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Two national cancer organizations, ASCO and NCCN, both recently updated their breast cancer guidelines to include a multiparameter gene expression test, Oncotype DX, which can help predict the risk of recurrence and the effectiveness of certain therapies in patients with early, node-negative, ER-positive breast cancer. Click here for more information.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in the US, even though it is largely preventable by the early detection and removal of adenomatous polyps. In March, the American Cancer Society, the American College of Radiology, and the U.S. Multi-Society Task Force on Colorectal Cancer released the first joint consensus guidelines for detection of adenomatous polyps and CRC screening for asymptomatic adults age 50 years and older.

The FDA recently announced that it has cleared for marketing two commercial tests that can screen for several different types of infectious respiratory viruses, including those responsible for many cases of influenza, also known as “flu.” Both new tests use molecular methods to detect viral genetic material in samples from the respiratory tract of patients with symptoms. Respiratory viral testing can help diagnose the cause of symptoms and allow for early treatment of influenza with antiviral medications that can slow progression of the disease.

Findings from the Treating to New Targets study published in the New England Journal of Medicine recently stress the importance of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels, demonstrating that it is worthwhile to pay attention to HDL cholesterol levels in heart patients who lower their LDL cholesterol levels with statin therapy.