Oral Cancer News – Page 30 – The Oral Cancer Foundation News Archive

UAB adds personalized touch to cancer treatment with adaptive radiation

Source: www.uab.edu Author: Bob Shepard They are calling it radiation oncology’s contribution to personalized medicine. — called by some the holy grail of radiation therapy — has come to the University of Alabama at Birmingham O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center in the form of the newest radiation delivering tool, a system called Ethos from Varian. Simply put, a linear accelerator is the machine that is used to deliver radiation therapy to destroy a tumor. In standard radiation therapy, the medical team uses sophisticated imaging to pinpoint the location of a tumor, then develops a precise approach to target that tumor with radiation. “Patients typically get a CT scan so the radiation team can map out their strategy, a process that can take one to two weeks,” said Dennis Stanley, Ph.D., an assistant professor and medical physicist in the UAB Department of Radiation Oncology. “Then, most patients get radiation for around six weeks, usually five days a week.” But in that time from initial CT screening to the end of treatment, things can change. “A patient’s anatomy can change over this time period,” Stanley said. “Weight gain or loss, shifting of tissues following eating and drinking. Anatomy can change as quickly as day-to-day.” Adaptive therapy simply means the radiation plan can adapt to those changes. The Ethos system is the first machine that can quickly scan a patient while they are on the treatment table prepping for their next treatment, and allow for fine-tuning of the already established treatment plan. Instead of [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2021-08-15T05:28:02-07:00August, 2021|Oral Cancer News|

The British start-up that’s given Val Kilmer his voice back

Source: www.dailymail.co.uk Author: Jonathan Chadwick for MailOnLine A British artificial intelligence (AI) company has recreated Hollywood actor Val Kilmer's voice – with amazingly realistic results. London-based firm Sonantic used the actor's voice recordings from throughout his career, which were fed to their AI to create the lifelike yet artificial mock-up. Film producers could potentially use the tool – described as 'Photoshop for voice' – for voiceovers if they have a role in mind that would be suited to Kilmer's tones. Kilmer, whose career has spanned nearly four decades, has starred in blockbusters such as Top Gun, Willow, The Doors, Tombstone and Batman Forever. But after undergoing a tracheotomy in 2014 as part of his treatment for throat cancer, Kilmer's voice is now barely recognisable. Val Kilmer, pictured here in 2019, underwent a tracheotomy in 2014 as part of his treatment for throat cancer and now speaks with a voice box. Getty Images Luckily, Kilmer himself is also able to use the AI tool in his personal life, to help him communicate, rather than relying on a voice box to speak. The artificial voice, which speaks in the first person as Kilmer in Sonantic's video, could easily be mistaken for the real thing. Praising the results, the real Val Kilmer said: 'I’m grateful to the entire team at Sonantic who masterfully restored my voice in a way I’ve never imagined possible. As human beings, the ability to communicate is the core of our existence and the effects from throat [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2021-08-15T05:19:41-07:00August, 2021|Oral Cancer News|

Study explores the effect of graphic warning labels on cigarette packaging among US smokers

Source: www.news-medical.net Author: Reviewed by Emily Henderson, B.Sc Purchase a pack of cigarettes in Australia and be prepared to be accosted with graphic warning labels depicting the dangers of tobacco use - including images of gangrene of the foot, a newborn with a breathing tube and throat cancer. "Graphic warning labels are used in more than 120 countries to counter marketing that promotes cigarette smoking. We wanted to know what effect such cigarette packaging would have on United States smokers," said David Strong, professor at the Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science at University of California San Diego. Graphic warning labels were mandated by the United States Congress in 2009 but implementation has been stopped pending the outcome of legal challenges to the law by the tobacco industry. In a paper published online in JAMA Network Open on Aug. 4, 2021, Strong and colleagues at UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center, California State University San Marcos, San Diego County Public Health Services, and San Diego State University, demonstrated that graphic warning labels are effective reminders of the negative health consequences of smoking. "Graphic warning labels caused daily smokers in the United States to perceive cigarettes to be less positive and it increased their concerns about the health effects of smoking on both themselves and their loved ones," said corresponding-author John P. Pierce, Distinguished Professor at the Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health. The study manufactured special cigarette packs that incorporated the graphic warning labels used on [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2021-08-07T05:25:01-07:00August, 2021|Oral Cancer News|

Val Kilmer’s kids describe watching their father battle throat cancer in ‘Val’: ‘It’s incredibly difficult’

Source: www.yahoo.com Author: Ethan Alter·Senior Writer, Yahoo Entertainment It's not easy for any child to watch their parent battle a serious illness. But it can be an even bigger challenge when that parent is also a public figure with an innately curious fanbase. That's the situation that Jack and Mercedes Kilmer have lived with for the past few years as their father — Top Gun star Val Kilmer — has waged a public and private battle with throat cancer. Kilmer's health struggles, which have affected his ability to speak, are put on full view in the highly personal new documentary Val, premiering on Aug. 6 on Prime Video. His adult children associate produced and appear extensively in the film, which includes footage of the actor at some of the lowest moments in his illness. "It's incredibly difficult," Mercedes Kilmer tells Yahoo Entertainment about watching her father in those moments. "Especially for him because his work is his voice. [Because of] his training as an actor... he has such a natural faculty for speech, and I don't think he honestly would have survived... were it not for his dedication to developing that muscle of his voice." Since Kilmer now speaks with the aid of a voice box following his recent tracheotomy, Jack Kilmer acts as his father's voice in Val. The younger Kilmer narrates his dad's life story as it plays out via home movies shot by Kilmer on his various movie sets, alongside new footage filmed by directors Leo Scott [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2021-08-07T05:06:29-07:00August, 2021|Oral Cancer News|

Natick company develops test to detect head and neck cancer that could lead to earlier diagnosis

Source: www.bostonherald.com Author: Alexi Cohan A saliva-based diagnostic test that can detect HPV-related head and neck cancer has the potential to catch the disease earlier and even serve as a standard screening method, which the medical community currently lacks. Oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma, a cancer caused by human papillomavirus that develops in the mouth and throat, is expected to cause more than 10,000 deaths this year, according to the American Cancer Society. Cases have been increasing significantly in men in recent years. But there is no screening method for this cancer right now, said Charlotte Kuperwasser, chief of clinical operations at Natick-based diagnostics company Naveris. She said most men who contract it will notice a lump in their throat and go to the doctor. But by that time, the cancer could be quite advanced. The new saliva test developed by Naveris has been shown to detect HPV-associated head and neck cancer with high accuracy, which is a first-of-its-kind study result and could offer a patient-friendly way to catch the cancer early. “Saliva is actually a very easy source, very non-invasive. It doesn’t require a medical professional to collect, it could even be done at home so there’s a lot of advantages to saliva,” Kupperwasser told the Herald. Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis used the test to successfully analyze saliva for HPV genomes that are specific for DNA released from cancerous tumors. The study results highlighted the potential to use the test to catch the cancer [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2021-07-31T18:27:46-07:00July, 2021|Oral Cancer News|

How a microscopic fungus could lead to a breakthrough in oral cancer research

Source: www.newswise.com Author: Case Western Reserve University Microscopic fungus may have more to do with oral cancer and aging than first thought, according to new research from Case Western Reserve University. Researchers from the School of Dental Medicine, Case Comprehensive Cancer Center and School of Medicine are hoping a new study could lead to a medical breakthrough in understanding certain types of oral cancer. Pushpa Pandiyan, an associate professor of biological sciences at the dental school, led a team of local researchers studying the function of specific T cells, known as Tregs, during the development of oral cancer in aging mucosa, the moist inner lining of some organs and body cavities, such as the nose, mouth and lungs. “We think this is the beginning of something important and monumental,” she said. Their findings recently appeared in Frontiers in Oncology. Pandiyan and the researchers examined the role of dectin-1—a cell’s pattern-recognition and immune receptor—and its ability to trigger an inflammatory response that resists fungal infection. Dectin-1 is among the fungi receptors that expresses on a host cell. Typically, human white blood cells have regulatory (Tregs) and myeloid derived suppressor cells, which curb the immune responses of cancer-fighting immune cells. Problems occur, Pandiyan said, when these cells accumulate during tumor growth. “What we’re finding now is that the dectin-1 receptor, usually responsible for anti-fungal immunity, is now responsible for accumulation of these cells at excessive levels in tumors,” she said. Researchers point out that the culprit is likely the result of immune [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2021-07-29T05:46:27-07:00July, 2021|Oral Cancer News|

Suicide incidence and risk among patients with head and neck cancer in rural vs urban areas

Source: www.2minutemedicine.com Author: Davy Lau and Alex Chan Survivors of head and neck cancer (HNC) from rural American counties had double the rate of suicides compared to HNC survivors from metropolitan and urban counties. Evidence Rating Level: 2 (Good) Suicide has been in the top 10 leading causes of death in the United States since 2008. As well, the suicide rate is twice greater among cancer survivors, and 4 times as great with head and neck cancer (HNC) survivors. There is currently not much information on how living in an urban or rural setting may affect suicide rates for HNC survivors. This data is imperative due to the fact that cancer survival is lower in rural areas, and there is less access to cancer and mental health services rurally. The current study compared the incidence of suicide across metropolitan, urban, and rural counties for 134,510 HNC patients in the USA, from the years 2000 to 2016. Rural counties were defined as those with a population of less than 2500 people. The study found that In metropolitan counties, there were 59.2 suicides per 100,000 person-years; in urban counties, there were 64.0 per 100,000 person-years; and in rural counties, there were 126.7 per 100,000 person-years. Through cumulative incidence analyses, rural patients had the greatest incidence of suicide. Compared to those in rural counties, urban and metropolitan counties had around 50% the suicide risk (hazards ratio 0.51, 95% CI 0.28-0.92 and HR 0.48, 95% CI 0.28-0.82 respectively). Overall, this study underlies the need [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2021-07-29T05:28:25-07:00July, 2021|Oral Cancer News|

Giving hope: research on rare head and neck cancer treatment options

Source: www.curetoday.com Author: Antonia DePace Findings from a phase 3 clinical trial demonstrated improved tumor shrinkage rates with the immune checkpoint inhibitor toripalimab and a first-line chemotherapy combination for nasopharyngeal carcinoma, a tumor that occurs in the nasopharynx (located behind the nose and above the back of the throat). The promising results may open the door to new clinical trials assessing triplet therapies with Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved drugs and provide hope for better treatment options for this patient population. Results from the JUPITER-02 trial were presented at the 2021 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting. In 2020, toripalimab received a breakthrough-therapy designation (approval to expedite drug development) for metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Of note, toripalimab is approved in China for several indications, but it is not FDA approved. Currently, the worldwide standard of care for these patients is first-line chemotherapy with gemcitabine and cisplatin. “By adding immunotherapy to the combination, we hope to improve survival and increase the time from starting therapy to progression of the cancer,” said Dr. Glenn Hanna, director of the Center for Salivary and Rare Head and Neck Cancers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, in response to the trial results. “If the triplet (therapy) has better rates of tumor shrinkage and prolongs survival with a reasonable side effect profile, that’s a win.” The possible addition of a novel regimen is exciting. “Treatment advances for late-stage nasopharyngeal carcinoma have lagged behind those of other cancers,” Dr. Julie R. Gralow, ASCO chief medical officer [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2021-07-27T19:03:49-07:00July, 2021|Oral Cancer News|

Calls grow for treatment deintensification of HPV-positive OPC

Source: ww.pharmacytimes.com Author: Bryan Fitzgerald, PharmD, BCOP Health-System Edition, July 2021, Volume 10, Issue 4 Oropharyngeal cancer (OPC) is a type of head and neck cancer that affects structures in the back of the throat, including the base of the tongue, the posterior pharynx, the soft palate, and the tonsils.1 In the United States, rates of OPC are increasing each year, with an estimated 54,010 new cases in 2021.2 Well-established risk factors include alcohol abuse; exposure to tobacco, including chewing tobacco, cigarettes, and pipes; and infection with human papillomavirus (HPV). With an estimated 43 million infections in 2018, HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection in the United States.3 HPV infection is causally linked with cancers of the anogenital region, including anal, cervical, penile, vaginal, and vulvar cancers. When HPV is spread orally, infections can also lead to the development of OPC. In the United States, more than 70% of OPC cases are caused by HPV.4 HPV is a group of more than 100 viruses, including certain high-risk strains associated with the development of cancer. The HPV-16 strain is responsible for causing the majority of HPV-positive (HPV+) OPC cases, with HPV-18, HPV-33, and HPV-35 also contributing, albeit significantly less than HPV-16.1 In these high-risk HPV strains, the viral genome encodes several oncogenic proteins that inhibit tumor suppressor proteins, leading to chromosomal instability and malignancy in infected cells. HPV+ OPC is considered a genetically distinct form of OPC. Compared with HPV-negative (HPC–) OPC cases, HPV+ OPC is associated with a [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2021-07-21T10:05:34-07:00July, 2021|Oral Cancer News|

Shades of Big Tobacco: How (and why) Juul bought an entire issue of a scientific journal

Source: Salon Date: July 20th, 2021 Author: Jon Skolnik Facing the imminent threat of corporate death, the embattled e-cigarette maker Juul is pulling out all the stops in its fight to convince the Food and Drug Administration that its vaping products are more beneficial than harmful. If that sounds like a stretch, it probably is. Last month, Juul settled a $40 million lawsuit that accused the company of luring in teens to use its flavored vape products, allowing Juul to avoid the potential PR nightmare of a widely covered jury trial. Juul has also spent tens of millions in federal lobbying efforts over the past several years, presumably in an effort to block comprehensive regulations on the sale of e-cigarettes. But the most bizarre Juul news came two weeks ago, when the New York Times reported that the company had funded an entire issue of a scientific journal, in which every article presented evidence that vaping is a beneficial harm-reduction practice that can wean smokers off tobacco cigarettes. Last month, the American Journal of Health and Behavior (AJHB), a 44-year-old academic journal that has published many nationally recognized scholars, released a special edition specifically devoted to the question of whether e-cigarettes are harmful or helpful. The 219-page issue is unusual not just by virtue of its niche subject matter — e-cigarettes are a relatively new phenomenon in the field of health behavior — but also because its publication was bankrolled entirely by one source: Juul Labs. This fraught episode comes at an exceptionally tumultuous time for the vape maker. In early 2019, Juul, a company founded just four [...]

Charlotte Parker2021-07-20T13:15:56-07:00July, 2021|Oral Cancer News|