In this task, you are given a text of many news articles seperated by special token "|||||". Your task is to summarize them.

This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted. 
  
 Being married boosts the survival odds of men and women with colon cancer, shows a new study by researchers at Brigham Young University. 
  
 Marital status has been linked to better outcomes for several types of cancer, but little is known about colon cancer, said Sven Wilson, a political science professor at BYU and co-author of the study, which was published online in the International Journal of Cancer Epidemiology, Detection, and Prevention in advance of its print publication. 
  
 Wilson and researchers at Pennsylvania State University's College of Medicine analyzed 127,753 patient records to gauge the effects of marriage on their five-year survival rates. 
  
 Similar to studies of other cancers, they found married people were diagnosed at earlier stages of colon cancer and sought more aggressive treatment. 
  
 But even after controlling for those factors, they calculated that married patients had a 14 percent lower risk of death. 
  
 It's hard to say what's driving the survival rates, said Wilson. It's possible, he said, that the extra care giving support they provide translates to better disease management and, hence, better outcomes. 
  
 Kirsten Stewart 
  
 kstewart@sltrib.com ||||| A sedentary lifestyle, long believed to contribute to chronic conditions such as heart disease, can increase the risk of colon cancer, according to a study in the American Journal of Epidemiology. Activities are considered sedentary if they require very low energy expenditure, such as prolonged sitting. Previous studies have associated sedentary work with a higher risk for colorectal cancer but most have focused on one occupation at a single point in time. In this study, Australian scientists collected data from 2005 to 2007 on employment history, lifestyle and physical activity from 918 colon-cancer patients and 1,021 controls. Jobs were ranked according to the level of physical activity, from light to very heavy. Subjects who spent 10 or more years in sedentary jobs had twice the risk of colon cancer and a 44% increased risk of rectal cancer, compared with those who never held a sedentary job. The association was independent of recreational physical activity. Occupations requiring heavy physical activity were associated with a 44% reduced risk of colon cancer compared with light-activity work. The findings have occupational health implications, researchers said. 
  
 Enlarge Image Close Getty Images People in sedentary jobs for 10 years or more had twice the colon-cancer risk of those without such jobs. 
  
 Caveat: Sedentary work was associated with cancers of the rectum and distal colon but not the proximal colon. 
  
 Title: Long-Term Sedentary Work and the Risk of Subsite-specific Colorectal Cancer 
  
 • Spoonful of sugar: Treating recurring diseases, such as strep throat, with antibiotics kills only some of the bacteria. Scientists believe a subset of bacteria called persisters, which are distinct from antibiotic-resistant bacteria, go into a dormant state to evade antibiotics, then resurface and can trigger another infection. A study by U.S. researchers, reported in the journal Nature, found adding sugar to antibiotics nudges persisters out of hibernation, making them easier to kill. Various sugars, including mannitol, fructose and glucose, were combined with antibiotics and tested on Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Researchers found that more than 99% of persisters were killed when sugar was added to a class of antibiotics known as aminoglycosides, which includes gentamicin and kanamycin. Sweetened aminoglycosides killed persisters grown in lab cultures and in mice with urinary-tract infections, as well as those on medical devices with thin layers of bacteria called biofilms. Without sugar, aminoglycosides had no effect on persisters. Adding sugar to aminoglycosides could improve the treatment of some chronic bacterial infections, researchers said. 
  
 Caveat: While all the sugars tested killed E. coli bacteria, only fructose, when combined with aminoglycosides, killed Staphylococcus aureus. 
  
 Title: Metabolite-enabled eradication of bacterial persisters by aminoglycosides 
  
 • Gut-brain connection: Irritable bowel syndrome and other chronic bowel disorders are accompanied by anxiety and depression in 90% of patients. New research published in the journal Gastroenterology suggests these behavioral changes may be the result of altered brain chemistry caused by a disruption in the intestinal environment. In a series of experiments on mice, Canadian scientists found that changing the bacterial composition of the colon through the administration of antibiotics resulted in increased levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a protein associated with memory, learning and mood. Disrupting bacteria in the colon made normally passive mice more active and adventurous. In a separate experiment, marked behavioral changes were induced in mice made germ-free with antibiotics and subsequently injected with bacteria from mice with a different genetic makeup, confirming that bacteria can influence behavior. Changes in behavior and brain biochemistry didn't cause an increase in inflammatory activity or changes to intestinal neurotransmitters, researchers said. The findings suggest that a gut-microbiota-brain axis, or pathway, exists between the intestines and brain and may involve the production of substances that influence behavior, they said. 
  
 Caveat: The behavioral changes observed in mice may have been caused by undetected intestinal neurotransmitters, researchers said. A class of proteins called toll-like receptors, which are involved in intestinal homeostasis, may also have induced the altered behavior, they said. 
  
 Title: The Intestinal Microbiota Affect Central Levels of Brain-Derived Neurotropic Factor and Behavior in Mice 
  
 • Inflammation and breast cancer: Newly diagnosed breast-cancer patients who are found to have high levels of an inflammatory biomarker at the time of their diagnosis may be at greater risk for recurrence or death than women with low concentrations, according to a study in Breast Cancer Research. C-reactive protein (CRP) is produced by the liver in response to acute inflammation, infection and tissue damage. Elevated CRP is associated with cardiovascular disease and a poor prognosis for some cancers. In this study, CRP was measured in 2,910 Danish women age 26 to 99 diagnosed with breast cancer between 2002 and 2009. CRP was tested at diagnosis. The women were followed for up to seven years, during which 383 died (225 of breast cancer) and 118 experienced a recurrence. Five-year survival rates among women with the lowest, middle and highest levels of CRP were 90%, 81% and 74% respectively. Elevated CRP was associated with a higher rate of metastases and larger tumors. Researchers said high CRP levels may reflect the general health of women diagnosed with breast cancer and point to inflammation in the tumor area. 
  
 Caveat: As subjects were from a defined area of Copenhagen, the findings may not apply to women from other geographical regions or different ethnic backgrounds. The study didn't include measurements of amyloid A, which has been associated with an even stronger increase in the risk of death from breast cancer than C-reactive protein. 
  
 Title: Elevated pre-treatment levels of plasma C-reactive protein are associated with poor prognosis after breast cancer: a cohort study 
  
 • DNA Test for Hearing Loss: A virus that can cause permanent hearing loss in children is detectable in the saliva of newborns using a DNA test that is faster than standard screening methods and just as effective, according to a study in the New England Journal of Medicine. An estimated 0.5% to 1% of newborns are infected with cytomegalovirus (CMV), a member of the herpes family of viruses, and 10% to 15% of infected infants will suffer permanent hearing loss. The virus is transmitted from mother to baby and is usually without symptoms. In a study of infants born at seven U.S. hospitals from 2008 to 2009, researchers compared the standard test for CMV, called rapid culture, with polymerase chain-reaction (PCR), a technology used to analyze DNA sequences. Liquid- and dried-saliva specimens were used in the PCR tests. The liquid-saliva method of PCR identified 85 newborns with CMV among 17,662 babies tested; rapid culture identified 85 as well. The liquid-saliva test also identified eight false positives. The dried-saliva method of PCR identified 74 CMV infections in 17,327 babies; rapid culture identified 76. Researchers said PCR testing eliminates several cumbersome steps in the rapid-culture method and can be easily adapted for large-scale screening. 
  
 Caveat: There was no follow-up on the 34,812 infants who tested negative for CMV, raising the possibility that CMV-infected newborns may have been missed, researchers said. 
  
 Title: Saliva Polymerase-Chain-Reaction Assay for Cytomegalovirus Screening in Newborns 
  
 Enlarge Image Close Getty Images/Brand X A new study published in the American Journal of Infection Control points to a possible new source of hospital infections: cellphones. 
  
 • Infectious phones: Hospital-acquired infections cause an estimated 100,000 deaths in the U.S. annually and are an increasing threat to patient safety around the world. A new study published in the American Journal of Infection Control points to a possible new source of hospital infections: cellphones. Swabs of the keypad, microphone and ear piece of 200 cellphones belonging to patients, visitors and health workers at a small Turkish hospital found disease-causing bacteria on 39.6% of patient phones and 20.6% of worker phones. Of the phones examined, 133 belonged to patients and their visitors and 67 to health workers. A bacterium that can cause serious infections in immune-weakened individuals, coagulase negative staphylococci, was found on 101 patient and visitor phones and 52 worker phones. Antibiotic-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) was found on 18 patient and four worker phones while streptococcus was present on 14 patient and seven worker phones. E. coli was detected on the phones of five patients and one worker. Patients' poor understanding of hospital hygiene and low-economic status were cited as possible reasons for the colonization of cellphone bacteria. 
  
 Caveat: To date, no study has shown a direct link between bacterial colonization on cellphones and hospital-acquired infections, researchers said. 
  
 Title: Do mobile phones of patients, companions and visitors carry multidrug-resistant hospital pathogens? 
  
 • Metals and DNA repair: Iron and copper may contribute to the development of progressive neurological disorders such as Alzheimer's disease by quietly accumulating in the brain until they reach toxic levels and block the body's ability to repair DNA, according to a study in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease. An estimated 200 neurological disorders have been linked to inherited or acquired defects in DNA repair pathways. U.S. researchers found that while iron and copper are essential to health in small amounts, high levels of the elements act as a double-edged sword by inducing the production of reactive oxygen species, destructive molecules that are toxic to DNA, and inhibiting enzymes critical to repairing DNA damage. Researchers tested substances that might bind to iron and copper and protect the enzymes. They found curcumin, a component of the spice turmeric, exhibited the strongest properties. The findings suggest that metal chelators, molecules that bind to metal ions, may be helpful in restoring the body's capacity to repair DNA in neurodegenerative diseases, researchers said. 
  
 Caveat: Curcumin isn't a medication and doesn't require FDA approval. Safe and effective doses of curcumin haven't been established. 
  
 Title: Oxidative genome damage and its repair in neurodegenerative diseases: function of transition metals as a double-edged sword 
  
 • Calorie restriction: Restricting the amount of calories consumed on a daily basis is more effective than exercise at lowering the body's core temperature, a physiological state associated with increased life expectancy, according to a study in the journal Aging. Research has shown that calorie restriction increases lifespan in rodents and primates. Lowering core temperature has also been shown to increase lifespan in men. Little is known, however, about long-term calorie restriction on body temperature. This U.S.-led study compared the core body temperatures of 24 subjects on a long-term, calorie-restricted diet, 24 lean endurance runners on a high-calorie Western diet, and 24 sedentary men and women, also on a Western diet. Ingested telemetric capsules measured their 24-hour core temperatures. Results showed the core temperature of calorie-restricted subjects was 0.2 degree Celsius lower than the other two groups, which researchers said was significant. The calorie-restricted group consumed about 23% fewer calories than the sedentary subjects and 37% fewer calories than the exercise subjects. Researchers speculated the metabolic changes resulting from a reduction in core temperature may slow the rate of aging. 
  
 Caveat: Subjects in the calorie-restricted group were members of the Calorie Restriction Society, who practice severe calorie restriction, believing it will significantly increase their health and longevity. It's possible that calorie-restricted subjects randomly chosen from the general population might have different results. 
  
 Title: Long-term calorie restriction, but not endurance exercise, lowers core body temperature in humans |||||
Two unrelated bits of news today on colon cancer: Stand up: In another sitting-is-bad-for-you study, Australian scientists say people who worked 10 years or more in sedentary jobs had twice the risk of colon cancer as those who never had a sit-all-day job, along with a 44% increased risk of rectal cancer. (Even if they were diligent exercisers outside work.) Details on the two-year study in the American Journal of Epidemiology are at the Wall Street Journal. Get married: Brigham Young researchers say married people have a 14% lower risk of death from colon cancer than single patients. Among other things, married people were more likely to have the disease diagnosed early. The exact cause-and-effect isn't clear, but researchers figure the extra attention and TLC from spouses pays off. Details at the Salt Lake City Tribune.