3/27/2007 web-based article staff Journal of the American Dental Assoc, Vol 138, No 3, 296 Researchers have identified a marker on head and neck tumor cells that indicates which cells are capable of promoting the cancer’s growth. The finding, which appeared in the Jan. 16 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, is the first evidence of cancer stem cells in head and neck tumors. Researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center, Ann Arbor, and Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, Calif., took tumor samples from patients undergoing surgery for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, including cancers of the tongue, larynx, throat and sinus. They separated cells from the samples according to whether they expressed a marker on their surface called CD44. They then implanted the sorted cells into immune-deficient mice to grow tumors. The cells that expressed CD44 were able to grow new tumors, while the cells that did not express CD44 were not. Researchers found that the tumors that grew were identical to the original tumors and contained cells that expressed CD44, as well as cells that did not. This ability to both self-renew and produce different types of cells is a hallmark of stem cells. The percentage of cells within a tumor expressing CD44 varied from one sample to the next, with one sample having as high as 40 percent of these cells. Studies in other cancer types have found the stem cell population to be less than 5 percent. "The [...]

3/25/2007 web-based article staff Palangkaraya Post (palangkarayapost.com) This month, a team of researchers from London and the University of Connecticut announced that aggressive treatment of gum disease can improve the function of blood vessel walls in the body — potentially reducing the risk of heart attacks. A few weeks before that, researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health reported a study of more than 51,000 male health professionals, which showed that men who had gum disease, or periodontitis, were far more likely than those without it to develop pancreatic cancer. Other studies have shown links between gum disease and diabetes, heart disease, stroke and even — though this is more controversial — pregnancy problems such as low-birth-weight infants. The evidence is accumulating faster than you can say “don’t forget to floss” that taking good care of your teeth — and treating gum disease aggressively — may be one of the best things you can do not just for your mouth, but for your overall health. With pancreatic cancer, for instance, previous studies had suggested such a link, but those studies were muddied because many participants smoked — and smoking is a risk factor for both diseases. This time, even among people who had never smoked, gum disease was linked to a doubling of the cancer risk, said epidemiologist Dominique Michaud, the first author, of the Harvard School of Public Health. It’s still not clear, cautioned Michaud, whether that means the gum disease led to the cancer. Chronic inflammation anywhere [...]

3/25/2007 Bend, OR Bend Weekly News Sources Bend Weekly (www.bendweekly.com) Oral cancer is diagnosed in more than 30,000 individuals in the US annually, claiming 10,000 lives each year. Early detection remains the best way to ensure patient survival and quality of life. Today, during the 85th General Session of the International Association for Dental Research, scientists from the University of California- Irvine present two novel, non-invasive, ultra-fast imaging approaches to oral cancer detection, diagnostic screening, and mapping. More than 2/3 of all oral cancer cases documented by the National Cancer Institute are diagnosed at an advanced stage. The five-year survival rate is 75% for those with localized disease at diagnosis, but only 16% for those with cancer metastasis. Earlier detection of oral lesions would greatly improve the prognosis of these patients. Accurate delineation of lesion margins would ensure effective removal of all the tissue that presents a threat to the patient's long-term health. Two basic facts indicate that early detection of oral malignancy should be possible to a far greater extent than is currently seen: (1) Accounting for 96% of all oral cancers, squamous cell carcinoma is often preceded by lesions on the oral mucosa. Malignant transformation, which is quite unpredictable, occurs in 1-90% of lesions over five years. Thus, oral cancer is often preceded by lesions which are visible to the naked eye prior to transformation. A non-invasive diagnostic modality would permit regular monitoring of these lesions, detection of lesion transformation, and the identification of treatment needs at a [...]

3/23/2007 London, England A. J. Mighell British Dental Journal 202, 328 - 329 (2007) - An investigation of where the Israeli public seek advice on mouth ulcers. - Nearly one third of those surveyed had a history of mouth ulceration. - Lay people could not distinguish an ulcer with features that would strongly suggest a malignant neoplasm from other types of mouth ulcer. - The vast majority would first seek advice from their general medical practitioner. -Less than 20% would first approach a general dental practitioner. -------------------------------------------------- Abstract Objective: To investigate where the public seek advice about mouth ulcers and to what extent the public approach the community pharmacy for advice. Subjects and methods: One thousand members of the general public were randomly chosen and surveyed throughout the day in the main shopping streets of two towns in Israel, Haifa and Tel Aviv. All participants were presented with four standard verbal questions designed to identify reactions to and past experience of mouth ulcers. All responses were recorded immediately on to data sheets and transferred to a computer for analysis of frequencies and percentages and Chi-square analysis. Results Nearly one third of those surveyed admitted to a history of mouth ulceration. The vast majority (66-69%) would first approach their general medical practitioner for advice, 13-17% would first approach a general dental practitioner, and only a small minority of the public (4-10%) would first approach the community pharmacy. Lay persons could not distinguish an ulcer with features that would strongly suggest a [...]

3/22/2007 Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Lorianne Garrison OttawaCitizen.com For Donna Walsh, it began as a little nip on the tongue. It didn’t seem like much of a problem — sore, tender, but not a big deal. Then, on Christmas Day in 2005, she experienced a terrible pain that “felt like something had exploded” in her mouth. A doctor sent her to a specialist, and then another specialist. On Feb. 1 — her 53rd birthday — Ms. Walsh, an Ottawa public school teacher, wife and mother, was diagnosed with tongue cancer. “It surprised me incredibly, because I was never a smoker,” she said. “It was something I didn’t expect at all.” A little more than two weeks after her diagnosis, Ms. Walsh had surgery to remove one-third of her tongue, to stop the cancer from spreading. She became one of between 25 and 30 people each year in Ottawa who have a unique procedure called a radial forearm free flap, involving the domino-like replacement of flesh from arm to tongue, and leg to arm. Dr. Martin Corsten, a head and neck cancer specialist at the Ottawa Hospital, working with plastic surgeon Murray Allan, removed the cancerous portion of Ms. Walsh’s tongue, which was four centimetres long and one centimetre deep. Ms. Walsh was sedated, Dr. Corsten said, and the infected tissue cut out with an electric knife. In cases where little of the tongue is removed, the patient doesn’t have much trouble adjusting to having “a little bit less tongue,” Dr. Corsten [...]

3/22/2007 web-based article press release News-Medical.Net (www.news-medical.net) Roche has announced today that the United States (U.S.) Food & Drug Administration has accepted for review its applications for two human papillomavirus (HPV) tests. The Amplicor HPV Test is designed to enable accurate detection of 13 of the more common high-risk HPV genotypes in standard clinical samples. The Linear Array HPV Genotyping Test is designed to identify which of the 13 high-risk HPV genotypes are present in a sample. Persistent infection with HPV is the principal cause of cervical cancer and its precursor, cervical intraepithelial neoplasia. "DNA tests that are currently used in conjunction with Pap smear tests for cervical cancer screening can only tell if a woman has HPV infection, but cannot identify which type she has," said Daniel O'Day, head of Roche Molecular Diagnostics, the business area of Roche Diagnostics that developed the test. "We are pleased to be working with the FDA to bring both HPV detection and genotyping tests to the U.S. market. We believe availability of both tests could offer important, clinically relevant information to clinicians working to better identify and manage persistent, high-risk HPV infections before they progress to more serious forms of disease." According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, genital infection with HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection in the U.S. today. Over half of sexually active women and men are infected with HPV at some point in their lives. In most cases, infections with HPV are not serious. The majority [...]

3/22/2007 United Kingdom Nigel Nelson ThePeople.Co.UK (www.people.co.uk) ROLL-UPS are deadlier than ordinary cigarettes, frightening new research reveals. The DIY cigarettes are more likely to cause cancer in the mouth and throat because the tobacco is stronger. But despite the risks, the number of people smoking them has DOUBLED to 33 per cent since 1990. And the figures for women have rocketed SIXFOLD in the same period, with one woman smoker in eight rolling her own. Health minister Philip Hunt warned: "Smokers of hand-rolled cigarettes are more vulnerable to developing oral and throat cancer." But Mr Hunt insisted the Government could not try to crack down on the problem by raising the tax on rolling tobacco because that would only spark a boom in smuggling. At present, Whitehall spends £50million a year on anti-smoking programmes. But the success rate has been tiny, with the number of women smokers dipping by only two points from 27 to 25 per cent since 2001. Now health watchdogs hope ten of thousands of puffers will give up this summer when smoking is banned in public places.

3/22/2007 web-based article staff CancerConsultants.com According to an article published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, smoking is responsible for the majority of laryngeal cancers in Central Europe. Cancer of the larynx, or voice box, is a type of head and neck cancer. The majority of head and neck cancers are cancers of the larynx. Central Europe has some of the highest incidence rates of laryngeal cancer in the world. Because smoking is known to contribute significantly to the development of laryngeal cancers, researchers continue to evaluate potential links between smoking and other environmental variables and the risk of laryngeal cancer. Researchers from Europe recently conducted a clinical study to evaluate the potential role of both tobacco and alcohol in the development of laryngeal cancers. This study included individuals involved in the Central and Eastern Europe Multicenter Study who had been diagnosed with squamous cell laryngeal cancers (the most common type of laryngeal cancers) between 2000 and 2002. Another group of individuals who did not have laryngeal cancers was also included in the study. Patterns of tobacco and alcohol use were evaluated among both groups. * Approximately 87% of laryngeal cancer is attributed to the use of tobacco. * 75% of laryngeal cancer is attributed to current tobacco use, while 12% is due to past tobacco use. * Nearly 40% of laryngeal cancers are attributed to the interaction between alcohol and tobacco. * Stopping smoking for five years or longer protected individuals against the development of laryngeal cancer. * Alcohol [...]

3/22/2007 Berlin, Germany staff Jurnalo (jurnalo.com) A diseased tongue fills the television screen before the camera depicts decaying teeth and sore lips in a new drive launched on Wednesday to shock smokers in Singapore into quitting. After years of less gruesome campaigns against smoking, the Health Promotion Board (HPB) said that the 30-second advertisement centres around frightening images to frighten smokers into giving up the habit. "Smoking causes oral cancer," says the woman in the ad as her eyes well up with tears. "Quitting is hard, but not quitting is harder. " The drive, depicting smoking-related mouth and throat cancers, is being aired in English, Mandarin, Malay and Tamil. Print versions, inspired by a programme last year in Australia, are set to appear in newspaper and billboards. The hard-hitting images are necessary because most smokers are deep into the habit, HPB deputy director Choo Lin told The Straits Times. Posters carrying tips on quitting will also be displayed in clinics, offices, entertainment and eating outlets. The second phase of the campaign, beginning May 1 and ending on World No-Tobacco-Day on May 30, highlights testimonials from smokers who have stopped. Choo told the newspaper that the use of graphic pictures introduced in 2004 on cigarette packs has helped deter smokers. A recent survey showed that 47 per cent of respondents cut the number of cigarettes they were smoking after seeing the pictures of diseased organs, and 25 per cent said they were motived to quit. One in two smokers dies of [...]

3/22/2007 Durham, NC press release Sys.com Media (www.sys-con.com) Serenex, Inc., an integrated oncology-focused drug discovery and development company, announced today the issuance of a patent covering methods of treating or preventing mucositis by the European Patent Office ("EPO"). The patent, EP 212050B1, covers a broad class of compounds in various formulations that may treat mucositis of multiple mucosal surfaces. "We are pleased to have been awarded this patent from the EPO. The patent significantly strengthens our intellectual property estate surrounding SNX-1012 which now includes IP protection in both the U.S. and Europe," said Richard Kent, M.D., president and chief executive officer of Serenex. "The issuance of this patent is another important step toward the commercialization of SNX-1012, which we believe is a best in class product that will bring relief to cancer patients suffering from oral mucositis." Oral mucositis results in inflammation and ulceration of the mouth and throat tissue lining and is the most common debilitating toxicity induced by chemotherapy and radiation therapy regimens. In severe cases oral mucositis can lead to patients requiring total parenteral nutrition, IV narcotic analgesics to control pain, and hospitalization. A serious consequence of oral mucositis is that it frequently leads to the interruption of radiation or chemotherapeutic treatment, which results in an undesirable decrease in efficacy. There are no approved therapeutic agents for the prevention or treatment of oral mucositis in solid tumor patients receiving radiation or chemotherapy and yet these patients represent approximately 90% of all oral mucositis cases. The size of [...]