screening – Page 3 – Oral Cancer News

Artificial nose could hold the key in detecting head and neck cancer

Source: www.healthcanal.com Author: staff An artificial nose could hold the key in detecting head-and-neck (HNC), according to scientists. The results1 have shown the man-made Nanoscale Artificial Nose (NA-NOSE), developed at the Israel Institute of Technology2, can effectively distinguish between head-and-neck cancer patients, lung cancer patients and those free of oral cancer simply by sampling a breath test. Head-and-neck cancer is the eighth most common curable cancer worldwide and is often diagnosed late due to a lack of successful screening methods. Research suggests overall cure is achieved in less than one in two patients, while sufferers often develop a second primary tumour that can affect the entire aero-digestive tract, making lifelong follow-up necessary. As this appears to be the first study of its kind, Chief Executive of the British Dental Health Foundation, Dr Nigel Carter, believes more needs to be done in order to validate this promising breakthrough in the battle against oral cancer. Dr Carter said: "The discovery of an effective screening method for a cancer which kills one person every five hours in the UK using a relatively simple method represents excellent progress. However, the Foundation urges greater investigation into the feasibility of using such a device on a larger scale. "The Foundation runs Mouth Cancer Action throughout November under the tagline ‘If in doubt, get checked out'. The campaign aims to raise awareness of mouth cancer among the public and encourage people to visit their dentist or doctor for regular check-ups. If a breath test could hold the [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-07-03T14:38:43-07:00July, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

Early effect of the HPV vaccination programme on cervical abnormalities in Victoria, Australia: an ecological study

Source: The Lancet Summary: Background Australia introduced a human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination programme with the quadrivalent HPV vaccine for all women aged 12—26 years between 2007 and 2009. We analysed trends in cervical abnormalities in women in Victoria, Australia, before and after introduction of the vaccination program. Methods With data from the Victorian Cervical Cytology Registry between 2003 and 2009, we compared the incidence of histopathologically defined high-grade cervical abnormalities (HGAs, lesions coded as cervical intraepithelial neoplasia of grade 2 or worse or adenocarcinoma in situ; primary outcome) and low-grade cytological abnormalities (LGAs) in five age groups before (Jan 1, 2003, to March 31, 2007) and after (April 1, 2007, to Dec 31, 2009) the vaccination programme began. Binary comparisons between the two periods were done with Fisher's exact test. Poisson piecewise regression analysis was used to compare incident rate trends. Findings After the introduction of the vaccination programme, we recorded a decrease in the incidence of HGAs by 0·38% (95% CI 0·61—0·16) in girls younger than 18 years. This decrease was progressive and significantly different to the linear trend in incidence before introduction of the vaccination (incident rate ratio 1·14, 1·00—1·30, p=0·05). No similar temporal decline was recorded for LGAs or in older age groups. Interpretation This is the first report of a decrease in incidence of HGAs within 3 years after the implementation of a population-wide HPV vaccination programme. Linkage between vaccination and screening registers is needed to confirm that this ecological observation is attributable to vaccination and [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-06-20T10:53:42-07:00June, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

Oral Cancer Foundation breaks records in April’s Awareness and Screening Month

Source: MSNBC News Author: staff Oral cancer is an insidious disease that too often is not discovered until very late in its development, as it might not produce symptoms the average person may notice. By then treatments are less effective, and because of late discovery in far too many patients, it has a five year survival rate of only about 57%, much lower than cancers we commonly hear about. Oral cancer has existed outside the awareness of much of the public, yet it will take one life, every hour of every day in the U.S. This year the combination of unprecedented efforts by the relatively small, non-profit Oral Cancer Foundation, a coalition of strategic partners they formed, and a dose of celebrity power, created what might be called a perfect storm; and one that potentially will change public awareness of one of the few cancers that is actually increasing in incidence in the U.S. For thirteen years in a row, April has been oral cancer awareness month nationally. More than 85% of all head and neck cancers are oral and oropharyngeal disease. Historically, a loose coalition of stakeholders in the disease has mustered about 200 screening events in April in facilities ranging from large institutions to individual dental offices around the country. Those participants opened their doors for at least a half-day to opportunistically screen members of the public in their communities for free, to find early stage disease, and to raise public awareness. This year the Oral Cancer Foundation, [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-06-16T12:46:56-07:00May, 2011|OCF In The News, Oral Cancer News|

American Dental Association encourages public to get screened for oral cancer

Source: www.prnewswire.com Author: press release The American Dental Association (ADA) and the Oral Cancer Foundation (OCF) encourage people to take part in Oral Cancer Awareness Month in April by visiting a dentist for a free oral cancer screening. So far, more than 1,250 sites across the nation have registered their screening events with the OCF. "Although many dentists perform oral cancer screenings as a routine part of dental examinations, the ADA encourages dentists to go out into their communities during the week of April 11-15 to provide free oral cancer screenings to people who might not regularly visit a dentist," said ADA Spokesperson Sol Silverman, D.D.S., a professor of oral medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. "Early detection is critical in increasing survival rates for patients who have developed an oral cancer; and recognizing and managing precancerous lesions is extremely important in prevention," he said. Mr. Brian Hill, OCF executive director and an oral cancer survivor, also stressed the importance of early detection and the important role that dentists play. "Early detection is important because it reduces treatment-related morbidity and improves survival rates," he said. In 2010, the National Cancer Institute estimated that approximately 36,540 people were diagnosed with oral cancer and approximately 7,880 people died of oral cancer. The National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) estimates that the five-year survival rate for people diagnosed early, when the disease has not spread beyond the original location, is approximately 83 percent compared to a 20 percent survival [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-04-11T20:25:42-07:00April, 2011|OCF In The News, Oral Cancer News|

Longitudinal study of human papillomavirus persistence and cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 2/3: critical role of duration of infection

Journal of the National Cancer Institute, April 5, 2011. Authors: Ana Cecilia Rodríguez, Mark Schiffman, Rolando Herrero, Allan Hildesheim, Concepción Bratti, Mark E. Sherman, Diane Solomon, Diego Guillén, Mario Alfaro, Jorge Morales, Martha Hutchinson, Hormuzd Katki, Li Cheung, Sholom Wacholder, Robert D. Burk Background The natural history of human papillomavirus (HPV) infections in older women is critical for preventive strategies, including vaccination and screening intervals, but is poorly understood. In a 7-year population-based cohort study in Guanacaste, Costa Rica, we examined whether women’s age and the duration of carcinogenic HPV infections influenced subsequent persistence of infection and risk of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 2 (CIN 2) or worse disease. Methods At enrollment, of the 9466 participants eligible for pelvic examination, 9175 were screened for cervical neoplasia using multiple methods; those with CIN 2 or worse disease were censored and treated. Participants at low risk of CIN 2 or worse (n = 6029) were rescreened at 5–7 years (passively followed), whereas higher-risk participants (n = 2115) and subsets of low-risk women (n = 540) and initially sexually inactive women (n = 410) were rescreened annually or semiannually (actively followed) for up to 7 years. HPV testing was done using a polymerase chain reaction–based method. We determined, by four age groups (18–25, 26–33, 34–41, and ≥42 years), the proportion of prevalent infections (found at baseline) and newly detected infections (first found during follow-up) that persisted at successive 1-year time points and calculated absolute risks of CIN 2 and CIN grade 3 (CIN [...]

Charlotte Parker2011-04-10T17:25:47-07:00April, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

Late-stage cancer detection in the USA is costing lives

Source: The Lancet In the USA, cancer is the most common cause of death in people aged between 49 and 80 years. In 2007, 562 875 cancer deaths were reported, which account for about 23% of all deaths. Cancers of the lung, colorectum, breast, and prostate are the most common and have the highest mortalities. In high-income countries remarkable progress has been made in cancer management and care, and although cancer incidence continues to rise, due to the influences of ageing, lifestyle, and population growth, mortality has fallen and survival rates are improving for several cancers, largely because of advances in screening, early detection, and treatment. So in light of this progress, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report published last week makes for troubling reading, showing as it does that almost half of colorectal and cervical cancers and a third of breast cancers are being diagnosed at a late stage when treatment is less effective. The study is the first nationwide examination of stage-specific cancer incidence rates and screening prevalence for breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer by demographics including age and race or ethnic origin. The study found a lower uptake of screening and the presentation of symptoms late in low-income and ethnic minority communities, who also had longer delays in getting their diagnosis and treatment after an abnormal test. All these factors have been well documented to be associated with a late diagnosis for over a decade, so it is disappointing to see that cancer care [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2010-12-03T11:14:15-07:00December, 2010|Oral Cancer News|

Latest generation VELscope device approved for sale by Health Canada

Source: www.sfgate.com Author: staff LED Dental Inc. announced today that its VELscope Vx Enhanced Oral Assessment system was granted a medical device license and approved for sale by Health Canada. The VELscope Vx system's unique cordless design and affordable pricing make it easier than ever for dental practices to detect oral cancer and other forms of oral disease. The first-generation VELscope device was introduced in 2006, with the second-generation version launching two years later. In total, LED Dental has sold almost 6,000 units of the two devices, which have been used to conduct almost 10 million enhanced oral soft tissue exams worldwide. Oral soft tissue exams not only help detect all types of oral disease but are also a key element of an oral cancer screening protocol. Today, VELscope fluorescence visualization technology is used to conduct more enhanced oral exams than any other detection technology in the world. "We are extremely excited about the potential of the VELscope Vx system to significantly increase the number of dental practices conducting oral cancer screenings," said Peter Whitehead, founder and CEO of LED Dental. "The device's portability makes it easy to transport between operatories within the dental practice, and its attractive pricing makes it possible for practices to charge very low exam fees to their patients." Oral cancer kills one North American every hour of every day. According to the SEER database, oral cancer has a higher mortality rate than several better-publicized cancers, such as cervical cancer and testicular cancer. Some oral cancers [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2010-10-20T08:46:07-07:00October, 2010|Oral Cancer News|

‘Synthetic lethality’ strategy improves molecularly targeted cancer therapy

Source: www.physorg.com Author: Fox Chase Cancer Center Molecularly targeted therapies can reduce tumors rapidly. However, not all tumors respond to the drugs, and even those that do often develop resistance over time. Looking for a way to combat the problem of resistance, researchers at Fox Chase Cancer Center hypothesized that hitting already weakened cancer cells with a second targeted agent could kill them—but only if it was the right second agent. One well-validated molecular target for anti-cancer drugs is the epidermal growth factor receptor, or EGFR. Using a novel screening approach, investigators in the Fox Chase Developmental Therapeutics Program identified over 60 additional proteins that are necessary for cells to survive in the presence of an EGFR inhibitor. When they simultaneously blocked the EGFR inhibitors and any one of these other proteins, more of the cancer cells died. The researchers say this screening strategy to identify targets for effective combinations of cancer drugs will open the door for future therapies. Already, two clinical trials are under way to test innovative drug combinations suggested by the new tactic. "We found that knocking out one or the other target doesn't have a major effect, but knocking out both increases tumor cell death," says Igor Astsaturov, M.D., Ph.D., an assistant professor and medical oncologist at Fox Chase. Astsaturov led the study, which will be published in the September 21, 2010 issue of Science Signaling. To identify additional targets that would boost the effectiveness of EGFR inhibitors against cancer, Astsaturov and colleagues screened only [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2010-09-21T12:40:30-07:00September, 2010|Oral Cancer News|

HPV is changing the face of head and neck cancers

Source: www.hemonctoday.com Author: Christen Cona In February, at the Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancer Symposium in Chandler, Ariz., Maura Gillison, MD, PhD, professor and Jeg Coughlin Chair of Cancer Research at The Ohio State University in Columbus, presented data that showed that the proportion of all head and neck squamous cell cancers that were of the oropharynx — which are most commonly HPV-positive cancers — increased from 18% in 1973 to 32% in 2005. In addition, studies from the United States, Europe, Denmark and Australia indicate that HPV-positive patients have a more than twofold increased cancer survival than HPV-negative patients, according to Gillison. With the rising incidence of HPV-related oropharynx cancers, it will soon be the predominant type of cancer in the oral or head and neck region, according to Andy Trotti, MD, director of radiation oncology clinical research, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute, in Tampa, Fla. “We should be focusing on HPV-related oropharyngeal cancer because it will dominate the field of head and neck cancers for many years,” he said during an interview with HemOnc Today . “It is certainly an important population for which to continue to conduct research.” Because HPV-associated oropharyngeal cancer is emerging as a distinct biological entity, the recent rise in incidence will significantly affect treatment, and prevention and screening techniques, essentially reshaping current clinical practice. Social change driving incidence In the analysis performed by Gillison and colleagues, trends demonstrated that change in the rates of head and neck cancers [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2010-06-27T10:24:39-07:00June, 2010|Oral Cancer News|

ADA unveils oral cancer evidence-based recommendations

Source: www.ada.org/news Author: Jennifer Garvin A panel convened by the ADA Council on Scientific Affairs explored the potential benefits and risks of screening for oral squamous cell carcinomas and the use of screening aids to detect malignant or potentially malignant oral lesions. The panel's findings are published as the cover story in the May edition of The Journal of the American Dental Association. "Evidence-Based Clinical Recommendations Regarding Screening for Oral Squamous Cell Carcinomas" were developed by a CSA expert panel convened in April 2009, and join similar recommendations on topical fluoride and sealants as the Association's only evidence-based recommendations. Though evidence-based dentistry (EBD) recommendations do not represent a standard of care, the CSA hopes practitioners will use the recommendations as a resource in their clinical decision-making process alongside a clinician’s judgment and experience in the context of a patient's individual needs. The panel worked with ADA Center for Evidence-Based Dentistry staff and assessed five systematic reviews and four clinical studies as a basis for developing the recommendations. They addressed whether or not screenings help reduce morbidity and mortality, and whether or not oral cancer detection devices aid in detecting potentially malignant or malignant lesions. The panel concluded that while oral cancer screenings may detect potentially malignant and/or malignant lesions, clinicians are urged to remain alert for signs the lesions may become cancerous or early stage cancers while performing routine visual and tactile examinations in all patients, particularly those who use tobacco or consume alcohol heavily. "What's most important is that [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2010-05-15T14:04:18-07:00May, 2010|Oral Cancer News|