nyu – Oral Cancer News

Oral sex is the number one cause of oral cancer in men

Source: The Village Voice We've mentioned before that oral sex had become a leading cause of oral cancer among men. The evil virus known as HPV, or the human papillomavirus, which is the main cause of cervical cancer in women, is, according to the Daily News, now leading to "epidemic proportions" of oral cancer in the U.S. among "mostly white, male, non-smokers in their late 30s and early 40s." This means that HPV via oral sex is causing more oral cancer in guys than either smoking or drinking. HPV is evil, indeed. The spike is greatest among men who've had more than five or six sexual partners, which is, let's be honest, a large percentage of the global single population. Women can also get the virus from men, though the chances are lower through oral sex. While the slut-shamers (be they male or female) may jump on this as a chance to say, if you're promiscuous, you will get cancer, that is not true. (Nor does 5 or 6 partners equal promiscuous, unless it's, say, all in one day.) Clearly, cancer sucks. But the surprisingly bright side about this is that suddenly HPV is less of a "dirty secret" that only affects women, that women are supposed to keep quiet and feel ashamed about. In fact, "nearly all sexually active Americans will come in contact with HPV, according to the Oral Cancer Foundation and the National Institutes of Health." Time we started talking about it. FYI: HPV is passed through [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-04-29T12:41:08-07:00April, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

Dentistry’s Schmidt and Boston Biomedical Share $1.25mil NIH Grant for Cancer Pain Research

Source: Iewy Author: Staff The National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has awarded a joint, five-year, $1.25 million grant to Dr. Brian L. Schmidt, a Professor of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at the NYU College of Dentistry, and Dr. Markus Hardt, a protein chemist at the Boston Biomedical Research Institute, for a study of the molecular mechanisms of oral cancer pain. The ultimate goal of the research is to spur the development of more sophisticated analgesics (pain medications) to alleviate the pain that is so often manifested in patients with oral cancer. “Oral cancer is a logical place to start when seeking clues about cancer pain,” Dr. Schmidt said. “To begin, oral cancer is very painful. In fact, pain is the most common presenting symptom associated with this cancer. Secondly, oral cancer is painful at the primary site, not just at sites of metastasis as is the case in almost all other cancers. Lastly, the primary site of the oral cancer is readily accessible, enabling us to directly sample the cancer microenvironment.” Dr. Schmidt hypothesizes that the cause of oral cancer pain and pain generated by other cancers may be produced along similar molecular pathways in the body. Oral cancer pain, like many other kinds of cancer pain, is triggered by specific actions. Just as oral cancers can cause patients to feel pain in the oral cavity when they speak, other cancers generate pain during mechanical stimulation. For example, if a [...]

Charlotte Parker2010-10-18T14:53:54-07:00October, 2010|Oral Cancer News|

University benefits the environment and the Oral Cancer Foundation

Source: The Oral Cancer Foundation Author: John Pohl Re-Cell-a-Thon Raises Funds by Recycling Cellphones At one of America’s most scenic and historic universities, a conscientious and industrious group of students, faculty and administrators recently formed a Greening Committee dedicated to raising awareness of the many things that can and must be done to protect the environment. So where is this university located: Vermont? Colorado? Oregon? Not quite; actually, the location is New York City. The Greening Committee is a collaborative effort between New York University’s College of Dentistry and College of Nursing. Formed in the fall of 2007, the roughly 20 committee members decided that they would show their support for Earth Day 2009 by organizing a 4-week-long Re-Cell-a-Thon to recycle cell phones. Not only that, they decided that the funds raised would be donated to the Oral Cancer Foundation. According to Theresa Rinaldi, who chaired the Re-Cell-a-Thon’s Public Relations sub-committee, “We knew that NYU has a wonderful relationship with Brian Hill and the Oral Cancer Foundation, and we couldn’t think of a better organization to donate our proceeds to.” According to Ms. Rinaldi, who is Alumni Outreach Administrator at the College of Dentistry, over 170 phones were collected at seven locations within the two colleges. The Greening Committee partnered with CollectiveGood, a non-profit organization that recycles donated cellphones and PDAs back into reuse. According to CollectiveGood, there are more than 1 billion used mobile phones in the US sitting on shelves or in landfills, and another 125 million will [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-06-25T18:18:42-07:00June, 2009|OCF In The News, Oral Cancer News|

Early detection is the key

Source: Newstime.com Author: Sandra Diamond Fox Standing before nearly 500 graduates of New York University's School of Dentistry at Madison Square Garden in Manhattan last month, two-time Emmy Award nominee Colleen Zenk Pinter stepped forward to accept the Dr. Harry Strusser Memorial Award for public service. While Pinter, 56, was accustomed to being on stage -- for more than 30 years she played the character of Barbara Ryan on CBS' "As The World Turns" -- speaking at NYU's graduation held very special meaning for her. She was being honored for her work in bringing awareness to oral cancer. Little more than two years ago, the Redding resident for 23 years and mother of six received the news that would change her life -- she was diagnosed with stage 2 squamous cell carcinoma of the ventral tongue. Oral cancer. Pinter's nightmare began in 2005 when she noticed a change in her speech. After an examination, her dentist said it was the result of her teeth shifting, which can sometimes occur after age 50. The following summer, when she developed a painful cold sore under her tongue, an oral surgeon eventually diagnosed it as a bacterial and fungal infection. Once the infection was treated, however, a tumor was discovered underneath it. Pinter started researching oral cancer. "I was in shock," she said. "I didn't fit the profile of people who had this type of cancer." Up until recently, oral cancer was often referred to as "the old man's cancer," and was mostly contracted by [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-06-19T09:56:13-07:00June, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

NYU Students Receive OCF Award for Excellence in Public Service

NYU Dental Students Show They Have a Lot to Teach About Giving Back The Oral Cancer Foundation recently honored the two student co-chairs of Oral Cancer Walk 2008, an awareness-building and fund-raising event coordinated by the New York University Dental School’s chapter of SNDA (Student National Dental Association). The two honorees are fourth-year student Marcus Johnson and third-year student Dmitry Baron. Marcus and Dmitry both worked on the 2006 and 2007 events and, despite extremely busy schedules, enthusiastically embraced the challenge of running this year’s event. Oral Cancer Walk 2008 took place the morning of Saturday, April 19 in Harlem’s Marcus Garvey Park, drew over 900 walkers, and raised over $30,000 to support the cause of the early detection of oral cancer. Funds raised through the event sponsor the work of The Oral Cancer Foundation. The event also featured free oral cancer, blood pressure, and cholesterol screenings in conjunction with the Harlem Hospital, speeches from oral cancer survivors, and musical entertainment both before and after the walk. Dr. Jocelyn Jeffries, the chair of Oral Cancer Walk 2007, attended the event and lent her moral support to the new event leadership. “For Marcus and Dmitry to find the time to coordinate such a significant event while tending to their dental school studies represents a tremendous sacrifice,” said Brian Hill, Founder and Executive Director of the Oral Cancer Foundation, which again was both one of the event’s sponsors, and benefactors. “Their exceptional leadership, passion and altruism have generated not only badly-needed funding, [...]

Webmaster2008-07-08T22:13:45-07:00May, 2008|OCF In The News|