Scary pictures to help you quit smoking

10/11/2007 India Sanchita Sharma, Hindustan Times (www.hindustantimes.com) Buying cigarettes may not be a pleasant experience from December 1 as grim pictures of cancerous tumours or an ailing infant will be printed on the packet of your favourite brand. Despite pressure from the bidi and gutkha industries, the pictures have been included as part of a government campaign against tobacco. They will be used on packets of all tobacco products. “The revised Packaging and Labelling Rules, 2007, have been notified for the smoking and non-smoking forms of tobacco,” said Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss. Following recommendations from a group of ministers – Pranab Mukherjee, Priya Ranjan Das Munshi, Oscar Fernandes, Kamal Nath, Jaipal Reddy and Ramadoss himself made up the panel – set up to review the “merits and demerits” of pictorial warnings, the skull-and-crossbones sign was dropped as also was the idea to give a picture of a dead body. These were found too offensive. A tobacco product will now carry the warning “tobacco kills” along with a picture that shows one of the following - smoking causes cancer, your smoking kills babies, tobacco causes painful death and tobacco causes mouth cancer. Over 250 million people in the country use tobacco products like gutka, cigarettes and bidis. Tobacco kills at least 10 lakh people in India every year, said the Indian Council of Medical Research. One in two Indian men and one in seven women uses tobacco, which causes 40 per cent of all cancers. "Pictures definitely have an impact. Pictorial [...]

2009-04-16T08:58:55-07:00October, 2007|Archive|

Boom Times for Dentists, but Not for Teeth

10/11/2007 New York, NY Alex Berenson New York Times For American dentists, times have never been better. The same cannot be said for Americans’ teeth. With dentists’ fees rising far faster than inflation and more than 100 million people lacking dental insurance, the percentage of Americans with untreated cavities began rising this decade, reversing a half-century trend of improvement in dental health. Previously unreleased figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that in 2003 and 2004, the most recent years with data available, 27 percent of children and 29 percent of adults had cavities going untreated. The level of untreated decay was the highest since the late 1980s and significantly higher than that found in a survey from 1999 to 2002. Despite the rise in dental problems, state boards of dentists and the American Dental Association, the main lobbying group for dentists, have fought efforts to use dental hygienists and other non-dentists to provide basic care to people who do not have access to dentists. For middle-class and wealthy Americans, straight white teeth are still a virtual birthright. And dentists say that a majority of people in this country receive high-quality care. But many poor and lower-middle-class families do not receive adequate care, in part because most dentists want customers who can pay cash or have private insurance, and they do not accept Medicaid patients. As a result, publicly supported dental clinics have months-long waiting lists even for people who need major surgery for decayed teeth. At [...]

2009-04-16T08:58:24-07:00October, 2007|Archive|

Son, Father Hike 110 Miles to Benefit Oral Cancer Foundation

10/10/2005 Glen Allen, VA April Karys A Glen Allen, VA, boy and his father put blood and sweat (but no tears) into an effort to memorialize a loved one and support the Oral Cancer Foundation in the process: They hiked 110 miles of the Appalachian Trail and gave the donations they raised to the California-based Foundation. “It was tough,” said Robbie Schwieder, 15, who came up with the idea of doing the trek through the Shenandoah National Park portion of the Appalachian Trail, and later asked his father to join him. “It was really brutal, physically, mentally, in every way.” But despite the 40 pound backpacks, grueling terrain, stifling heat, and blisters upon blisters, Robbie and his father, Wylie, persevered and never complained. After all, they were walking in memory of Robbie's maternal grandmother, Elaine Hegarty, who'd undergone immense suffering of a graver kind-oral cancer. Hegarty was diagnosed with mouth cancer in 1993. The dignified, independent Milwaukee resident was initially told she'd have to have a radical, disfiguring surgery. After a second opinion, she underwent a procedure during which doctors accessed the tumor from inside her mouth and removed it completely. She healed, and life returned to normal-at least for a few years. “About 6 years later she developed a second tumor inside her mouth,” said Hegarty's daughter Katie Schwieder. “They removed that one, and then she was never the same. She wore dentures that never fit properly. She was having pain a fair bit.” By the summer of 2002, [...]

2008-07-09T20:44:08-07:00October, 2007|OCF In The News|

Snusing: the new way to give up smoking?

10/10/2007 London, England Susie Rushton The Independent (news.independentco.uk) Tobacco pouches deliver a nicotine hit without the fumes. The Swedes swear by them – now they're coming here. Are they safe? "Give up" has been the medical advice to smokers since the early 1960s. But to help the millions of nicotine addicts in the UK who just can't quit tobacco even if it means a winter spent shivering outside both pub and office, health professionals may soon be offering a compromise: try snusing. Hailing from Sweden, snus (it rhymes with "loose") is a moist tobacco that comes in small brown pouches that are tucked under the top lip to deliver a hit of nicotine orally. Its name is a Swedish translation of "snuff", and it is developed from the powdered tobacco of the same name that found its way up the nostrils of all self-respecting courtiers back in the 18th century. It is currently banned in the UK and every EU member state apart from Sweden – which has the lowest cancer rates and fewest smokers in Europe. But its prohibition may soon be over: public health experts here are saying it may be a less dangerous alternative for the heaviest smokers. Last week, in a report by the Royal College of Physicians on how oral forms of nicotine might help to wean the most addicted smokers off cigarettes, snus was singled out as a potentially useful cessation aid. "There's no question that snus is much safer than smoking," says Professor [...]

2009-04-16T08:57:53-07:00October, 2007|Archive|

Maintaining High Hemoglobin Levels to Enhance Radio Sensitivity in Patients with Head and Neck Cancer Does Not Improve and May Reduce Tumor Control

10/8/2007 Memphis, TN staff CancerConsultants.com Researchers affiliated with the Danish Head and Neck Cancer Group DAHANCA 10 study have reported that patients with head and neck cancer receiving radiation therapy and prophylactic Aranesp® (darbepoetin alfa) to maintain high hemoglobin levels had a lower disease-free survival than patients receiving placebo. The details of this study were presented at the 14th European Cancer Conference (ECCO) in September, 2007.[1] Aranesp is an effective agent for increasing hemoglobin levels in patients receiving chemotherapy and decreasing the need for blood transfusions. However, there has been some concern that erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (epoetin alfa and darbepoetin alfa) are associated with increased thromboembolic events and in recurrent malignancies. Recently, researchers affiliated with six randomized controlled trials of Aranesp versus placebo for treatment of chemotherapy induced anemia (CIA) in patients with non-myeloid malignancies have reported that Aranesp decreases transfusion requirements and improves hemoglobin responses without an adverse effect on disease progression or survival. In most studies of Aranesp, the goal has been to increase the hemoglobin level to 11-13 g/dL to prevent blood transfusions. The purpose of the current study was to determine if allowing more oxygen to squamous cell carcinoma would increase radio sensitivity resulting in better tumor control. Patients in this study had hemoglobin levels maintained between 14 and 15.5 g/dL. In addition, they received the hypoxic radio sensitizer Nimorazole. In total, 522 patients were randomly allocated to receive Aranesp beginning a week before radiotherapy or placebo and 515 were evaluable. More than 91% of Aranesp treated [...]

2009-04-16T08:57:05-07:00October, 2007|Archive|

How leeches could save my life

10/8/2007 Bradford, England Claire Lomax www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk A young mother is battling back from mouth cancer thanks to the medicinal magic of blood-sucking leeches. Michelle Fuller, 32, had to endure the slimy creatures placed on her tongue four times a day for a week and a half to boost circulation to her reconstructed tongue following surgery to remove a cancerous tumour, which if left untreated would have proved fatal. Despite the yuk' factor it has proved successful and Michelle - one of youngest patients to be treated for mouth cancer - is now on the road to recovery. "I have never been squeamish and I just said you have to do what you have to do'," said Michelle. Michelle, who lives in Clayton with her partner Mall, 31, and seven-year-old daughter Morgan, sought advice earlier this year after feeling discomfort in her tongue. She didn't have a dentist but when it got to the point where she could no longer eat because of pain in her tongue, she called NHS Direct for advice. An appointment was made with an orthodontist at St Luke's Hospital and an MRI scan and a biopsy were carried out. On April 16 she was told she had mouth cancer, a disease which is most commonly seen in people over the age of 60, smokers and heavy drinkers - none of which apply to Michelle. Michelle's parents Peter and Eileen Fuller, of Bingley, believe a tongue piercing their daughter had 11 years ago could be to blame, [...]

2009-04-16T08:56:38-07:00October, 2007|Archive|

Teens exposed to smokeless tobacco ads

10/7/2007 Athens, GA staff ScienceDaily.com A 1998 settlement designed to limit the marketing of smokeless tobacco to U.S. youth hasn't been effective, a University of Georgia study found. The findings, published in the early online edition of the American Journal of Public Health, found that smokeless tobacco ads in magazines increased in the first year after the agreement went into effect, reaching 83 percent of adolescents. However, exposure dipped to 57 percent in 2000, but rates steadily increased in later years. The Master Settlement Agreement in 1998 agreed to by 46 attorneys general and the major cigarette producers called for restrictions in: billboard advertising, cartoons in tobacco advertising and marketing toward youth. The same year, a similar agreement known as the Smokeless Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement, was signed by the attorneys general and U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company. "Exposure rates are significant and have been very stable over the past 10 years," study co-author Dean Krugman of the University of Gerogia, in Athens, said in a statement. The researchers said that in 1993 smokeless tobacco advertising in magazines reached 66 percent of youth ages 12 to 17.

2009-04-16T08:56:13-07:00October, 2007|Archive|

Salivary gland cancer rare but often deadly

10/7/2007 Los Angeles, CA staff TradingMarkets.com The cancer that killed Steven Moore, chairman and chief executive of OGE Energy Corp., is rare. Moore succumbed to parotid cancer -- a cancer of the salivary glands -- after an eight-year battle. Salivary gland cancers encompass more than 10 types of tumors, some of which are fast-growing and some of which may never threaten a person's life. Moore's cancer was in his parotid glands, the largest of the salivary glands. The parotid glands are found in the cheeks on both sides of the face, just in front of the ears. Most salivary gland tumors originate in the parotid glands, according to the American Cancer Society. "Most of these tumors have poor survival, and one of the reasons is probably the fact that we don't know enough about them," said Dr. Lurdes Queimado, an assistant professor at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center and holder of the Presbyterian Health Foundation chair in otorhinolaryngology. Queimado is an ear, nose and throat doctor. The National Cancer Institute estimates there are about three cases of salivary gland cancer per 100,000 people. The cases represent 3 to 5 percent of all head and neck cancers. Treatment challenging Queimado said cancer could sprout most anywhere. "On the one end, they (salivary gland cancers) are rare," she said. "On the other end, the histology is very variable," she said of the tumors' appearances, which makes diagnosis and treatment challenging. Salivary gland tumors typically are benign. Some benign tumors become [...]

2009-04-16T08:55:49-07:00October, 2007|Archive|

Controlled Study of Lactoperoxidase Gel on Oral Flora and Saliva in Irradiated Patients With Oral Cancer

10/7/2007 web-based article staff Cancer Treatment Research Website (avemar.world-cancer.net) The aim of this study was to determine if radiotherapy induces hyposalivation altering oral microbial flora. The purpose of this placebo-controlled, single-blind study was to determine beneficial effects of a saliva substitute and an oral hygiene product on irradiated patients with oropharyngeal cancer. Eighteen patients were assigned to the test group (Biotène Oral Balance gel [Lacléde Incorporated Healthcare Products, Gardena, CA] and toothpaste used daily), and another 18 were put on a conventional daily regimen (carboxymethylcellulose gel and Oral-B toothpaste [Laclede Pharmaceuticals, Gardena, CA]). Cultures for identifying and quantitating microorganisms, whole unstimulated saliva, and visual analog measurements for comfort were obtained before mucositis occurred and after treatment. Daily use of Biotène products enhanced control of microbial flora, improved salivary flow, and increased oral comfort as compared with control subjects. Four weeks after mucositis, some aerobic isolates disappeared in the test group; periodontal-associated bacteria were markedly decreased in the test group; and candidal species were significantly lowered in the test group. Although baseline saliva was lower in the test group (P = 0.001), after 4 weeks, no difference between groups existed; comfort was greater in the test group (P = 0.007). Use of enzyme-engineered Biotène products that assist in control of the oral microbial flora as well as supporting oral comfort through lubrication appear to be useful aids for irradiated patients with oropharyngeal cancer. Source: From the *Faculty of Dentistry, the Clinical Microbiological Diagnostic Institute, and the ‡Department of Oncotherapy, University of [...]

2009-04-16T08:55:12-07:00October, 2007|Archive|

Swedish moist snuff accelerates gastric cancer development in Helicobacter pylori-infected wild-type and gastrin transgenic mice

10/4/2007 web-based article Björn Stenström, Chun-Mei Zhao et al. Oxford Journals Carcinogenesis (carcin.oxfordjournals.org) The Swedish variant of moist oral smokeless tobacco (snus) is popular in Sweden and Norway, banned from sale within the European Union and is currently being introduced in USA. The aim of the present study was to determine if snus is carcinogenic to the stomach, particularly in Helicobacter pylori (H.P.)-infected hosts at increased risk for gastric cancer development. Snus (GeneralTM; Swedish Match, Sweden) was mixed with powdered standard mouse chow at a concentration of 5–9% (wt/wt) and given to wild-type (WT, FVB) and gastrin transgenic (INS-GAS, FVB) mice for 6 months with or without H.P. (strain 67:21, CagA+, VacA+) infection. At necropsy, pathological evaluation of stomachs from uninfected snus-treated WT mice showed mild morphological changes, whereas 50% snus-treated INS-GAS mice developed carcinoma in situ (CIS), compared with 25% not exposed to snus. When snus was given to H.P.-infected mice, 9 of 17 WT mice developed CIS with intramucosal invasion, and the remaining 8 of 17 WT mice developed high-grade dysplasia (score >1.5) that was associated with increased gastritis, epithelial defects, oxyntic atrophy, hyperplasia and intestinal metaplasia. Twelve of 12 H.P.-infected INS-GAS mice developed CIS with intramucosal invasion and submucosal herniation. We suggest that snus is a potential gastric carcinogen in mice. The development of CIS was associated with increased rates of the epithelial cell proliferation and apoptosis, common features of gastric carcinogenesis. Authors: Björn Stenström1, Chun-Mei Zhao1, Arlin B. Rogers2, Hans-Olof Nilsson3, Erik Sturegård3,4, Steinar Lundgren1,5, James [...]

2009-04-16T08:54:45-07:00October, 2007|Archive|
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