Oral Cancer News – Page 142 – The Oral Cancer Foundation News Archive

Alcohol consumption ups oral cancer risk in men

Source: www.drbicuspid.com/ Author: Donna Domino, Features Editor Alcohol consumption causes approximately 20,000 cancer deaths in the U.S. annually, especially oral cavity cancer in men and breast cancer in women, according to a new study in the American Journal of Public Health (February 14, 2013). It is the first comprehensive analysis of alcohol-attributable cancer deaths in the U.S. in more than 30 years, the study authors noted. Notably, even moderate drinkers who consume 1.5 drinks daily or fewer accounted for 30% of alcohol-caused cancer deaths, according to researchers from the Boston University School of Medicine and the School of Public Health. Cancers of the mouth, throat, and esophagus were common causes of alcohol-related cancer deaths among men, resulting in a total of about 6,000 annual deaths, they noted. Breast cancer was the most common cause of alcohol-caused cancer deaths in women, resulting in about 6,000 deaths annually, or about 15% of all breast cancer mortality. In addition, alcohol was cited as a prominent cause in the premature loss of life, resulting in the loss of about 18 years among people who died of cancers attributed to alcohol, the study found. Previous research consistently shows that alcohol increases the risk for cancers of the oral cavity and pharynx, larynx, esophagus, and liver. And recent studies show that alcohol also increases the risk of cancers of the colon, rectum, and women's breasts. While estimates have shown that alcohol accounts for about 4% of all cancer-related deaths worldwide, there is a lack of attention [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2013-03-01T15:32:12-07:00March, 2013|Oral Cancer News|

‘Where you’re treated matters’ in terms of cancer survival

Source: www.eurekalert.org A study of older patients with advanced head and neck cancers has found that where they were treated significantly influenced their survival. The study, led by researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and published in the March 1 online edition of Cancer, found that patients who were treated at hospitals that saw a high number of head and neck cancers were 15 percent less likely to die of their disease as compared to patients who were treated at hospitals that saw a relatively low number of such cancers. The study also found that such patients were 12 percent less likely to die of their disease when treated at a National Cancer Institute -designated cancer center. "Where you're treated matters," said corresponding author Eduardo Méndez, M.D., an assistant member of the Clinical Research Division at Fred Hutch. Méndez and colleagues also hypothesized that patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCCs) who were treated at high-volume hospitals would be more likely to receive therapy that complies with National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines due to the complexity of managing these cancers. Surprisingly, this was not the case, the researchers found. According to an American Cancer Society estimate, 52,610 Americans were newly diagnosed with head and neck cancer in 2012. Many patients are diagnosed with locally advanced disease that has spread to the lymph nodes, which carries a much poorer prognosis compared to early stage disease. Patients with advanced disease require multidisciplinary management by a collaborative team comprised of [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2013-03-01T15:26:17-07:00March, 2013|Oral Cancer News|

Facebook, Google and Amazon join fight against cancer

Date: 11:00AM GMT 01 Mar 2013Source: The Telegraph Facebook, Google and Amazon have teamed up with Cancer Research UK to design a mobile game that will allow members of the public to help the search for new cancer drugs. Researchers are working hard to identify the genetic faults that drive cancer Photo: ANDREW SHAW The project will allow smartphone users to play to investigate vital scientific data at the same time as playing a mobile game. The first step is for 40 computer programmers, gamers, graphic designers and other specialists to take part in a weekend "GameJam" to turn the charity's raw genetic data into a game format for future so-called "citizen scientists". "We're making great progress in understanding the genetic reasons cancer develops. But the clues to why some drugs will work and some won't are held in data which need to be analysed by the human eye - and this could take years," said Carlos Caldas at Cancer Research UK's Cambridge Institute. "By harnessing the collective power of citizen scientists we'll accelerate the discovery of new ways to diagnose and treat cancer much more precisely." After the GameJam, which runs in London from March 1-3, an agency will build the game concept into reality and the team plans to launch it in mid 2013. CRUK's scientists are working hard to identify the genetic faults that drive cancer to try to find new ways of diagnosing and treating patients in a more targeted way based on their genetic profile [...]

Charlotte Parker2013-03-01T14:22:23-07:00March, 2013|Oral Cancer News|

Painting for the Oral Cancer Foundation

With a desire to help in spreading awareness for oral cancer, Anita McGinn-Natali, a Fine Art Painter from Pennsylvania, donates her original framed and ready to hang oil paintings to Oral Cancer Awareness Walks. Funds collected will benefit the Oral Cancer Foundation. In October of 2007, Anita’s husband, Clark, was diagnosed with oral cancer. Anita was her husband’s caregiver during his treatments and recovery. Two years later,she found the Oral Cancer Foundation online and began to participate in the Forums, whose contributors include patients, caregivers, as well as family and friends of patients. “Discovering the Oral Cancer Foundation website during a challenging time in my husband’s recovery, was gratifying. The information available and the support I received were life savers for me. “I spent hours on the website educating myself about this disease. As a participant in the Forums, I had started out asking questions with others helping me,” Anita says. No long after she was offering support to other patients and caregivers. “It is a unique community of people from all over the world who have the unfortunate common denominator of oral cancer.” Since September 2011, Anita has donated her original oil paintings to three OCF Walks for Awareness: David Nasto in New Jersey (Susan Nasto Lauria); San Antonio (ElizabethSikon); and Colorado (Susan Cotten) Currently, there are 18 Walks for Awareness held throughout the United States. Participants can receive a free oral cancer screening, meet others whoselives have been touched by oral cancer, and be inspired by the work the Oral Cancer Foundation is doing to bring awareness to this debilitating and life changing disease. “I wanted to find a way to give back to this organization that has been such an important part [...]

Charlotte Parker2013-03-04T11:39:46-07:00February, 2013|OCF In The News, Oral Cancer News|

HPV and oral cancer

Source: myfoxny.com Date: Feb 21, 2013 4:02 PM PST Updated: Feb 25, 2013 2:07 PM PST NEW YORK (MYFOXNY) - Oral cancer is being diagnosed at near epidemic proportions, and in many cases it strikes those people who would least suspect it. At 28, Jessica Tar appeared young and healthy. That is why she was floored to find out she had oral cancer; a small tumor was growing on her tongue. "It was just this raised area, and pain from time to time," Tar says. They are symptoms many of may have ignored, but thankfully Jessica did not. Her cancer was caught early and had not spread. She went to Memorial Sloan Kettering's Dr. Jatin Shah for treatment. He recommended a surgery to remove part of her tongue, an aggressive treatment that threatened her career as an actress and singer. "They tell you your mouth is going to be rearranged. The tip of your tongue, where you thought it once was, it won't be there anymore," Tar says. Jessica Tar was anxious to get back to work, so she underwent extensive speech therapy. The hardest thing for her to pronounce was the letter S. Jessica knew she want to work hard at it and she had the ultimate motivation, a specific name in mind for her daughter on the way. "I said to my speech therapist if I can't improve on these S's I don't think I'm going to name her Kalista, but I got better and the day she was born, [...]

Charlotte Parker2013-02-26T13:52:53-07:00February, 2013|OCF In The News, Oral Cancer News|

‘Risk’ Varies in HPV-Positive Oropharyngeal Cancer: Study

Source: Medscape Medical News > OncologyAuthor: Kate JohnsonDate: February 21, 2013 Deintensification of chemotherapy might not be the best option for all patients with oropharyngeal cancer whose disease is associated with human papillomavirus (HPV). However, such an approach might be reasonable for patients with a low risk for distant recurrence; namely, those with less advanced disease and limited exposure to smoking, according to a large retrospective institutional study conducted by Brian O'Sullivan, MD, from the Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and colleagues. The study was published in the February 10 issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology. The findings "provocatively suggest there is a limit to the favorable biology of HPV-associated OPSCC [oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma]," write Harry Quon, MD, and Arlene Forastiere, MD, from the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, in an accompanying editorial. "It could be that today's treatment paradigms result in the overtreatment of many patients (and the consequent late effects on swallowing function) and undertreatment of a smaller subset," they add. There is growing concern among OPSCC experts about patients' risks for radiation-related morbidity, particularly severe late swallowing complications, Dr. Forastiere told Medscape Medical News. "The potential for this damage is increased when chemotherapy is added to the radiation," she explained. "One simple strategy is to drop the chemotherapy from the treatment of those with a low risk for recurrence of tumor in the oropharynx or the regional lymph nodes in the neck." However, she pointed out that Dr. O'Sullivan and colleagues [...]

Charlotte Parker2013-02-25T13:15:37-07:00February, 2013|Oral Cancer News|

Professor of dentistry told woman suffering from tumour in her jaw to chew sugar-free gum and misdiagnosed 32 others, tribunal hears

Source: mailonline.comAuthor: Steve RobsonDate: February 19, 2013 Blunders: Professor Philip Lamey is accused of misdiagnosing 33 patients at Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast A professor of dentistry misdiagnosed patients who had cancer - prescribing one with sugar-free chewing gum when she had a tumour in her jaw and another with iron supplements for skin cancer - a tribunal has heard. Philip Lamey allegedly misdiagnosed seven people with mouth cancer - four of whom later died - at the School of Dentistry in Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast. In total 135 patients were recalled after doubts were raised about their biopsy results, a hearing of the General Dental Council (GDC) in London was told today. Professor Lamey, who is being represented by lawyers at the hearing, faces 46 charges after concerns were raised about his diagnosis of 33 patients. David Bradly, counsel for the GDC, said on one occasion the dentist's blunders caused a patient to be rushed to hospital after a wrong diagnosis. The patient was told she had temporomandibular joint dysfunction (TMD) - chronic jaw pain - when she in fact had a tumour in her jawbone. Mr Bradly said: 'Professor Lamey gave a diagnosis of TMD and prescribed sugar-free chewing gum for treatment and said he would see her in three months. 'She actually had a tumour in the mandible and was admitted to hospital. She had a squamous cell carcinoma - a type of skin cancer - and had radiotherapy following an operation.' On another occasion he diagnosed an elderly [...]

Charlotte Parker2013-02-25T12:38:47-07:00February, 2013|Oral Cancer News|

Even moderate drinking may substantially raise risk of dying from cancer

Source: www.nydailynews.com Author: Tracy Miller, New York Daily News Alcohol causes about 19,500 cancer deaths each year — and even as little as 1.5 drinks per day can make you part of that statistic, according to a sobering new study. The research, published in the American Journal of Public Health, is the first in several decades to examine deaths from a variety of cancers that can be attributed to alcohol consumption, said lead study author David E. Nelson of the National Cancer Institute. "One of the reasons we did the study was to update data that hadn't been looked at for 30 years," Nelson told the Daily News. "In that time, other diseases, and other cancers, have been linked to alcohol." The researchers looked at mortality data from two national surveys conducted in 2009, and using a mathematical formula, determined which of the cancer deaths were alcohol related. About 3.2 to 3.7% of all cancer deaths in 2009 were attributed to alcohol, with oral cancers, pharynx, larynx and esophageal cancers the top killers in men, and breast cancer the most deadly in women. About 15% of all breast cancer deaths were attributable to alcohol consumption, the study found. Furthermore, while the risk of death was greatest among people who had three or more drinks per day, about 30% of deaths occurred among people who consumed 20 ounces, the equivalent of 1.5 drinks, per day. "There's no question that people who drink more frequently are at greater risk," Nelson said. "What [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2013-02-20T07:48:50-07:00February, 2013|Oral Cancer News|

New drug combination could prevent head and neck cancer in high-risk patients

Source: www.sciencedaily.com Author: staff A new drug combination shows promise in reducing the risk for patients with advanced oral precancerous lesions to develop squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck. The results of the study, which included preclinical and clinical analyses, were published in Clinical Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research. "Squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN) is the most common type of head and neck cancer," said Dong Moon Shin, M.D., professor of hematology, medical oncology and otolaryngology at Emory University School of Medicine, and director of the Cancer Chemoprevention Program at Winship Cancer Institute at Emory University in Atlanta, Ga. "The survival rate for patients with SCCHN is very poor. An effective prevention approach is desperately needed, especially since we can identify patients who are at extremely high risk: those with advanced oral precancerous lesions." Based on prior research suggesting a role for epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) in promoting SCCHN, Shin and colleagues believed combining an EGFR inhibitor and a COX-2 inhibitor could provide an effective chemopreventive approach. They found that the combination of the EGFR inhibitor erlotinib and the COX-2 inhibitor celecoxib was more effective for inhibiting the growth of human SCCHN cell lines compared with either drug alone. In addition, treating mice with the drug combination prior to transplanting them with human SCCHN cells more effectively suppressed cancer cell growth than did pretreating the mice with either drug alone. Based on these preclinical [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2013-02-20T07:38:26-07:00February, 2013|Oral Cancer News|

Kentucky cancer center emphasizes patients’ quality of life

Source: www.drbicuspid.com Author: Donna Domino, Features Editor The James Graham Brown Cancer Center at the University of Louisville is among a growing number of facilities working to improve care for head and neck cancer (HNC) patients through collaborative care programs that bring together a spectrum of oncology specialists. The center provides multidisciplinary treatment for HNC patients using novel techniques that decrease the debilitating side effects of radiation and chemotherapy. The clinic also conducts research and clinical trials with targeted therapies that aim to restore patients' oral functions. Kentucky has a higher rate of HNC than the U.S. average, which provides a large patient pool for the many clinical trials that the center conducts, according to Zafrulla Khan, DDS, MS, professor and director of maxillofacial/oncologic dentistry in the center's HNC clinic. "That's what happens when you mix tobacco and bourbon," Dr. Khan noted. Intraoral radiation shields Some of the center's novel treatment techniques involve using intraoral radiation shields during brachytherapy radiotherapy procedures to prevent the tongue and nearby oral areas from getting irradiated while minimizing mucositis and xerostomia, Dr. Khan explained. Intraoral radiation shields prevent the tongue and nearby oral areas from getting irradiated while minimizing mucositis and xerostomia "We put catheters right into tumors so they can deliver the radiotherapy in the mouth with high-density therapy machines rather than doing an external beam," he said. The clinic also uses a surgical obturator, a prosthetic device that enables patients to speak and swallow following surgery for maxillary sinus cancer. [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2013-02-20T07:32:57-07:00February, 2013|Oral Cancer News|