A pizza topping herb contains a compound that can kill prostate cancer, laboratory studies have shown.

Scientists tested carvacrol, a component of oregano, on lines of cancer cells. They found that the chemical induced apoptosis, or programmed "cell suicide".

Apoptosis is one of the ways the body rids itself of malfunctioning or malignant cells, such as those found in tumours.

The US researchers are trying to identify the signalling pathways that triggered the reaction.

Dr Supriya Bavadekar, from Long Island University, New York state, said: "A significant advantage is that oregano is commonly used in food and has a 'generally recognised as safe' status. We expect this to translate into a decreased risk of severe toxic effects.

"Some researchers have previously shown that eating pizza may cut down cancer risk. This effect has been mostly attributed to lycopene, a substance found in tomato sauce, but we now feel that even the oregano seasoning may play a role.

"If the study continues to yield positive results, this super-spice may represent a very promising therapy for patients with prostate cancer."

The findings are being presented today at the Experimental Biology 2012 meeting in San Diego, California.

A new type of prostate cancer treatment that can reduce unpleasant side-effects, a new study by British scientists revealed on Tuesday, Xinhua news agency reported.

The new method, called HIFU (high-intensity focused ultrasound), uses sound waves to selectively target individual cancer sites in order to burn away the cancerous cells without affecting the surrounding area, the study published in the Lancet Oncology journal said.

Current treatment - whether surgery or radiotherapy - leaves many men with serious and embarrassing side-effects including urinary incontinence and infertility.

The chance of achieving the "perfect outcome", which means no urine leak, good erections and cancer control at 12 months after treatment, was just 50 percent for radiotherapy or surgery.

But the latest study, which involved 41 patients, showed that they have a 9-in-10 chance of achieving the perfect outcome at 12 months.

"Our results are very encouraging," said Dr Hashim Ahmed, who led the study at University College London.

"We are optimistic that men diagnosed with prostate cancer may soon be able to undergo a day case surgical procedure, which can be safely repeated once or twice, to treat their condition with very few side-effects," he said, adding that could mean a significant improvement in their quality of life.

Androgen suppression - the inhibition of testosterone and other male hormones - is a routine therapy for prostate cancer. Unfortunately, it can dramatically reduce the quality of patients' sex lives and, more importantly, lead to cancer recurrence in a more deadly androgen-independent form.

A new paper combining mathematical modeling with clinical data validates a different approach: cycling patients on and off treatment. Such intermittent androgen suppression alleviates most unwanted side effects and postpones the development of resistance to treatment.

With the model, the authors say, clinicians can predict the maximum length of treatment for a given patient before they become resistant, leading to more effective therapy.

Breakthrough Breast Cancer today launches a definitive guide for people with an increased risk of developing breast cancer due to their family history.

The guide provides, for the first time, information on national standards for services and care for people who have a suspected or confirmed family history of breast cancer, in one single, accessible place. It combines expert advice from professionals as well as experiences from women with a family history of breast cancer. It allows both men and women to have a wider understanding of their risk of familial breast cancer and help them navigate the NHS services available to them.

Chris Askew, Chief Executive of Breakthrough Breast Cancer, says, "Although familial or hereditary breast cancer is unusual, it is important for people at higher risk of breast cancer to have access to the vital services they need. This will help them to find out how to manage their own risk and get the most appropriate breast screening, so that if cancer does develop, it is caught early. These guidelines will serve as an essential tool for a significant proportion of the population and their families in helping to reduce the fear of breast cancer."

A family history of breast cancer means having an unusually high number of close relatives with the disease or some other form of cancer, such as ovarian. Of the nearly 48,000 women who are diagnosed with breast cancer each year in the UK, about one in five has a family history of the disease. Having a family history of breast cancer means that you may be more likely to develop the disease, and at a younger age, compared with the general population.

About 1 in 20 breast cancers are associated with inherited faults in breast cancer genes such as BRCA1 and BRCA2. People with these inherited faults tend to have a particularly strong family history of breast cancer. Generally speaking, a family history that may suggest a link to a faulty gene means having:

• Two close family members (including, for example, mother, daughter, sister, grandmother or aunt) diagnosed with breast cancer under the age of 50
• Or three close family members under 60
• Or four close family members of any age

The guide is available nationwide and will be a useful addition to GP and practice nurses' armoury in the battle against breast cancer.

By debunking some common myths about breast cancer, two oncologists from the US hope to give women some simple key messages to help them understand and manage their risk of breast cancer.

Drs Mahmoud Charif and Neetu Radhakrishnan, both medical oncologists at the University of Cincinnati (UC) Health in Ohio, and assistant professors at the university's College of Medicine, published their list of myths and tips for reducing breast cancer risk in a press release on 20 January.

Myth No 1: It's All Down to Genes So No Point in Trying to Manage Risk

Charif says this is a myth because most women who develop breast cancer have neither a family history of the disease nor a genetic mutation linked to breast cancer (for instance mutations in the tumor suppressor genes BRCA1 and BRCA2 have been linked to hereditary breast cancer).

He says breast cancer risk is affected by a combination of lifestyle choices and environmental exposure and that:

"Statistics tell us that one in eight women will develop breast cancer during her lifetime - and that risk goes up significantly with age and genetic predisposition."

He said the good news is there are lots things women can do to reduce their risk, including avoiding alcohol, eating a healthy diet high in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, taking regular exercise and keeping to a healthy weight.

Myth No 2: Certain Foods Like Red Meat Increase Breast Cancer Risk

Charif says no scientific studies have linked red meat or any other specific foods to increased risk of breast cancer but they have shown a link between alcohol consumption, even in moderation, and breast cancer.

He tells his patients to avoid alcohol completely.

"Consuming one drink per day increases the average woman's breast risk by approximately 10 per cent," says Charif.

"Alcohol intake also has been linked to several other cancers, including oral, throat, esophagus and liver," he adds.

Radhakrishnan's advice is to eat a "healthful, balanced diet", and if you change your diet radically, even by starting to take supplements or multivitamins, talk to your doctor.

"When it comes to soy specifically, since no study has shown harm, it is probably safe for a healthy woman to consume soy in amounts common to Asian diets," he says.

Myth No 3: A Lump or Pain in the Breast Is a Sign of Breast Cancer

This is a myth because there can be several other reasons why a woman may have a pain or lump in her breast.

Breast tissue is changing all the time because of varying hormone levels, especially during menstruation or breastfeeding.

Lumps can be benign growths of tissue, but if you feel one you should have it checked by a medical professional immediately, say Charif and Radhakrishnan.

Myth No 4: Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) Does No Harm

Charif and Radhakrishnan say this is a myth because studies show that combination HRT (using estrogen and progesterone), which many women took for relief of menopause symptoms in the 1990s, does in fact increase the risk of breast cancer.

Charif says women with menopausal symptoms should avoid combination HRT altogether if possible.

HRT that uses only one hormone, estrogen, is thought slightly to increase breast cancer risk if used for no more than five years.

He explains that breast cancer risk is linked with lifetime exposure to the female hormone estrogen, and that's why women who have had children or breastfed for an extended period are believed to be at slightly lower risk of breast cancer because these activities reduce ovulation and thereby lessen lifetime exposure to estrogen.

Radhakrishnan agrees and adds that:

"Early menstruation and late menopause are also associated with an increased risk for breast cancer for the same reason."

Myth No 5: Only Masses of Exercise Reduces Breast Cancer Risk

This is a myth because even moderate amounts of exercise, such as brisk walking three or four times a week, can make a difference to a woman's risk of developing breast cancer, as well as improving her cardiovascular health, say Charif and Radhakrishnan.

They say the important thing is to "keep moving".

Studies show that regular exercise can help reduce women's risk of breast cancer by between 20 and 50 per cent, they stress.

Within minutes of inhaling the contents of a lit cigarette, genetic damage starts to occur - it does not take days or years, researchers from the University of Minnesota revealed in Chemical Research in Toxicology. The authors say that their study is the first to explain how specific substances in tobacco smoke cause cancer-associated DNA damage.

Stephen S. Hecht, Ph.D., and team explain that lung cancer kills approximately 3,000 people daily. The vast majority of them die prematurely because of smoking, which is also linked to several additional cancers, as well as cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, erectile dysfunction and other illnesses.

Previous studies have shown that PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons), which are present in tobacco smoke, are key triggers in the development of lung cancer. However, until this latest study, nobody could define exactly how these PAHs damage human genes.

The researchers added phenanthrene - a labeled PAH - to cigarettes and tracked its path with the help of 12 volunteer smokers.

The authors wrote: "This study used a unique approach employing a stable isotope derivative of phenanthrene, the simplest PAH with a bay region, a feature closely associated with PAH carcinogenicity."

They discovered that phenanthrene rapidly forms a toxic substance in the blood which trashes DNA, resulting in cancer-causing mutations.

The scientists were surprised at how quickly this substance reached maximum levels - about fifteen to thirty minutes after the smokers had put out their cigarettes. They explained that the effect was as fast as injecting the substance directly into the bloodstream.

The authors wrote: "Levels of [D10]PheT in plasma of all subjects were maximal at the earliest time points examined, 15-30 min after smoking the cigarette containing [D10]phenanthrene, and decreased thereafter."

Hecht wrote: "This study is unique. It is the first to investigate human metabolism of a PAH specifically delivered by inhalation in cigarette smoke, without interference by other sources of exposure such as air pollution or the diet. The results reported here should serve as a stark warning to those who are considering starting to smoke cigarettes."