Charlotte Parker, Author at Oral Cancer News

Calif. doctor, minister who promised herbal cancer cure to faithful arrested on fraud charges

Source: HealthNews Author: Greg Risling Calif. doc who hailed herbal cancer cure arrested LOS ANGELES — Dr. Christine Daniel promised to her patients what many considered the improbable — the chance to cure cancer through an herbal treatment. Using her influence as an ordained Pentecostal minister, Daniel tapped into the vessel of faith to entice people from across the nation to try her regimen. She even appeared on cable’s Trinity Broadcasting Network in December 2002 touting her cancer cure and its 60 percent success rate, according to federal investigators. Daniel, 55, of Los Angeles was arrested and charged Thursday with two counts each of wire and mail fraud and faces up to 80 years in prison if convicted. She is scheduled to appear in federal court Friday. A phone message left for Daniel’s attorney, Manuel Miller, was not immediately returned. Daniel was interviewed by investigators in August 2004, and she denied ever practicing alternative medicine for cancer, court documents show. She also attested that she never talked about a 60 percent cancer cure rate on television. In court documents, authorities contend Daniel took advantage of terminally ill cancer patients in their darkest hours, some of whom desperately sought alternative measures after enduring draining rounds of chemotherapy and radiation. In all, federal prosecutors said Daniel siphoned about $1.1 million from 55 families between 2001 and 2004. Six patients ranging in age from 4 to 69 died within seven months after seeing Daniel. One of those was Margaret Antwi, who traveled from [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-10-26T11:38:35-07:00October, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

HPV vaccine fails to get nod for routine use in boys

Source: Medscape.com Author: Robert Lowes October 21, 2009 — Despite hearing impassioned pleas to protect both men and women from cancer, a federal advisory panel today declined to recommend that a human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine be routinely administered to boys to prevent genital warts. Instead, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) issued a "permissive" recommendation stating that physicians have the option of vaccinating boys with the HPV vaccine Gardasil(Merck) for genital-wart protection. ACIP noted that boys should receive the vaccine "before exposure to HPV through sexual contact." In 2006, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Gardasil for use in girls and young women to prevent cervical and other cancers as well as precancers caused by HPV types 16 and 18. Last week, the FDA also approved Gardasil for use in males aged 9 through 26 to prevent genital warts. In making its recommendation today, ACIP appeared to be swayed in part by published research questioning the cost-effectiveness of routine vaccination of boys with Gardasil. The committee's decision has far-reaching economic effects because third-party payers typically pay for vaccinations that are recommended for routine use, but not those coming with a permissive recommendation. More at Stake Than Genital Wart Prevention Proponents of routine vaccination of boys with Gardasil told the committee Wednesday during the public comment period that more was at stake than merely preventing genital warts. They underlined the need to also prevent oral, throat, penile, and anal cancers caused by HPV. David Hastings, a spokesperson for the [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-10-26T09:22:06-07:00October, 2009|OCF In The News, Oral Cancer News|

US advisers decline to push Gardasil for boys

Source: Reuters.com Author: Maggie Fox * Committee advises that doctors free to use vaccine * Says needs more evidence of cost benefit * Did not consider value in preventing cancer (Updates throughout, adds quotes, share price) WASHINGTON, Oct 21 (Reuters) - U.S. vaccine advisers declined to press for the use of Merck & Co's (MRK.N) Gardasil in boys and men, opting instead on Wednesday to simply advise doctors they are free to use it. Despite some impassioned pleas from patients and doctors alike, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices voted almost unanimously for "permissive" use of the vaccine for boys. It protects against the human papillomavirus, or HPV, which causes a variety of cancers and genital warts. But the committee did recommend including Gardasil for eligible boys aged 9 to 18 in the Vaccines For Children program, a government-funded system that provides vaccines to children eligible for the state-federal Medicaid health insurance plan and other uninsured children. Merck's shares were down 1.7 percent at $33.16 in afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention currently recommends Gardasil for girls 11 and 12 years old and women 13 to 26 who have not been vaccinated. Earlier this month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Gardasil for preventing genital warts in boys and men ages 9 through 26. The main reason the vaccine was approved was to prevent cervical cancer, which kills 4,000 women a year in the United States alone. But various [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-10-21T14:45:00-07:00October, 2009|OCF In The News, Oral Cancer News|

FDA approves GlaxoSmithKline’s Cervarix

Source: Philadelphia Business Journal Author: John George The Food and Drug Administration granted marketing approval Friday to Cervarix, the cervical cancer vaccine developed by GlaxoSmithKline. The London pharmaceutical company, which has major operations in the Philadelphia region, said the vaccine will be on the market before the end of the year. The FDA approved the drug for use in women and girls ages 10 to 25. GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE:GSK) will have a challenge taking market share away from Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE:MRK), which launched its cervical cancer vaccine Gardasil in 2006. Gardasil had worldwide sales of $1.4 billion for Merck last year. Cervarix, which was previously approved in markets outside the United States including Europe, Japan and Australia, had sales of more than $200 million in 2007.

Charlotte Parker2009-10-16T10:56:58-07:00October, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Routine Oesophageal Screening Recommended for Patients Previously Treated for Head and Neck Cancer: Presented at AAO-HNSF

Source: Docguide.com By Kristina Rebelo SAN DIEGO -- October 12, 2009 -- Patients who have been treated for head and neck cancer (HNCA) should be screened for oesophageal pathologies about 3 months out whether they are symptomatic or not, according a poster presentation here October 4 at the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation (AAO-HNSF) Annual Meeting 2009. Oesophageal pathology is extremely common in patients who have been treated for HNCA, according to the researchers. "When we talk about HNCA, the 5-year survival rate for this cancer is 50%," Peter C. Belafsky, MD, Head and Neck Oncological Surgery, University of California at Davis, and the Voice and Swallowing Center, Davis, California, told DocGuide. "We took a look at the oesophagus in patients after treatment for head and neck cancer and we did oesophagoscopy and biopsy, as indicated, on all of them. We successfully performed the oesophagoscopy on all 100 patients without complication and we had only 13% of the entire cohort who had a normal examination." The study included 100 patients who had chemoradiation and underwent follow-up oesophagoscopy. Patient demographics, symptom surveys, treatments received, reflux medications prescribed and oesophageal findings were prospectively determined. Findings on oesophagoscopy included stricture (22%), candidiasis (9%), peptic oesophagitis (67%), Barrett's (8%), and new primary tumours -- 1 hypopharynx, 2 oesophageal, and 1 stomach (4%); 13% had a normal oesophagoscopy. The mean age of the cohort was 64 years and 74% were male. The mean time between the cessation of treatment and endoscopy was 40 [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-10-13T10:26:11-07:00October, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Giving Gardasil to boys not worth the cost?

Source: HealthDay.com Author: Steven Reinberg But other experts dispute finding, and say young men need protection from STDs THURSDAY, Oct. 8 (HealthDay News) -- The cost of giving boys the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine would outweigh any health benefit, researchers say. Last month, a U.S. Food and Drug Administration panel recommended expanding use of the Gardasil vaccine to males aged 9 to 26 to protect them from genital warts, but the cost effectiveness of such a program was unclear at the time. But researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health conducted such an analysis comparing a girls-only vaccination program with a co-ed vaccination program. Currently, Gardasil is approved for girls aged 9 and over to protect them from cervical cancer. "This study found that while vaccine coverage and efficacy are high in girls, including boys in an HPV vaccination program generally exceeds what the U.S. typically considers good value for money," said lead researcher Jane Kim, an assistant professor of health decision science. The report is published in the Oct. 9 online edition of the British Medical Journal. Vaccination was considered a good value if cost-effectiveness ratios ranged from $50,000 to $100,000 per quality-adjusted life year, meaning the cost of the vaccine vs. the number of added years someone would gain by getting the vaccine. Assuming 75 percent coverage and lifelong protection, the researchers found routine vaccination of 12-year-old girls was a good value at less than $50,000 per quality-adjusted life year. However, adding preadolescent boys increased the cost-effectiveness ratio [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-10-12T11:54:27-07:00October, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

A perk for coffee lovers: Java may lower oral cancer risk

Source: Scientificamerican.com Author: Katherine Harmon Raise high the coffee bean! Good news, coffee-drinkers: a new study shows your beverage of choice may lower your chances of getting oral, esophageal and pharyngeal (back-of-the-throat) cancer. Japanese researchers report in the American Journal of Epidemiology this week that people they studied who drank a cup or more of Joe daily had about a 50 percent less chance than non-imbibers of developing these cancers. The scientists based their findings on 13 years of data of some 38,000 people ages 40 to 64 with no history of cancer. According to the study, coffee drinking lowered the odds of these types of cancer even in people with high-risk behaviors (read: smoking and boozing). "Caffeine has been suggested to suppress the progression of tumor cells," senior study author Toru Naganuma, an epidemiological researcher at Japan's Tohoku University, toldScientificAmerican.com in an email. He noted that other studies have also linked moderate coffee drinking to reduced risk of liver cancer. "The evidence is pretty strong" in this research, says Ann Gillenwater, a professor of head and neck surgery at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, who was not involved in this study. But that doesn't mean you should start downing double espressos hourly. Recent research suggests that too much caffeine can lead to insomnia, anxiety and might up the risk of miscarriage in the early stages of pregnancy. Besides, the study authors point out, caffeine alone is not the answer, noting that "high-level consumption of fresh vegetables and fruit" have also been linked to lower [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-10-09T11:05:27-07:00October, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Artists transform symbols of pain into objects of beauty

Source: Gazette.net Author: Jason Tomassini Radiation masks showcase courage of patients Lying on a table in Cookie Kerxton's tiny Bethesda art studio is a symbol of unparalleled pain and suffering: a white, plastic mask of her own face she wore during treatment for throat cancer. The loss of speech, being fed through her stomach, the severe dry mouth, the burns on her neck — the mask serves as a reminder of her lowest moments, spent strapped to an operating table with the mask covering her face and bolted to the table, the radiation blasting away at the malignant polyps that lined her throat. "You're only there for about 10 minutes," Kerxton, 73, said last week at the Upstairs Art Studio on St. Elmo Avenue. "But it's really not fun." When Kerxton beat her cancer, after four long months of chemotherapy in 2008, she wanted to keep the radiation mask, a bland but morbid piece of plastic that Kerxton said her friends call "ghoulish." Since, Kerxton gathered more than 100 radiation masks from area hospitals and found more than 100 artists from across the country to turn the masks into pieces of art, rather than symbols of pain. "It's taking something ‘ghoulish' and making it something someone would want to have on their wall," Kerxton said. In September, Kerxton's exhibit, called "Courage Unmasked," debuted before more than 500 people at a fundraiser and live auction at the Katzen Arts Center at American University. The roughly 40 masks still for sale will be exhibited starting [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-10-08T11:25:04-07:00October, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Oropharyngeal cancer patients experience post-surgery sleep apnea

Source: Sciencecodex.com Author: Staff San Diego, CA – Nearly all patients who underwent surgery to treat oropharyngeal cancer experienced some degree of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), according to new research presented at the 2009 American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation (AAO-HNSF) Annual Meeting & OTO EXPO, in San Diego, CA. The pilot study, which collected data from 22 patients treated for oropharyngeal cancer, found that among those who underwent primary surgery with free flap reconstruction, 93 percent had OSA as defined by a common measurement scale, with 67 percent defined as experiencing moderate or severe OSA (respiratory disturbance index greater than 15). Furthermore, 100 percent of those treated with radiation or chemotherapy (including some of the surgical group) developed OSA, although only one-third of these patients had moderate or severe OSA. The authors intend to continue their research with a larger pre-post treatment cohort study. They believe OSA may play a significant role in treatment related fatigue in this patient population. They also contend that unrecognized OSA may lead to additional comorbidity in this patient population, and the diagnosis and treatment of sleep apnea postoperatively may improve quality of life for these patients.

Charlotte Parker2009-10-07T11:44:16-07:00October, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

CDC finds poisons in dissolvable tobacco products

Source: Notobacco Author: Staff Since the beginning of this year, Indianapolis has been a test market for new dissolvable tobacco products, mostly from Camel. These are smokeless, spit-free, made from finely milled tobacco, and held together by food-grade binders. They look like breath mints, breath strips, or toothpicks, and are designed to be placed in the mouth, on the tongue or between the cheek and gum, where they dissolve to release tobacco. Dissolvable tobacco products are now available in Daviess County in the form of Stonewall dissolvable tablets. The manufacturer, Star Scientific, states that Stonewalls are designed for heavy smokers and spit tobacco users. This company also makes Ariva brand dissolvable tablets. Indiana Tobacco Prevention and Cessation agency feels the tobacco companies are illegally using Hoosiers as unwitting participants in a potentially dangerous clinical trial of these products since they were not tested for safety before being sold to the public, as food products, drugs, and cosmetics would be. Dissolvable tobacco products may contain up to three times the amount of nicotine found in one cigarette. A cigarette smoker typically takes in about 1 milligram of nicotine. Camel dissolvable products are said to deliver about 0.6 to 3.1 milligrams of nicotine each, Ariva tablets have about 1.5 millgrams of nicotine each, and Stonewall tablets have about 4 milligrams of nicotine each. People who use these products may get a higher dose of nicotine than they are used to, possibly resulting in nicotine poisoning, which manifests through adverse reactions such as tremors, [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-10-06T20:21:43-07:00October, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Oral Cancer News
Compiled by The Oral Cancer Foundation

About Charlotte Parker