Oral Cancer News

What’s next after creating a cancer-prevention vaccine?

Source: www.scientificamerican.com Author: Dina Fine Maron A winner of this year’s Lasker Awards talks about his work with HPV Imagine a vaccine that protects against more than a half-dozen types of cancer—and has a decade of data and experience behind it. We have one. It’s the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, and it was approved for the U.S. market back in June 2006. It can prevent almost all cervical cancers and protect against cancers of the mouth, throat and anus. It also combats the sexually transmitted genital warts that some forms of the virus can cause. On Wednesday, two researchers who completed fundamental work on these vaccines received one of this year’s prestigious Lasker Awards, a group of medical prizes sometimes called the “American Nobels.” Douglas Lowy and John Schiller, whose research provided the basis for the HPV vaccine, were selected alongside a researcher who separately unraveled key aspects of metabolic control of cell growth. Planned Parenthood was also given an award, for its public service. Lowy and Schiller, who both work at the U.S. National Cancer Institute (NCI), received the Lasker for their research on animal and human papillomaviruses—work that enabled the development of a vaccine against HPV-16 type, a form of the virus that fuels many HPV malignancies. The duo’s experiments proved that the vaccine is effective in animals, and they also conducted the first clinical trial of an HPV-16 vaccine in humans. That gave pharmaceutical companies the evidence they needed to invest in their own vaccines designed to [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2017-09-06T08:08:49-07:00September, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

Personalised cancer treatment

Source: medicalxpress.com Author: University of Oslo In Norway, more and more people are being affected by cancer of the mouth and throat. In recent years, the incidence has increased but the mortality has remained the same. Cisplatin is one of the most commonly administered cytostatics for this patient group. At the start of treatment, the drug works well. Gradually, though, most patients experience that the tumour develops resistance against this drug and the prognosis for survival then becomes very poor. In her PhD thesis, Jian Gao wanted to find out how the cancer cells could protect themselves against this cytostatic i.e. what is the underlying mechanism of resistance. She therefore cultured various cancer cell lines derived from oral cavity which were given differing doses of the cytostatic cisplatin. A cancer cell line is cultured from patients' cancerous tumours and can live indefinitely in the laboratory. These types of cell lines are used to examine the biology and the changes that have resulted in the development of cancer. Because the cancer cell lines divide in the laboratory, they can also adapt to new growth conditions, for example by becoming resistant to the cytostatic cisplatin in the same way as the cancer tissue in the patients. "First, I had to find those cancer cells that were sensitive to the cytostatic," explains Jian Gao. By identifying the sensitive cancer cell lines that I could make resistant in the laboratory, I could then study which changes took place in the cells as they changed [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2017-09-04T14:06:02-07:00September, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

Why HPV Vaccination Rates Remain Low in Rural States

Source: TechnologyReview.com Author: Emily Mullin Date: September 1, 2017 Mandi Price never thought she’d be diagnosed with cancer at age 24. She was a healthy college student finishing her senior year when, during a regular Pap smear, her gynecologist found abnormal cells in her cervix. It was stage II cervical cancer. Even more devastating was the fact that her cancer was preventable. Doctors detected a strain of human papillomavirus, the most common sexually transmitted infection in the U.S., in Price’s cancer cells. That strain of HPV is targeted by a vaccine called Gardasil. But Price never got the vaccine. Her primary care doctor didn’t recommend it when she was a teenager growing up in Washington state. Had she received it before becoming infected with HPV, she wouldn’t have gotten cancer. Price dropped out of her classes to get treatment. She needed surgery to remove the tumor from her cervix, then underwent chemotherapy and radiation to kill any remaining cancerous tissue. At her one-year follow-up appointment, doctors found that the cancer had spread. She endured chemotherapy for another six months. Now, at 29, Price is in remission and is working in Los Angeles. “Most of my 20s comprised being in a hospital. It was isolating,” she says. Merck’s Gardasil vaccine was considered a breakthrough when it was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in June 2006. It was the first vaccine to protect against several cancers. But more than a decade after the vaccine came out, vaccination rates [...]

Charlotte Parker2017-10-29T20:13:32-07:00September, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

FDA Approves First Gene Therapy For Leukemia

Source: npr.org Author: Rob Stein Date: August 30, 2017 The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday announced what the agency calls a "historic action" — the first approval of a cell-based gene therapy in the United States. The FDA approved Kymriah, which scientists refer to as a "living drug" because it involves using genetically modified immune cells from patients to attack their cancer. The drug was approved to treat children and young adults up to age 25 suffering from a form of acute lymphoblastic leukemia who do not respond to standard treatment or have suffered relapses. The disease is a cancer of blood and bone marrow that is the most common childhood cancer in the United States. About 3,100 patients who are 20 and younger are diagnosed with ALL each year. "We're entering a new frontier in medical innovation with the ability to reprogram a patient's own cells to attack a deadly cancer," FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said in a written statement. "New technologies such as gene and cell therapies hold out the potential to transform medicine and create an inflection point in our ability to treat and even cure many intractable illnesses," Gottlieb said. The treatment involves removing immune system cells known as T cells from each patient and genetically modifying the cells in the laboratory to attack and kill leukemia cells. The genetically modified cells are then infused back into patients. It's also known as CAR-T cell therapy. "Kymriah is a first-of-its-kind treatment approach that fills an important [...]

Charlotte Parker2017-08-31T15:18:44-07:00August, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

More U.S. Teens Getting Vaccinated Against HPV

Source: http://health.usnews.com Date: 8/24/17 THURSDAY, Aug. 24, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Six out of 10 U.S. parents are choosing to get their children vaccinated against the cancer-causing human papillomavirus (HPV), which is spread by sexual contact, federal health officials reported Thursday. The bad news: while most children are getting their first dose of HPV vaccine, many aren't completing the full vaccination schedule, the officials said. "I'm pleased with the progress, but too many teens are still not receiving the HPV vaccine -- which leaves them vulnerable to cancers caused by HPV infection," CDC director Dr. Brenda Fitzgerald said in an agency news release. "We need to do more to increase the vaccination rate and protect American youth today from future cancers tomorrow." An estimated 14 million Americans, including teens, become infected with HPV each year. The infection can cause cervical, vaginal and vulvar cancers in women, and penile cancer in men. It can also cause anal cancer, throat cancer and genital warts in both men and women, according to the CDC. The CDC recommends two doses of HPV vaccine for children at ages 11 or 12. Teens who get the first vaccine dose before their 15th birthday need two doses to be protected. Teens and young adults who start the vaccine series between ages 15 through 26 need three doses, according to the agency. In its new report, the CDC said 60 percent of teens aged 13 to 17 received one or more doses of HPV vaccine in 2016 -- [...]

Charlotte Parker2017-10-29T20:13:46-07:00August, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

Big tobacco fuels nicotine replacement addiction, UCSF study shows

Source: http://www.sfgate.com Author: Lizzie Johnson Date: August 17, 2017 Nicotine patches, lozenges, inhalers and gum have long been marketed as ways of helping addicts break the habit. But such products by themselves won’t do the job — something tobacco companies themselves have taken advantage of to boost their profits, new research from UCSF says. Nicotine replacement therapy products, which have been sold over the counter at drugstores since 1996, are effective only when paired with counseling, according to a UCSF study released Thursday. Without that, relying on such products can actually make it harder to kick tobacco, the study found. UCSF researchers who reviewed millions of pages of internal tobacco company documents said the firms have long known that such products by themselves don’t wean users off cigarettes, and market their own smokeless nicotine to keep users addicted. “Those products should not be used unless they are done in the proper way,” said Stanton Glantz, an author of the study, professor of medicine at UCSF and the director of the Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education. “The problem is, without the behavioral support, they actually inhibit quitting,” he said. “Unfortunately, a lot of people think they are making progress and quitting when that’s not so. That’s what tobacco companies have known for decades. They’re developing products under the guise of nicotine replacement therapy.” Some of the biggest tobacco companies, including RJ Reynolds, Philip Morris and British American Tobacco, have developed nicotine accessories. Many corner stores stock the products, some [...]

Charlotte Parker2017-08-18T08:14:58-07:00August, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

Cancer patients who use alternative medicine more than twice as likely to die

Source: http://www.independent.co.uk/ Date: August 15, 2017 After five years, 78.3 per cent of people who opted for medical treatment were still alive compared to just 54.7 percent of people who opted for alternative therapies. A new study has shown that cancer sufferers who turn to alternative therapies in preference to conventional medicine are more than twice as likely to die. Scientists from America's prestigious Yale University found that patients were more likely to be cured through conventional medicine, despite anecdotal evidence from some who say their cancer was cured by turning to natural or alternative remedies, . Researchers sifted through the National Cancer Database for their study “Use of Alternative Medicine for Cancer and its Impact on Survival”. They tracked 280 people who were diagnosed with the disease in 2004 and opted for alternative medicine and 560 “control” cancer patients who underwent conventional treatments such as chemotherapy, radiotherapy and surgery. After five years, 78.3 per cent of people who opted for medical treatment were still alive compared to just 54.7 percent of people who opted for alternative therapies. The study also looked at different types of cancer including breast, lung, prostate and colorectal. They found those with lung cancer were twice as likely to die after five years if they had opted for alternative therapies. Breast cancer patients who used alternative therapies were five times as likely to have lost their lives to the disease.Colorectal cancer patients were four times more likely to die if they rejected conventional medicine in favour of alternative [...]

Charlotte Parker2017-08-15T13:32:27-07:00August, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

HPV-related oral cancers have risen significantly in Canada

Source: www.ctvnews.ca Author: Sheryl Ubelacker, The Canadian Press The proportion of oral cancers caused by the human papillomavirus has risen significantly in Canada, say researchers, who suggest the infection is now behind an estimated three-quarters of all such malignancies. In a cross-Canada study, published Monday in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, the researchers found the incidence of HPV-related oropharyngeal cancers increased by about 50 per cent between 2000 and 2012. "It's a snapshot of looking at the disease burden and the time trend to see how the speed of the increase of this disease (is changing)," said co-author Sophie Huang, a research radiation therapist at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in Toronto. Researchers looked at data from specialized cancer centres in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario and Nova Scotia to determine rates of HPV-related tumours among 3,643 patients aged 18 years or older who had been diagnosed with squamous cell oropharyngeal cancer between 2000 and 2012. HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection worldwide. Most people never develop symptoms and the infection resolves on its own within about two years. "In 2000, the proportion of throat cancer caused by HPV was estimated at 47 per cent," said Huang. "But in 2012, the proportion became 74 per cent ... about a 50 per cent increase." Statistics from a Canadian Cancer Society report last fall showed 1,335 Canadians were diagnosed in 2012 with HPV-related oropharyngeal cancer and 372 died from the disease. HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection worldwide. Most people [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2017-08-14T12:10:46-07:00August, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

A Guide On How To Fight Your Outrageous Hospital Bill (And Win)

Source: www.huffingtonpost.com Author: Gemma Hartley Date: 8/4/2017 My medical bill nightmare started out fairly normally. My toddler fell and hurt her wrist. Since she has a flair for the dramatic, she let her wrist flop, looking broken as she screamed in agony. My husband and I examined her wrist and couldn’t figure out how serious the situation was, so we played it safe and took her to the emergency room. She had a mild sprain, it turned out. She was in and out ― no medication, no nothing. I knew there would be an obscene bill for taking her to the ER, but I had no idea just how shocking it would be. When I received the bill for my daughter, I seriously hoped that something was amiss. The amount was nearly $800 (which was more than we could afford at the time), and before insurance it had been nearly $3,000. Could the bill really be that huge for a 15-minute visit? I couldn’t fathom it, so I requested an itemized bill ― a habit I picked up after hearing horror stories of new mothers being charged outrageously in labor and delivery. An itemized bill almost always contains errors, which is why I wasn’t about to pay a penny before carefully looking over my daughter’s charges. There were a couple of small errors, such as overpriced medicines she didn’t receive, but it wasn’t the $14 aspirin hiking up her bill. I called the hospital to ask about my daughter’s charge [...]

Charlotte Parker2017-08-07T08:25:03-07:00August, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

Cancer is a fungus’?! We need to get serious about evidence-based treatment

Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk Date: August 3rd, 2017 Author: Judith Potts Over the last few years I have come across myriad myths about cures for breast cancer – indeed all cancers. Of course, everyone is looking for a treatment which does not involve chemotherapy, a diagnostic test which does not use radiation, or a treatment without side effects. While thermography may be an innovative concept, there is little good evidence that it is effective in detecting breast cancer at an early stageEluned Hughes, head of public health and information at Breast Cancer Now But I have lost count of the number of times I have heard that ‘Cancer is a fungus and Sodium Bicarbonate is the cure’. I have even been sent an amateur video of a man mixing his sodium bicarbonate potion in an extremely unhygienic-looking kitchen. Part of the Cancer Research UK’s website carries ‘10 Persistent Cancer Myths Debunked’ which makes an interesting read – . Alternative therapies abound and all are described as ‘natural’. The word is applied to food, to beauty products and to fabrics – but, all too often, the list of ingredients denies the description. Last week, an email dropped into my inbox introducing me to Dr Nyjon Eccles and describing his work at his clinic in London’s Harley Street – The ‘Natural’ Doctor. Was it referring to his treatments as being ‘natural’ in the sense of pure, unadulterated and complementary, or did he mean that he was born a ‘natural’ doctor? I discovered that Dr Eccles is [...]

Charlotte Parker2017-08-03T15:28:54-07:00August, 2017|Oral Cancer News|