World Health Organization (WHO)

The Oral Cancer Foundation’s Founder, Brian R. Hill, honored by the Global Oral Cancer Forum – International oral cancer community honor his accomplishments in the field.

Source: www.prnewswire.comAuthor: The Oral Cancer Foundation NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., March 10, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- At the recent Global Oral Cancer Forum (GOCF), Brian R. Hill, Executive Director and Founder of the Oral Cancer Foundation (OCF), was honored for his work as an advocate and innovative thinker in the oral cancer arena. The GOCF organizers and community awarded Hill the 2016 Global Oral Cancer Forum Commitment, Courage and Innovation Leadership Award for his dedication and contributions to the field of oral cancer over the last 18 years. Upon accepting the award, Hill received a standing ovation from those in attendance, which included global oral cancer thought leaders, researchers, treatment physicians, other non-profit organizations and representatives from various government agencies, including the National Institutes of Health / National Cancer Institute, and the World Health Organization (WHO). When asked about being honored Hill said, "In the beginning and for many years I was alone at OCF and it was just the seed of an idea. Those grassroots efforts matured into a robust network of important relationships with a common goal. Today OCF is so much more than just me and my singular efforts. Through the benevolence of the many OCF supporters, particularly in the RDH, dental/medical professional communities and survivor groups, OCF has grown into a powerful national force for proactive change of the late discovery paradigm, access to quality information, disease and patient advocacy, funding of research, and patient support." Hill acknowledges that he had the mentorship of some of the brightest minds [...]

Charlotte Parker2016-03-11T10:35:36-07:00March, 2016|OCF In The News, Oral Cancer News|

Professor Harald zur Hausen: Nobel scientist calls for HPV vaccination for boys

Source: www.independent.co.ukAuthor: Charlie Cooper & Gloria Nakajubi The UK should vaccinate all boys against the cancer-causing human papilloma virus (HPV), the Nobel Prize-winning scientist who discovered the link between HPV and cancer has said. Professor Harald zur Hausen, the German virologist whose theory that HPV could be a cause of cervical cancers led to global efforts to vaccinate girls against the virus, said that boys should also be protected. There is now a wealth of evidence that HPV also causes cancers in men, including anal, penile and throat cancer. Professor zur Hausen added that there was now a chance to “eradicate” HPV viruses altogether if the world developed global vaccination programmes for all children. Since 2008 the UK has offered free vaccinations against HPV to girls aged 12 to 13 – a programme that had an almost 87 per cent uptake from 2013 to 2014 and has led to falls in the number of pre-cancerous abnormalities of the cervix, according to research carried out among vaccinated girls in Scotland. Vaccine authorities in the UK, traditionally an international leader in the field of immunisation, are yet to make a judgement on a publicly funded vaccination programme for boys, which would follow in the wake of those already in place in Australia, Austria, Israel and parts of Canada. HPV is the name for a common group of viruses that can affect the moist membranes of the cervix, anus, mouth and throat. It is usually spread through sexual contact. Most sexually active people [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-07-13T17:09:58-07:00July, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

The Debate Over E-Cigarettes Begins

Source: TIME.comAuthor: Mandy Oaklander The debate over the safety of e-cigarettes, and whether they will help smokers to quit, or simply make it easier for them to start or continue lighting up, heated up this week. On one side of the disagreement are those pushing for regulation. In 2013, the World Health Organization (WHO) began a review of data on e-cigarettes and based on studies conducted so far, last month recommended tighter regulation of the devices to protect consumers’ health. But in a new article published in the journal Addiction, other scientists argue that the WHO misinterpreted the data in a “misleading” way and that the group’s advice for more stringent oversight is problematic. In the Addiction paper, the authors take issue with nine of WHO’s conclusions, some of which surround the safety of e-cigarettes, their toxin levels, and how likely younger people are to adopt them. They cite some of the same data as the original WHO review did, but interpret it differently, arguing that the benefits of e-cigarettes, especially as an effective tool in helping some smokers to quit, outweigh potential risks from the chemicals and nicotine used in the devices. Therefore, they say, e-cigarettes should be more accessible than the WHO recommendations would allow. “…The WHO’s approach will make it harder to bring these products to market than tobacco products, inhibit innovation and put off smokers from using e-cigarettes, putting us in danger of foregoing the public health benefits these products could have,” said Ann McNeill, lead author [...]

Charlotte Parker2014-09-10T09:57:34-07:00September, 2014|Oral Cancer News|

Global burden of cancer is on the rise

Source: Medical News TodayPublished: Catherine Paddock, PHDBy: February 4, 2014 A new report from the World Health Organization's cancer agency reveals that cancer rates are growing at an "alarming pace" around the world and urges stronger efforts on prevention measures to curb the disease. The World Cancer Report 2014, from the World Health Organization's (WHO's) International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), estimates that the global burden of cancer will rise from an estimated 14 million new cases per year in 2012 to 22 million within the next 20 years. Due to growing and aging populations, developing countries are disproportionately affected by the growing numbers of cancers. Over 60% of the global burden is in Africa, Asia and Central and South America, where 70% of cancer deaths occur, and where lack of early detection and treatment is a growing problem. There is an urgent need to put in place measures to prevent the disease, says the report, adding that half of all cancers could be avoided if we use what we already know more effectively. Dr. Christopher Wild, report co-editor and director of the IARC, says: "Despite exciting advances, this Report shows that we cannot treat our way out of the cancer problem. More commitment to prevention and early detection is desperately needed in order to complement improved treatments and address the alarming rise in cancer burden globally." Leading cause of deaths worldwide, costs spiralling out of control Cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide - in 2012 the [...]

Charlotte Parker2014-02-06T14:44:36-07:00February, 2014|Oral Cancer News|

As life expectancy goes up, cancer rates increase as well.

Source: CNNPublished: Tuesday, February 4, 2014By: Time Hume and Jen Christensen http://youtu.be/zCHncLNJ2HI (CNN) -- Cancer cases are expected to surge 57% worldwide in the next 20 years, an imminent "human disaster" that will require a renewed focus on prevention to combat, according to the World Health Organization. The World Cancer Report, produced by the WHO's specialized cancer agency and released on World Cancer Day, predicts new cancer cases will rise from an estimated 14 million annually in 2012 to 22 million within two decades. Over the same period, cancer deaths are predicted to rise from 8.2 million a year to 13 million. The rising incidence of cancer, brought about chiefly by growing, aging populations worldwide, will require a heavier focus on preventive public health policies, said Christopher Wild, director of the International Agency for Research on Cancer. "We cannot treat our way out of the cancer problem," he said. "More commitment to prevention and early detection is desperately needed in order to complement improved treatments and address the alarming rise in cancer burden globally." The report notes that the rocketing cost of responding to the "cancer burden" -- in 2010, the economic cost of the disease worldwide was estimated at $1.16 trillion -- is hurting the economies of rich countries and beyond the means of poor ones. The report said about half of all cancers were preventable and could have been avoided if current medical knowledge was acted upon. The disease could be tackled by addressing lifestyle factors, such as [...]

Charlotte Parker2014-02-05T14:46:25-07:00February, 2014|Oral Cancer News|