Health Highlights: Nov. 3, 2016

CTE Found in Brain of former NFL fullback Kevin TurnerWomen's Cancer Deaths Could Rise 60 Percent Worldwide by 2030: Study

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

CTE Found in Brain of former NFL fullback Kevin Turner

A trauma-related brain disease was found in a former NFL player who was lead plaintiff in a concussion lawsuit against the league.

The announcement that former Eagles and Patriots fullback Kevin Turner had chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) was made at a conference at Boston University on Thursday, the Associated Press reported.

Turner developed CTE over 25 years while progressing from youth football to the NFL, the Boston University and BU and U.S. Veterans Administration researchers said.

Turner died in March at age 46 from complications from Lou Gehrig's disease (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis -- ALS). When they studied Turner's brain, the researchers found he had the most advanced stage of CTE with motor neuron disease, the AP reported.

Previous studies have linked CTE to repeated brain trauma and to ALS. These new findings show the strongest possible link between CTE and ALS, according to Dr. Ann McKee.

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Women's Cancer Deaths Could Rise 60 Percent Worldwide by 2030: Study

The number of women's cancer deaths worldwide is expected to rise from 3.5 million in 2012 to 5.5 million in 2030, an increase of nearly 60 percent, according to an American Cancer Society study.

It said the largest increases are expected in low- and middle-income nations. Women in these countries are living longer but have a growing number of risk factors such as smoking and poor diets, CNN reported.

There has been a 20 percent decrease in cancer incidence and death rates among American women since 1991, partly due to improved medical treatment and better tobacco control, according to study author Sally Cowal.

The highest cancer death rates among women are in poor nations such as Zimbabwe, Malawi, Kenya, Mongolia and Papua New Guinea, where there is less access to health care, CNN reported.

The study was presented Tuesday at the World Cancer Congress in Paris.

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