Breast Cancer researchers

During Breast Cancer Awareness Month, turn to one of the University of Georgia’s experts for the latest information about this treatable but deadly disease. The following experts cover many aspects of breast cancer from the effects based on age, to decisions on treatment to the importance of early detection. Their contact information is included for your convenience. Please feel free to contact UGA News Service at 706/542-8083 or news@uga.edu should you need additional assistance.

Breast Cancer and Younger Women
Stephanie Burwell is an assistant professor in child and family development who studies the psychosocial outcomes of breast cancer and its treatment on women between the ages of 18-50 and their husbands or partners. Her research to date has focused on sexual function following surgical treatment of breast cancer in younger women, the impact of breast cancer on younger women’s relationships with their partners and children, coping strategies used by younger women with breast cancer, attachment behaviors and proximity-seeking in cancer patients and their partners, and the use of a feminist informed medical family therapy model to assist younger women and their partners during diagnosis, treatment, and their transition to survivorship. Her recent papers have been published in such journals as the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Families, Systems, & Health, and the Journal of Feminist Family Therapy.

Stephanie Burwell
http://fcs.uga.edu/cfd/mft/burwell.html
706/542-4897
sburwell@uga.edu

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Breast Cancer and Older Women
Claire Robb is an assistant professor of epidemiology who has studied the well being of older breast cancer survivors. A study, published in the April issue of the journal Critical Reviews in Oncology/Hematology, showed survivors reporting consistently worse outcomes in both physical and mental health. The researchers observed decrements in areas such as physical functioning, pain, vitality and emotional well-being. Survivors also reported a significantly greater number of days when fatigue interfered with their daily activities. And while there was no difference in presence of depressive symptoms between groups, the survivors reported significantly less life satisfaction. Full text of release is available at http://www.uga.edu/news/artman/publish/070405_BreastCancerStudy.shtml.

Claire Robb
http://www.uga.edu/publichealth/dept/robb.htm
706/425-3222
crobb@geron.uga.edu

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Women’s Decisions about Therapy
Sally Huston is an assistant professor in the College of Pharmacy who is conducted an on-going study currently funded by American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy investigating the process of making the decision to use chemo or hormone therapy after breast surgery.

Sally Huston
shuston@rx.uga.edu

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Promoting Breast Cancer Screening
Jeffrey K. Springston is a professor and associate dean for research and graduate studies at Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication who is currently in the fourth year of a study funded by the National Cancer Institute to research the differences between promoting breast cancer screening by comparing the effectiveness in the use of DVDs again person-to-person telephone consultations. See more information at http://www.uga.edu/aboutUGA/research-springston.html.

Jeffrey Springtson
Profile page
706/542-7833
jspring@uga.edu

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Biomarkers for Breast Cancer
Karen Abbott is an American Cancer Society Fellow and postdoctoral associate at the Complex Carbohydrate Research Center working on the identification of glycoproteins that have complex beta 1,6 branched glycan structures as biomarkers for early detection of breast cancer.

Karen Abbott
http://cell.ccrc.uga.edu/~pierce/people.html
706/ 542-1701
kabbott@uga.edu

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For more information about National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, visit www.nbcam.org.  

Other sources include:
American Cancer Society, (800) 227-2345,
National Cancer Institute (NCI), (800) 4-CANCER,
Y-ME National Breast Cancer Organization, (800) 221-2141.