Charlotte Parker, Author at Oral Cancer News

Tobacco Regulation Bill Advances In Senate Test Vote

Source: CNNMoney Author: Patrick Yoest WASHINGTON -(Dow Jones)- The U.S. Senate took a step forward Tuesday toward debate of a bill that would give the Food and Drug Administration authority to regulate tobacco, as senators showed strong support for the measure in a procedural vote. The Senate voted 84-11 to limit debate on whether to consider the tobacco bill. Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., an outspoken opponent of the bill, is expected to pull out the stops by forcing numerous procedural votes on the bill. The bill, introduced by Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., would give the FDA limited authority to monitor smoking products. It would impose strict controls on advertising that restrict ads to black and white, and stop the use of terms " mild" and "low tar." A similar bill passed the House in April. The Senate is unlikely to debate amendments to the bill until later this week. Burr said Tuesday he wants to introduce an alternative to the bill that would create a new agency within the Health and Human Services Department to regulate tobacco. Burr said he hopes to stretch debate into next week on the tobacco regulation measure. Tobacco producers have a large presence in North Carolina, Burr's home state. Reynolds American Inc.(RAI) and Lorillard Inc. (LO), two leading tobacco companies, are based in North Carolina. Sen. Kay Hagan, D-N.C., is also opposed to the tobacco regulation legislation in the Senate. But Altria Group, Inc. (MO), the parent company of tobacco producer Philip Morris USA, announced its support in March for the House bill allowing FDA regulation of tobacco. [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-06-03T10:21:41-07:00June, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

New broad-spectrum vaccine to prevent cervical cancer induces strong responses in animals

Source: Journal of the National Cancer Institute Author: Staff Wednesday, May 27, 2009 Mice and rabbits immunized with a multimeric-L2 protein vaccine had robust antibody responses and were protected from infection when exposed to human papillomavirus (HPV) type 16 four months after vaccination, according to a new study published in the May 26 online issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Current HPV L1-based vaccines are almost 100% protective against infection by the two HPV types that are responsible for 70% of all cervical cancer cases world wide. However, the existing vaccines provide limited protection against the other HPV types that cause cancer. With that limitation in mind, Richard Roden, Ph.D., of the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, and colleagues have been working on an alternate vaccine that is based on the HPV minor capsid protein L2, which is highly conserved between HPV types. Previous experiments showed that the L2 protein induced only a weak antibody response in animals. In the current study, Roden and colleagues linked together a short segment of the L2 protein from several HPV types to generate a single multimeric L2 fusion protein. They tested the ability of this multimeric-L2 protein to induce antibody responses in animals and its ability to protect them from subsequent infection with HPV type 16. Mice immunized with the multimeric L2 vaccine developed robust antibody responses against all of the HPV types tested, although the antibody titer was still lower than the type-restricted responses following vaccination with an existing [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-06-02T20:49:51-07:00June, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Trial shows cancer vaccine success

Source: Channel4news.com Author: Staff A vaccine against a sexually transmitted disease which causes most forms of cervical cancer can protect older women, according to a new study. Women aged from 24 to 45 who have not already been infected with the human papilloma virus (HPV) can be protected by the HPV vaccine, according to an article published in the medical journal The Lancet. HPV is a sexually transmitted disease which is responsible for most forms of cervical cancer. Trials were conducted with over 3,000 women in the relevant age group who had not been infected with HPV. Half were given a placebo and half were given a vaccine which protects against four strains of HPV. The researchers found that four cases of infection occurred in the vaccine group compared to 41 in the placebo group – meaning the vaccine was 91 per cent effective against all four virus strains. Looking at HPV 16 and 18 only, which are responsible for 70 per cent of cases of cervical cancer, four cases occurred in the vaccine group compared with 23 in the placebo group, meaning the vaccine was 83 per cent effective. When trials were conducted with women who had already been infected with HPV, the vaccine was only 30 per cent effective. The report's author, Dr Nubia Muñoz, therefore suggested that the public health benefit of vaccinating the older age group could potentially be less cost-effective than vaccinating teenagers who were less likely to have been sexually active. Currently teenage [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-06-02T11:14:02-07:00June, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Jeg Coughlin Sr. Chair filled by OSU’s Gillison

Source: Go2geiger.com Author: News Staff Leading human papilloma virus (HPV) expert Maura Gillison, MD, PhD, was officially named to the Jeg Coughlin Sr. Chair in Cancer Research during a special ceremony Wednesday night at the Longaberger Alumni House at The Ohio State University. "This is a dream come true for all of us," said Coughlin, who was surrounded by his four sons and many members of the extended Coughlin family. "This Chair represents a legacy that will continue forever. Cancer research takes commitment from a financial aspect and more importantly from a research and development side. Dr. Gillison has accomplished so many things already and we truly feel the best is yet to come." Gillison recently joined OSU's staff after a successful stint as associate professor at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, Md., where she was a member of the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center. She now serves as professor of medicine in the division of hematology and oncology at OSU and is a member of the Cancer Control and Viral Oncology Programs at the Comprehensive Cancer Center. "Unfortunately, like so many other families, the Coughlins have been touched by cancer," Gillison said. "Now, they are a family on a mission. They put the same enthusiasm they bring to racing into cancer research. The Coughlin family has made it possible for me to take my research into a much broader direction and to really think outside of the box." Focusing on the role that [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-05-29T09:37:54-07:00May, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

R. J. Reynolds introducing ‘dissolvable’ tobacco

Source: KSPR News Author: News Staff Tobacco companies are facing new criticism, accused of targeting your kids. Not with ads, but with new types of tobacco products. Like Camel Snus, tea-bags filled with mint-flavored tobacco. R.J. Reynolds says Snus have become so popular, they're taking the next step -- totally dissolvable tobacco The company says it will solve all kinds of problems for traditional smokers. "They don't have second hand smoke. They don't have a litter problem. The product actually dissolves in your mouth as opposed to having to spit or extract something like a patch from your mouth like other smokeless products," says Tommy Payne of R. J. Reynolds. The company will soon test three new products: Camel Sticks that dissolve when you suck them, Minty Tobacco Strips that look like breath strips, and Orbs, flavored dissolvable tablets that some say look and taste like candy. Critics say R. J. Reynolds is doing what it did with Joe Camel -- marketing not to adult smokers, but smoker wanna-bes. "Really what you're doing with kids actually, it's kind of like a gateway drug. You're getting them addicted to nicotine, which then leads them to possibly wanting to do other things," says Dan Smith of the American Cancer Society. The Indiana Poison Control Center says just one Camel dissolvable delivers up to 300 percent of the nicotine found in just one cigarette. Take too many, and nicotine poisoning might set in, and you could develop oral cancer. R. J. Reynolds says [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-06-02T20:51:19-07:00May, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

New model suggests role of low vitamin D in cancer development

Source: news.biocompare.com Author: Staff In studying the preventive effects of vitamin D, researchers at the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego, have proposed a new model of cancer development that hinges on a loss of cancer cells' ability to stick together. The model, dubbed DINOMIT, differs substantially from the current model of cancer development, which suggests genetic mutations as the earliest driving forces behind cancer. "The first event in cancer is loss of communication among cells due to, among other things, low vitamin D and calcium levels," said epidemiologist Cedric Garland, DrPH, professor of family and preventive medicine at the UC San Diego School of Medicine, who led the work. "In this new model, we propose that this loss may play a key role in cancer by disrupting the communication between cells that is essential to healthy cell turnover, allowing more aggressive cancer cells to take over." Reporting online May 22, 2009 in the Annals of Epidemiology, Garland suggests that such cellular disruption could account for the earliest stages of many cancers. He said that previous theories linking vitamin D to certain cancers have been tested and confirmed in more than 200 epidemiological studies, and understanding of its physiological basis stems from more than 2,500 laboratory studies. "Competition and natural selection among disjoined cells within a tissue compartment, such as might occur in the breast's terminal ductal lobular unit, for example, are the engine of cancer," Garland said. "The DINOMIT model provides new avenues for preventing and improving the [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-06-02T20:52:32-07:00May, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Samuel Broder: Why Isn’t There a Gardasil for Men?

Source: Health.usnews.com Author: Samuel Broder, M.D. There's an HPV vaccine for women; why don't men have one? Why was the vaccine against the cancer-causing, sexually transmitted HPV virus not approved for men at the same time it was for women? Is there any reason to think that men and women would react to it differently? Interesting question. First, a little background. Gardasil is a genetically engineered vaccine to immunize girls and women ages 9 to 26 against four types of human papillomavirus (HPV). HPV is the name given to a family of viruses, many of which can be transmitted from one partner to another through sexual activity. HPV may represent the most frequent sexually transmitted infection in the United States. It is estimated that over 6 million people become infected by a sexually related form of HPV every year. Some estimates suggest that over half of all sexually active males and females become infected at one point or another in their lifetimes. Certain types of HPV can sometimes evade the body's immune system and, when they do, establish a state of persistent infection. That in turn may cause certain cancers. Indeed, this is now recognized as the major cause of cervical cancer and related conditions, and vaccines that immunize people against HPV could make a dramatic impact against these diseases. Gardasil is the first vaccine in the United States approved for the prevention of cervical cancer and precancerous cell abnormalities in the cervix and also certain precancerous conditions in the [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-05-19T15:39:45-07:00May, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Chewing tobacco use surges among boys

Source: Msnbc.msn.com Author: Staff WASHINGTON - Use of snuff and chewing tobacco by U.S. adolescent boys, particularly in rural areas, has surged this decade, a federal agency said in a report on Thursday that raised concern among tobacco control advocates. The use of such smokeless tobacco products increases the risk of oral cancer as well as heart disease and stroke. It leads to nicotine addiction just like cigarette smoking. The report by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration showed a 30 percent increase in the rate of smokeless tobacco use among boys aged 12 to 17 from 2002 to 2007. Use by adults remained stable. In 2007, the report estimated that 566,000 boys in that age group had used chewing tobacco or snuff. "This trend toward more smokeless tobacco use by kids is of great concern," Danny McGoldrick, vice president for research at the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids advocacy group, said in a telephone interview. "This is an industry that has a history of targeting kids because they know that's when everybody starts," he added. Among adolescent boys, the rate of use of smokeless tobacco rose from 3.4 percent in 2002 to 4.4 percent in 2007, according to the report. McGoldrick said the increase occurred as smokeless tobacco companies greatly increased their spending on marketing and introduced a new range of products. The findings reiterated the need for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to have the power to regulate tobacco products, as legislation being considered by [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-05-19T15:05:12-07:00May, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

ASCO: HPV Infection Linked to Better Outcome in Oropharyngeal Cancer

Source: MedpageToday.com Author: Michael Smith TORONTO, May 14 -- Patients with oropharyngeal cancer had a 50% lower five-year mortality risk when they also had human papillomavirus (HPV) infection, according to data from a randomized clinical trial. HPV-positive patients had a two-year overall survival of 88% compared with 66% for HPV-negative patients (P<0.001), said Maura Gillison, M.D., of Ohio State University in Columbus. The difference between groups increased with follow-up. HPV infection also was associated with a reduced risk of locoregional recurrence and second cancers, Dr. Gillison reported at a press briefing in advance of the American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting. Cancer of the oropharynx arises from two principal causes: chronic use of tobacco and alcohol or HPV infection. Previous studies had suggested that HPV status of a patient's tumor might have prognostic implications. "HPV-positive patients have important associations with other favorable prognostic factors," said Dr. Gillison. "They tend to be younger; they have smaller tumors; they present with better performance status. Therefore, improvement in survival for this patient population may be explained by these factors and not by HPV." To explore the role of HPV status in survival of oropharyngeal cancer, Dr. Gillison and colleagues reviewed data from a randomized clinical trial conducted by the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group. Its principal objective was to compare standard chemotherapy with an investigational regimen. The trial involved 721 patients. Of those, 60% had cancer of the oropharynx and 64% were HPV positive. The two-year results demonstrated a clear survival advantage associated [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-05-15T16:11:18-07:00May, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Oral Sexual Behaviors and the Prevalence of Oral Human Papillomavirus Infection

Source: The Journal of Infectious Diseases Author: Aimée R. Kreimer EDITORIAL COMMENTARY National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland In this issue of the Journal, D’Souza et al. [1] demonstrate that oral sexual behaviors are associated with the detection of prevalent oral human papillomavirus (HPV) infection. With their study, D'Souza and colleagues have taken an additional step toward improving our understanding of the epidemiologic profile of oral HPV transmission. HPV is an important human carcinogen that is increasingly implicated in human cancers occurring at multiple anatomical sites [2]. Over the past decade, there has been accumulating molecular and epidemiologic evidence demonstrating that HPV causes a subset of head and neck cancers, specifically in the oropharynx [3, 4]. This evidence mandates the need for additional novel research along multiple areas of the disease continuum. Important research topics include (1) elucidating the natural history and epidemiologic profile of oral HPV infection in healthy individuals, (2) determining whether the HPV vaccine is efficacious in preventing oral HPV infections and related diseases, and (3) determining whether the HPV status of the tumor should be used in clinical decision‐making pertaining to treatment. D’Souza et al. [1] used 2 distinct populations and differing study methods to evaluate associations between self‐reported sexual behaviors and detection of prevalent oral HPV infection. The oral HPV point prevalence was 2.9% among 210 college‐aged men and 4.8% among 332 controls in a hospital‐based case‐control study. Although these percentages are not statistically different, it is noteworthy that the point prevalence among college‐aged men (median age, 19 [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-05-12T16:03:58-07:00May, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

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