December 2014 – Oral Cancer News

Ring in the New Year by encouraging patients to quit tobacco use

Source: www.dentistryiq.com Author: Maria Perno Goldie The New Year always brings a sense of hope and conviction to improve our lives. New Year’s resolutions abound. With the New Year come new beginnings, fresh starts, and promises for a brighter future. We try to move on from the losses and trials of 2014, but we never forget. The people we’ve lost will be in our hearts forever, and the trials can be viewed as life lessons and opportunities. As World Oral Health Day (WOHD) 2015 approaches, FDI World Dental Federation wants people to make a healthy New Year’s resolution and reduce their use of tobacco – or give it up completely – as part of the 2015 World Oral Health Day Smile for Life campaign.(1) Tobacco use can significantly increase the risk of many serious oral health problems, including oral cancer, periodontal disease, early tooth loss, tooth discoloration, oral malodor, and a reduced ability to taste and smell. Dental and dental hygiene office visits can create an opportunities to help patients quit smoking and using tobacco, yet dental settings are often not used for treatment of tobacco dependence. The purpose of one study was to evaluate issues that may influence patterns of tobacco-use-related practice among a national sample of dental providers.(2) Researchers surveyed a representative sample of general dentists practicing in the U.S. More than 90% of dental providers reported that they regularly ask patients about tobacco use, 76% counsel patients, and 45% routinely offer cessation assistance. This was defined as [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2014-12-31T06:50:44-07:00December, 2014|Oral Cancer News|

5 Best apps to quit smoking

Source: www.gottabemobile.com Author: Josh Smith You want to quit smoking, but it isn’t easy to do. You can leverage community support, motivation and proven techniques on your iPhone, Android and Windows Phone with the best apps to quit smoking, and motivational on demand help when you have a craving. Most of these quit smoking apps will help you work through the cravings and calculate the money and health benefits of quitting smoking with calculators and a quite smoking timeline that can help you visualize the benefits of quitting smoking. Whether you are quitting smoking as a New Year’s Resolution or you finally decided to take a stand, you can use these apps to quit smoking faster and with more help than going cold turkey with no support. Use these apps to quit smoking in 2015. According to the CDC, you will notice the benefits in as little as 20 minutes and carbon monoxide level in your blood drop to normal in just 12 hours. In as little s two weeks your heart attack risk drops and in one to nine months your coughing and shortness of breath decreases. There are many other benefit to quitting smoking in the years following. The 2014 CDC Surgeon General’s report found one in three cancer deaths could be prevented if people quit smoking, and it isn’t only lung or oral cancer that smoking increases the risk for. With the help of the best quit smoking apps on the market, you can turn [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2014-12-31T06:41:48-07:00December, 2014|Oral Cancer News|

Oral cancer on rise in young people

Source: www.wwltv.com Author: Jaclyn Kelley Alex Dupuy is like most 15-year-old boys, except for one very special talent. Last year he stole the headlines during a bowling tournament for bowling a perfect 300. But that high wouldn't last long. "My son came to us one day and said I have an ulcer, and we thought, OK, let's gargle with some salt water and we kept checking on it and it never went away," said Nancy Dupuy, Alex's mother. When the sore on Alex's tongue never cleared up, but instead started growing, his mother became concerned and took him to see the doctor. "It has grown so rapidly that I would really like to have the tumor or whatever it was removed," she said. Alex was taken to Children's Hospital for surgery, and doctors removed the sore and 30 percent of his tongue. Three days later test results came back confirming the Dupuy's worst fears: It was cancer. "The word aggressive stuck out to me," Nancy Dupuy said. "The type of cancer that my son presented with was an adult cancer. It's not usually diagnosed in young children." The doctors said Alex had a rapid form of squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue. Four days later he and his parents were on a plane to MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. Through it all, Alex managed to stay positive. "I felt nervous, I felt scared and I told myself, I'll be alright," Alex said. In Houston Alex would have yet another [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2014-12-31T06:23:34-07:00December, 2014|Oral Cancer News|

Antacids linked to better survival in patients with head and neck cancer

Source: www.oncologynurseadvisor.com Author: Kathy Boltz, PhD Patients with head and neck cancer who used antacid medicines to control acid reflux had better overall survival, according to a new study. Reflux can be a common side effect of chemotherapy or radiation treatment for head and neck cancer. Doctors at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center in Ann Arbor frequently prescribe two types of antacids, proton pump inhibitors or histamine 2 blockers, to help treat this side effect. The researchers reviewed 596 cases of head and neck cancer. More than two-thirds of the patients took one or both types of antacid medication after their diagnosis. Patients who were taking antacids had significantly better overall survival than those who did not take them. Proton pump inhibitors, including drugs such as Prilosec, Nexium, and Prevacid, had the biggest effect: a 45% decreased risk of death compared with patients who did not take antacids. Patients taking histamine 2 blockers, such as Tagamet, Zantac, or Pepcid, saw a 33% decreased risk of death. "We had suspicions that these medications somehow had a favorable impact on patient outcomes. This led us to review our large cohort of patients and screen them for common medications, focusing on antacids. In fact, our study did show that people taking antacids are doing better," said lead study author Silvana Papagerakis, MD, PhD, research assistant professor of otolaryngology–head and neck surgery at the University of Michigan (U-M) Medical School and an adjunct clinical assistant professor at the U-M School of Dentistry. [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2014-12-31T06:18:03-07:00December, 2014|Oral Cancer News|

Boy Scout Troop Hiking to Raise Awareness of Oral Cancer in Honor of their Former Scoutmaster

Source: abcnews4.comAuthor: Staff AWENDAW, S.C. (WCIV) -- South Carolina is second in the nation for the number of people who die from oral cancer every year. That statistic hits too close to home for one local Boy Scout troop who is now taking on the fight against the cancer. For five days, Boy Scout Troop 50 will be hiking through the Francis Marion National Forest from Awendaw to Moncks Corner. “Last summer our former Scoutmaster was diagnosed with tongue and throat cancer and he had to step down,” said Larry Elkin, who is volunteering to help lead the hike. Elkin says the boys have been preparing the 53 mile voyage for months. Their goal is to raise $5,000 to donate to the Oral Cancer Foundation. “Mr. Hardy loved his troop and he loved to hike, so what way better way to honor and bring awareness than through something he loved,” said Elkin. “If it's one thing Mr. Hardy taught me is that if you are not going to do something right then don't do it at all,” said Reid Kaplan, a 17-year-old who was under Hardy's leadership when he was in the sixth grade. It's memories and lessons learned from Hardy that Kaplan says will keep him going when he gets tired. “I remember going camping with him, and no matter how tired or worn out he was he never gave up he never complained, so when I'm drained I'll be thinking about that,” said Kaplan. Cole Shuber is another [...]

Charlotte Parker2014-12-29T11:48:55-07:00December, 2014|OCF In The News, Oral Cancer News|

Levels of cancer-causing chemicals in smokeless tobacco products influence carcinogen exposure

Source: www.healthcanal.com Author: staff Higher levels of cancer-causing chemicals called tobacco-specific nitrosamines in smokeless tobacco products led to greater exposure to these carcinogens even after taking into account how much or how long the product was used, according to a study published in Cancer Prevention Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research. “Our results show that although the pattern of tobacco use—for example, amount of dip and number of dips—can influence the level of smokeless tobacco users’ exposure to tobacco-specific nitrosamines, the actual amount of these chemicals in the products also makes a significant difference,” said Dorothy K. Hatsukami, PhD, the Forster Family professor in cancer prevention in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. “The majority of smokeless tobacco users in the United States are not aware of the levels of cancer-causing chemicals in their smokeless tobacco products or of the tremendous variability in the levels of these chemicals across brands sold in this country,” continued Hatsukami. “At a minimum, the FDA [U.S. Food and Drug Administration] should provide smokeless tobacco consumers information about the different levels of cancer-causing chemicals in different brands of smokeless tobacco and, ideally, require levels of tobacco-specific nitrosamines be substantially reduced, if not eliminated, in all products. Levels of these chemicals in smokeless tobacco products could be readily reduced by changing manufacturing practices.” Levels of exposure to tobacco-specific nitrosamines are associated with disease risk, according to Hatsukami. Prior studies have shown that smokeless tobacco users in the [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2014-12-25T12:37:53-07:00December, 2014|Oral Cancer News|

FDA Approves Vaccine That Covers More HPV Strains

Source: webmd.comAuthor: E J Mundell, HealthDay Reporter WEDNESDAY, Dec. 10, 2014 (HealthDay News) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration last Wednesday approved a new vaccine with expanded protection against the human papillomavirus (HPV), by far the leading cause of cervical and certain other cancers. The agency said that Gardasil 9 can shield users against nine strains of the virus, compared to the four strains covered by Gardasil, the Merck & Co. vaccine approved in 2006. Merck also makes Gardasil 9. "Gardasil 9 has the potential to prevent approximately 90 percent of cervical, vulvar, vaginal and anal cancers," the FDA said in an agency news release. "Vaccination is a critical public health measure for lowering the risk of most cervical, genital and anal cancers caused by HPV," Dr. Karen Midthun, director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said in the release. "The approval of Gardasil 9 provides broader protection against HPV-related cancers." The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention currently recommends the HPV vaccine for boys and girls at age 11 or 12, so they are protected before being exposed to the sexually transmitted virus. One other HPV vaccine, Cervarix, was also approved by the FDA in 2009. Cervarix is made by GlaxoSmithKline and protects against two HPV strains strongly linked to cancer, HPV 16 and 18. According to the FDA, the approval of Gardasil 9 was based on a clinical trial involving more than 14,000 girls and women aged 16 to 26 who were not infected with HPV at [...]

Charlotte Parker2014-12-16T17:11:06-07:00December, 2014|Oral Cancer News|

Doctors Trying To Remind Americans That The HPV Vaccine Isn’t All About Sex

Source: thinkprogress.orgAuthor: Tara Culp-Ressler Dr. Ronald A. DePinho is on a mission. DePinho, who’s been a cancer researcher for decades and currently serves as the president of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, wants to reframe the national conversation about the HPV vaccine to drive home a fundamental point. “It’s important to appreciate that this is a cancer vaccine. A cancer vaccine!” DePinho said in an interview with ThinkProgress. “It’s a dream come true that we’ve converted knowledge into something that can actually save lives and avoid getting cancer in the first place. It’s really what we have been hoping for, and now we have it.” Since the introduction of the HPV vaccine in 2006, the rate of human papillomavirus in teenage girls has plummeted. And the research in this field continues to advance. On Thursday, the Food and Drug Administration approved an updated version of the Gardasil vaccine that protects against nine strains of the cancer-causing virus — more than twice as many as the 2006 version, which covered just four strains. According to DePinho, that’s a really significant advance for cancer care. He doesn’t want it to get lost in the ongoing controversy about HPV vaccination, a round of shots that some parents still worry is unsafe or inappropriate for their kids. There’s a persistent myth, for instance, that giving teen girls the shots will spur them to become more “promiscuous” because they know they’ll be protected from a sexually transmitted infection. Large [...]

Charlotte Parker2014-12-12T10:46:44-07:00December, 2014|Oral Cancer News|

Revolutionary new approach uses advanced technology to remove head and neck cancer tumors

Source: www.news-medical.net Author: staff In a groundbreaking new study, UCLA researchers have for the first time advanced a surgical technique performed with the help of a robot to successfully access a previously-unreachable area of the head and neck. This pioneering method can now be used safely and efficiently in patients to remove tumors that many times were previously thought to be inoperable, or necessitated the use of highly-invasive surgical techniques in combination with chemotherapy or radiation therapy. Developed by Dr. Abie Mendelsohn, UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center member and director of head and neck robotic surgery at UCLA, this new approach provides the surgical community with a leading-edge technology roadmap to treat patients who had little or no hope of living cancer-free lives. "This is a revolutionary new approach that uses highly advanced technology to reach the deepest areas of the head and neck," said Mendelsohn, lead author of the study. "Patients can now be treated in a manner equivalent to that of a straightforward dental procedure and go back to leading normal, healthy lives in a matter of days with few or even no side effects." A New Approach to Saving Lives The parapharyngeal space is pyramid-shaped area that lies near the base of the human skull and connects several deep compartments of the head and neck. It is lined with many large blood vessels, nerves and complex facial muscles, making access to the space via traditional surgical options often impossible or highly invasive. Current surgical techniques can necessitate [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2014-12-11T09:25:46-07:00December, 2014|Oral Cancer News|

Government anti-smoking campaign cost just $480 per quitter, study finds

Source: www.washingtonpost.com Author: Lenny Bernstein At $48 million, the first government mass media campaign to convince cigarette smokers to quit would seem a pricey luxury, especially since that sum purchased just three months of television ads from March through June of 2o12. But a new study of its cost effectiveness, released Wednesday, determined that it cost just $480 for each smoker who quit and $393 per year of life saved. The graphic videos featured pleas from former smokers who had suffered amputated limbs, oral and throat cancer, paralysis, lung damage, strokes, and heart attacks. One of the most haunting showed Terrie Hall, a 52-year-old North Carolina woman whose larynx was removed after she was diagnosed with throat cancer. In the ad, she spoke with the help of an artificial voice box. Hall later died. The campaign and the analysis were both conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, but Saul Shiffman, a University of Pittsburgh psychology professor who has spent decades studying smoking habits, said there is no doubt it was a tremendous bargain for the public and, especially, the smokers who quit or added years to their lives. One standard used in studying such interventions considers them cost effective at $50,000 per year of life gained--more than 100 times the cost of the campaigns. Medical interventions, such as heart and lung surgery commonly needed by long-term smokers are much more expensive than that, Shiffman noted. The money spent on the campaign "would pale next to the money [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2014-12-11T09:18:54-07:00December, 2014|Oral Cancer News|