11/2/2004 no attribution Medical News Today Scientists at Bristol University have found that a protein present in normal body tissues can prevent tumor growth. A team led by Dr Dave Bates, British Heart Foundation Lecturer, and Dr Steve Harper, Senior Research Fellow in the Microvascular Research Laboratories, in the Department of Physiology at Bristol University, have discovered that a type of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) found in normal tissue, including blood, can prevent cancers from growing. The research findings will be published in the world's most prestigious scientific cancer journal, 'Cancer Research', next week [1 November 2004]. The growth of any cancer depends on its ability to maintain a blood supply that will deliver nutrients. For a cancer to grow from the size of a pinhead to that of a golf-ball, the blood supply of the tumor has to grow with the expansion of the tumor itself. Most forms of VEGF help this blood vessel growth. The new form of VEGF, VEGF165b, which was discovered by the same team in 2002, inhibits the growth of new blood vessels required for tumors to grow above one millimeter. They have also found that this form of VEGF is generally found in many normal parts of the body, including the prostate, but not in prostate cancer, and have established how this form of VEGF works on blood vessels. The identification of how this new form of VEGF works, and its effects on tumors, means that it could be possible to prevent tumor [...]

11/2/2004 Washington, D.C. Marilynn Marchione Yahoo News Efforts to develop the world's first vaccine to prevent cervical cancer took a key step forward Monday with test results suggesting that it can provide long-lasting protection. Four years after getting the vaccine, 94 percent of women were protected from infection with the virus that causes most cervical cancers and none had developed worrisome precancerous conditions, a study showed. "We're thrilled about these results. The immune responses seem to be really long-lasting," said Dr. Eliav Barr, who leads development of the vaccine for Merck & Co. The company plans to seek U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval next year for an expanded version of the vaccine that also could be used to prevent genital warts in both women and men. The new study was funded by Merck and led by University of Washington researchers who presented results Monday at a meeting of the American Society for Microbiology. "They showed clear effectiveness," said Dr. Scott Hammer, a Columbia University infectious disease expert who reviewed the work but has no ties to Merck or the study. "This is a very important issue for women's health around the world." If the vaccine makes it to market, it would be the second developed to prevent cancer. The hepatitis B vaccine has dramatically reduced the number of infections that progress to liver cancer. Cervical cancer strikes nearly half a million women worldwide each year and kills about half. In the United States, about 15,000 women get it and [...]

11/1/2004 Jonathan Maze Charleston Post and Courier South Carolina residents less likely to get cancer, more likely to die if they do. First the good news: South Carolinians are less likely to get cancer than the average American. The bad news? Those who get cancer are less likely to survive. That is the conclusion of the South Carolina Cancer Alliance in its recently released "Cancer Report Card." The alliance gave the state an "A" because people here are less likely to develop cancer but an "F" because the rate of death in South Carolina is much higher than the national average. "Something is not right," said Gailya Walter, who worked on the report card for the Columbia-based alliance. One likely reason for the higher death rate: Many South Carolinians don't have their cancer detected until it's too late. The report indicates the state's prevention and screening efforts need improvement. According to the report, 8,320 South Carolinians died of cancer in 2002. "I would have to presume that many of those were unnecessary," said Dr. Terry Day, an oral surgeon at the Medical University of South Carolina and chairman of the alliance. "Many could have been prevented." Those people, he said, could have been diagnosed and treated without significant complications. South Carolina received its failing mark because its rate of cancer deaths, 207.2 deaths per 100,000 people in 2001, was much higher than the national average of 195.6, according to the South Carolina Central Cancer Registry. The state's rate placed it [...]

11/1/2004 Jennifer R. Grandis et al. Cancer Research 64, 8126-8129, November 1, 2004 Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is the most common malignant neoplasm arising in the mucosa of the upper aerodigestive tract. Nearly two thirds of patients present with advanced (stage III and IV) disease. Fifty percent of HNSCC patients die of their disease, and 5% of HNSCC patients per year will develop additional second primary tumors. Currently used therapeutic modalities (surgery, radiation, and/or chemotherapy) have been associated with rather modest improvements in patient survival. The Head and Neck Cancer: Research and Therapeutic Opportunities Workshop (held in Washington, DC, May 24–26, 2004) was organized by the Division of Cancer Biology at the National Cancer Institute to identify research areas and directions that will advance understanding of HNSCC biology and accelerate clinical translation. The primary goal of the workshop was to identify the barriers that impede basic science discovery and the translation of these developments to the clinical setting. Over a 2.5-day period, experts in both HNSCC and other cancer-related fields met to identify and prioritize the key areas for future research. The overall consensus was that HNSCC is a relatively understudied malignancy and that investigations that focus on the biology of this tumor have the potential to impact significantly on the prevention and treatment of epithelial malignancies. The chief objective is to communicate these research goals to the cancer biology community and encourage more interest in HNSCC as a tumor model to test translational research hypotheses. Authors: [...]

11/1/2004 Brodhead, WI Ellen Williams-Masson Munroe Times Dale Everson's voice has been stilled, but his actions speak louder than words to illustrate how he feels for his church. The 43-year member of the Congregational United Church of Christ was diagnosed with throat cancer in December 1997 and received chemotherapy and radiation to kill the tumor. Although his cancer was eradicated, continuing throat pain led to surgery in March of 1999 to remove parts of his tongue, esophagus and larynx. Dale Everson has devoted about 200 hours to restoring this bell to mint condition after it was damaged in a move to the Congregational United Church of Christ in Brodhead. "He never complained one time, or questioned God," Dale's wife, Holly, said. "He just asked the doctors, 'What do I need to do?" Dale's positive attitude and sense of humor carried the couple through their challenges, and Holly said that Dale considers the loss of his voice an adequate trade-off in order to be free of pain. "I won this round with cancer," he said. Dale communicates by e-mail, text messaging, gestures and handwriting. When asked if he had any regrets about choosing the surgery, he scribbled with a smile, "Holly talks enough for both." It would be understandable if a cancer survivor chose to withdraw and become self-absorbed as a result of his ordeal, but Everson has donated all his spare time during the past year to a project for his congregation. The members of the Congregational Church of Christ [...]

11/1/2004 Birmingham, England Emma Brady The Birmingham Post A common virus that causes glandular fever may contain clues to what causes some cancers, researchers have found. Scientists at Birmingham University believe the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), which millions of people carry without knowing, can be manipulated to treat tumours more effectively. The study also revealed that a non-prescription painkiller can block the development of some cancers. Hodgkin's lymphoma, gastric and nasal cancer are among the types which researchers have found can be treated preventatively after discovering how EBV triggers cancerous growths. The virus was discovered 40 years ago and occurs worldwide, infecting most people early in life. EBV can then remain a dormant infection in some cells of the body's immune system, usually without causing any harm. Professor Lawrence Young, head of cancer studies, said: "This study helps us to under-stand how the virus contributes to the development of cancer in people with EBV. "It gives us a possible new way of treating these cancers. "These findings will also be relevant to how we develop new therapies for other types of head and neck cancer. "EBV is one of the most common virus infections, it causes glandular fever, but that doesn't mean anyone who has had glandular fever will develop cancer." In the 1960s the mortality rate for heart transplant patients was very high, but Prof Young said this is not due to the organ being rejected. "In those cases, the heart was rejected but because their immune system was low [...]

11/1/2004 Liverpool, England Catherine Jones Liverpool Echo The emotional trauma caused by smoking deaths is at the heart of a new drive launched today. Health chiefs estimate that one million people a year are left bereaved when a loved one dies of a smoking-related disease. A TV advert featuring Bootle smoker Anthony Hicks, 58, is being relaunched as part of the Don't Give Up Giving Up campaign in the run-up to Christmas. The father of two had head and neck cancer as a result of his 20 to 40-a-day habit. He died shortly after the hard-hitting television advert - featuring him in a hospital bed struggling to breathe - was filmed, and before he was able to see daughter Alexandra, who lives in America. New national print adverts carrying the slogan "the effects of smoking always hit home" will show photographs of Mr Hicks with family during happier times. His other daughter Kirsten, 22, has said: "The last time I saw him alive was on a TV screen in December, as I watched the tape of the advertisement. "I sat watching and tears streamed down my face." It is the first time the campaign has addressed the impact of smoking beyond physical health. An estimated 120,000 people die of smoking related diseases each year, 1,000 in Liverpool. NHS Smoking Helpline adviser Marie Murray said: "The impact of smoking is like four double-decker buses crashing and killing everyone on board, every day. "That means every year about a million people - [...]

10/31/2004 Chicago, IL Lindsey Tanner FortWayne.com (Journal Gazette) Beyond the tired clichés and sperm-and-egg basics taught in grade-school science class, researchers are discovering that men and women are even more different than anyone realized. It turns out that major illnesses like heart disease and lung cancer are influenced by gender and that perhaps treatments for women ought to be slightly different from the approach used for men. These discoveries are part of a quiet but revolutionary change infiltrating U.S. medicine as a growing number of scientists realize there’s more to women’s health than just the anatomy that makes them female, and that the same diseases often affect men and women in different ways. “Women are different than men, not only psychologically (but) physiologically, and I think we need to understand those differences,” says Dr. Catherine DeAngelis, editor of the Journal of the American Medical Association. DeAngelis, who became the journal’s first female editor in 1999, says she has made it a mission to publish only research in which data are broken down by sex unless it involves a disease that affects just men or women. And this fall, the office of Surgeon General will issue its first-ever report on osteoporosis. The crippling bone-thinning disease disproportionately affects women, who lose the bone-protecting effects of estrogen at menopause. The report will emphasize prevention – and that it’s not just a woman’s disease – 20 percent of patients are men, said Wanda Jones, director of the Office on Women’s Health at the U.S. [...]

10/31/2004 Ivanhoe Newswire The Traingle & Fayetteville Headlines Combining radiation and chemotherapy to kill cancer cells is often very difficult on patients because of the side effects, but new research shows the results may be worth it. Days like this with her family make it all worthwhile for Ruth Toseland. Three years ago, she was diagnosed with tongue cancer. A portion of her tongue was removed, but the cancer came back. After two more surgeries, she opted for an extreme treatment, radiation combined with chemotherapy. Oncologist Julie A. Kish, M.D., of Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Fla., was involved in a national study that may change the treatment of choice for patients at high risk for recurrence. "At two years, the recurrence rate was lower in patients that had the combined treatment as opposed to radiation alone," she said. But the treatment is very hard on the patient. Researchers say four of the 228 patients in the study died as a result of the combined therapy. Still, Dr. Kish says, for some, the tough approach is worth it. "If you can prolong the time until the cancer comes back, which potentially, at some point in time, it may not come back, which we never say because we can't predict that, it's worth going through it." Ruth finished her treatment two and half years ago. So far, the cancer has not returned. Her husband, Michael, said, "We've got a lot to be thankful for. It was touch and go for a [...]

10/31/2004 Ralph W. Moss, Ph.D. Weekly CancerDecisions.com Herb-derived Drug Fights Head and Neck Cancer South Carolina doctors have announced that a drug called M4N shrinks inoperable tumors of the head and neck region. Researchers injected M4N directly into the tumors of eight such patients who were not eligible for surgery. According to press releases, they saw evidence that the agent killed the tumors in these patients, all of whom had advanced, otherwise untreatable forms of the disease. "This study revealed that M4N was generally well-tolerated without direct toxicity," Terry A. Day, MD, told colleagues at the 6th International Conference on Head and Neck Cancer in Washington, DC, August 10, 2004. Dr. Day is Associate Professor and Director of the Division of Head and Neck Oncology Surgery at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC). He is the author of over 150 scientific publications and is president of the Yul Brynner Head & Neck Cancer Foundation. The meeting was sponsored by the American Head and Neck Society (http://www.sic2004.org/). Dr. Day and his colleagues now plan a larger, Phase II study aimed at showing whether, and at what dosage, the drug really works in this intractable kind of cancer. American Society of Clinical Oncology Study Dr. Day's report followed a related one presented a few months earlier at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) convention in New Orleans. At this June 2004 meeting, Frank R. Dunphy, MD, and colleagues from the Duke Comprehensive Cancer Center, Durham, NC (one of the top [...]