Oral Cancer News

Riders raise awareness for oral cancer

Source: Millard County Chronicle ProgressAuthor: Doug Radunich Two traveling rodeo riders helped raise awareness for oral cancer at the Days of the Old West rodeo in Delta June 11-13. As a non-profit seeking to spread awareness of oral cancer and the dangers of starting terrible tobacco habits, the foundation teamed up with bareback bronco rider Cody Kiser, of Carson City, Nev., and barrel rider Carly Twisselman, of Paso Robles, Calif., in an effort to spread the word among the Rodeo circuit, which is one of the biggest arenas of tobaccos-using patrons. While others are focused on getting users to quit, the Oral Cancer Foundation is encouraging young people to avoid the habit that they may see one of their rodeo heroes engage in. The message of the foundation is simple and not confrontational: "Be Smart. Don’t Start". This message was displayed at the recent rodeo in Delta. Also at the Delta rodeo, Kiser and Twisselman sported Oral Cancer Foundation logos and wording on their clothes and riding gear, while handing out free buttons, wristbands and bandanas. Both riders also gave autographs, talked and had pictures taken with young fans. Both riders, who will promote the message at different rodeos across the country, also competed in their respective riding events while in Delta. “It’s an awesome opportunity to use our platform, and it’s for a good cause and to put good message out there,” Twisselman said. “There are family members and friends and peers out there who chew tobacco, and in the [...]

Charlotte Parker2015-08-10T11:19:45-07:00August, 2015|OCF In The News, Oral Cancer News|

Baseball and tobacco are a deadly mix

Source: www.bostonglobe.comAuthors: Dr. Howard Koh & Dr. Alan C. Woodward Unhealthy as it looks: David Ortiz spat out his “chew” after flying out against Tampa Bay in Game 3 of the 2008 ALCS at Fenway Park. Search the web for the phrase “tobacco and baseball” and you’ll find an association that dates back almost to the beginning of the sport. In the late 1800s, tobacco companies debuted baseball cards in cigarette packs. By the early 1900s, Bull Durham was advertising its chewing tobacco product on outfield fences. Today, cigarette smoking is prohibited or restricted in all Major League parks. Still, players, coaches, and others use smokeless tobacco, often referred to as “chew” or “dip,” in virtually every stadium across the country. But tobacco that is “smokeless” is not “harmless.” It contains at least 28 carcinogens and causes oral, pancreatic, and esophageal cancer, along with serious health problems such as heart disease, gum disease, tooth decay, and mouth lesions. The longstanding link between tobacco and baseball has led to tragic outcomes, for players and young fans alike. Baseball legend Babe Ruth died at age 53 of throat cancer after decades of dipping and chewing. Last summer, former Red Sox pitching great Curt Schilling announced that he had been treated for oral cancer, which he attributed to three decades of chewing tobacco. Sadly, his news came shortly after the death of Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn, at age 54, after a lengthy fight with salivary gland cancer. Gwynn, too, attributed his [...]

Charlotte Parker2015-08-06T10:44:44-07:00August, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

Mayor Walsh Wants Ban On Chewing Tobacco At All City Ballparks

Source: www.wbur.orgAuthor: Philip Marcelo Former Boston Red Sox pitcher and mouth cancer survivor Curt Schilling, pictured here at Fenway Park in 2012, was on hand Wednesday as Mayor Marty Walsh proposed banning smokeless tobacco products from all city professional and amateur athletic venues. (Winslow Townson/AP) From storied Fenway Park to youth baseball diamonds across the city, Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh is calling for a ban on dip, snuff and chewing tobacco. With former Red Sox pitcher and mouth cancer survivor Curt Schilling at his side, the mayor on Wednesday proposed banning smokeless tobacco products from all city professional and amateur athletic venues. “Kids shouldn’t have to watch their role models using tobacco, either at a neighborhood park or on TV,” Walsh said, standing at home plate of a South Boston baseball diamond. “Ballfields are places for mentoring and healthy development. They’re no place for cancer-causing substances.” Schilling, who revealed earlier this year he was diagnosed with mouth cancer after decades of using chewing tobacco, described his battle with the illness, which he said is in remission. “It was more painful than anything you could imagine,” he said, addressing the dozens of school-age kids in attendance. “I couldn’t swallow. I had to eat from a tube. I was sick every single day. And if it came back, I don’t know if I would go through the treatment again. It was that bad.” The 48-year-old ESPN analyst acknowledged Walsh’s proposal will likely meet resistance from major league players, but he [...]

Charlotte Parker2015-08-05T16:30:17-07:00August, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

Testimony by otolaryngologists in defense of tobacco companies 2009–2014

Source: www.onlinelibrary.wiley.comAuthor: Robert K. Jackler, MD Abstract Objectives/Hypothesis To examine expert testimony offered by otolaryngologists in defense of the tobacco industry and to assess whether opinions rendered were congruent with evidence in the scientific literature. Methods Data sources include publically available expert witness depositions and trial testimony of board-certified otolaryngologists employed by the tobacco industry in defense of lawsuits brought by smokers suffering from head and neck cancer. The cases, adjudicated in Florida between 2009 and 2014, focused on whether smoking caused the plaintiff's cancer. Results The study includes nine legal cases of upper aerodigestive tract cancer involving six otolaryngologists serving as expert witnesses for the tobacco industry. Cancer sites included larynx (5), esophagus (2), mouth (1), and lung (1). Five of the six otolaryngologists consistently, over multiple cases, offered opinions that smoking did not cause the plaintiff's cancer. By highlighting an exhaustive list of potential risk factors, such as human papillomavirus (HPV), alcohol, asbestos, diesel fumes, salted fish, mouthwash, and even urban living, they created doubt in the minds of the jurors as to the role of smoking in the plaintiff's cancer. Evidence shows that this testimony, which was remarkably similar across cases, was part of a defense strategy shaped by tobacco's law firms. Conclusions A small group of otolaryngologists regularly serve as experts on behalf of the tobacco industry. Examination of their opinions in relation to the scientific literature reveals a systematic bias in interpreting the data relating to the role played by smoking in head and neck [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-07-31T14:00:43-07:00July, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

HPV Persistence Predicts Poor Prognosis in Head/Neck Cancer

Source: www.medscape.comAuthor: Roxanne Nelson, RN, BSN Among patients with human papillomavirus–positive oropharyngeal cancer (HPV-OPC), persistence of HPV following treatment is associated with a poorer prognosis. Results of a new study show that the persistence of HPV16 DNA, detected in oral rinses after treatment has ended, may be predictive of disease recurrence. In a cohort of 124 patients with HPV-OPC, HPV16 DNA was detected in oral rinses from 54% (n = 67) of patients at the time of their diagnosis. Following treatment, it was detected in only six patients after treatment, including five patients with persistent oral HPV16 DNA that was also detected at diagnosis. All five patients with persistent HPV16 experienced disease recurrence, with three eventually dying of their cancer. Conversely, only nine of 119 patients without persistent oral HPV16 DNA developed recurrent disease. "Our findings indicate that persistent HPV16 DNA in oral rinses may be a useful early marker of disease that has either recurred or never fully responded to treatment," said first author Eleni Rettig, MD, of the Department of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland. "In the clinical setting, this could one day be a part of routine surveillance after treatment for HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancers, in addition to clinical examination and imaging," she told Medscape Medical News. The study was published online July 30 in JAMA Oncology. Biomarker Potential? In an accompanying editorial, Julie E. Bauman, MD, MPH, and Robert L. Ferris, MD, PhD, both of the University of Pittsburgh, in Pennsylvania, [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-07-30T17:19:55-07:00July, 2015|OCF In The News, Oral Cancer News|

MD Anderson Team wins NIH grant to uncover novel head, neck cancer drug targets

Source: www.genomeweb.com Author: staff The National Institutes of Health this month awarded MD Anderson Cancer Center researchers a four-year grant to bioinformatically and functionally investigate genomic alterations as novel therapeutic targets for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). In recent years, genomic studies have identified numerous genetic alterations in HNSCC, but such alterations "are dominated by tumor suppressor genes and untargetable oncogenes," MD Anderson's Jeffrey Myers, who is leading the research, wrote in the grant's abstract. "Nevertheless, we hypothesize that novel molecular therapeutic targets are present in HNSCC and that these targets exist in parts of the data that have not been effectively analyzed." With the support of the NIH grant, administered by the National Institute of Dental & Craniofacial Research and worth $971,667 in its first year, Myers and his colleagues plan to examine existing genomic data using a combination of computational and functional approaches to identify candidate drug targets. The most promising targets will be tested in a high-throughput in vivo screening system in HNSCC lines with known genotypes, with validated targets further tested for genotype co-dependencies. Known drug targets will be studied in preclinical xenograft models. For targets that are currently undruggable, the researchers will computationally and experimentally analyze their pathways for additional targets that can be functionally tested. Through the work, the MD Anderson investigators aim to generate a broad list of functionally validated novel targets for HNSCC as candidates for drug development.

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-07-30T07:20:41-07:00July, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

NYU’s Bluestone Center Receives a $369,250 High Priority, Short Term Project Award from NIDCR to Study Oral Cancer Pain

Source: www.nyu.edu/newsAuthor: Christopher James Drs. Yamano and Schmidt have developed a novel non-viral gene delivery method, and the proposed studies are designed to test whether this could be used to treat cancer pain effectively and safely. Up to 90% of cancer patients suffer from pain, with oral cancer ranked consistently as one of the most painful cancers. The quality of life for oral cancer patients is the lowest of any patients suffering from cancer because the intense uncontrolled pain interferes with necessary oral functions including eating, talking and swallowing. “Oral cancer pain is more severe, and the opioid requirement is higher, than pain from any other cancer,” said Dr. Brian L. Schmidt, DDS, MD, PhD, professor in the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, and director of NYU’s Bluestone Center for Clinical Research and the NYU Oral Cancer Center. “And in the end, pharmacological agents used to treat cancer pain often lack anatomical specificity and produce off-target effects that create additional suffering.” “Gene therapy is emerging as an exciting prospect and alternative to opioids for the treatment of cancer pain,” said Dr. Seiichi Yamano, DDS, PhD, DMD, MMSc, assistant professor of prosthodontics at NYU College of Dentistry. “We seek to eliminate oral cancer pain by reversing epigenetic changes using gene therapy and set the stage for a new class of medicines that selectively disrupt nociceptive signaling with limited off-target effects.” To further their research, the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR), part of the National Institute of Health (NIH) [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-07-29T10:45:41-07:00July, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

ASCO urges expansion of cancer research to include more older adults

Source: www.asco.org Author: staff ASCO issued landmark recommendations calling for federal agencies and the cancer research community to broaden clinical trials to include older adults. ASCO also called for redefining eligibility for clinical trials. Both calls to action were published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. More than 60 percent of cancers in the United States occur in people age 65 and older, a population that will grow exponentially over the coming years. Yet, the evidence base for treating older adults is sparse because they are underrepresented in clinical trials and trials designed specifically for them are rare. “Older people living with cancer often have different experiences and outcomes in their treatment than younger cancer patients,” said ASCO President Julie M. Vose, MD, MBA, FASCO. “As we age, for example, the risk of adverse reactions from treatment significantly increases. Older adults must be involved in clinical trials so we can learn the best way to treat older cancer patients resulting in improved outcomes and manageable toxicity.” Developed by ASCO’s Cancer Research Committee, the ASCO position statement, “Improving the Evidence Base for Treating Older Adults with Cancer,” makes the five following over-arching recommendations: • Use clinical trials to improve the evidence base for treating older adults. • Leverage research designs and infrastructure to improve the evidence base for treating older adults. • Increase Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authority to incentivize and require research on older adults with cancer. • Increase clinicians’ recruitment of older adults with cancer into clinical trials. • Utilize [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-07-22T06:21:10-07:00July, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

For the war against oral cancer, what’s in your arsenal?

Source: www.dentistryiq.com Author: Dennis M. Abbott, DDS The face of oral cancer has changed: No longer is oral cancer a disease isolated to men over 60 years of age with a long history of smoking and alcohol consumption. Today, the demographic for the disease includes younger people of both sexes with no history of deleterious social habits who are otherwise healthy and active. It spans all socioeconomic, racial, religious, and societal lines. In other words, oral and oropharyngeal cancer is an equal opportunity killer. Today, as you read this article, 24 people in the US will lose their battles with oral cancer. That is one person for each hour of the day, every day of the year. Each of those lost is someone’s sister, a father’s son, a small child’s mommy, or maybe even a person you hold dear to your heart. The truth is, oral and oropharyngeal cancer has several faces . . . and each of those faces is a human being, just like you and me. So how can we, as dental professionals, be instrumental in the war against oral and head and neck cancer? Views of the oropharynx, the base of the tongue, and the epiglottis, taken with the Iris HD USB 3.0 intraoral camera using different points of focus. Photos courtesy of the author. The answer, as with most other cancers, lies in early detection. When oral and oropharyngeal cancer is detected early, the five-year survival rate can be as high as 80% [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-07-22T05:02:02-07:00July, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

B.C. detection test being used to catch oral cancer in early stages

Source: www.cbc.ca Author: staff Doctor says oral cancer is among the deadlier diseases yet rarely talked about. The Canadian Cancer Society estimates 4,400 people will be diagnosed with oral cancer this year. The deadly disease can often go undiagnosed because it is tough to screen for dormant symptoms. But now, researchers at the University of British Columbia (UBC) are developing a new test that will be able to detect oral cancer at a much earlier stage. Dr. Catherine Poh, an oral pathologist who also teaches dentistry at UBC, spoke with the Early Edition's Rick Cluff about the latest developments. What can you tell us about this new brushing test you're working on? We are a proposing a non-invasive approach to analyse genetic material collected from patients mouths using a simple brush. This can be done by a dentist or at a family doctor's office. This test would detect genetic change that happens in human genomes from the cells collected from the mouth. We have shown that it has prediction value for the risk for oral cancer development. How does your test compare to how oral cancer is detected right now? Right now the majority of oral cancer has been screened by dentists because many of the oral cancer [diagnosis] come with no pain or no symptoms. Through the dental regular checkups it can be detected early, otherwise patients come with a sore in their mouths that is essentially a delay in the diagnosis. What symptoms should people look out for? [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-07-22T04:48:50-07:00July, 2015|Oral Cancer News|