Cancer Gene

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6668727.stm

"His team studied tumour samples from patients with ovarian cancer. Some of the cancer patients had been treated with chemotherapy prior to surgery, and some had not.

Only 30% of the chemotherapy patients who had normally functioning p53 were alive five years later, compared to 70% of those with mutated, non-functioning p53."

I'm paranoid about health, to a degree. I like doing what I can to make sure I stay healthy, especially when it comes to things relating to womens health. My great-grandmother died of ovarian cancer, my grandma had something go wrong with something and had to have a full hystorectomy (she never told anyone what happened, but she did tell me once that she had been bleeding profusely), and my mom had precancerous cells on her cervix. I myself have had abnormal cells on my cervix... So I think I have a right to be proactive on this sort of thing. I worry about my baby if it's a girl. Caayn's mom and sister have problems with reoccuring cysts, I can't remember what the thing is called though... Yuck. Combine that with my own bad history and this child would be crazy.

But that study sort of freaked me out. I'm not really worried about ovarian cancer, since it is so far removed, but it does stay in the back of my mind as something that could be a remote possibility... but the fact that 30% of patients who were treated with chemotherapy were alive 5 years later (with the functioning gene) means that 70% died. Hmm. That really makes you think.