David Bowie Makes Triumphant Comeback with New Album: PEOPLE's Critic

By Chuck Arnold

03/01/2013 at 08:40 PM EST

Ten years after his last album, David Bowie is back – and so is his swagger.

Forget the moody musings of "Where Are We Now?" – the reflective comeback single that he dropped, seemingly out of nowhere, on his birthday last month (Jan. 8). The Next Day – which, though not released until March 12, began streaming in its entirety on iTunes on Friday – represents much more of an emphatic, energetic return from the 66-year-old Rock and Roll Hall of Famer.

"We'll never be rid of these stars/ But I hope they live forever," sings Bowie, sounding like the immortal rock god he is over the glittering guitar-pop bounce of "The Stars (Are Out Tonight)."

It's one of many driving, guitar-charged tracks on The Next Day: You can just imagine Ziggy Stardust getting his groove on to the bouncy beat of "Dancing Out in Space," while "(You Will) Set the World on Fire" is a rocking, fist-pumping anthem for today's young Americans.

Elsewhere, "Dirty Boys" is a sleazy grinder that, with its saxed-up funkiness, harks back to his soulful periods like 1975's Young Americans. In another nod to Bowie's past, The Next Day was produced by Tony Visconti, who also worked on the star's Berlin Trilogy albums from 1977 to 1979.

On one of the standouts, the melodic, midtempo "I'd Rather Be High," the album takes a political turn with Bowie's anti-war message: "I'd rather be dead or out of my head/ Then training these guns on those men in the sand."

It's moments like these that make The Next Day a triumphant comeback from a much-missed icon.

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WHO: Slight cancer risk after Japan nuke accident

LONDON (AP) — Two years after Japan's nuclear plant disaster, an international team of experts said Thursday that residents of areas hit by the highest doses of radiation face an increased cancer risk so small it probably won't be detectable.

In fact, experts calculated that increase at about 1 extra percentage point added to a Japanese infant's lifetime cancer risk.

"The additional risk is quite small and will probably be hidden by the noise of other (cancer) risks like people's lifestyle choices and statistical fluctuations," said Richard Wakeford of the University of Manchester, one of the authors of the report. "It's more important not to start smoking than having been in Fukushima."

The report was issued by the World Health Organization, which asked scientists to study the health effects of the disaster in Fukushima, a rural farming region.

On March 11, 2011, an earthquake and tsunami knocked out the Fukushima plant's power and cooling systems, causing meltdowns in three reactors and spewing radiation into the surrounding air, soil and water. The most exposed populations were directly under the plumes of radiation in the most affected communities in Fukushima, which is about 150 miles (240 kilometers) north of Tokyo.

In the report, the highest increases in risk are for people exposed as babies to radiation in the most heavily affected areas. Normally in Japan, the lifetime risk of developing cancer of an organ is about 41 percent for men and 29 percent for women. The new report said that for infants in the most heavily exposed areas, the radiation from Fukushima would add about 1 percentage point to those numbers.

Experts had been particularly worried about a spike in thyroid cancer, since radioactive iodine released in nuclear accidents is absorbed by the thyroid, especially in children. After the Chernobyl disaster, about 6,000 children exposed to radiation later developed thyroid cancer because many drank contaminated milk after the accident.

In Japan, dairy radiation levels were closely monitored, but children are not big milk drinkers there.

The WHO report estimated that women exposed as infants to the most radiation after the Fukushima accident would have a 70 percent higher chance of getting thyroid cancer in their lifetimes. But thyroid cancer is extremely rare and one of the most treatable cancers when caught early. A woman's normal lifetime risk of developing it is about 0.75 percent. That number would rise by 0.5 under the calculated increase for women who got the highest radiation doses as infants.

Wakeford said the increase may be so small it will probably not be observable.

For people beyond the most directly affected areas of Fukushima, Wakeford said the projected cancer risk from the radiation dropped dramatically. "The risks to everyone else were just infinitesimal."

David Brenner of Columbia University in New York, an expert on radiation-induced cancers, said that although the risk to individuals is tiny outside the most contaminated areas, some cancers might still result, at least in theory. But they'd be too rare to be detectable in overall cancer rates, he said.

Brenner said the numerical risk estimates in the WHO report were not surprising. He also said they should be considered imprecise because of the difficulty in determining risk from low doses of radiation. He was not connected with the WHO report.

Some experts said it was surprising that any increase in cancer was even predicted.

"On the basis of the radiation doses people have received, there is no reason to think there would be an increase in cancer in the next 50 years," said Wade Allison, an emeritus professor of physics at Oxford University, who also had no role in developing the new report. "The very small increase in cancers means that it's even less than the risk of crossing the road," he said.

WHO acknowledged in its report that it relied on some assumptions that may have resulted in an overestimate of the radiation dose in the general population.

Gerry Thomas, a professor of molecular pathology at Imperial College London, accused the United Nations health agency of hyping the cancer risk.

"It's understandable that WHO wants to err on the side of caution, but telling the Japanese about a barely significant personal risk may not be helpful," she said.

Thomas said the WHO report used inflated estimates of radiation doses and didn't properly take into account Japan's quick evacuation of people from Fukushima.

"This will fuel fears in Japan that could be more dangerous than the physical effects of radiation," she said, noting that people living under stress have higher rates of heart problems, suicide and mental illness.

In Japan, Norio Kanno, the chief of Iitate village, in one of the regions hardest hit by the disaster, harshly criticized the WHO report on Japanese public television channel NHK, describing it as "totally hypothetical."

Many people who remain in Fukushima still fear long-term health risks from the radiation, and some refuse to let their children play outside or eat locally grown food.

Some restrictions have been lifted on a 12-mile (20-kilometer) zone around the nuclear plant. But large sections of land in the area remain off-limits. Many residents aren't expected to be able to return to their homes for years.

Kanno accused the report's authors of exaggerating the cancer risk and stoking fear among residents.

"I'm enraged," he said.

___

Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo and AP Science Writer Malcolm Ritter in New York contributed to this report.

__

Online:

WHO report: http://bit.ly/YDCXcb

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Kerry to chide Turkish PM over Zionism comments

ANKARA (Reuters) - Secretary of State John Kerry will upbraid Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan on Friday for his description of Zionism as a crime against humanity, comments which could overshadow his first trip to a Muslim nation since taking office.

Kerry is meeting Turkish leaders in talks meant to focus on Syria's civil war and bilateral interests from energy security to counter-terrorism.

But Erdogan's comment at a U.N. meeting in Vienna this week, condemned by his Israeli counterpart, the White House and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, has clouded his trip.

"This was particularly offensive, frankly, to call Zionism a crime against humanity ... It does have a corrosive effect (on relations)," a senior U.S. official told reporters as Kerry flew to Ankara.

"I am sure the secretary will be very clear about how dismayed we were to hear it," the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said.

"To state the obvious, it complicates our ability to do all of the things that we want to do together when we have such a profound disagreement about such an important thing."

Washington needs all the allies it can get as it navigates the political currents of the Middle East, and sees Turkey as the key player in supporting Syria's opposition and planning for the era after President Bashar al-Assad.

But the collapse of its ties with Israel have undermined U.S. hopes that Turkey could play a role as a broker in the broader region.

"The Turkey-Israel relationship is frozen," the U.S. official said. "We want to see a normalization ... not just for the sake of the two countries but for the sake of the region and, frankly, for the symbolism," he said.

"Not that long ago (you) had these two countries demonstrating that a majority Muslim country could have very positive and strong relations with the Jewish state and that was a sign for the region (of what was) possible."

Erdogan told the U.N. Alliance of Civilizations meeting in Vienna on Wednesday: "Just as with Zionism, anti-Semitism and fascism, it has become necessary to view Islamophobia as a crime against humanity."

The head of Europe's main rabbinical group condemned his words as a "hateful attack" on Jews.

Ties between Israel and mostly Muslim Turkey have been frosty since 2010, when Israeli marines killed nine Turks in fighting aboard a Palestinian aid ship that tried to breach Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip.

In recent weeks, there has been a run of reports in the Turkish and Israeli media about efforts to repair relations, including a senior diplomatic meeting last month in Rome and military equipment transfers.

The reports have not been confirmed by either government.

SUPPORT FOR SYRIAN OPPOSITION

Officials said Syria would top the agenda when Kerry meets Erdogan and President Abdullah Gul, building on the discussions in Rome between 11 mostly European and Arab nations within the "Friends of Syria" group.

After the Rome meeting, Kerry said on Thursday the United States would for the first time give non-lethal aid to the rebels and more than double support to the civilian opposition, although Western powers stopped short of pledging arms.

"We need to continue the discussion which took place in Rome ... in terms of the main goals there is no daylight between us and the Americans," a senior Turkish official said.

"A broad agreement was reached on supporting the opposition. Now our sides need to sit down and really flesh out what we can do to support them in order to change the balance on the ground," he said.

Turkey has been one of Assad's fiercest critics, hosting a NATO Patriot missile defense system, including two U.S. batteries, to protect against a spillover of violence and leading calls for international intervention.

It has spent more than $600 million sheltering refugees from the conflict that began almost two years ago, housing some 180,000 in camps near the border and tens of thousands more who are staying with relatives or in private accommodation.

Washington has given $385 million in humanitarian aid for Syria but President Barack Obama has so far refused to give arms, arguing it is difficult to prevent them from falling into the hands of militants who could use them on Western targets.

Turkey, too, has been reluctant to provide weapons, fearing direct intervention could cause the conflict to spill across its borders.

(Writing by Nick Tattersall; Editing by Janet Lawrence)

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Paris Jackson Rocks a New Punk Look

By Andrea Billups

03/01/2013 at 08:30 AM EST

Punk rock Paris!

Michael Jackson's daughter Paris, now 14, debuted a more edgy and downtown look this week when she Tweeted photos of herself wearing a knotted Pink Floyd T-shirt with a short, spiked jet black coif and exposed back tattoo.

Titling her Wednesday Tweet "late night creativity," Paris sported a new look that included black liner rimming her striking light-blue eyes, and dagger-style earrings.

Her transformation from long-haired and girlie draws comparisons to the latest cropped, rock-inspired look of Miley Cyrus.

Paris, an aspiring actress, Tweeted in August that she got her back tattoo to honor her late father. She had previously posted photos of herself on Valentine's Day in a short black wig, perhaps a tryout for her future makeover.

Paris is Michael Jackson's only daughter with former wife Debbie Rowe. She has said in the past that she loves her famous family but hopes to be taken seriously in her own right.

To that end, she shot her first movie role last year, for Lundon's Bridge and the Three Keys, a mixed live-action and animation film. She plays a girl who survives being brainwashed by a jellyfish queen in the ocean.

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WHO: Slight cancer risk after Japan nuke accident

LONDON (AP) — Two years after Japan's nuclear plant disaster, an international team of experts said Thursday that residents of areas hit by the highest doses of radiation face an increased cancer risk so small it probably won't be detectable.

In fact, experts calculated that increase at about 1 extra percentage point added to a Japanese infant's lifetime cancer risk.

"The additional risk is quite small and will probably be hidden by the noise of other (cancer) risks like people's lifestyle choices and statistical fluctuations," said Richard Wakeford of the University of Manchester, one of the authors of the report. "It's more important not to start smoking than having been in Fukushima."

The report was issued by the World Health Organization, which asked scientists to study the health effects of the disaster in Fukushima, a rural farming region.

On March 11, 2011, an earthquake and tsunami knocked out the Fukushima plant's power and cooling systems, causing meltdowns in three reactors and spewing radiation into the surrounding air, soil and water. The most exposed populations were directly under the plumes of radiation in the most affected communities in Fukushima, which is about 150 miles (240 kilometers) north of Tokyo.

In the report, the highest increases in risk are for people exposed as babies to radiation in the most heavily affected areas. Normally in Japan, the lifetime risk of developing cancer of an organ is about 41 percent for men and 29 percent for women. The new report said that for infants in the most heavily exposed areas, the radiation from Fukushima would add about 1 percentage point to those numbers.

Experts had been particularly worried about a spike in thyroid cancer, since radioactive iodine released in nuclear accidents is absorbed by the thyroid, especially in children. After the Chernobyl disaster, about 6,000 children exposed to radiation later developed thyroid cancer because many drank contaminated milk after the accident.

In Japan, dairy radiation levels were closely monitored, but children are not big milk drinkers there.

The WHO report estimated that women exposed as infants to the most radiation after the Fukushima accident would have a 70 percent higher chance of getting thyroid cancer in their lifetimes. But thyroid cancer is extremely rare and one of the most treatable cancers when caught early. A woman's normal lifetime risk of developing it is about 0.75 percent. That number would rise by 0.5 under the calculated increase for women who got the highest radiation doses as infants.

Wakeford said the increase may be so small it will probably not be observable.

For people beyond the most directly affected areas of Fukushima, Wakeford said the projected cancer risk from the radiation dropped dramatically. "The risks to everyone else were just infinitesimal."

David Brenner of Columbia University in New York, an expert on radiation-induced cancers, said that although the risk to individuals is tiny outside the most contaminated areas, some cancers might still result, at least in theory. But they'd be too rare to be detectable in overall cancer rates, he said.

Brenner said the numerical risk estimates in the WHO report were not surprising. He also said they should be considered imprecise because of the difficulty in determining risk from low doses of radiation. He was not connected with the WHO report.

Some experts said it was surprising that any increase in cancer was even predicted.

"On the basis of the radiation doses people have received, there is no reason to think there would be an increase in cancer in the next 50 years," said Wade Allison, an emeritus professor of physics at Oxford University, who also had no role in developing the new report. "The very small increase in cancers means that it's even less than the risk of crossing the road," he said.

WHO acknowledged in its report that it relied on some assumptions that may have resulted in an overestimate of the radiation dose in the general population.

Gerry Thomas, a professor of molecular pathology at Imperial College London, accused the United Nations health agency of hyping the cancer risk.

"It's understandable that WHO wants to err on the side of caution, but telling the Japanese about a barely significant personal risk may not be helpful," she said.

Thomas said the WHO report used inflated estimates of radiation doses and didn't properly take into account Japan's quick evacuation of people from Fukushima.

"This will fuel fears in Japan that could be more dangerous than the physical effects of radiation," she said, noting that people living under stress have higher rates of heart problems, suicide and mental illness.

In Japan, Norio Kanno, the chief of Iitate village, in one of the regions hardest hit by the disaster, harshly criticized the WHO report on Japanese public television channel NHK, describing it as "totally hypothetical."

Many people who remain in Fukushima still fear long-term health risks from the radiation, and some refuse to let their children play outside or eat locally grown food.

Some restrictions have been lifted on a 12-mile (20-kilometer) zone around the nuclear plant. But large sections of land in the area remain off-limits. Many residents aren't expected to be able to return to their homes for years.

Kanno accused the report's authors of exaggerating the cancer risk and stoking fear among residents.

"I'm enraged," he said.

___

Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo and AP Science Writer Malcolm Ritter in New York contributed to this report.

__

Online:

WHO report: http://bit.ly/YDCXcb

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Stock futures begin March lower as sequester looms

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock index futures were lower on Friday, indicating a weak start to the month of March, as investors looked ahead to U.S. government budget cuts that were widely expected to take effect at the end of the day.

Equities have been on a tear lately, rising for four straight months to approach five-year highs while the Dow climbed to within striking distance of an all-time high. Any declines have been shallow or short-lived, with investors jumping in to buy on any dip.

The gains have come on the back of strong corporate earnings and an accommodative Federal Reserve. In that environment, many investors have shrugged off the potential impact of the sequester, $85 billion in spending cuts across federal government agencies that economists expect will shave half a percentage point off U.S. economic growth.

"Conditions are ripe for anxiety and fear to return to the market, especially given how high we've risen, and the sequester that could be a catalyst that reignites fear in the market," said James Dailey, portfolio manager of TEAM Asset Strategy Fund in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Dailey said that if the market drops below lows hit earlier this week, "that could be the start of a pullback that takes us down as much as 10 percent."

The spending cuts will take effect just before midnight Friday unless there is a last-minute deal, which is considered unlikely.

The International Monetary Fund said that if the cuts take effect, it would have to reevaluate its growth forecasts for the U.S. and the global economy.

Cyclical companies like banks and materials stocks, which are closely tied to the pace of economic growth, are likely to be among the hardest hit in the short term. Bank of America fell 1.2 percent to $11.10 in premarket trading while Chevron Corp slid 0.6 percent to $116.43.

S&P 500 futures fell 7.6 points and were below fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures slid 58 points and Nasdaq 100 futures lost 12.75 points.

For the week, the Dow is up 0.4 percent while both the S&P and Nasdaq are down less than 0.1 percent. Both the Dow and S&P climbed more than 1 percent in February, slimmer gains than in January as equities grappled with uncertainties in Europe and Federal Reserve policy.

Economic data on tap for Friday includes the final Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan sentiment index, which is seen holding steady at 76.3. Personal income and spending data will also be released, along with January construction spending, which is seen rising 0.4 percent. The Institute for Supply Management's February manufacturing index is expected to dip to 52.5 from 53.1 in the previous month.

Overseas, China's factory growth cooled to multi-month lows in February as domestic demand dipped, and euro zone manufacturing activity appeared no closer to recovery last month, as a dire performance in France offset a return to growth in Germany.

"The weakness in overseas data is increasingly drawing people's attention, and as that gets worse the market will continue to struggle," Dailey said.

Groupon Inc gained 4.2 percent to $4.72 in premarket trading a day after the online coupon company fired its chief executive officer in the wake of weak quarterly results.

Gap Inc reported fourth-quarter earnings that beat expectations and boosted its dividend by 20 percent, while Salesforce.com Inc posted sales that beat consensus forecasts, sending shares up 4.6 percent to $177 before the bell.

U.S. stocks ended flat on Thursday, giving up modest gains late in the session. The Dow Jones Transportation Average <.djt>, seen as a bet on future growth, hit a record intraday high earlier in the session.

(Editing by Bernadette Baum)

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Debbie Reynolds: Carrie Fisher Will Be 'Just Fine' After Hospitalization

By Elaine Aradillas

02/28/2013 at 08:40 AM EST

Carrie Fisher (left) and Debbie Reynolds

Ethan Miller/Getty

Carrie Fisher was briefly hospitalized last week for her bipolar disorder after a bizarre performance aboard a cruise ship, but her mother Debbie Reynolds says she'll be fine.

"She's had manic depression bipolar since she was 13. It's an illness, and she's doing much better," Reynolds told PEOPLE exclusively Wednesday night. "I'm very proud of her, and she's doing exceptionally well. She'll be just fine, just great, and continue her writing as she always does."

Fisher, 56, who has spoken openly about her mental illness, performed on the Holland American cruise liner Eurodam in the Caribbean. The actress and author gave a rambling performance, leaving many in the audience wondering what was wrong.

"She clearly had trouble remembering things," says Chris Smith, a guest on the cruise. "She tried to tell some stories about her parents and Hollywood, but was having a hard time."

After a video of the performance went viral, her publicist released the following statement: "There was a medical incident related to Carrie Fisher's bipolar disorder. She went to the hospital briefly to adjust her medication and is feeling much better now."

Reynolds, 80, who spoke Wednesday to a sold-out audience attending the Rancho Mirage Lecture Series at Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage, Calif., talked about the effects of mental illness.

"[It's] really dreadful, and you are so alone because you're criticized, and people think you're doing it on purpose, and that you're misbehaving or having a spell because you want attention," she says. "It's not true. It's extremely difficult for everyone to deal with."

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S&P 500 index futures briefly turn negative

MADRID, Feb 27 (Reuters) - Lionel Messi has rarely been accused of failing to deliver in big games, having scored in two European Cup finals, but after subdued performances against AC Milan and Real Madrid, questions are being asked. The four-times World Player of the Year and leading scorer in one of the greatest club teams of all time, was a shadow of his usual self at the San Siro in a Champions League last-16 first leg last week, when Barcelona slumped to a 2-0 defeat. ...

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Prince Harry Dances, Cooks with Kids In South Africa

By Simon Perry

02/27/2013 at 08:30 AM EST

Prince Harry, at Lesotho's St. Bernadette's Centre for the Blind

Chris Jackson/Getty

From the slopes of the Alps to the southern African mountain kingdom of Lesotho, Prince Harry is now giving back.

Just returned from his skiing holiday with girlfriend Cressida Bonas, Harry is spending a couple of days in Africa, to work with the Sentebale charity he set up with Lesotho's Prince Seeiso.

Early Wednesday, the Prince, 28, visited the Kananelo Center for the Deaf just outside the capital Maseru, where he was welcomed with a huge "Hi Harry" sign on the chalkboard.

As he attempted to learn some sign language from the children, he quipped to his friend Seeiso, "I'm never going to get this right."

The two princes, who set up the charity (Sentebale means "Forget Me Not") in honor of their late mothers, were then taken to the school's kitchen, where Harry slipped on a purple apron decorated with teddy bears before they tried their hand at making Sotho sweet bread cooked in boiling oil – also known as "fat cakes."

They also got down on their knees to join the kids in a dance.

Following that visit, the pair headed to St. Bernadette's School for the Blind in the capital, Maseru. There, Harry was welcomed with a song sung in the Sesotho language.

The charity supports tens of thousands of children who are either suffering from HIV/Aids, have been orphaned, or have disabilities.

Later, he is to be guest of honor at a fundraising dinner in Johannesburg.

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Advanced breast cancer edges up in younger women

CHICAGO (AP) — Advanced breast cancer has increased slightly among young women, a 34-year analysis suggests. The disease is still uncommon among women younger than 40, and the small change has experts scratching their heads about possible reasons.

The results are potentially worrisome because young women's tumors tend to be more aggressive than older women's, and they're much less likely to get routine screening for the disease.

Still, that doesn't explain why there'd be an increase in advanced cases and the researchers and other experts say more work is needed to find answers.

It's likely that the increase has more than one cause, said Dr. Rebecca Johnson, the study's lead author and medical director of a teen and young adult cancer program at Seattle Children's Hospital.

"The change might be due to some sort of modifiable risk factor, like a lifestyle change" or exposure to some sort of cancer-linked substance, she said.

Johnson said the results translate to about 250 advanced cases diagnosed in women younger than 40 in the mid-1970s versus more than 800 in 2009. During those years, the number of women nationwide in that age range went from about 22 million to closer to 30 million — an increase that explains part of the study trend "but definitely not all of it," Johnson said.

Other experts said women delaying pregnancy might be a factor, partly because getting pregnant at an older age might cause an already growing tumor to spread more quickly in response to pregnancy hormones.

Obesity and having at least a drink or two daily have both been linked with breast cancer but research is inconclusive on other possible risk factors, including tobacco and chemicals in the environment. Whether any of these explains the slight increase in advanced disease in young women is unknown.

There was no increase in cancer at other stages in young women. There also was no increase in advanced disease among women older than 40.

Overall U.S. breast cancer rates have mostly fallen in more recent years, although there are signs they may have plateaued.

Some 17 years ago, Johnson was diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer at age 27, and that influenced her career choice to focus on the disease in younger women.

"Young women and their doctors need to understand that it can happen in young women," and get checked if symptoms appear, said Johnson, now 44. "People shouldn't just watch and wait."

The authors reviewed a U.S. government database of cancer cases from 1976 to 2009. They found that among women aged 25 to 39, breast cancer that has spread to distant parts of the body — advanced disease — increased from between 1 and 2 cases per 100,000 women to about 3 cases per 100,000 during that time span.

The study was published Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

About one in 8 women will develop breast cancer in their lifetime, but only 1 in 173 will develop it by age 40. Risks increase with age and certain gene variations can raise the odds.

Routine screening with mammograms is recommended for older women but not those younger than 40.

Dr. Len Lichtenfeld, the American Cancer Society's deputy chief medical officer, said the results support anecdotal reports but that there's no reason to start screening all younger women since breast cancer is still so uncommon for them.

He said the study "is solid and interesting and certainly does raise questions as to why this is being observed." One of the most likely reasons is probably related to changes in childbearing practices, he said, adding that the trend "is clearly something to be followed."

Dr. Ann Partridge, chair of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's advisory committee on breast cancer in young women, agreed but said it's also possible that doctors look harder for advanced disease in younger women than in older patients. More research is needed to make sure the phenomenon is real, said Partridge, director of a program for young women with breast cancer at the Harvard-affiliated Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

The study shouldn't cause alarm, she said. Still, Partridge said young women should be familiar with their breasts and see the doctor if they notice any lumps or other changes.

Software engineer Stephanie Carson discovered a large breast tumor that had already spread to her lungs; that diagnosis in 2003 was a huge shock.

"I was so clueless," she said. "I was just 29 and that was the last thing on my mind."

Carson, who lives near St. Louis, had a mastectomy, chemotherapy, radiation and other treatments and she frequently has to try new drugs to keep the cancer at bay.

Because most breast cancer is diagnosed in early stages, there's a misconception that women are treated, and then get on with their lives, Carson said. She and her husband had to abandon hopes of having children, and she's on medical leave from her job.

"It changed the complete course of my life," she said. "But it's still a good life."

____

Online:

JAMA: http://jama.ama-assn.org

CDC: http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/breast/index.htm

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Stock futures little changed as market awaits Bernanke, data

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock index futures were little changed on Wednesday as investors awaited a second round of testimony in Congress by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke for signs of whether the Fed will continue its economic stimulus program.

Economic data was also in focus with U.S. durables goods and homes data due out at 8:30 a.m. ET (1330) GMT and 10:00 a.m. ET (1500 GMT), respectively.

Bernanke will make his second appearance before the Financial Services Committee at 10:00 a.m. ET (1500 GMT).

"Of course, Bernanke is in the spotlight again but I don't expect him to vary from his comments from yesterday," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Rockwell Global Capital in New York.

A day earlier, Bernanke strongly defended the Fed's monetary stimulus efforts before Congress, easing financial market worries over an early retreat from the Fed's bond buying program, which had been triggered by minutes of the Fed's January meeting released a week ago.

His remarks, along with data showing sales of new homes hit a 4 1/2-year high, helped U.S. stocks rebound Tuesday from their worst decline since November.

Despite the bounce, the S&P 500 was unable to move back above 1,500, a closely watched level that had been technical support until recently, but may now prove a resistance point.

The benchmark S&P 500, up 6 percent for the year, was within reach of record highs a week ago before the minutes from the Fed's January meeting were released. Since then, the index has shed 1 percent as the minutes raised questions about the longevity of the Fed's economy-stimulating measures.

S&P 500 futures rose 2.1 points and were in line with fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures fell 1 points while Nasdaq 100 futures added 4 points.

In earnings news, Target Corp posted a lower quarterly profit as sales of food and value-priced items only partially mitigated weakness in holiday spending. The stock fell 1.7 percent to $62.99 in premarket trading.

Dollar Tree Inc reported a higher quarterly profit as the chain controlled costs and as consumer spending improved. The stock rose 4.5 percent to $42.91 in premarket trading.

In Europe, shares rose, steadying after the previous session's sharp losses, though jitters over the euro zone kept a lid on gains.

Italy's 10-year debt costs rose more than half a percentage point at the first longer-term auction since an inconclusive parliamentary election, although they remained below the psychologically important level of 5 percent.

(Editing by Bernadette Baum)

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Charlize Theron & Channing Tatum's Oscars Dance - No Practice Makes Perfect!

By Oliver Jones and Tim Nudd

02/26/2013 at 08:35 AM EST

Channing Tatum and Charlize Theron

Getty

Who knew Charlize Theron could dance? Or that Channing Tatum could do so with his clothes on?

Together they wowed the Academy Awards on Sunday, performing a challenging ballroom dance in front of 40 million viewers – each counting on their background in dance to make up for a frightening lack of rehearsal time.

"They were going to cram and rehearse constantly over two days [right before the Oscars]. But then they both simultaneously got the flu," producer Neil Meron tells PEOPLE.

"We were going, 'Oh my God.' Literally at the last minute they got to rehearse and miraculously got up there and they killed."

It helped that both know a little something about dance.

Theron, 37, studied at the Joffrey Ballet School in New York before embarking on her Oscar-winning acting career. "We reached out to Charlize first, and there was no hesitation. She absolutely jumped on board," says Meron.

Tatum, 32, was less sure of himself, despite loads of dance experience in movies like Step Up and Magic Mike, the latter loosely based on his own experiences as a male stripper.

"Chan said to us, 'Look, I have danced in all these movies, but I have never really done honest-to-God choreography. I don't know that I can do that,' " Meron says. "We told him, 'We believe you are a great dancer, and that you will be able to do it.' He said he would give it a try."

In the end, they dazzled with a Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers style number choreographed by Rob Ashford.

And Chan even kept his tux on.

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Futures rise in rebound after steep losses on Italy vote

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures rose on Tuesday, indicating equities would partially rebound from a steep drop over Italian election results as investors saw opportunities to buy beaten-down shares.

Market participants speculated a coalition government would eventually emerge in Italy and ease worries about a new euro zone debt crisis.

Groups in Italy opposed to economic reforms posted a strong showing, resulting in a political deadlock with a comedian's protest party leading the poll and no group securing a clear majority in parliament.

"We've gone to an environment of political stability to instability, and until we get some type of clarity over who is in charge, which could take days, the market will have renewed concerns," said Art Hogan, managing director of Lazard Capital Markets in New York.

"Investors are taking advantage of the drop, and once some kind of coalition government is formed most of our concerns will be put to rest," Hogan said.

S&P 500 futures rose 3.9 points and were above fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures added 38 points and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 5.75 points.

Major indexes fell more than 1 percent on Monday, with the S&P 500 having its biggest daily drop since November as investors fretted that if Italy does not undertake reforms, that could once again destabilize the euro zone. European equities <.fteu3>, which closed before the results on Monday, fell 1.1 percent.

Investors will pay close attention to the first of two days of congressional testimony by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke for insight into the central bank's view of the economy, as well as the outlook for its bond buying program. Last week, equities fell on concerns the program might end sooner than had been anticipated.

Bernanke appears before the Senate Banking Committee at 10 a.m. (1500 GMT).

Economic data will include the CaseShiller report on December home prices at 9 a.m. (1400 GMT). Analysts expect a 0.5 percent rise. January consumer confidence is scheduled for 10 a.m. and is seen rising to 61.0 from 58.6 in the previous month. New-home sales for January also are due at 10 a.m.

The rise in U.S. futures suggests that a recent trend of investors buying on dips will continue. Last week, concerns the Fed might roll back its stimulus policy earlier than expected prompted a sharp two-day decline, though equities recovered most of the lost ground by the end of the week.

Financial shares may be among the most volatile, as the group is closely tied to the pace of global economic growth. Morgan Stanley was one of the top percentage losers on the S&P on Monday, dropping more than 6 percent on concerns about the company's exposure to European debt. It rose 0.8 percent to $22.20 in premarket trading on Tuesday.

Dow component Home Depot Inc , the world's largest home improvement retailer, reported adjusted earnings and sales that beat expectations. Its stock rose 1.5 percent to $64.90 in premarket trading.

For the benchmark S&P 500 index, 1,500 will be watched as a key level after the index closed below it on Monday for the first time since February 4, with selling accelerating after falling below it. An inability to break back above it could portend further losses.

The S&P remains 4.3 percent higher on the year. With 83 percent of the S&P 500 having reported so far, 69 percent beat profit expectations, compared with a 62 percent average since 1994 and 65 percent over the past four quarters, according to Thomson Reuters data. Fourth-quarter S&P earnings are seen having risen 6 percent, above a 1.9 percent forecast at the start of the earnings season.

(Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Kenneth Barry)

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Powers to offer Iran sanctions relief at nuclear talks: U.S. official

ALMATY (Reuters) - Major powers will offer Iran some sanctions relief during talks in Almaty, Kazakhstan, this week if Tehran agrees to curb its nuclear program, a U.S. official said on Monday.

However, the Islamic Republic could face more economic pain if the standoff remains unresolved, the official said ahead of the February 26-27 meeting, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"We think ... there will be some additional sanctions relief (in the powers' updated proposal to Iran)," the official said, without giving details.

Western diplomats have told Reuters that the United States, Russia, China, Britain, Germany and France will offer to ease sanctions on trade in gold and precious metals if Iran closes its Fordow underground uranium enrichment plant.

Iranian officials have indicated, however, that this will not be enough. Iran denies Western it is seeking to develop the capability to make nuclear bombs, saying its program is entirely peaceful.

The U.S. official said the powers hoped that the Almaty meeting would lead to follow-up talks soon. "We are ready to step up the pace of our meetings and our discussions," the official said, adding the United States would also be prepared to hold bilateral talks with Tehran if it was serious about it.

(Reporting by Fredrik Dahl and Justyna Pawlak; Editing by Jon Boyle)

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Anne Hathaway's Oscar Dress Had You Talking

By Maggie Coughlan

02/25/2013 at 08:30 AM EST

The Oscars may honor the best in film, but they'd be nothing without the fashion.

When Anne Hathaway stepped on to the red carpet in a light pink backless Prada gown at Sunday's 85th Annual Academy Awards, she made quite the fashion statement.

While the gown seemed simple from the front, at second glance, an open back and thigh-high slit gave it a sexy edge. Hathaway, 30, told Kristin Chenoweth on ABC's red carpet that her mom called the dress "business in front, party in the back."

Viewers had their own opinions on the dress – which seemed to emphasize Hathaway's bust – which later inspired its own parody Twitter account.

But the dress may have served as a lucky charm for Hathaway, who took home the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her role in Les Misérables.

"It came true. Thank you so much to the Academy for this and for nominating me with Helen Hunt, Jacki Weaver, Amy Adams and Sally Field. I look up to you all so much and it's just been such an honor. Thank you," Hathaway said upon receiving her Oscar.

She continued, "There are so many people whose generosity and support is the reason I'm standing here right now. I must thank Hugh Jackman. Hugh, you're the best. The cast, the crew, especially Simon Hayes and the sound wizards. Congratulations on tonight, you guys."

Hathaway continued thanking the cast and the crew before giving a romantic shout out to her husband, Adam Shulman.

"By far and away, the greatest moment of my life is the one when you walked into it. I love you so much. And thank you for this. Here's hoping that someday in the not too distant future the misfortunes of Fantine will only be found in stories and never in real life. Thank you."

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Stock futures rise, Barnes & Noble up on bid report

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures pointed to a higher open on Monday, suggesting the equity rally was intact despite concerns that the Federal Reserve could curtail its stimulus for the economy sooner than many expected.

Stocks have been strong performers so far this year, with the S&P 500 jumping 6.2 percent in 2013 to hover around its highest levels since 2007. That has prompted many to predict a pullback, but so far declines have been neutralized as investors use any dip as a buying opportunity.

Barnes & Noble Inc will be in focus after the Wall Street Journal reported that Chairman Leonard Riggio was considering a bid for the company's bookstore business. The stock jumped 13 percent to $15.25 in premarket trading.

While the S&P fell last week, the decline was a slight 0.3 percent and was the first weekly drop after a seven-week string of gains, suggesting many may still be looking for a consolidation.

"People are cautious about investing near five-year highs, especially given the pace at which we got here, but there's still room to grow and any pullback should be shallow," said Robert Pavlik, chief market strategist at Banyan Partners LLC in New York.

S&P 500 futures rose 7 points and were above fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures added 57 points and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 18.25 points.

The gains have come on strong corporate earnings. With 83 percent of the S&P 500 having reported results, 69 percent of beat profit expectations, compared with a 62 percent average since 1994 and 65 percent over the past four quarters, according to Thomson Reuters data.

In addition, the market has risen against a backdrop of stimulus from the Federal Reserve. Last week stocks faltered when some Fed officials seemed to suggest the stimulus may be curtailed earlier than many expected, though subsequent comments seemed to allay those concerns.

Another test for equities will come with the looming debate over massive U.S. government budget cuts that will take effect on Friday if lawmakers fail to reach an agreement over spending and taxes. The White House issued warnings about the harm the cuts. referred to as sequester are likely to inflict on the economy if enacted.

"Right now we're looking past the sequester, but as we go forward we may see more anxiety if it doesn't look like our leaders can get anything together," Pavlik said.

More government-related uncertainty came from Italy, where a close election left questions about how the country would handle its three-year debt crisis. Last year, inconclusive Greek elections sparked a protracted selloff and a period of uncertainty in U.S. equity markets as well.

Still, European shares <.fteu3> were higher on Monday, rising 0.4 percent after a smooth Italian debt auction.

Lowe's Cos Inc reported earnings that beat expectations, helped by rebuilding efforts after Hurricane Sandy in the United States. Shares rose 0.6 percent to $37.90 before the bell.

Fourth-quarter earnings for S&P 500 companies are estimated to have risen 6 percent, according to Thomson Reuters data, above a 1.9 percent forecast at the start of the earnings season.

Dow component Johnson & Johnson forecast a negative impact to its first-quarter earnings as a result of a Venezuelan currency devaluation, though the charge wouldn't impact its full-year guidance.

Dynavax Technologies Inc shares plunged 27 percent to $2.18 before the bell after the Food and Drug Administration denied approval for the company's adult hepatitis B vaccine and sought additional data for evaluate its safety.

U.S. stocks closed higher on Friday, boosted by strong results from Hewlett-Packard Co , as well as allayed concerns over Fed policy.

(Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Kenneth Barry)

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You're Invited to PEOPLE.com's Oscars Party!

02/24/2013 at 08:40 AM EST

From left: Bradley Cooper, Oscar, Jessica Chastain

AFP/Getty; Wireimage; Splash News Online

Oscars host Seth MacFarlane isn't the only one gearing up for Hollywood's biggest night – we are too!

Be a part of the glamour and excitement Sunday at 6 p.m. ET when we roll out the red carpet for our PEOPLE.com VIPs.

Here's what you can expect:
• Tune in to our red carpet preshow for exclusive A-list interviews
• Be the first to see the gorgeous gowns – and make your own best-dressed list
• Download your own Oscars ballot – and make your own Academy Awards picks
• Tweet with our editors at #PeopleOscars
• Take our up-to-the-minute Oscars polls

And come back the next day for so much more ...
• See the night's best dresses from all angles with our 360º slideshow
• Come inside the most exclusive Oscars after-parties
• Relive the most memorable quotes of the show
• Get the scoop on the night's biggest shockers and funniest moments everyone is talking about

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FDA approves new targeted breast cancer drug

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Food and Drug Administration has approved a first-of-a-kind breast cancer medication that targets tumor cells while sparing healthy ones.

The drug Kadcyla from Roche combines the established drug Herceptin with a powerful chemotherapy drug and a third chemical linking the medicines together. The chemical keeps the cocktail intact until it binds to a cancer cell, delivering a potent dose of anti-tumor poison.

Cancer researchers say the drug is an important step forward because it delivers more medication while reducing the unpleasant side effects of chemotherapy.

"This antibody goes seeking out the tumor cells, gets internalized and then explodes them from within. So it's very kind and gentle on the patients — there's no hair loss, no nausea, no vomiting," said Dr. Melody Cobleigh of Rush University Medical Center. "It's a revolutionary way of treating cancer."

Cobleigh helped conduct the key studies of the drug at the Chicago facility.

The FDA approved the new treatment for about 20 percent of breast cancer patients with a form of the disease that is typically more aggressive and less responsive to hormone therapy. These patients have tumors that overproduce a protein known as HER-2. Breast cancer is the second most deadly form of cancer in U.S. women, and is expected to kill more than 39,000 Americans this year, according to the National Cancer Institute.

The approval will help Roche's Genentech unit build on the blockbuster success of Herceptin, which has long dominated the breast cancer marketplace. The drug had sales of roughly $6 billion last year.

Genentech said Friday that Kadcyla will cost $9,800 per month, compared to $4,500 per month for regular Herceptin. The company estimates a full course of Kadcyla, about nine months of medicine, will cost $94,000.

FDA scientists said they approved the drug based on company studies showing Kadcyla delayed the progression of breast cancer by several months. Researchers reported last year that patients treated with the drug lived 9.6 months before death or the spread of their disease, compared with a little more than six months for patients treated with two other standard drugs, Tykerb and Xeloda.

Overall, patients taking Kadcyla lived about 2.6 years, compared with 2 years for patients taking the other drugs.

FDA specifically approved the drug for patients with advanced breast cancer who have already been treated with Herceptin and taxane, a widely used chemotherapy drug. Doctors are not required to follow FDA prescribing guidelines, and cancer researchers say the drug could have great potential in patients with earlier forms of breast cancer

Kadcyla will carry a boxed warning, the most severe type, alerting doctors and patients that the drug can cause liver toxicity, heart problems and potentially death. The drug can also cause severe birth defects and should not be used by pregnant women.

Kadcyla was developed by South San Francisco-based Genentech using drug-binding technology licensed from Waltham, Mass.-based ImmunoGen. The company developed the chemical that keeps the drug cocktail together and is scheduled to receive a $10.5 million payment from Genentech on the FDA decision. The company will also receive additional royalties on the drug's sales.

Shares of ImmunoGen Inc. rose 2 cents to $14.32 in afternoon trading. The stock has ttraded in a 52-wek range of $10.85 to $18.10.

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Investors face another Washington deadline

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Investors face another Washington-imposed deadline on government spending cuts next week, but it's not generating the same level of fear as two months ago when the "fiscal cliff" loomed large.

Investors in sectors most likely to be affected by the cuts, like defense, seem untroubled that the budget talks could send stocks tumbling.

Talks on the U.S. budget crisis began again this week leading up to the March 1 deadline for the so-called sequestration when $85 billion in automatic federal spending cuts are scheduled to take effect.

"It's at this point a political hot button in Washington but a very low level investor concern," said Fred Dickson, chief market strategist at D.A. Davidson & Co. in Lake Oswego, Oregon. The fight pits President Barack Obama and fellow Democrats against congressional Republicans.

Stocks rallied in early January after a compromise temporarily avoided the fiscal cliff, and the Standard & Poor's 500 index <.spx> has risen 6.3 percent since the start of the year.

But the benchmark index lost steam this week, posting its first week of losses since the start of the year. Minutes on Wednesday from the last Federal Reserve meeting, which suggested the central bank may slow or stop its stimulus policy sooner than expected, provided the catalyst.

National elections in Italy on Sunday and Monday could also add to investor concern. Most investors expect a government headed by Pier Luigi Bersani to win and continue with reforms to tackle Italy's debt problems. However, a resurgence by former leader Silvio Berlusconi has raised doubts.

"Europe has been in the last six months less of a topic for the stock market, but the problems haven't gone away. This may bring back investor attention to that," said Kim Forrest, senior equity research analyst at Fort Pitt Capital Group in Pittsburgh.

OPTIONS BULLS TARGET GAINS

The spending cuts, if they go ahead, could hit the defense industry particularly hard.

Yet in the options market, bulls were targeting gains in Lockheed Martin Corp , the Pentagon's biggest supplier.

Calls on the stock far outpaced puts, suggesting that many investors anticipate the stock to move higher. Overall options volume on the stock was 2.8 times the daily average with 17,000 calls and 3,360 puts traded, according to options analytics firm Trade Alert.

"The upside call buying in Lockheed solidifies the idea that option investors are not pricing in a lot of downside risk in most defense stocks from the likely impact of sequestration," said Jared Woodard, a founder of research and advisory firm condoroptions.com in Forest, Virginia.

The stock ended up 0.6 percent at $88.12 on Friday.

If lawmakers fail to reach an agreement on reducing the U.S. budget deficit in the next few days, a sequester would include significant cuts in defense spending. Companies such as General Dynamics Corp and Smith & Wesson Holding Corp could be affected.

General Dynamics Corp shares rose 1.2 percent to $67.32 and Smith & Wesson added 4.6 percent to $9.18 on Friday.

EYES ON GDP DATA, APPLE

The latest data on fourth-quarter U.S. gross domestic product is expected on Thursday, and some analysts predict an upward revision following trade data that showed America's deficit shrank in December to its narrowest in nearly three years.

U.S. GDP unexpectedly contracted in the fourth quarter, according to an earlier government estimate, but analysts said there was no reason for panic, given that consumer spending and business investment picked up.

Investors will be looking for any hints of changes in the Fed's policy of monetary easing when Fed Chairman Ben Bernake speaks before congressional committees on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Shares of Apple will be watched closely next week when the company's annual stockholders' meeting is held.

On Friday, a U.S. judge handed outspoken hedge fund manager David Einhorn a victory in his battle with the iPhone maker, blocking the company from moving forward with a shareholder vote on a controversial proposal to limit the company's ability to issue preferred stock.

(Additional reporting by Doris Frankel; Editing by Kenneth Barry)

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