Sleep and work patterns can impact on cancer risk as well as the response to cancer treatments. In this episode we talk to Assistant Professor Peter James from Harvard Medical School about his paper on cancer risk and night-time light exposure and discuss previous research on nurses working night shift showing an increased risk of breast cancer. We also introduce the field of chronotherapeutics, matching individual circadian rhythms to drug dosing to optimise outcomes and minimise side effects.

Dr Moira Junge (Health Psychologist) and Dr David Cunnington (Sleep Physician) host the monthly podcast, Sleep Talk, talking all things sleep.

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Audio Timeline:

• 00:00 - 00:37 Introduction
• 00:37 - 03:55 What's news in sleep?
  • Golden Door - Guest Speaker
  • Poor sleep and Alzheimer’s risk
• 03:55 -23:43 Theme - Sleep and Cancer
  • 03:55 - 04:18 Introduction
  • 04:18 - 07:12 Cancer risk in shift workers
  • 07:12 - 19:55 Interview - Peter James - night time light exposure and cancer risk in shift workers
  • 19:55 - 23:30 Chronotherapeutics
  • 23:30 - 23:43 More information in sleep in cancer
• 23:43 - 25:17 Clinical tip: Coping with shift work
• 25:17 - 28:54 Pick of the month:
  • 25:17 - 27:34 David - Chronotype and mortality
• • 27:34 - 28:54 Moira - Headspace and Smiling Mind apps
• 28:54 - 30:46 What's coming up in sleep?

Next episode: Traumatic Brain Injury 

Links mentioned in the podcast: 

• Golden Door guest speaker program
• One night of bad sleep will give you Alzheimer's
• NHS response regarding Alzheimer’s and poor sleep
• Original article on beta-amyloid accumulation in the brain after one night of sleep deprivation
• Nurse’s Health Study - breast cancer risk 2001
• Nurse’s Health Study 2 - breast cancer risk 2006
• Assistant Prof Peter James profile
• Cancer risk and night-time light exposure in shift workers
• Review of chronotherapuetics
• Chronotype and mortality
• Headspace app
• Smiling Mind
• Sleep 2018 meeting - Baltimore June 2018
• SEAASM 4th International meeting - Lucknow October 2018
• Sleep Down Under meeting - Brisbane October 2018

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