March 2015 – Oral Cancer News

Young supports Oral Cancer Awareness with launch of new Burgundy Disposable Prophy Angle

Source: http://www.dentistryiq.comAuthor: DentistryIQ Editors Screening is the beginning of the end of oral cancer, and Young is joining the Oral Cancer Foundation in empowering hygienists to “Be Part of the Change.” Hygienists are on the front lines of oral cancer detection, and their involvement in early screening is paramount in the fight against oral cancer. Young is helping to support hygienists and keep oral cancer awareness in the forefront by launching the new Classic Burgundy Petite Web disposable prophy angle just in time for Oral Cancer Awareness Month in April. In addition to being the signature burgundy color of oral cancer awareness, the Classic Burgundy Petite Web disposable prophy angle packaging acts as a billboard to promote awareness through early detection. According to the Oral Cancer Foundation, more than 43,000 people are diagnosed with oral cancer in the U.S. each year, and only 57% will survive past five years due to late diagnosis. When found at early stages of development, oral cancer victims have an 80 to 90% survival rate. Thanks to engagement from the RDH community, we are on the cusp of a major change in this paradigm. With a commitment to screening for oral cancer warning signs during routine prophylaxis procedures, hygienists are helping to save lives through early detection. “Just doing ‘opportunistic’ cancer screenings during routine dental hygiene procedures would yield tens of thousands of opportunities to catch oral cancer in its early stages. One of our goals is to initiate an effort within the dental community to aggressively screen all [...]

Charlotte Parker2015-03-31T16:12:30-07:00March, 2015|OCF In The News, Oral Cancer News|

Green tea polyphenol helps kill oral cancer cells by destroying mitochondria

Source: www.medicaldaily.com Author: Chris Weller First it targeted pancreatic cancer. Now it’s moved onto oral cancer. A new study from Penn State University shows the main antioxidant in green tea, epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), helps kill cancer cells through the destruction of the cells’ mitochondria. While highly effective at eradicating cancer cells, chemotherapy is quickly falling out of practice with doctors who seek targeted treatments. Instead of getting rid of just the harmful cells, chemo attacks healthy cells, which are often found in the hair and the intestines, resulting in the characteristic hair loss and frequent immune system-related illness. “You don’t see these sorts of side effects with green tea consumption,” said Joshua Lambert, associate professor of food science at Penn State, in a press release. Lambert and his colleagues carried out their study by looking at cell cultures, which they injected with the same amount of EGCG a person would normally have in her saliva after chewing green tea-flavored gum. They saw a number of promising reactions. “It looks like EGCG causes the formation of reactive oxygen species in cancer cells, which damages the mitochondria, and the mitochondria responds by making more reactive oxygen species,” Lambert explained. Over time, the mitochondria lose even more of its defenses with a breakdown in the expression of antioxidant genes. In their weakened state the cancer cells eventually succumb to EGCG in full, and they die. This isn’t the first time EGCG revealed its cancer-killing power. In May of last year, scientists from the [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-03-30T10:34:12-07:00March, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

Researchers ID potential prognostic marker for recurrence of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

Source: medicalxpress.com Author: press release A new study provides the first evidence that the mediator complex subunit 15 (MED15) may play a crucial role in the pathophysiology of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). MED15 overexpression was found to be associated with higher mortality rates in HNSCC patients with cancer recurrence, particularly in oral cavity/oropharyngeal tumors, according to the study published in The American Journal of Pathology. MED15 overexpression was also associated with heavy alcohol consumption, which is an HNSCC risk factor. HNSCC is the sixth most common cancer worldwide and has a high rate of recurrence and early metastatic disease, resulting in approximately 350,000 deaths each year. "Our findings suggest that MED15 may serve as a prognostic marker for HNSCC recurrence and as a therapeutic target in HNSCC patients suffering from recurrences," said lead investigator Sven Perner, MD, PhD, of the Department of Prostate Cancer Research, Institute of Pathology, and the Department of Otorhinolaryngology at the University Hospital of Bonn (Germany). Mediator is a multiprotein complex that regulates many signaling pathways. In humans, it consists of 30 subunits including MED15, which has been implicated in breast and prostate cancer, with particular attention being given to its link to transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) signaling. "The evidence that multiple aberrant pathways account for the progression of HNSCC calls for a much deeper understanding of the effect of molecules involved in these signaling pathways upon HNSCC progression," noted Dr. Perner. To investigate the role of MED15 in HNSCC, the researchers analyzed tissues from 113 patients [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-03-23T06:29:12-07:00March, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

Head and neck cancer on rise in young men

Source: www.healthcanal.com Author: staff “The head and neck cancers we have found in younger men with no known risk factors such as smoking are very frequently associated with the same HPV virus that causes cervical cancer in women." said Kerstin Stenson, MD, a head and neck cancer surgeon at Rush and a professor of otolaryngology at Rush University. The cancer develops from an HPV infection, likely acquired several years earlier from oral sex. "Men are more susceptible to these cancers because they don’t seem to have the same immune response as women and do not shed the virus like women do,” Stenson said. 'Epidemic proportions' According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, cancers of the oropharynx (back of the throat, including the base of the tongue and tonsils) are usually caused by tobacco and alcohol, but recent studies show that about 72 percent of oropharyngeal cancers are caused by HPV. “There has been significant change in the last decade. Overall, head and neck cancers account for approximately 3 to 5 percent of all cancers, but what’s changed in the past decade is the HPV-associated oropharyngeal cancer. It has reached epidemic proportions,” said Stenson. The American Cancer Society estimates that 45,780 Americans will be diagnosed with cancer of the oral cavity and oropharynx in 2015. If this trend continues, the number of cases of HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer will surpass the number of cervical cancer cases. Early detection is key The current vaccine has been shown to decrease the incidence [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-03-23T06:22:35-07:00March, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

Asia’s deadly secret: the scourge of the betel nut

Source: www.bbc.com Author: staff It is used by almost a tenth of the world's population. It gives people a buzz equivalent to six cups of coffee and is used variously as a symbol of love, marriage and a cure for indigestion and impotence. But it is also leading tens of thousands to an early grave. The culprit? The humble betel nut. Found across Asia, these nuts are harvested from the Areca palm and are chewed for their warming glow and stimulating properties. Such is its effectiveness, that alongside nicotine, alcohol and caffeine, betel nuts are believed to be one of the most popular mind-altering substances in the world. Although used by women and children, the nuts are especially popular among working-age men, who chew to stay awake through long hours of driving, fishing or working on construction sites. But the short-lived benefits come at a terrible cost. High rates of oral cancer are destroying the lives of many who buy betel nuts, often decades after their first taste. Now in Taiwan, where the nuts are affectionately known as 'Taiwan's chewing gum', the government is taking action to curb this centuries-old habit and reduce the thousands of lives lost each year. Dangerous combination Regular betel nut chewers stand out from the crowd with their red-stained lips and teeth The betel nut is a key part of many Asian cultures and can be consumed dried, fresh or wrapped up in a package known as a quid. Although the exact preparation [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-03-23T06:12:23-07:00March, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

Giving chew the boot: Rodeo riders lead oral cancer awareness campaign

Source: mohavedailynews.comAuthor: DK McDonald LAUGHLIN — Rodeo professionals Carly Twisselman and Cody Kiser are bringing something extra to their competition at the Avi Stampede PRCA Rodeo this weekend. They are bringing a message to kids. The public faces of the “Be Smart, Don’t Start” tobacco use awareness campaign, Twisselman and Kiser are sponsored by The Oral Cancer Foundation. “We’re the first charity to ever be the exclusive sponsors of any rodeo competitors,” said Brian Hill, founder and executive director of The Oral Cancer Foundation. “We go to the rodeos with Carly and Cody to get the word out to kids. “As in most things, if we can catch kids early and can show them good role models like Carly and Cody, who are fierce competitors and great people, they can see that tobacco doesn’t have to be a part of being a great cowboy or cowgirl.” The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association and tobacco have a history; until 2009 the PRCA accepted tobacco sponsorship money to fund the sport. “Now, the PRCA disassociated itself with spit tobacco companies back in 2009 and they’re no longer financial sponsors of rodeo,” said Hill. “It was really a great thing for PRCA to do. That being said, the people who attend and the competitors themselves still tend to be heavy users of tobacco, spit tobacco and cigarettes.” Spit tobacco, which can refer to smokeless tobacco, dip, snuff, chew, and chewing tobacco, according to the OCF, can cause gum disease, tooth decay, and white patches and [...]

Charlotte Parker2015-03-13T11:00:58-07:00March, 2015|OCF In The News, Oral Cancer News|

Cure Possible for Some HPV-Positive Oropharyngeal Cancers

Source: www.medscape.com Author: Fran Lowry In a subset of patients with human papillomavirus (HPV)-related oropharyngeal cancer, the goal of achieving a "cure" is a realistic one, even in patients who have limited distant metastases, a prospective study has shown. Of the patients with HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer and distant metastases, 10% survived more than 2 years after intensive treatment, which the researchers defined as a cure. The study was presented at the 5th International Conference on Innovative Approaches in Head and Neck Oncology (ICHNO) in Nice, France. The research was praised by Jean Bourhis, MD, head of the Department of Radiation Oncology at Centre Hospitalier Université Vaudois in Lucerne, Switzerland, and cochair of the ICHNO conference scientific committee. "This important piece of research adds substantially to what we know about the role and the importance of the human papillomavirus in oropharyngeal cancers and gives real hope of improvement in both diagnosis and treatment to those who are affected by the condition," he said in a statement. This study, from a world-leading group of head and neck cancer experts, is very interesting, and related to relevant clinical and interdisciplinary questions," said Daniel Zips, MD, professor of radiation oncology at the University of Tübingen in Germany. "HPV status is also important for the management of metastatic disease," he told Medscape Medical News. He agrees that for some patients with HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer, using the researchers' definition, a cure is possible. "I also agree that the results from this study might begin to change [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-03-12T07:00:10-07:00March, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

Study finds how T cells cause inflammation with oral candidiasis

Source: www.drbicuspid.com Author: Donna Domino, Features Editor Ohio dental researchers have found a method to study how T cells cause inflammation during oral candidiasis infections, according to a new study in the Journal of Visualized Experiments (February 18, 2015). The discovery could lead to new therapies or drugs that may improve the functioning of weakened immune systems. Pushpa Pandiyan, PhD, an assistant professor at Case Western Reserve School of Dental Medicine, and colleagues worked on mice to find a new way to model how T cells, the white blood cells critical for the body's immune system, cause inflammation. Pandiyan's previous work focused on isolating different types of oral T cells for study. In the latest study, the researchers injected T cells into genetically engineered immunodeficient mice to test how the cells function when fighting Candida albicans, a fungus found in about 60% of the population but controlled by a functioning immune system. The infection becomes a particular health problem for people with the HIV/AIDS infection, cancer patients with immune systems weakened by chemotherapy, or those born with no immune defenses. The researchers investigated how IL-17a (T helper 17, or Th17 cells, a type of T cells that secrete a cytokine) and T regulatory cells (Tregs) controlled the fungal infection and inflammation, respectively. "Although Th17 cells are required for antifungal immunity, uncontrolled Th17 cells have been implicated with such illnesses as multiple sclerosis, lupus, psoriasis, cancers, and irritable bowel disease," Pandiyan said in a statement. The immunodeficient mice were infected with [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-03-12T06:24:36-07:00March, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

NIH-funded study finds new potential drug targets by uncovering a range of molecular alterations in head and neck cancers

Source: www.nih.govAuthor: Staff Investigators with The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) Research Network have discovered genomic differences — with potentially important clinical implications — in head and neck cancers caused by infection with the human papillomavirus (HPV). HPV is the most common sexually transmitted virus in the United States, and the number of HPV-related head and neck cancers has been growing. Almost every sexually active person will acquire HPV at some point in their lives, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The researchers also uncovered new smoking-related cancer subtypes and potential new drug targets, and found numerous genomic similarities with other cancer types. Taken together, this study’s findings may provide more detailed explanations of how HPV infection and smoking play roles in head and neck cancer risk and disease development, and offer potential novel diagnostic and treatment directions. The study is the most comprehensive examination to date of genomic alterations in head and neck cancers. The results were published online Jan. 28, 2015 in the journal Nature. TCGA is jointly supported and managed by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), both parts of the National Institutes of Health. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved HPV vaccines should be able to prevent the cancers caused by HPV infection in head and neck cancers and elsewhere, including anal cancer, whose incidence has also been increasing. However, these vaccines work by preventing new infections, and the long interval between infection and cancer development make it [...]

Charlotte Parker2015-03-10T10:11:49-07:00March, 2015|Oral Cancer News|