african-american – Oral Cancer News

Certain genetic alterations may explain head and neck cancer survival disparities

Source: www.sciencecodex.com Author: staff Certain genetic alterations to the PAX gene family may be responsible for survival disparities seen between African-American and non-Latino white men with head and neck cancer, according to results presented here at the Sixth AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved, held Dec. 6-9. "During the last 30 years, the overall five-year relative survival rates for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) have increased, but despite that, the gap in overall survival rates between non-Latino white patients and African-American patients has remained unchanged," said Rafael Guerrero-Preston, Dr.P.H., assistant professor at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Md. "This disparity may be due to differences in genetic and epigenetic alterations among African-American patients." To test this theory, Guerrero-Preston and colleagues performed a two-stage epigenomic study. In the stage-one discovery phase, the researchers used next-generation sequencing and array-based technologies to evaluate 107 HNSCC samples. In the stage-two validation phase, they validated the findings of the discovery phase and evaluated their effect on survival rates in 279 patient samples from The Cancer Genome Atlas project. "Our results highlight the differential genomic and epigenomic alterations in PAX, NOTCH, and TP53 pathways between African-American and non-Latino white HNSCC patients, which underlie the complex biology of morphologically similar tumors and explain HNSCC survival disparities," Guerrero-Preston said. "If further validated in larger cohorts, these discoveries could be used to develop genomic and epigenomic panels that will enable more treatment options, a reduction in treatment [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2013-12-09T14:38:31-07:00December, 2013|Oral Cancer News|

Viral infection may explain racial differences in oral cancer death rates

Source: nytimes.com Author: Roni Caryn Rabin African-American patients with head and neck cancers die earlier than whites, and researchers say they have made a breakthrough in understanding the underlying reasons for the racial gap. After scientists at the University of Maryland noticed that whites treated at their hospital for squamous cell head and neck cancers lived more than twice as long as black patients who received the same care at their hospital, they took a closer look. Further analysis revealed that the gap was almost entirely due to differences in survival among patients with cancer of the throat and tonsils, or oropharyngeal cancer. The scientists were also involved in analyzing specimens of head and neck tumors taken from participants in a treatment trial called the TAX 324 study, to see how many tumors were linked to the human papillomavirus, the same HPV-16 virus that has been linked to cervical cancer. The results were striking: they found that patients whose tumors were HPV-positive did much better after treatment than patients who were negative for the virus. Yet while half of the throat cancer patients had HPV-positive tumors, 98 percent of the positive tumors were from white patients, while a vast majority of black patients had HPV-negative tumors. “There was no difference in the survival between black and white patients in the TAX 324 trials, if you subtracted out the HPV-positive patients,” said Dr. Kevin Cullen, the senior author of a paper published online by the journal Cancer Prevention Research. White patients [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-08-01T14:24:03-07:00August, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Anti-smoking bill a victory for kids

Source: www.blackvoicenews.com Author: Dr. Ernest Levister, Jr The health risks of tobacco are well known, yet the rates of smoking and using chewing tobacco continue to grow. Many young people pick up these habits every year — in fact, 90% of all adult smokers started when they were kids. Each day, more than 4,400 kids become regular smokers. So it was particularly encouraging to see President Barack Obama this week surrounded by children from the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids sign the strongest anti-smoking measure ever, calling it “an extraordinary accomplishment that will help keep children from getting hooked on cigarettes”. This landmark legislation is a clear victory for kids. With an estimated 3,500 young people smoking their first cigarette each day, the ban on flavorings alone could have significant health benefits. Mr. Obama cited his own long struggle to quit the cigarettes he got hooked on as a teenager and praised the bill for providing critically needed protections for kids. Studies show that African Americans smoke fewer cigarettes when compared to Caucasians, but they share a far greater burden of smoking related health problems. It’s important to make sure kids understand the dangers of tobacco use. Smoking is the leading cause of preventable deaths in the United States, and can cause cancer, heart disease, and lung disease. Chewing tobacco (smokeless or spit tobacco) can lead to nicotine addiction, oral cancer, gum disease, and an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, including heart attacks. Kids might be drawn to smoking and [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-06-25T18:23:42-07:00June, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Cancer more deadly for blacks

Source: www.postandcourier.com Author: Yvonne Wenger Jim Etheredge got his wake-up call in 1979. He wants yours to come today: Blacks in South Carolina who are diagnosed with prostate, oral or female breast cancer die from the diseases at nearly twice the rate of whites. Researchers at the University of South Carolina revealed the findings of the groundbreaking study Tuesday, but it's old news to Etheredge, an African-American who lost his parents to cancer 30 years ago. His parents saw their country doctor in rural Leesburg only if they were feeling sick, so by the time they were diagnosed with cancer, the disease was ready to claim their lives, Etheredge said. Although the study may seem to send a dismal message, Etheredge said it is laced with good news. "You don't have to die from cancer any more," he said. Etheredge works as coordinator for the cancer disparities program at the Hollings Cancer Center at the Medical University of South Carolina. He said turning around the findings of the study begins with men and women in the community relying on the resources that are available to help. James Herbert, the study's lead author and a professor at USC's Arnold School of Public Health, said the findings don't provide any answers for the disparity. Continued research and community participation are necessary to saving lives, he said. Herbert is seeking grants to continue the work. "What this is telling us is, after you've had a cancer diagnosis, if you're black and you live [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-06-03T13:48:10-07:00June, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Kaiser Health Disparities Report: A Weekly Look At Race, Ethnicity And Health

Source: Kaiser Network (www.kaisernetwork.org) Author: staff Chicago Sun-Times columnist Mary Mitchell on Tuesday discussed the efforts of two young black dentists in Chicago who are seeking to improve the oral health of black men. Mitchell notes that according to the American Dental Association, more than 50% of black men have untreated dental decay and black men are less likely than other men to have decayed teeth repaired. Black men also have the highest rate of oral cancer and the lowest survival rate from the disease of any other group, Mitchell writes. In an interview with Mitchell, Patrick Smith, a graduate of Harvard University School of Dental Medicine, said, "The reason why the statistics are so alarming is men don't go in for check-ups, even though oral cancer is more prevalent in the African-American community," adding, "By the time we as black men have oral cancer, it is advanced." Patrick Smith has partnered with Ozzie Smith, a graduate of the University of Michigan School of Dentistry, to open up a dental office in the Hyde Park community of Chicago. Patrick Smith added that the "sad part" of the issue surrounding black men and oral health is that "many of them have insurance and they just don't go either because of fear or preconceived notions or complete ignorance about what goes on in a dentist's office." Patrick Smith said that when black male patients come into a dental office and "see how things work and how much better it is, they realize [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-08-20T11:26:34-07:00August, 2008|Oral Cancer News|