Wouldn't it be great if we could find breast cancer long before something appears on a mammogram?

An FDA approved test called the Halo Breast Pap Test System might be able to do just that by collecting Nipple Aspirate Fluid (NAF). The test is designed to detect abnormal cells in the breast. The Halo system can identify benign disease as well as abnormal ductal cells that can be precursors to cancer.

Some research has suggested that ductal fluid excreted from the nipple can be used to identify a women's specific risk of breast cancer. A women with abnormal cells in the fluid has a four to five times greater risk of developing breast cancer.

Think about this:

The introduction of the HALO Breast Pap Test has been compared to the introduction of the Cervical Pap Test in the 1950s, which is widely credited with reducing cervical cancer death rates by more than 70 percent through the identification of abnormal cells in the cervix. Whether the same can be said for the breast pap test remains to be seen, but it is likely that the screen will be adopted by more OB-GYNs as oncologists push for ever earlier identification of cancer.

A new study shows men are three times more likely to develop certain types of skin cancer than women. But it doesn't have as much to do with sun exposure as we might think.

According to researchers at Ohio State University, gender differences put men at greater risk for non-melanoma skin cancers than their female counterparts.

Researchers tested the effects of UVB rays on mice and found male mice developed tumors earlier. The tumors were also larger and more aggressive than those found in female mice.

The study, published in the April 1 issue of Cancer Research, indicates it could be the higher levels of antioxidants females have in their skin that allow them to fight off tumors better.

For those of you living for the moment, you are about to lose 60 whole minutes come Sunday when Daylight-saving time strikes once again.

This may throw you off a bit if you are one to maximize every second, minute, and hour you are afforded in this tenuous life. And while I can't offer you any secrets for recapturing this lost time, I can share some thoughts, compliments of professional organizer Linda Richards of Organize and More, on how you might compensate for Sunday's lost hour.

Think about this:

• Go to bed 15 minutes earlier and get up 15 minutes earlier starting a few days before the time change.
• Move any important meetings to later in the week so you body isn't as tired.
• Snack on healthy foods such as fruits and nuts to replenish energy.
• Shorten your to-do list to your top three to five priorities.
• Print out a copy of your calendar and appointments for March and make sure your computer has a patch to handle the earlier time change this year.
  

I heard the statistic twice this past weekend -- once from a friend who is a drug rep for a prostate cancer drug and once from a friend with a family member struggling with prostate issues.

I had never before heard what hit my ears a few days ago, and I was quite shocked to learn this new cancer tidbit -- so shocked I did some research and discovered that what my friends told me is sadly accurate.

The good news is that the death rate for prostate cancer is going down, and the disease is being found earlier than ever before. The startling news is what I present today as my Thought for the Day.

Think about this:

Nearly 80 percent of men in their 70s develop prostate cancer.

I remember thinking when my grandma was a spunky 80-year-old -- still going to aerobics classes in her purple tights -- that it must be sad to be such an age when so many friends and acquaintances are falling ill and passing away. My grandma was always one to care for others, call on others, pray for others -- and often she seemed to be the only one in her circle who was thriving. Somehow, she took it all in stride and continued baking and gardening and sewing and living strong until her own death at the age of 86 -- when she left her remaining friends and acquaintances wondering if their own time on Earth was approaching a quick end. At the time, I thought this loss of friends was merely a side effect of aging. It didn't seem to concern me at my own young age of 30. I didn't really know any 30-year-olds who were dying. And I didn't predict anyone my age would be dying until I was closer to the age of 80. How wrong I was.

I am now 36 years old. And I know many women my age who have died -- most of them because of breast cancer, the same disease I have been fighting for nearly two years. So it's not only sad to me that people my age are dying, it's also quite personal and frightening -- for it could easily me in the same predicament. So I feel vulnerable -- so many years earlier than I imagined.

I think I know how my grandma must have felt when her loved ones were leaving her. And I think I will take her same approach to coping with this unfortunate fact of life. Although I couldn't possibly bake and garden and sew like she did, I can keep busy with my own hobbies and interests. And I can continue living strong until my own death -- which hopefully won't occur until after I've made my appearance in purple tights. About 50 years from now.

A new study reveals that women who received childhood cancer treatment may enter menopause much earlier than women who are not childhood cancer survivors. Siblings were studied -- 2,800 women who did receive treatment and 1,000 sisters of cancer survivors who did not. Women who underwent ovary-removing surgery were excluded from the study -- and the study then found that eight percent of cancer survivors experienced early menopause and less than one percent of the sisters experienced the same phenomenon. The risk was highest -- 30 percent -- for those who once received radiation to the lower abdomen and who also received certain chemotherapy agents, such as cyclophosphamide. Researchers say that 30 percent may be an underestimate, however, because the study included mostly women who had not yet reached age 40. The number of childhood cancer survivors over age 40 entering early menopause is still unclear. What is clear are the unfortunate consequences of this finding that could affect family planning, middle age health, thinning bones, other problems associated with menopause.