HealthDay (10/7, Thompson) reports on a new study that finds mental health problems in one-third of German cancer patients. The study, published yesterday in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, notes 32% of cancer patients’ responses to researchers were consistent with “a full-blown psychological disorder.”

Investigators from the University of Leipzig interviewed 2,100 patients aged 18-75 and compared their responses to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V). Mental illness rates varied based on cancer type, ranging from a low of 20% for patients with pancreatic, prostate, stomach, or esophageal cancers and a high of 40% for patients with breast or head and neck cancer or melanoma.

Related Links:

— “Cancer Diagnosis Can Take Toll on Mental Health, Study Finds,” Dennis Thompson, HealthDay, October 6, 2014.

HealthDay (10/6, Preidt) reports a study published in the journal Translational Behavioral Medicine suggests that overweight and obese people are the frequent target of cyberbullying and negative messages on social media. Reviewing more than 1.3 million messages with keywords relating to obesity, researchers found a “large number of negative stereotypes, ‘fat’ jokes, self-deprecating humor and alienation of overweight and obese people.”

Related Links:

— “The Obese Are Frequent Targets for Cyberbullies,” Robert Preidt, HealthDay, October 3, 2014.

The New York Times (10/4, Ellin, Subscription Publication) reported that a study published in the journal “Addiction” found that 2.8 million older adults in the US “meet the criteria for alcohol abuse, and this number is expected to reach 5.7 million by 2020.” According to the Federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, in 2008. “231,200 people over 50 sought treatment for substance abuse, up from 102,700 in 1992.”

Related Links:

— “More Older Adults Are Struggling With Substance Abuse,” Abby Ellin, New York Times, October 3, 2014.

Bloomberg News (10/3, Cortez) reports that the number of Americans “dying from heroin overdoses doubled across 28 states in 2012 from 2010,” citing the CDC. The shift has mainly been due to ready access “and rising rates of opioid addiction,” the piece adds.

Bloomberg notes that the “unusual analysis” unveiled today by the CDC’s weekly bulletin came in the wake of the agency’s effort to find out “if reports from some states about spikes in heroin use and related deaths since 2010 were part of a larger nationwide trend.” In sheer numbers, there were 3,635 heroin deaths in 2012, compared with 1,779 two years earlier, the piece adds.

The Washington Times (10/3, Pace) highlights that death rates from heroin rose “in every age cohort, ethnic group (except American Indians/Alaskan Natives) and region of the country.” According to the paper, “men were nearly four times as likely to overdose from heroin as women, and 25- to 34-year-olds had the highest heroin-overdose death rate.” The piece notes that from 2010 to 2012, “the death rate from heroin overdose increased from 1.0 to 2.1 people per 100,000 in the population.”

Related Links:

— “Heroin Deaths Double in the U.S., Fueled by Access,” Michelle Fay Cortez, Bloomberg News, October 2, 2014.

HealthDay (10/3, Reinberg) reports that according to the results of a 108-patient study published online Oct. 2 in the journal Stroke, transient ischemic attacks (TIAs) may increase the “risk of developing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).” The study found that nearly a third of patients who had a TIA “developed symptoms of PTSD, including depression, anxiety and reduced quality of life.” The NPR (10/3, Shute) “Shots” blog also covers the study.

Related Links:

— “Mini-Strokes May Lead to PTSD, Study Finds,” Steven Reinberg, HealthDay, October 2, 2014.