A case study suggests that breast cancer may be difficult to diagnose in women with fibrous disease of the breast, particularly if the patient has dense breast tissue. Imaging revealed no changes in breast tissue over a one-year period, but breast cancer was found within the fibrous tissue after repeat core needle biopsy. Changes in posterior echoes were a diagnostic clue for breast cancer in fibrous breast tissue.

Pulsing ultrasound waves through the brain after a stroke may clear inflammatory dead blood cells and improve survival odds, according to a study in Nature Biotechnology. In a preclinical study, survival increased by about 30 percentage points after three 10-minute ultrasound sessions. Researchers say the approach might also be useful in clearing toxic proteins associated with Alzheimer's disease.

Researchers have introduced a tool, based on the PREVENT risk calculator, that uses sex- and age-specific percentiles to estimate 30-year cardiovascular risk, aiming to improve communication and motivate early prevention. "When a patient sees they are in the 90th percentile, we hope that this will serve as a wake-up call that risk starts early," said researcher Sadiya Khan of Northwestern University. "We don't want to wait until it is too late, and someone has had an event." Research findings were published in JACC.

Enlargement of the pancreatic duct may be an early warning sign of pancreatic cancer, according to a study in Gastro Hep Advances. Researchers found that individuals with an enlarged pancreatic duct were 16% more likely to develop cancer within five years and 26% more likely within 10 years.

Researchers are studying the unique composition of snake urine, which lacks uric acid, as a potential treatment for kidney stones and gout. Snakes convert uric acid into solid urates, preventing crystallization, a process that could inspire new medications for humans.