A little-known condition called cachexia, which affects people with life-threatening conditions, can cause avoidable misery and strife.

The Government is being lobbied to bring the tobacco plain-packaging bill back to Parliament for a final vote.

Isaac Young's parents could not believe a small lump on their young son's leg was melanoma. The resulting biopsies, surgeries and skin graft are more than any child should have to endure.

New Zealand researchers have found "no consistent increase" in brain cancer during a period of rapidly increasing cellphone use.

Ben Williams' aggressive brain tumour was treated with conventional therapies - and with a cocktail of everyday pills. Could this approach work for others?

Blueberries. Green tea. Tomatoes. And, oh, that cruciferous cauliflower. All make the lists of super foods that might help prevent cancer.

A couple of close calls prove life is a series of tests, writes Steve Braunias.

Tiago Pinheiro may only have months to live now his cancer has returned so the little boy's parents have turned to controversial alternative therapies.

A world-leading melanoma expert is warning Kiwis not to rely on a raft of new smartphone apps that claim to detect the potentially deadly skin cancer.

Researchers have developed the Lung Cancer Indicator Detection device to detect chemical traces in breath which indicate a patient may have cancer.

A businessman is preparing to have a hysterectomy after doctors discovered he was born with a womb.

The parents of twins battling a rare cancer have been given new hope for their babies' future.

Aucklander Kiri Speirs lost her daughter to cancer three years ago. She describes how a stray cat called Charlie became her unlikely source of comfort.

Today is World Cancer Day. The theme for 2015 is Not Beyond Us, writes Dr Graeme Jarvis.

Fourteen-month-old Riays Asiata has lost both kidneys to cancer and now she must wait at least two years before she can have a transplant.

Breast screening technology company Matakina has received a boost after it announced the signing of a multimillion dollar global deal with GE Healthcare.

A 33-year-old Dunedin woman left with just one breast after cancer says she's waited two years for surgery - and will have to wait at least two more.

A team of international scientists have discovered six new ovarian cancer risk genes - a discovery that could help find new ways to treat the disease.

What cancer-stricken cricketing great Martin Crowe didn't say yesterday was as revealing as his words during a 25-minute media conference on Eden Park.

Cricketing great diagnosed with an aggressive strain of lymphoma says biggest challenge has been "getting the prognosis out of my head".

Herald DigiPoll survey shows 31.3 per cent of Kiwis think they should get their suspect skin blemishes checked out by a health professional, but have not done so.

Former editor of the British Medical Journal says we should "stop wasting billions trying to cure" it.

One of the country's best-known criminal lawyers and a relentless campaigner for prisoners' rights over his 60-year career has been knighted for his services to the field.

Until I had doctors remove my breasts and rebuild them again, I was a feminist who never saw herself as particularly feminine, writes Lizzie Stark.

When half of Nick White's tongue was removed because of cancer, he was worried he would never talk again. He never dreamed that five years later, he would be in demand for public speaking.

Every ski run is an act of raw go-it-alone courage.

The only thing 5-year-old Sienna Malaitai wanted for Christmas this year was to win her battle with cancer. She got her wish.

When her father was diagnosed with terminal cancer in November, Abbey Looker decided she couldn't walk down the aisle with anyone but him.