New Hope Calendar of Events ONS Election Working For You Staying On Top

ONS Connect - January 2008

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