obesity – Oral Cancer News

Researchers find link between obesity and oral cancer immune escape

Source: www.dental-tribune.com Author: staff Researchers from the University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center and School of Dentistry have recently reported that obesity is responsible for helping to establish a tumour microenvironment that promotes tumour progression. The study found that excessive saturated fat accumulation affects certain oral cancers’ ability to evade attacks from the immune system, thus promoting immune escape and thereby increasing tumour burden. “We tend to think about the increased risks for gastro-intestinal tumours, breast cancer, pancreatic cancer and ovarian cancer when it comes to obesity,” lead author Dr Yu Leo Lei, an associate professor of dentistry in the Department of Periodontics and Oral Medicine at the university, said in a press release. “Multiple recent prospective cohorts involving millions of individuals from several continents revealed a previously underappreciated link between obesity and oral cancer risks,” he continued. The team found that saturated fatty acids can block the stimulator of interferon genes (STING) pathway, which is induced by cytosolic DNA and promotes antigen-presenting cell maturation by inducing a protein called NLRC3. Discussing the findings of the study, he noted: “Myeloid cells in obese mice were insensitive to STING agonists and were more suppressive of T-cell activation compared to the myeloid cells from lean hosts.” This, in turn, weakened anti-tumour immunity in the tumour microenvironment. Obesity is a common comorbidity in cancer patients. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 684,000 obesity-associated cancers occur in the US each year. Recent studies found that oral cancer patients who [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2023-05-26T09:46:50-07:00May, 2023|Oral Cancer News|

Is poor survivorship care driving high second-cancer risk?

Source: www.medscape.com Author: Kristin Jenkins In the United States, men and women who survive adult-onset cancers for at least 5 years are at significantly increased risk of developing and dying from new primary cancers, particularly those driven by smoking and obesity, a new study shows. "This was disturbing but at the same time provides tremendous opportunities for cancer prevention and control, not only to mitigate the subsequent cancer risk but also to minimize comorbidities," lead author Hyuna Sung, PhD, of the American Cancer Society in Atlanta, Georgia, told Medscape Medical News. "The importance of smoking cessation, weight control, physical activity, and other factors consonant with adoption of a healthy lifestyle should be consistently emphasized to cancer survivors," Sung said. Results from a retrospective analysis of the most recent Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) data from a cohort of 1.5 million survivors of first primary cancers (FPCs) show that male survivors — excluding those with prostate cancer — had a 45% higher risk of dying from any subsequent primary cancer (SPC) compared with men in the general population without a history of cancer. Female survivors had a 33% higher risk of any SPC-related mortality, the study authors report in the Journal of the American Medical Association. A significant proportion of the total incidence and mortality from SPCs was made up of smoking- or obesity-associated SPCs, the analysis shows. "The risks of smoking-related SPCs were commonly elevated following many types of smoking-related FPCs, suggesting the role of smoking as a shared [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2020-12-30T11:53:06-07:00December, 2020|Oral Cancer News|

New Association found between Obesity in patients with Tongue Cancer

Source: US NewsPublished: February 7, 2014By: Robert Preidt, HealthDay Reporter FRIDAY, Feb. 7, 2014 (HealthDay News) -- Obese people who are diagnosed with tongue cancer might be at increased risk of dying from the disease, a small new study finds. Researchers looked at about 150 people who had surgery for early stage squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue and found that obese patients had a five-fold increased risk of death. Three years after surgery, 87 percent of normal-weight patients were alive, compared with 68 percent of obese patients, according to the findings, which were published recently in the journal Cancer. The study is the first to link obesity and increased risk of death in patients with any type of head or neck cancer, the researchers said. They said previous studies have found an association between obesity and worse outcomes among patients with several common cancers, including breast and colon cancers. "The role of obesity across several common cancers is a focus of increased attention," study senior author Dr. Clifford Hudis, chief of breast cancer medicine at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, said in a center news release. Hudis is also president of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. Because the study was so specific in terms of the cancer's location in the body and disease stage, it helped clarify the effect of obesity, another researcher said. "Most prior research investigating the interaction between [obesity] and head and neck cancers included multiple tumor sites and disease [...]

Charlotte Parker2014-02-10T16:31:09-07:00February, 2014|Oral Cancer News|

Experts warn of epidemic of head and neck tumors caused by sexually-transmitted HPV infections and obesity

Source: www.dailymail.co.uk Author: staff While cancer rates continue to drop, two new increasingly common causes of cancer could lead to an epidemic of head and neck cancer, experts warn. Obesity and the human papillomavirus, or HPV, are the next wave of cancer threats, according to a report released Monday with data from the American Cancer Society, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Cancer Institute, and the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries. Baby boomers already infected with HPV will likely develop cancers from the virus in coming years and the youger generation is not being vaccinated against it at anything close to the recommended rate. And a third of cancer cases have been linked to obesity, which is a growing health concern with little done to combat it. The report was published by the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. From 2000 to 2009 cancer death rates dropped steadily by 1.8 per cent among children and men and 1.4 per cent among women. Cancer diagnosis rates were stable for women, dipped slightly among men, and went up a tiny 0.6 per cent among children under 14. 'The fact that people are not dying of cancer is clear evidence of progress,' Dr. Otis Brawley of the American Cancer Society told MSNBC. 'But could have a much lower death rate from cancer if we simply got serious about doing all the things that work. 'Over the next 10 years, a combination of high caloric intake and low physical activity [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2013-01-10T09:52:16-07:00January, 2013|Oral Cancer News|

Curry spice ‘kills cancer cells’

Source: news.bbc.co.uk An extract found in the bright yellow curry spice turmeric can kill off cancer cells, scientists have shown. The chemical - curcumin - has long been thought to have healing powers and is already being tested as a treatment for arthritis and even dementia. Now tests by a team at the Cork Cancer Research Centre show it can destroy gullet cancer cells in the lab. Cancer experts said the findings in the British Journal of Cancer could help doctors find new treatments. Dr Sharon McKenna and her team found that curcumin started to kill cancer cells within 24 hours. 'Natural' remedy The cells also began to digest themselves, after the curcumin triggered lethal cell death signals. Dr McKenna said: "Scientists have known for a long time that natural compounds have the potential to treat faulty cells that have become cancerous and we suspected that curcumin might have therapeutic value." Dr Lesley Walker, director of cancer information at Cancer Research UK, said: "This is interesting research which opens up the possibility that natural chemicals found in turmeric could be developed into new treatments for oesophageal cancer. "Rates of oesophageal cancer have gone up by more than a half since the 70s and this is thought to be linked to rising rates of obesity, alcohol intake and reflux disease so finding ways to prevent this disease is important too." Each year around 7,800 people are diagnosed with oesophageal cancer in the UK. It is the sixth most common [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2012-08-06T14:03:47-07:00August, 2012|Oral Cancer News|

British throat cancer Europe’s highest thanks to obesity and alcohol

Source: www.lifeinsurance.co.uk Author: Lana Clements The UK suffers the highest rate of throat cancer in Europe, double the average rate, according to new analysis by the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF). Britain's high level of alcohol consumption and obesity are blamed for the figures. Using World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates, the WCRF found that around six out of every 100,000 people develop throat cancer in the UK, while the European average stands at about three. The findings come as the British Liver Trust reports a 74% increase of liver cancer deaths in England and Wales since 1997 as ten people a day now die from the disease. Liver and throat cancer are both strongly linked to obesity and alcohol consumption, while throat cancer is also linked to smokers and liver cancer to hepatitis B. Andrew Langford, chief executive of the British Liver Trust, attacked the government over the UK's strategy towards liver damage: "At the moment all we are seeing are weak policies or no action at all. "Our government-led alcohol policies are a joke and despite nearly every other developed nation having universal vaccination for hepatitis B we are still debating whether we should, while this debate continues many are being infected and for some this will lead to them dying of liver cancer." According to the British Liver trust, liver cancer survival rates have not improved during the last three decades, even though scientific treatment has moved forward, because of the advanced stage of the disease at diagnosis. [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-11-20T09:41:57-07:00November, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

Global Rise in Cancer Cost $300 Billion in 2010, Harvard Economist Says During Press Briefing Hosted by the American Cancer Society and the United Nations

23 June 2011 United Nations — Newly diagnosed cancer cases cost the global economy $300 billion in 2010, as illnesses once believed to be largely confined to wealthier countries took hold in developing nations, a Harvard University economist said during a press briefing hosted by the American Cancer Society Global Health Programs and the United Nations Department of Public Information. Tobacco use, alcohol intake, obesity and decreased physical activity have grown in poorer countries, causing the rise of cancer and diabetes, said David E. Bloom, professor of economics and demography at Harvard’s School of Public Health in Boston. Bloom and other researchers held a briefing today in advance of the United Nations High Level Meeting on noncommunicable diseases. The Sept. 19-20 meeting will be the first gathering of the UN Assembly dealing with cancer, cardiovascular illness, chronic lung conditions and diabetes. These diseases cause 60 percent of deaths worldwide, killing 36.1 million people annually, according to an April report by the World Health Organization. “Noncommunicable diseases will evolve into a staggering economic burden in the coming years,” Bloom said. “It’s a huge impediment to the mitigation of poverty.” Bloom said treating newly diagnosed cancer cases cost $300 billion globally in 2010, and obstructive pulmonary disease -- often correlated with smoking tobacco -- costs $4 billion a year. Not Confined to Health “Economic policy makers like ministers of finance and ministers of planning see noncommunicable diseases as an issue confined to the health sector,” a misperception that needs to be addressed, [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-06-24T08:42:35-07:00June, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

U.S. scores dead last again in healthcare study

Source: www.reuters.com Author: edited by Sandra Maler and Cynthia Osterman The United States ranked last when compared to six other countries -- Britain, Canada, Germany, Netherlands, Australia and New Zealand, the Commonwealth Fund report found. "As an American it just bothers me that with all of our know-how, all of our wealth, that we are not assuring that people who need healthcare can get it," Commonwealth Fund president Karen Davis told reporters in a telephone briefing. Previous reports by the nonprofit fund, which conducts research into healthcare performance and promotes changes in the U.S. system, have been heavily used by policymakers and politicians pressing for healthcare reform. Davis said she hoped health reform legislation passed in March would lead to improvements. The current report uses data from nationally representative patient and physician surveys in seven countries in 2007, 2008, and 2009. It is available here. In 2007, health spending was $7,290 per person in the United States, more than double that of any other country in the survey. Australians spent $3,357, Canadians $3,895, Germans $3,588, the Netherlands $3,837 and Britons spent $2,992 per capita on health in 2007. New Zealand spent the least at $2,454. This is a big rise from the Fund's last similar survey, in 2007, which found Americans spent $6,697 per capita on healthcare in 2005, or 16 percent of gross domestic product. "We rank last on safety and do poorly on several dimensions of quality," Schoen told reporters. "We do particularly poorly on going without care [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2010-06-27T14:42:29-07:00June, 2010|Oral Cancer News|

Medicines to deter some cancers are not taken

Source: www.nytimes.com Author: Gina Kolata Many Americans do not think twice about taking medicines to prevent heart disease and stroke. But cancer is different. Much of what Americans do in the name of warding off cancer has not been shown to matter, and some things are actually harmful. Yet the few medicines proved to deter cancer are widely ignored. Take prostate cancer, the second-most commonly diagnosed cancer in the United States, surpassed only by easily treated skin cancers. More than 192,000 cases of it will be diagnosed this year, and more than 27,000 men will die from it. And, it turns out, there is a way to prevent many cases of prostate cancer. A large and rigorous study found that a generic drug, finasteride, costing about $2 a day, could prevent as many as 50,000 cases each year. Another study found that finasteride’s close cousin, dutasteride, about $3.50 a day, has the same effect. Nevertheless, researchers say, the drugs that work are largely ignored. And supplements that have been shown to be not just ineffective but possibly harmful are taken by men hoping to protect themselves from prostate cancer. As the nation’s war on cancer continues, with little change in the overall cancer mortality rate, many experts on cancer and public health say more attention should be paid to prevention. But prevention has proved more difficult than many imagined. It has been devilishly difficult to show conclusively that something simple like eating more fruits and vegetables or exercising regularly helps. [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-11-14T09:23:01-07:00November, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Cancer researchers “play it safe” due to grant system

Source: NYTimes Author: Gina Kolata Among the recent research grants awarded by the National Cancer Institute is one for a study asking whether people who are especially responsive to good-tasting food have the most difficulty staying on adiet. Another study will assess a Web-based program that encourages families to choose more healthful foods. Many other grants involve biological research unlikely to break new ground. For example, one project asks whether a laboratory discovery involving colon cancer also applies to breast cancer. But even if it does apply, there is no treatment yet that exploits it. The cancer institute has spent $105 billion since PresidentRichard M. Nixon declared war on the disease in 1971. TheAmerican Cancer Society, the largest private financer of cancer research, has spent about $3.4 billion on research grants since 1946. Yet the fight against cancer is going slower than most had hoped, with only small changes in the death rate in the almost 40 years since it began. One major impediment, scientists agree, is the grant system itself. It has become a sort of jobs program, a way to keep research laboratories going year after year with the understanding that the focus will be on small projects unlikely to take significant steps toward curing cancer. “These grants are not silly, but they are only likely to produce incremental progress,” said Dr. Robert C. Young, chancellor at Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia and chairman of the Board of Scientific Advisors, an independent group that makes recommendations to the cancer institute. The [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-06-30T04:29:16-07:00June, 2009|Oral Cancer News|