A well-known anti-cancer agent in certain vegetables has just had its reputation enhanced. The compound, in broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables, has been found to be effective in disrupting late stages of cell growth in breast cancer.

Keith Singletary and doctoral student Steven Jackson of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign report their finding involving sulforaphane (SUL), which they say could ultimately be used to enhance the prevention and treatment of breast cancer, in the Journal of Nutrition.



Radiation after Lumpectomy May be Unnecessary for Many Older Women

Older women treated with tamoxifen after removal of early-stage breast cancer by lumpectomy may safely be able to avoid radiation therapy and its unpleasant side effects. Writing in the New England Journal of Medicine, investigators from several major cancer research groups report that adding radiation to post-surgical tamoxifen treatment of women age 70 or older does not improve survival, has minimal impact on the risk of local tumor recurrence and does not prevent the need for eventual mastectomy.

"If a patient does not need to have radiation therapy, her quality of life can improve significantly," says Kevin Hughes, MD, of the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Cancer Center, who led the study. "By showing that radiation therapy has very little impact on outcome for these patients, we can help each woman and her physician decide on the right treatment."