Snoring can aggravate cancer

Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) or stopping breathing during sleep is the cause of various serious diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, heart trouble, until a stroke. But a study in the medical journal American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine found a surprise, the relationship of sleep apnea and cancer!

Obstructive Sleep Apnea

OSA, is characterized by two major symptoms of snoring or snoring and excessive sleepiness. The second sign that we often come across every day but unfortunately also the most frequent to ignore. But do not misunderstand me, what matters discussed here is the process of stopping breathing that occurs is not snoring.

At bedtime, and relaxes our muscles, airways become narrowed. As a result, air flow will stop. After some time, the patient will wake up with a choking sensation to draw air back. Brain woke up a moment and go right back to sleep, resulting in the patient unconscious, he woke up during sleep. Oxygen levels became decreased. This condition will occur repeatedly during sleep. Quite often more than 30 times every hour.

Decreased oxygen levels (hypoxia) and episodes of brief wake up repeatedly is what triggers a chain reaction that tails on increasing blood pressure, blood sugar and cardio vascular problems other.

Research In Mice
A group of Spanish researchers found that stopping breathing recur, as happened in people with sleep apnea, will encourage the proliferation of melanoma cells and enhance tumor growth in mice. The study also found that tumor cells from mice with OSA model contains many cells necrosis. Means containing a more aggressive type of cancer.

In this study some mice injected melanoma tumor cells, then divided into two groups. The first group, reduced oxygen for 20 seconds 60 times per hour, for 6 hours per day. Second group was given oxygen in normal levels. Then the tumor size was measured during the study and after the study ended. After 14 days, tumors from mice were removed and weighed and measured the number of cells nekrosisnya to determine how aggressive the tumors.

Although all tumor cells grew, but the group of mice that repeatedly reduced oxygen supply was greater increase in volume. Weight of tumor necrosis and cell numbers were found 2 times larger than the groups of mice with normal oxygen levels.

Professor Ramon Farre from the University of Barcelona School of Medicine, Biophysics and Bioengineering Lab, said that the effect of hypoxia on the growth of cancer cells has long been known, but the effects of repetitive hypoxia such as that experienced by patients with OSA in the sleep has not been investigated. So this study is considered to give a new breakthrough in medicine.

But he also stressed that the study is still very early. It is hoped this research will lead to other studies are more profound. With the discovery of the effects of intermittent hypoxia on the growth of cancer cells, our knowledge of sleep hygiene and the OSA to be more extensive. If so far we only know the effects of OSA on cardiovascular and metabolic disorders, now we also know the effects on diseases that have long haunted, cancer.