A recent study published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology confirms previous studies finding significant increases in the risk of breast cancer in women taking Clomid who could ovulate even without Clomid. If you are ovulating and considering Clomid, there are other options that may be safer. It would be prudent to discuss these with a reproductive medicine specialist.
 
In addition, it is wise to take certain supplements, herbs or eat certain foods to mitigate your risks on Clomid or other hormone therapies. At our office, Steve Gomberg works with a lot of patients undergoing reproductive therapies to help minimize cancer risks. It is always an individualized endeavor, but there are certain herbs and foods that directly inhibit some of the mechanisms cancers use to grow and that can help prevent cells from becoming cancerous (for an in-depth discussion of some of the herbs and strategies, see Breast Cancer and Botanical Medicine. Alternative Medicine Alert. 2008; 2(6) 64-70. Gomberg S, Horn, B.).
 
Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2009 Jan;200(1):72.e1-7.
Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2006 Nov;100(2):201-12. Epub 2006 May 10

A new study published in Fertility and Sterility found an increased risk of ovarian cancer associated with some medications commonly used in IVF and IUI (especially hCG and Clomid). The study followed women over 30 years, having undergone these procedures in the 1960’s and 70’s. One should note that the techniques and drugs used today are not all the same, so the current risk is relatively unknown.
 
A number of years ago, a patient in her early 30’s came to us after having undergone multiple failed IVF cycles with “unexplained infertility”. Fortunately, when she came to see us, she also went to her Family Medicine doctor who was concerned about her repeated hormonal exposure. The physician strongly encouraged her to get breast imaging studies done. They found breast cancer in a very early stage and immediately had it surgically removed. After that, she got pregnant (with another IVF cycle) and now has a lovely child and is in good health.
 
Everything in life is weighing benefits and risks. While many things have associated risks, it is prudent to mitigate the risk factors when possible. To help minimize the risks for our patients, our cancer specialist Steve Gomberg, developed prevention and detoxification regimens. These are evidence based methods (shown in clinical trials to help inhibit reproductive cancers), and are customized to the individual according to their history and physical findings.
 
Also, cancers don’t necessarily show up so quickly after exposure to initiating events. In this study they followed patients for 30 years. Therefore, if you have undergone conventional reproductive therapies in the past, it would be worthwhile to consider taking steps to minimize your risks.
 
Fertil Steril. 2009 Apr;91(4):1152-8. Epub 2008 Apr 18

A New study found that homocysteine and MTHFR (a gene involved in folic acid metabolism) are risk factors in developing Down Syndrome. We discussed both of these in our lecture on improving ovarian reserve and how to reduce homocysteine and improve folate metabolism. The standard treatment is simply to take B6, B12 and folic acid, but the type of B6, B12 and folate are important. These are also important to prevent your own cardiovascular risk factors, so if you are trying to get pregnant, its very worthwhile to get these checked.

Zhonghua Yi Xue Yi Chuan Xue Za Zhi. 2007 Oct;24(5):533-7.

Thanks to our nutritionist Steve Gomberg for sending me info on this. A new study found that almost a third of the samples of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) were found to contain measurable amounts of mercury. This really emphasizes what we have been saying for so long: You can’t trust ingredients, you have to find companies you can trust. In other words, you have to do a lot of research to find out which products are tested thoroughly and are made responsibly. This is true of everything from vitamins, vegetables and fruit to things as simple as the flour or sugar you buy.
 
This is just one of the many unbelievable findings that have inspired us to make our webstore so that we can help patients get products that are good for them and that we have researched very carefully. For our herbs, we also do independent random testing in addition to the testing done by the herb companies. It is buyer beware in today’s day and age, the FDA can do very little to protect consumers. How do all those tainted products from China and elsewhere get to our shelves if the FDA is really able to monitor things. Why are they suppressing incidences of mad cow disease in the US? There are so many examples of this. At any rate, back to HFCS. Here are a list of products they found had mercury in their HFCS:
 

* Quaker Oatmeal to Go bars
* Jack Daniel’s Barbecue Sauce
* Hershey’s Chocolate Syrup (which by the way also had lead in it in samples that ECCM sent to a lab for testing).
* Kraft Original Barbecue Sauce
* Nutri-Grain Strawberry Cereal Bars
* Manwich Gold Sloppy Joe
* Market Pantry Grape Jelly
* Smucker’s Strawberry Jelly
* Pop-Tarts Frosted Blueberry
* Hunt’s Tomato Ketchup
* Wish-Bone Western Sweet & Smooth Dressing
* Coca-Cola Classic: no mercury found on a second test
* Yoplait Strawberry Yogurt
* Minute Maid Berry Punch
* Yoo-hoo Chocolate Drink
* Nesquik Chocolate Milk
* Kemps Fat Free Chocolate Milk

 
Environ Health. 2009 Jan 26;8:2.

We all knew that caffeine lowers your chances of carrying a successful pregnancy, but did you know that smoking can counteract that? Yes, it turns out that smoking may upregulate the enzymes that detoxify caffeine … so it doesn’t stay in your system as long to cause problems for your fertility. But don’t get too excited because smoking can cause a laundry list of damaging affects to your reproductive system and to a fetus… not to mention a newborn.
 
Reprod Toxicol. 1998 May-Jun;12(3):289-95. Caffeine intake and fecundability: a follow-up study among 430 Danish couples planning their first pregnancy. Jensen TK, Henriksen TB, Hjollund NH, Scheike T, Kolstad H, Giwercman A, Ernst E, Bonde JP, Skakkebaek NE, Olsen J. Department of Growth and Reproduction, Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen, Denmark.

A recent study looking at acupuncture’s effects on insomnia found that stimulating Ht7 increased melatonin output and improved sleep in people with insomnia. Interesting, melatonin also has protective effects on cancers such as breast cancer and it may have important ramifications for fertility, pregnancy, heart disease, and many other factors.

Minerva Med. 2008 Dec;99(6):539-47.

Red clover is one of the herbs that commonly stirs up controversy regarding it’s safety with patients that have hormonally driven tumors. Some practitioners routinely avoid isoflavone containing herbs and foods because of the possibility of antagonizing estrogen receptor positive tumor cells. An overview of the data shows that although there are some studies showing a stimulating effect of these isoflavones in vitro, clinical and epidemiological data does not generally support the conclusions of these studies. Also, isolating and concentrating these isoflavones tends to have a very different effect then when they are administered as part of a whole plant or food. The estrogenicity of red clover is estimated to be weak at best, and this study shows that the isoflavone biochanin A markedly inhibits aromatase of estrogen, decreasing the body’s endogenous estrogen production. It could be that avoiding clover or other herbs and foods because of their reputed estrogenicity could be throwing the baby out with the bathwater.
 
The red clover (Trifolium pratense) isoflavone biochanin A inhibits aromatase activity and expression.Wang Y, Man Gho W, Chan FL, Chen S, Leung LK.
Department of Biochemistry, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin NT, Hong Kong.