The first step in finding a cure to cancer is finding out exactly what causes it. Scientists are making headway, at least a far as colon cancer is concerned, with new findings that show that colon cancer may be a disease of hormone deficiency.

The key here is GCC (guanylyl cyclase C), a protein receptor located on the intestines, which interacts with two hormones, guanylin and uroguanylin, to regulate growth of the organ. But it's thought that when colon cancer is in its early stages, these hormones are mostly absent, which gives way to the growth of tumors (for an more in-depth explanation, check out the full article here.) So then it's thought that if GCC can be stimulated, it would block tumors from growing.

This new approach to colon cancer is promising to scientists because, as clinical pharmacologist Scott Waldman, M.D., Ph.D., points out, 'it's a completely different way of thinking about the disease ... Not only does this give a new paradigm in how we think about the disease, but it gives us a new paradigm for treating the disease -- that is, by hormone replacement therapy.'

Hormone Replacement Therapy is a controversial treatment for the sometimes severe symptoms of menopause which include hot flashes, mood swings, night sweats and weakened bones. There's been ongoing debates about the safety of such treatments, because HRT has, in some studies, been shown to increase a woman's risk of heart attacks and breast cancer. Yet some feel that these findings have been exaggerated and the benefits of HRT outweigh the risks. In fact, there's even a type of HRT designed to fight breast cancer.

So what's my point here? It's this: If you're considering HRT, it's important to make an informed choice. Here's an article that sums up the issue of HRT, and as always, talk to your doctor about risks before taking any medication

If you're going through menopause or are post-menopausal, are you on Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) to deal with hot flashes and other menopause situations? You're not alone, although many women are opting for more natural remedies that don't involve HRT.

With recent information linking HRT to enhanced cancer risks, what are other solutions? In what seems like common knowledge, eating right (having a very strict and followed diet) and more exercise may be your ticket to minimizing the pain of being in menopause -- but without risking internal damage or elevating your risk of cancer in any form.

The results of this study are fascinating and can be found here. What's your stance on HRT in light of recent news? Is a non-pharmacological approach to dealing with menopause a route you'd be willing to investigate?

In a new study from University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center Dr. Sharon Giordano, an assistant professor of medicine in the department of breast medical oncology, highlights the reality that some physicians may be influenced to prescribe cancer treatments as a result of preliminary clinical trial results announced at medical conferences and by mass media reporting. In treating cancer patients with unproven cancer therapies, and basing those decisions on the incomplete data of preliminary trials, the physician and patient risk not only the disappointment if the therapy turns out not to be effective, but puts the patient in harm's way from possibly damaging and toxic consequences in unforeseen side effects and complications of the new therapy.

In the past, hormone replacement therapy, HRT, Vioxx and Bextra cox-2 inhibitors, and Iressa, a lung-cancer drug that physicians began prescribing based on early findings, turned out to do more harm than good. With the advent of the Internet, and access to the latest medical news, cancer patients are much more informed today, and may be a factor fueling the push to try new therapies, before they are proven effective or safe. The researchers of this study caution everyone to ask basic questions before embracing a drug that has not completely gone through the testing phases to insure it will do what it is attributed with having the ability to do, and that it is safe.

In Europe, there is good news and bad news for older women regarding womb cancer. In the last five years, surviving womb cancer has risen by 16 percent, giving an older woman diagnosed with womb cancer a 77 percent chance of living beyond cancer. That's the good news. The bad news, according to Cancer Research UK, is the incidence of womb cancer for older women, aged 60-to-79, is rising dramatically. At this time, the exact causes for the rise in womb cancer are not known, but some suggest a combination of factors leading to the increase are early puberty, late menopause, hormone replacement therapy, obesity, tamoxifen, and lack of awareness in recognizing the early symptoms of womb cancer.