3/2/2002 American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology According to data recently published by the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology, a treatment program consisting of Platinol® and radiation therapy following surgery appears to significantly increase cancer-free survival and overall survival of patients diagnosed with head and neck cancer. These results are consistent with previous clinical trials and have prompted European health-care providers to adopt this treatment approach as their new standard of care for patients with locally advanced head and neck cancer. The term head and neck cancer refers to any number of cancers that may occur in the head and/or neck region. These may include cancers of the tongue, mouth, salivary glands, pharynx, larynx, sinus and other sites located in the head and neck area. If the cancer is locally advanced (has spread to nearby tissue or lymph nodes), surgery alone may not be curative. Nonetheless, the patient may elect surgery to remove as much of the cancer as possible. Following surgery, the patient then undergoes radiation therapy in an attempt to destroy remaining cancer cells. Despite this treatment, most individuals will experience disease progression. New research from Japanese and European studies indicates that the use of chemotherapy in addition to radiation therapy following surgery (adjuvant therapy) may increase the length of time a patient is cancer-free and overall survival time. The European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer recruited 334 patients diagnosed with locally advanced squamous cell carcinomas of the oral cavity, oropharynx (middle part [...]

3/1/2002 West Virginia Fran Berger HealthScout Reporter A pinch between the cheek and gum can cause oral cancer, experts know. But researchers in West Virginia have found the kids who stick a wad in their mouth don't know the dangers. A recent survey of 808 public school students in the Mountaineer State found that use of chewing tobacco increased with age, with more than a third using smokeless tobacco monthly or daily by 11th grade -- and many didn't realize the substance could lead to disease. "West Virginia is usually No. 1 in the U.S. when it comes to use of smokeless tobacco," says Dr. Lynne J. Goebel, the study's lead author. "We've heard from doctors in rural areas that some people are using smokeless tobacco to help ease teething pain, rubbing it on babies' gums, and parents are giving it to kids as a reward for good grades," she says. Smokeless tobacco is "highly addictive. People who use smokeless tobacco have sustained nicotine levels," she says, explaining that with smoking, you're exposed for five minutes. But you have "a chew in your mouth for up to 30 minutes. Some sleep with it in their mouth." Goebel and her team compared 648 non-users with 160 male users of smokeless tobacco in the fifth, eighth and 11th grades in West Virginia public schools. Women were excluded, based on the small percentage who indulge. Seven percent of the fifth graders said they used smokeless tobacco. That rose to 22 percent in eighth [...]

1/24/2005 R Moore J Hum Nutr Diet, December 1, 2004; 17(6): 578 Background: In head and neck cancer (HNC) patients, the side effects of radiotherapy (RT) often lead to patients being unable to consume adequate nutrition and fluid (Chencharick and Mossman, 1983). Gastrostomy tube placement prior to RT can reduce incidence of severe weight loss and hospitalization during treatment (Beaver et al., 2001). However, gastrostomy tube usage is dependant upon HNC site and area of RT. The aims of the study were to identify the characteristics of those HNC patients who will require gastrostomy tube feeding during RT and utilize these data to target future patients for prophylactic tube placement prior to commencing RT and to write guidelines for the placement of feeding tubes. Method: Data were collected retrospectively regarding diagnosis, surgery and area of RT on all HNC patients who had had a prophylactic gastrostomy placed prior to RT between April 2000 and April 2002. Outcome measurements in terms of utilization of gastrostomy, body weight and nutrition related emergency admissions were recorded. Results: Thirty-five patients had a prophylactic gastrostomy placed [26 male, nine female; mean age 62 (range 26-84) years]. Of these, 26 utilized their tube for feeding or fluids during RT. The sites of radiotherapy were: bilateral RT to the oro- or nasopharynx and neck (20 patients), bilateral RT to the neck (five) and RT to the left oropharynx and neck (one). The mean weight loss during RT in patients who utilized their prophylactic gastrostomy was 3.3 (range [...]

12/5/2001 Phoenix PR Newswire Zila Professional Pharmaceuticals, a division of Zila, Inc. (Nasdaq: ZILA), announced the acquisition of world marketing rights (excluding the Pacific Rim) for the ViziLite(TM) chemiluminescent light technology, which is cleared by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) for marketing in the United States. Using the ViziLite Test Kit in combination with a conventional visual oral mucosal examination, healthcare providers can improve the identification, evaluation and monitoring of oral mucosal abnormalities in those at increased risk for oral cancer. The American Cancer Society publication "Cancer Facts & Figures 2001" advises that the risk factors for oral cancer are cigarette, cigar or pipe smoking; use of smokeless tobacco; and excessive consumption of alcohol. Some 25 percent of oral cancer occurs in people with no known risk factors. The transaction with Trylon Corporation of Torrance, California, involves up to 2,000,000 shares of restricted Zila common stock plus royalties (10 percent in the first five years, and 5 percent in the next five years) on ViziLite product sales. Trylon continues to market a similar technology, the PapSure(R) screening test, for cervical health. That technology received FDA clearance based on a 13,000-patient clinical study involving 55 sites. Subsequently, in November 2001, the FDA granted clearance for oral application of the ViziLite Test Kit based on evidence of substantial equivalence as demonstrated by testing at the University of California/San Francisco and the University of the Pacific. Dr. Ralph Green, Vice President and General Manager of Zila Professional Pharmaceuticals, noted, "Zila is [...]

11/29/2001 New York ADA News Releases The use of gene-transfer technology to repair salivary-gland tissue, allowing a pathway for saliva to flow in patients undergoing radiation therapy for head and neck cancer is possible in principle, disclosed Bruce J. Baum, DMD, PhD. Dr. Baum, who is chief of the Gene Therapy and Therapeutics Branch, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Md., spoke about the breakthrough study to attendees at the American Dental Association's National Media Conference, held here today. "We hypothesized that the major impediment to saliva flow from these irradiated, nonsecreting cells was the absence of a pathway for water in their membranes," he explained. "Our strategy was to transfer a gene for a water channel protein into the radiation-surviving cells that would function as the pathway." Each year in the United States, the salivary glands of some 40,000 individuals are exposed to ionizing radiation (IR) during therapy for head and neck cancer. They experience irreversible salivary gland damage. In addition, patients with dry mouth or Sjogren's syndrome (SS), (an autoimmune disorder characterized by progressive destruction of the lacrimal and salivary glands) also suffer the loss of salivary secretory tissue. Many patients receiving IR or those with SS experience complete gland destruction. The primary function of salivary glands is to make saliva, the oral fluid that provides the major lubrication and protection for the mouth and upper gastrointestinal tract. In the absence of saliva, patients have difficulty swallowing food, develop mucosal infections like [...]

11/23/2001 Reuters Health Infection with Helicobacter pylori may increase the risk of developing larynx cancer, researchers from Turkey report. Dr. Erdinc Aygenc of Ankara Numune Hospital and colleagues screened 26 laryngeal cancer patients and 32 cancer-free subjects for H. pylori infection. About 73% of patients with laryngeal cancer had H. pylori infection, the investigators found, while 41% of those without cancer were infected with the bacterium. "This study suggests that H. pylori may be an initiator or promoter organism of [larynx cancer], but we cannot say that H. pylori is absolutely the causative agent," the authors write in the November issue of the journal Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery. For example, they suggest, H. pylori may make laryngeal cells more susceptible to the effects tobacco and alcohol, which are associated with an increase risk of laryngeal cancer. According to the CDC, recent studies have shown an association between long-term H. pylori infection and the development of gastric cancer. Cancer of the larynx is acommon type of cancer to occur in the head and neck. It is believed to have the same risk factors as oral cancer. Approximately 10,000 Americans will be diagnosed with the disease and roughly 4000 people will die from it in 2001. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 2001;125:520-521.

11/13/2001 Reuters Health Survivors of head and neck cancer generally report more morbidity, including more sexual dysfunction, than survivors of prostate cancer, but age and marital status appear to influence morbidity in both patient groups, according a study reported at the American Society for Therapeutic Radiation and Oncology annual meeting in San Francisco. Dr. Charles Scott, lead author and statistician for the American College of Radiology, told Reuters Health the findings suggest "cancer survivors are often ill-prepared for the types of impairments that may accompany aggressive treatment." For example, Dr. Scott said that head and neck cancer survivors 65 years of age or older are more likely to have speech impairments, but that "younger survivors are more likely to complain about speech impairment. This is probably because younger survivors are more likely to be employed, which makes communication more important." Dr. Scott identified head and neck and prostate cancer survivors from the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group database. There were 460 survivors, 276 of whom agreed to participate in a survey that included questions on quality of life, mood, sexual function, alcohol and tobacco use, and mental status. Twenty-one percent of the patients had head and neck cancers and 79% were prostate cancer patients. The average age of prostate cancer survivors was 75 years, while the average age for the head and neck cancer survivors was 65 years. Twelve percent of the head and neck cancer patients were African American, as were 16% of the prostate cancer patients. Older head and [...]

11/6/2001 MGI PHARMA, INC, Press release MGI PHARMA, INC., (Nasdaq:MOGN) today announced that the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) presented final results on data regarding the Company's Salagen(R) Tablets product at this year's American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ASTRO) meeting held in San Francisco on November 4-8, 2001. The resulting data were discussed by Dr. Charles W. Scarantino, lead investigator of the RTOG study on Salagen Tablets, in his presentation entitled: "A Phase 3 study on the concurrent use of pilocarpine to reduce hyposalivation and mucositis associated with radiation therapy in head an neck cancer patients - final results of RTOG 97-09." Study Data The RTOG presented data showing that use of Salagen(R) Tablets (pilocarpine hydrochloride), MGI's approved product to treat the symptoms of radiation-induced dry mouth, gave a statistically significant improvement of salivary flow versus placebo in head and neck cancer patients receiving curative radiation therapy. This Phase 3 trial, with 244 eligible patients, showed the pilocarpine group, who received active drug during radiation therapy and up to six months post therapy, had significantly better salivary flow than did the placebo group at end of radiation therapy, and at three-month and six-month follow-up visits. Based on these findings, RTOG concluded that these results provide new support for the use of Salagen Tablets during radiation treatment. One of the main side effects of radiation therapy for head and neck cancer patients is dry mouth, a condition that can be permanent, according to Dr. Scarantino, a radiation oncologist with [...]

10/31/2001 Lisbon, Portugal Peter Hofland, PhD Reuters Health Temoporfin-mediated photodynamic therapy represents a major advance in the treatment of head and neck cancer, yielding complete response rates comparable with those published for surgery or radiotherapy, according to phase II data reported here last week during ECCO 11, the European Cancer Conference. Temoporfin-mediated photodynamic therapy (Foscan PDT) is an "effective and well-tolerated treatment" and can be administered without surgery, said Dr. Colin Hopper, a consultant surgeon of the National Medical Laser Centre in London, UK. Dr. Hopper presented the results of a prospective non-randomised phase II study, conducted in 15 centers in 6 countries. The trial examined response rates to Foscan PDT in 114 patients with primary (Tis, T1 and T2) squamous cell carcinoma of the lip, oral cavity, oropharynx or hypopharynx. Patients with Karnofsky status greater than or equal to 70 received Foscan (0.15 mg/kg IV), followed 4 days later by a single nonthermal illumination of the tumor with red light (20 J/cm?, irradiance 100 mW/cm? , wavelength 652 nm). The initial response was determined after 12 weeks. After 2 years of follow-up, 85% of patients had a complete response (elimination of the tumor) with Foscan PDT alone, and another 6% achieved a complete response with Foscan PDT followed by other adjunctive therapy, including surgery or radiotherapy, giving an overall response rate of 91%. Dr. Hopper reported that in 59% of all cases a complete response rate was biopsy-confirmed. The 1- and 2-year overall survival rates were 90% and 81% [...]

10/31/2001 See end of article Yale School of Medicine Yale School of Medicine researchers have found that a diet high in cholesterol, animal protein and vitamin B12 is linked to risk of a specific type of cancer of the stomach and esophagus that has been increasing rapidly. The researchers also found that plant-based nutrients such as dietary fiber, dietary beta-carotene, folic acid, vitamin C and vitamin B6 were associated with lower risk of these kinds of cancers. They further found that regular use of vitamin C supplements was associated with a 40 percent reduction in the risk of cancer in the middle and lower parts of the stomach. The rate of a specific type of esophageal and stomach cancer, known as adenocarcinoma of the esophagus and gastric cardia, has increased by 300 percent since the mid-1970s, according to lead author Susan Mayne, associate professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health at Yale School of Medicine, and associate director of the Yale Cancer Center. To identify reasons for this rapid increase, the United States National Cancer Institute launched a large study at three centers, including Yale, the University of Washington and Columbia University. The researchers interviewed patients throughout Connecticut, New Jersey and western Washington State and compared the nutrient intake of 1,095 people with stomach or esophageal cancer to that of 687 healthy people in a control group. The team also looked at the participants' use of nutrient supplements. Their results are published in the October issue of Cancer [...]