Oral Cancer News – Page 248 – The Oral Cancer Foundation News Archive

HPV-Positive head and neck cancer: favorable prognosis does not lead to clear choices for changes in treatments

Source: OncologyStat Author: Thomas F. Pajak CHANDLER, Ariz. (EGMN) - Human papillomavirus infection is clearly a prognostic factor in patients with head and neck cancer. But whether HPV status can be used to guide treatment decisions is far from clear, according to speakers at a head and neck cancer symposium sponsored by the American Society for Radiation Oncology. The Investigator's Perspective Across trials that tested different regimens in heterogeneous populations with head and neck cancer, patients with HPV-positive disease have had at least a one-half reduction in the risk of death, relative to their counterparts with HPV-negative disease, began Dr. Maura L. Gillison, a professor of medicine and epidemiology at Ohio State University in Columbus. "Clearly, HPV tumor status is prognostic," she said, citing multiple factors that might explain why HPV-positive patients have better survival outcomes. Certain attributes that track with HPV positivity - better performance status, younger age, lower T stage, and absence of anemia - are also favorable prognostic factors, she noted. And HPV positivity confers a better response to both radiation therapy and induction chemotherapy. In addition, data from the RTOG (Radiation Therapy Oncology Group) 0129 trial of chemoradiation show that HPV-positive patients are less likely than their HPV-negative peers to experience a locoregional failure and to develop second primaries, although rates of distant metastases are similar. "What we can conclude at this point is that the relative survival for the HPV-positive patient appears independent of therapy, as long as that therapy is within the standard of [...]

Charlotte Parker2010-04-19T22:22:16-07:00April, 2010|Oral Cancer News|

Congress urges major league baseball to ban smokeless tobacco

Source: Associated Press Author: Howard Fendrich WASHINGTON — After hounding Major League Baseball and its players union over steroids, Congress now wants the sport to ban smokeless tobacco. "Good luck," San Francisco Giants reliever Brandon Medders said. "Guys do what they do. We work outside. It's been part of the game for 100 years." At a hearing Wednesday, House Energy and Commerce Committee chairman Henry Waxman, a California Democrat, and Health Subcommittee chairman Frank Pallone, a New Jersey Democrat, called on baseball and its players to agree to bar major leaguers from using chew, dip or similar products during games. MLB executive VP Robert Manfred and MLB Players Association chief labor counsel David Prouty told lawmakers they agree that smokeless tobacco is harmful — Manfred said a ban in the majors is "a laudable goal" — but both pointed out that any ban would have to be agreed to through collective bargaining. They said their sides are willing to discuss the topic during future negotiations; baseball's labor contract is due to expire in December 2011. "I can tell you, anecdotally, there are plenty of players who are against it, who think, 'Of course it should be banned.' There are plenty of players who use it. Do they think it should be banned? I don't know," the union's Prouty said in an interview after the 3 1/2-hour hearing. "We can go back to the players and say, 'Congress feels strongly about this. You ought to think about it. Look what's happened [...]

Charlotte Parker2010-04-19T22:22:51-07:00April, 2010|Oral Cancer News|

As if disease is not enough; another cancer battle has to be fought. Costs

Source: online.wsj.com/ Author: Laura Landro Cancer patients can turn to support groups when dealing with the rigors of treatment. It's far more difficult to get help with the growing financial burdens of care. The new health-care legislation contains some provisions that aim to help cancer patients and survivors in the future, including limits on out-of-pocket costs, insurers who impose caps on benefits and premiums for patients with pre-existing conditions. But some provisions won't fully kick in for four years. In the meantime, patient advocacy groups are stepping up programs to help identify patients under duress from financial woes and steer them to help. The Patient Access Network and four other non-profit groups that help insured patients with all or part of co-payments for medications paid out a total of $274.7 million last year, an increase of 52.7% over the previous year. Applications for aid rose more than 26% in the same period. The groups, which are funded by drug companies, foundations and private donations, provide grants of up to $10,000 per year to qualified patients, according to Julie Reynes, president of the Patient Access Network. The Cancer Support Community last year introduced a new guide, "Coping with the Cost of Care," and is piloting a program to screen cancer patients in hospitals and clinics around the country for emotional and financial problems in order to identify those who need referrals to mental-health counselors and financial-assistance resources. "There are many resources to help, but this information isn't getting out to patients [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2010-04-19T22:24:01-07:00April, 2010|Oral Cancer News|

Nutritional sciences investigator wins NIH challenge grant

Source: uanews.org (University of Arizona) Author: Jeff Harrison Kirsten Limesand's research focuses on how to restore salivary gland function in cancer patients. Each year approximately 40,000 people in the U.S. are diagnosed with some form of head and neck cancer. The majority of those patients will have surgery to remove the tumors, followed by one or more rounds of radiation therapy to kill any lingering cancer cells. A common side effect of radiation to this area is damage to the adjacent, normal salivary glands. Patients commonly experience a dry mouth that can lead to oral sores and infections, cavities, difficulty chewing and swallowing food and loss of taste. Kirsten Limesand, an assistant professor of nutritional sciences in the University of Arizona College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, has received a two-year NIH Challenge Grant worth nearly $1 million to study this problem. Specifically, Limesand is examining the role of autophagy in salivary glands in response to radiation therapy. Autophagy is an ongoing process where cells digest and recycle their proteins and organelles. This helps starving cells break down and redirect components from non-essential to essential cell functions. The process and the mechanics behind it are not well understood, but autophagy appears to have some role in preventing and fighting disease and infection. It also, in some cases, could make those problems worse. Side effects from radiation therapy begin within a few days and can continue for one to two years. Because saliva is essential for maintaining oral health, salivary gland [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2010-04-14T07:19:19-07:00April, 2010|Oral Cancer News|

Comparing the HPV vaccines

Source: www.hemonctoday.com Author: Debbie Blamble, PharmD, BCOP HPVs are double-stranded DNA viruses that affect epithelial cells. More than 100 strains of HPV have been detected. Approximately 40 strains are known to infect genital mucosa, of which about 15 strains are known to cause cancer. HPV types 16 and 18 are the most common cancer-causing strains, leading to about 70% of all cervical cancer cases worldwide. HPV types 6 and 11 are associated with about 90% of all cases of genital warts. Cervical intraepithelial neoplasia is an abnormality of the cervical epithelium associated with HPV infection and is thought to be a precursor to cervical cancer. CIN is classified into three grades: 1, 2, 3. With CIN-1, mild dysplasia is present and affects only the lowest third of the cervical epithelium; 70% to 90% of CIN-1 lesions undergo spontaneous regression. CIN-2 and CIN-3 show moderate to severe dysplasia and affect the lowest two-thirds to full thickness of the cervical epithelium, respectively. More than half of CIN-2 and CIN-3 cases are estimated to persist or progress to squamous cell cancer. Persistent HPV infection may also lead to cervical adenocarcinoma in situ. In the United States, screening with the Pap test identifies these precancerous lesions and has led to a decrease in the rates of cervical cancer. These precancerous lesions may develop less than five years after HPV infection. HPV infection HPV infection is most frequently acquired through sexual contact. It is estimated that more than 80% of men and women in the [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2010-04-11T10:57:29-07:00April, 2010|Oral Cancer News|

Smoking-attributable cancer mortality in California, 1979–2005

Source: Tob Control 2010;19:i62-i67 doi:10.1136 Author: David W Cowling1, Juan Yang2 Background: The adult smoking prevalence has declined more in California than the rest of the US in the past 2 decades. Further, California has faster declines in cancer mortality, lung cancer incidence and heart disease mortality. However, no study has examined smoking-related cancer mortality between California and the rest of the US. Methods: The smoking-attributable cancer mortality rate (SACMR) from 1979 to 2005 in California and the rest of the US are calculated among men and women 35 years of age or older using the Joinpoint regression model to calculate the SACMR annual percentage change. The SACMR is the sum of the smoking-attributable death rates of 10 smoking-attributable cancers. Results: The SACMR has declined more in California (25.7%) than the rest of the US (8.9%) from 1979 to 2005. California men had a lower SACMR than the rest of the US over the entire study period, with the difference tripling from 7.4% in 1979 to 23.9% in 2005. The difference of female SACMR between California and the rest of the US went from 17.9% higher in 1979 to 13.4% lower in 2005. Conclusions: California's SACMR decrease started 7 years earlier than the rest of the US (1984 vs 1991), and California experienced an accelerated decline of SACMR compared to the rest of the US overall and among men and women from 1979 to 2005. Although the SACMR started declining before the creation of the California Department of Public Health, [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2010-04-11T05:24:21-07:00April, 2010|Oral Cancer News|

Sylvester surgeons perform first removal of throat cancer in south Florida using surgical robot

Source: www.healthcanal.com Author: staff Surgeons from the Department of Otolaryngology at UHealth – the University of Miami Health System have performed the first removal of throat cancer in South Florida using a surgical robot. The operation was performed March 22nd at the University of Miami Hospital by Francisco Civantos, M.D., associate professor of otolaryngology and member of the Head and Neck Cancer Site Disease Group at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Giovana Thomas, M.D., associate professor of otolaryngology and member of the Head and Neck Cancer Site Disease Group at Sylvester. They were accompanied by Raymond J. Leveillee, M.D., professor of urology, who is an experienced urologic robotic surgeon. Traditional surgery for various head and neck cancers requires large incisions – extending from the lip, across the chin and to the neck before entering the mouth or throat. Numerous times surgeons need to cut through the lower jaw and move aside vital nerves to gain access to the back of the mouth and throat. By using the da Vinci® Surgical System, surgeons insert the slender instruments into the mouth to reach the base of the tongue, tonsils, and throat. "As a surgeon," says Civantos, "using a surgical robot allows for greater precision and dexterity to remove cancerous tumors from tight spaces in the mouth and throat." The University of Miami Hospital's da Vinci® System consists of robotic arms that replicate a surgeon's motions. Throughout a robot-assisted surgery, patients are positioned as they would be during laparoscopic surgery, with surgical team [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2010-04-10T10:28:38-07:00April, 2010|Oral Cancer News|

Small atypical cervical nodes detected on sonography in patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck

Source: Journal of Ultrasound in Medicine Author: Staff Probability of Metastasis Heung Cheol Kim, MD, Dae Young Yoon, MD, Suk Ki Chang, MD, Heon Han, MD, So Jung Oh, MD,Jin Hwan Kim, MD, Young-Soo Rho, MD, Hwoe Young Ahn, MD, Keon Ha Kim, MD andYoon Cheol Shin, MD Department of Radiology, Kangwon National University College of Medicine, Chuncheon, Korea (H.C.K., H.H.); Department of Radiology, Chuncheon Sacred Heart Hospital, Hallym University College of Medicine, Chuncheon, Korea (H.C.K.); Departments of Radiology (D.Y.Y., S.K.C.) and Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery (S.J.O., J.H.K., Y.-S.R., H.Y.A.), Ilsong Memorial Institute of Head and Neck Cancer, and Department of Thoracic Surgery (Y.C.S.), Kangdong Seong-Sim Hospital, Hallym University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea; and Department of Radiology, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea (K.H.K.). Address correspondence to Dae Young Yoon, MD, Department of Radiology, Ilsong Memorial Institute of Head and Neck Cancer, Kangdong Seong-Sim Hospital, Hallym University College of Medicine, 445 Gil-dong, Kangdong-gu, Seoul 134-701, Korea. E-mail: [email protected] Objective. The purpose of this study was to assess the probability of metastasis of small atypical cervical lymph nodes detected on sonography in patients with squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the head and neck. Methods. We reviewed, retrospectively and blindly, sonographic findings of 148 patients (118 men and30 women; mean age, 58.2 years) who underwent curative neck dissection. Each lymph node was classified by using a 4-point scale: 1, definitely benign; 2, indeterminate (small [short-axis diameter <10 mm for levels I and II and <7 mm for levels III–VI] atypical node); 3, definitely metastatic; and [...]

Charlotte Parker2010-04-10T10:22:24-07:00April, 2010|Oral Cancer News|

Chip checks for oral cancer. Is this the beginning of an accurate lost cost alternative?

Source: Rice University Author: Mike Williams Rice's nano-bio-chip effective in pilot study to detect premalignancies The gentle touch of a lesion on the tongue or cheek with a brush can help detect oral cancer with success rates comparable to more invasive techniques, according to preliminary studies by researchers at Rice University, the University of Texas Health Science Centers at Houston and San Antonio and the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. The test that uses Rice's diagnostic nano-bio-chip was found to be 97 percent "sensitive" and 93 percent specific in detecting which patients had malignant or premalignant lesions, results that compared well with traditional tests. The study appeared online in the journal Cancer Prevention Research. "One of the key discoveries in this paper is to show that the miniaturized, noninvasive approach produces about the same result as the pathologists do," said John McDevitt, the Brown-Wiess Professor of Chemistry and Bioengineering at Rice. His lab developed the novel nano-bio-chip technology at the university's BioScience Research Collaborative. Oral cancer afflicts more than 300,000 people a year, including 35,000 in the United States alone. The five-year survival rate is 60 percent, but if cancer is detected early, that rate rises to 90 percent. McDevitt and his team are working to create an inexpensive chip that can differentiate premalignancies from the 95 percent of lesions that will not become cancerous. The minimally invasive technique would deliver results in 15 minutes instead of several days, as lab-based diagnostics do now; and instead of an invasive, [...]

Charlotte Parker2010-04-19T22:25:12-07:00April, 2010|Oral Cancer News|

Limited mouth opening after primary treatments for head and neck cancer

Source: Stanford University Author: Weber, S Dommerich, HW Pau, and B Kramp OBJECTIVES: Patients after surgery and radiation/chemoradiation for treatment of head and neck cancer often suffer from oral complications. These problems may be caused by surgery and radiation. Patients complain, for example, of swallowing problems and limited mouth opening (trismus). METHODS: The maximal interincisal mouth opening (MIO) was measured in patients treated with surgery and radiation/chemoradiation for head and neck cancer at the Department of Otorhinolaryngology at the University of Rostock. These patients also completed a 20-item questionnaire concerning nutritional, sensual, and speech disorders and pain. RESULTS: One hundred one patients (16 female and 85 male) returned the questionnaire and were included in the study. About 50% of the patients had a limited mouth opening (<36 mm); patients with oropharyngeal cancer had a significant higher risk for trismus (p = .024) than patients with other head and neck cancers, especially compared to patients with laryngeal cancer (p = .013). The questionnaire showed that especially patients with oral cancer report about problems with opening the mouth (73%), eating (65%), drinking (73%), xerostomia (92%), speech disorders (68%), and voice (62%). Patients with laryngeal cancer only reported about problems with xerostomia (62%), speech (83%), and voice (90%), similar to patients with pharyngeal cancer. CONCLUSIONS: About half of the patients who underwent primary treatment for oral and oropharyngeal cancer developed trismus and reported about problems with opening the mouth, eating, drinking, dry mouth, voice, and speech. Trismus has a negative impact on quality [...]

Charlotte Parker2010-04-19T22:25:48-07:00April, 2010|Oral Cancer News|