Oral Cancer News

Government slams Tory claim that dentists overcharge patients

Source: www.dentistry.co.uk Author: staff Dentists are overcharging patients by up to £109 million a year, by calling them back too often and splitting up treatments, according to the Conservatives. Analysis of appointments earlier this year suggested too many healthy patients were being recalled for check up and that treatments were being separated into separate courses, with separate costs. Calculations by the Conservatives suggest that the extra cost paid in patient charges last year was £109 million. The figure is 23% of the £475 million overall that patients pay in dentist charges every year. Andrew Lansley, the Shadow Health Secretary, said: ‘Labour's management of NHS dentistry has been appalling. Not only have millions been left without a dentist, but now we learn that those who do have one are often being charged more money than they should be. ‘The blame here lies with Labour's botched dental contract, which incentives dentists to increase the number of charges to patients and has led to such drastic cuts in the number of people being able to find an NHS dentist. ‘The Government urgently needs to admit that the dental contract has been a monumental failure, get a grip and put an end to these practices immediately. At the moment we're all losing out – those who do have a dentist are paying wrongful charges and those who don't are being blocked from finding one because there aren't enough appointments left.' Asking every Primary Care Trust (PCT) in the country how many patients had been [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-12-23T17:13:57-07:00December, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Forgotten leukemia drug shows promise

Source: www.ivanhoe.com Author: staff Doctors found a new weapon in the fight against an incurable form of leukemia, and it's a drug that was once dismissed as ineffective in battling the disease. Flavopiridol has shown promising results in phase I and II clinical trials that involved 116 patients with advanced chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CCL), according to researchers at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center-James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute. Responses were seen in about half of the patients, many of whom had chromosomal abnormalities that made it unlikely that they would be helped by standard therapies. In recent years, treatment of CLL has improved, but the disease, which strikes 15,000 people each year and is the most common type of adult leukemia, remains incurable. Patients often suffer significant infections caused by the disease and treatment. Flavopiridol showed promise as a potent cancer-fighter in the 1980s when it was tested on animals, but when it was given to humans in repeated trials, it proved ineffective and was essentially forgotten, researchers said. Ohio State researchers said they later discovered that flavopiridol binds to proteins in human blood, which ties up much of the available drug and leaves less free drug in the bloodstream to kill cancer cells. So, in the earlier trials, humans were not getting enough of the drug for it to be effective. The Ohio State researchers developed a new dosing schedule, and it increased the drug's blood level enough to kill cancer cells in humans, they said. [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-12-23T06:42:01-07:00December, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Prevalence and clinical implications of sarcopenic obesity in patients with solid tumours

Source: The Lancet Oncology. 2008;9:629-635 Authors: Prado CMM et al. Body composition appears to be of key importance when it comes to surviving cancer, as researchers have found that cancer patients with more lean muscle mass live longer. The study of 250 obese cancer patients revealed that patients with depleted muscle mass a recently recognized condition known as sarcopenic obesity lived, on average, for 10 months less than obese patients with more muscle mass. Participants with sarcopenic obesity were also more likely to be bedridden. Study leader Professor Vickie Baracos says muscle mass could even effect how patients respond to chemotherapy. The authors concluded: ³This study provides evidence of the great variability of body composition in patients with cancer and links body composition, especially sarcopenic obesity, to clinical implications such as functional status, survival, and potentially, chemotherapy toxicity.² Authors: Prado CMM, Lieffers JR, McCargar LJ, et al. Source: "Prevalence and clinical implications of sarcopenic obesity in patients with solid tumours of the respiratory and gastrointestinal tracts: a population-based study". The Lancet Oncology. 2008;9:629-635.

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-12-22T13:12:12-07:00December, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Viralytics to test Cavatak™ in head and neck cancer

Source: www.medicalnewstoday.com Author: staff Viralytics Limited has received approval to undertake a new phase I intratumoural (direct injection of accessible solid tumours) trial in Head and Neck Cancer, a cancer previously unchallenged with Cavatak™. Approximately 45,000 new cases of head and neck cancer are diagnosed each year in the US (approximately six percent of all cancers). The primary objective of the study is to determine the safety of Cavatak™ given by intratumoural injection in the treatment of recurrent, inoperable tumours of the head and neck. Three groups of patients will receive single or multiple (3 or 6) intratumoural injections of Cavatak™. There will be three patients in each group. Secondary objectives include the evaluation of Cavatak™ replication, immune response to Cavatak™ and any evidence of anti-tumour activity. The trial will be conducted in an Australian hospital and details of the trial will be available shortly at http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Data obtained from this new trial, together with that already accumulated from existing clinical evaluations of Cavatak™ in patients with late stage melanoma, breast and prostate cancer (solid tumours) will expand the product profile of tolerance, bio-availability and anti-cancer mode of action in solid tumours. Direct injection of accessible solid tumours, like head and neck cancer, achieves localized delivery of high concentrations of Cavatak™, maximizing the potential for rapid tumour cell death and activation of favourable host anti-tumour immune responses. Such a delivery strategy also permits more accurate tumour measurement and scientific evaluation of the potency of Cavatak™. Supporting data from the monitoring [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-12-18T13:35:12-07:00December, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Dietary supplements: friend or foe?

Source: patient.cancerconsultants.com Author: Eleanor Mayfield With research pointing to pros and cons of vitamin and mineral supplements, these dietary decisions become increasingly complex. Here’s a quick quiz: 1. Are you a cancer patient or survivor? 2. Do you take any dietary supplements such as vitamins, minerals, or herbs? 3. Have you discussed with your doctor the pros and cons of using these supplements? If you answered yes to questions 1 and 2 and no to question 3, you’re not alone. A recent review in the Journal of Clinical Oncology found that supplement use is widespread among cancer patients and longer-term survivors and that most don’t discuss their supplement use with their doctors. In fact, in different studies 64 to 81 percent of respondents reported using vitamin or mineral supplements. Up to 68 percent of doctors were unaware of supplement use by their patients. Cancer patients and survivors tend to use dietary supplements at higher rates than the rest of the U.S. population, the review found. Supplement use was highest among women, breast cancer survivors, and people with higher levels of education. People who take supplements generally believe that doing so will benefit their health. In studies included in the review, the reported reasons for supplement use included strengthening the immune system, helping cope with stress, improving the chance of a cure, and helping the user feel better. Users may assume that the supplements they take can’t do them any harm. Research findings suggest, however, that supplements can sometimes be harmful. [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-12-18T13:11:44-07:00December, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Parotid gland sparing IMRT for head and neck cancer improves xerostomia related quality of life

Source: Radiation Oncology, December 9, 2008; 3(1): 41. Authors: C M van Rij, W D Oughlane-Heemsbergen, A H Ackerstaff, E A Lamers, A Jm Balm, and C Rn Rasch ABSTRACT: Background and purpose: To assess the impact of intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) versus conventional radiation on late xerostomia and Quality of Life aspects in head and neck cancer patients. Patients and methods: Questionnaires on xerostomia in rest and during meals were sent to all patients treated between January 1999 and December 2003 with a T1-4, N0-2 M0 head and neck cancer, with parotid gland sparing IMRT or conventional bilateral neck irradiation to a dose of at least 60 Gy, who were progression free and had no disseminated disease (n= 192). Overall response was 85 % (n = 163); 97 % in the IMRT group (n = 75) and 77 % in the control group (n = 88) the median follow-up was 2.6 years. The prevalence of complaints was compared between the two groups, correcting for all relevant factors at multivariate ordinal regression analysis. RESULTS: Patients treated with IMRT reported significantly less difficulty transporting and swallowing their food and needed less water for a dry mouth during day, night and meals. They also experienced fewer problems with speech and eating in public. Laryngeal cancer patients in general had fewer complaints than oropharynx cancer patients but both groups benefited from IMRT. Within the IMRT group the xerostomia scores were better for those patients with a mean parotid dose to the "spared" parotid [...]

Webmaster2008-12-17T10:25:00-07:00December, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Speech and swallowing impairment after treatment for oral and oropharyngeal cancer

Source: Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2008;134(12):1299-1304 Authors: Maria-Mercedes Suarez-Cunqueiro, DDS, PhD et al. Objectives: To assess the prevalence of speech and swallowing impairment after radical surgery for oral and oropharyngeal cancer from the patient's viewpoint and to examine the association of these functional alterations with selected clinical characteristics regarding patients, tumors, and oncologic treatment. Design: Cross-sectional, multicenter study using a self-administered questionnaire. Setting: Forty-three hospitals in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria. Patients: A total of 3894 questionnaires about rehabilitation problems after treatment for oral and oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma were sent to patients. Of these, 1652 were filled out and returned, and 1334 (80.8%) met the inclusion criteria. Main Outcome Measures: Morbidity associated with treatment of oral and oropharyngeal cancer. Results: Speech problems were reported by 851 patients (63.8%), and swallowing problems were reported by 1006 patients (75.4%). The variables that presented a significant association with speech and swallowing impairment were sex, tumor location, pTNM stages, stage of tumor, treatment modality, and reconstruction type. Conclusions: This survey, based on patient perception, suggests that those who undergo radiotherapy associated with the surgical removal of a tumor, have late-stage tumors (III-IV), or have tumors located in the floor of the mouth should be informed of the greater risk of persistent severe speech and swallowing problems. Authors: Maria-Mercedes Suarez-Cunqueiro, DDS, PhD; Alexander Schramm, DDS, MD, PhD; Ralf Schoen, DDS, MD, PhD; Juan Seoane-Lestón, DDS, MD, PhD; Xosé-Luis Otero-Cepeda, PhD; Kai-Hendrik Bormann, DDS; Horst Kokemueller, MD, DDS; Marc Metzger, MD, DDS; Pedro Diz-Dios, DDS, [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-12-16T12:59:18-07:00December, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Prevention of hearing loss in children receiving cisplatin chemotherapy

Source: Journal of Clinical Oncology, 10.1200/JCO.2008.20.1160 Authors: David R. Freyer et al. To The Editor: Fouladi et al1 are to be congratulated for the recent publication of their study demonstrating that amifostine protects against cisplatin-induced ototoxicity in children with average risk medulloblastoma. Despite limitations imposed by the study design (eg, use of a nonrandomized control group and heterogenous cranial irradiation techniques), the investigators nonetheless have made a valuable contribution to the growing field of pediatric cancer control research and to prevention of hearing loss in particular. First, they persisted in completing this study despite others that failed to demonstrate otoprotection by amifostine.2-4 Second, as the authors discuss, their positive results may be attributable to their use of a more dose-intensive schedule of amifostine, illustrating the critical need for cancer-control trials, like their disease-directed counterparts, to incorporate the most current and complete pharmacologic data for the drug under investigation. Finally, this study provides good evidence for adding amifostine to the growing list of agents used to prevent specific chemotherapeutic toxicities in pediatric oncology practice, including calcium leucovorin, mesna, cytokine growth factors, and, more recently, dexrazoxane. In so doing, the study strengthens the case for active development of other forms of chemoprotection as a useful supportive care strategy. At the same time, important questions remain, owing to the study’s focus on patients with medulloblastoma and selection of amifostine as the drug of interest. The cisplatin dose and schedule are somewhat different in this study (a lower cisplatin dose being given on a [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-12-16T10:00:12-07:00December, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Human Papillomavirus-16 modifies the association between fruit consumption and head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

Source: Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers & Prevention 17, 3419-3426, December 1, 2008 Author: Mara S. Meyer et al. Human papillomavirus-16 (HPV-16) is a risk factor for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). HPV-positive cancers have distinct disease cofactors and improved survival following treatment. There is conflicting evidence of a protective association of fruit consumption with HNSCC. As HPV-related disease is clinically distinct, we investigated whether the association between fruit consumption and HNSCC risk was modified by exposure to HPV-16. We studied 270 cases and 493 controls with fruit intake information and known HPV-16 antibody status. Cases were identified at nine Boston-area medical facilities between 1999 and 2003. Controls were randomly selected from the greater population and frequency matched to cases by age, gender, and town of residence. Controlling for age, gender, race, smoking, alcohol, total energy intake, body mass index, and education, the seronegative individuals had a significantly lower risk of HNSCC with increasing total fruit consumption [odds ratio (OR)tertile 2, 0.60; 95% confidence interval (95% CI), 0.38-0.95; ORtertile 3, 0.57; 95% CI, 0.35-0.95] and specifically increasing citrus fruit consumption (ORtertile 2, 0.61; 95% CI, 0.39-0.97; ORtertile 3, 0.59; 95% CI, 0.37-0.96). However, among the seropositive, risk increased with greater fruit consumption (ORtertile 2, 2.27; 95% CI, 0.92-5.58; ORtertile 3, 1.40; 95% CI, 0.55-3.59) and citrus fruit consumption (ORtertile 2, 3.35; 95% CI, 1.36, 8.24; ORtertile 3, 3.15; 95% CI, 1.23-8.08). This interaction was statistically significant (P

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-12-16T09:32:39-07:00December, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Unique U-M surgery creates fully usable tongue following tongue cancer

Source: www.marketwatch.com Author: staff The night before her surgery for tongue cancer, 30-year-old Lisa Bourdon-Krause realized she might never be able to speak to her toddler son again. So she sat up half the night recording messages to him: "Hi, how was your day?," "You're so handsome," "You have a stinky butt. I need to change you." She read two of his favorite books. "It took me about three times to get through the one story, but I did it and I'm glad I did it. It made me feel safer going into surgery knowing that if something happened to me or if I couldn't speak when I woke up, he would be able to hear my voice and know how much I loved him," Bourdon-Krause says. The surgery was to remove a cancerous tumor growing near the back of her tongue. Surgeons would remove half of her tongue, an operation that would dramatically affect basic functions such as speech and swallowing. But by using innovative techniques in oral reconstruction, surgeons at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center were able to reconstruct a tongue using skin from Bourdon-Krause's own forearm. Today -- eight years after that surgery -- she remains cancer free. But just as importantly, she remains able to swallow, eat and speak to her son. "Tongue reconstruction in the past would have limited a patient to a soft diet -- mostly liquids, some soft solids. At present with the tongue reconstructions that we're performing, patients are able [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-12-15T12:33:28-07:00December, 2008|Oral Cancer News|