Oral Cancer News – Page 325 – The Oral Cancer Foundation News Archive

SensiGen HPV assay enables major breakthrough in diagnosis and treatment of head and neck cancer

Source: www.marketwatch.com Author: press release SensiGen LLC, a privately held biotechnology company focused on developing proprietary gene-based molecular diagnostic tests announced today a new program to make the Company's AttoSense(TM) HPV assay available to head and neck cancer researchers worldwide after recent studies showed that the success or failure of various treatment options (chemotherapy, radiation, extensive surgery) are largely determined by the viral load of Human Papillomavirus (HPV) in tissue samples from patients. These studies, carried out by the Head and Neck Oncology Team at the University of Michigan and published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, demonstrate that head and neck cancer patients with higher concentrations of HPV, a virus long known to be associated with head and neck cancer, cervical cancer, and others, are much more likely to respond to organ-sparing chemotherapy than patients without high concentrations of the virus. This finding could offer significant hope for thousands of head and neck cancer patients facing uncertain and unpleasant treatments. "The data clearly show the importance of quantitative HPV testing in patients diagnosed with head and neck cancer," said Dr. Thomas Carey, leader of the University of Michigan based team that reported the breakthrough results this summer. "With the AttoSense(TM) HPV test and other biomarkers, we may soon be able to pinpoint the right therapy for each patient and maximize the chance of success on the first try, thus reducing the number of people who must endure multiple costly and uncomfortable treatments." SensiGen's AttoSense(TM) diagnostic assays are capable of [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-25T09:07:59-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Action is the key in new mouth cancer campaign

Source: www.dentistry.co.uk Author: staff Action speaks louder than words' is the message as Britain's leading oral health charity stages a November spotlight on the killer disease. Mouth Cancer Action Week takes place November 16 to 22, as the campaign organizers, the British Dental Health Foundation (BDHF), takes a new stance against the disease. The new Action Week replaces the former Mouth Cancer Awareness Week name, as the Foundation and health professionals across the land take action a disease that kills more people than cervical and testicular cancer combined. Nearly 5,000 are diagnosed with mouth cancer in annually. The Foundation's Blue Ribbon Badge campaign will continue to promote awareness by sending badges and collection boxes to dental practices, doctor's surgeries, pharmacies and health centers across the country. Badges will then be sold to the public, raising funds and promoting the campaign. A key message is retained from previous campaigns: ‘if in doubt, get checked out.' Easily recognizable symptoms and regular check ups can boost survival rates to 90% with early detection. Survival rates once mouth cancer has spread are as low as 50%. Foundation chief executive Dr Nigel Carter said: 'Our slogan – if in doubt, get checked out – reinforces our call to action. We are encouraging the public and the health profession to wear their blue ribbons with pride, and not only talk about the mouth cancer but take positive steps.' He continued: 'Action can be as simple as visiting the dentist regularly to making lifestyle choices such as [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-28T21:29:12-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Do we need more intense radiotherapy in locally advanced head and neck cancers? Results from a large randomized trial from the GORTEC

Source: www.medicalnewstoday.com Author: staff The objective of the trial was to test new therapeutic approaches in patients with locally advanced head and neck carcinomas. These cancers are generally treated with conventional radiotherapy (RT), con¬comitant with chemotherapy (CT), which is a well accepted standard therapeutic approach. The main question was whether giving more intense RT using a marked acceleration of RT was able to increase the tumour control? For this purpose, 3 regimens were compared in a large randomised trial including 840 patients with locally advanced head and neck carcinoma. The first was a very intense, accelerated RT without CT (very intense RT), the second was a combination of accelerated RT + CT (intense-RT + CT) and the last regimen was a combination of conventional RT + CT (Classical RT +CT). The distribution of the main characteristics of the patients and tumours was well balanced between the 3 treatments arms. The tolerance of the 3 different regimens was relatively close, although a trend was observed in favour of classical RT + CT. With a median follow-up of 4.6 years, no significant difference was seen between the 2 RT-CT arms in survival, tumour control and survival without disease progression. On the other hand the very intense RT was inferior to classical RT + CT in terms of survival without cancer progression. This study was the first to test whether a more intense RT can improve the outcome of patients with head and neck carcinoma, when the patients are treated with concomitant RT-CT. [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-28T21:29:33-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Concern over mouth cancer checks

Source: news.bbc.co.uk Author: staff Many dental surgeries do not routinely provide appointments within a week for patients suffering from symptoms of mouth cancer, a survey suggests. The Facial Surgery Research Foundation, Saving Faces, telephoned almost 250 NHS dental surgeries in London. Almost a third of dental receptionists did not offer a prompt consultation when given common oral cancer symptoms. The Department of Health said urgent appointments should have been given in such cases. Early diagnosis and treatment can increase a patient's chances of survival from just below 50% to around 90%. Consultant oral and maxillofacial surgeon Professor Iain Hutchison, who is chief executive of Saving Faces, says the situation must improve. "The longer you leave the cancer the greater the likelihood of it spreading which means the chances of curing it are less." New contracts New dental contracts introduced in April 2006 were intended to increase access to NHS dentists. Charges were simplified and Primary Care Trusts were given the responsibility to allocate the amount of NHS work a dentist can do. But Professor Hutchison believes the new rules may be acting as a barrier to patients getting an emergency appointment. In the survey, 6% of all the receptionists contacted told the researchers that the practice could not see any new NHS patients because they had used up the quota allocated by the PCT. Professor Hutchison said this is "a new phenomenon... and clearly an inappropriate response to someone who may have mouth cancer." Symptoms Mouth cancer kills about 1,700 [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-28T21:29:48-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

FTC warns of bogus cancer cure claims

Source: CNN Money.com WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Federal Trade Commission charged five companies with making false and misleading claims for cancer cures and said Thursday that it has reached settlements with six others. "As long as products have been sold there has been somebody out there selling snake oil to consumers," said Lydia Parnes, director of the FTC's bureau of consumer protection. She said the agency, along with the Food and Drug Administration and Canadian authorities, is launching a consumer education campaign warning about bogus claims for cures. "There is no credible scientific evidence that any of the products marketed by these companies can prevent, cure, or treat cancer of any kind," said Parnes. The products the companies marketed include essiac teas and other herbal mixtures, laetrile, black salve - a corrosive ointment - and mushroom extracts. Douglas Stearn of the FDA said his agency is concerned that people may forego effective cancer treatments when choosing these products. In addition, he said, some of these unproven products may have dangerous interactions with other drugs. "We would urge folks to talk to their doctors," said Stern. Parnes said more than 100 warning letters were sent out and many advertisers dropped or changed their claims. Of the complaints resolved by settlements, she said companies paid restitution ranging from $9,000 to $250,000. The remaining five complaints of false and deceptive advertising will go before administrative law judges, she said. Those cases are Omega Supply, San Diego, Calif.; Native Essence Herb Company, El Prado, N.M.; Daniel Chapter [...]

Webmaster2008-09-20T17:13:51-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Winnipeg schools pick religion over HPV vaccine

Source: www.canada.com/vancouversun Author: Jen Skerritt, Winnipeg Free Press At least four Winnipeg private schools have opted not to vaccinate Grade 6 girls against a sexually transmitted infection linked to cervical cancer for "religious reasons." The decision comes weeks before Manitoba Health officials roll out the controversial Gardasil vaccine in schools across the province. Dr. Carol Kurbis, medical officer of health for the Winnipeg region, confirmed public health nurses will not attend at least four city private schools to vaccinate 11 and 12-year-old girls against human papillomavirus (HPV) next month. "We don't have any ability to force them into the program and those schools have actually been co-operative in still distributing information out to parents," Kurbis said. "There's four or five, and they're relatively small schools." The province's $10.8-million HPV vaccine program is set to launch in Winnipeg schools the first week of October. Researchers still have no idea when the immunity against HPV wears off and some critics believe mass promotion could lead some women to believe they're protected against other sexually transmitted infections, like the potentially deadly HIV. Some parent groups worry the vaccine sends the wrong message and may encourage preteen girls to engage in sexual activity. Robert Praznik, director of education for the Archdiocese of Winnipeg, said he can't understand why certain schools would opt out of the vaccination program. Praznik said the Archdiocese has directed the 14 local Catholic elementary schools to leave the question of whether to vaccinate preteen girls against HPV up to parents. [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-20T08:24:06-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Storylines featuring cancer, violence and HIV among finalists for 2008 Sentinel for Health Awards

Source: Annenberg News (annenberg.usc.edu) Author: staff Hollywood, Health & Society, a joint project of the Norman Lear Center at USC Annenberg and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), announced 13 finalists for the Sentinel for Health Awards on Sept. 15. In its ninth year, the Sentinel for Health Awards recognizes exemplary achievements of television storylines that inform, educate and motivate viewers to make choices for healthier and safer lives. Six categories of storylines will be recognized – daytime drama, primetime drama, primetime comedy, primetime drama minor storyline, Spanish-language telenovela and children’s programming. The 13 finalists received the highest scores in a field of 31 eligible entries that were reviewed by topic experts at the CDC and partner organizations. Health topics addressed in the storylines include lung cancer, teen sexual health, HIV and pregnancy, drug addiction, gang violence, oral cancer, sexual abuse, and alcoholism. All finalists will be recognized in an awards ceremony followed by a panel discussion with the writers on Thursday, Oct. 2, at the Writers Guild of America, West, in Los Angeles. "We're delighted to shine a spotlight on television writers and producers who both entertain viewers and at the same time provide them with accurate information," says Martin Kaplan , holder of the Norman Lear Chair in Entertainment and director of the Lear Center. "Our hope is that the storylines we honor with this award will spur other TV writers to recognize and use responsibly the awesome power they wield." Hollywood, Health & Society works [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-20T07:52:57-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

As The World Turns cancer storyline nominated for award

Source: www.soaps.com Author: staff Congratulations to the cast and crew of As The World Turns for their nomination for a 2008 Sentinel for Health Award! The Barbara/Cancer storyline was nominated. The Sentinel for Health awards recognize television storylines, both Primetime and Daytime, that inform, educate and motivate viewers to make choices for healthier and safer lives. A panel of experts from the Centers for Disease Control, National Cancer Institute and partner organizations evaluate the nominees to develop a list of finalists. The finalists are then chosen based on entertainment value and benefit to the viewing audience. The awards are part of the Norman Lear Center, a research center which studies the impact of entertainment on society. Barbara's oral cancer storyline was actually brought about because of Colleen Zenk Pinter's (Barbara) real life battle with oral cancer. Last fall, after weeks of fans asking about the change in her speech patterns, Colleen announced that she had been battling oral cancer for months; when she was diagnosed, doctors found that she had stage two oral cancer. Colleen underwent three surgeries and actually had part of her tongue removed and reconstructed. She has been in remission for a year now. On the show, Barbara has been battling the same cancer with rounds of chemotherapy. One of her doctors recently told Babs she was responding well and she has returned to her life before the diagnosis. However, she has also been very preoccupied with Paul's money problems, Meg's current pregnancy and has been ignoring [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-20T07:35:53-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Doctors in the US and Netherlands using fast RapidArc radiotherapy technology to help fight cancer are now treating tumors of the head and neck

Source: www.earthtimes.org Author: press release Doctors at cancer treatment centers in the United States and the Netherlands are now treating head and neck cancer using RapidArc(TM) radiotherapy technology from Varian Medical Systems. RapidArc was used to deliver ultra-precise image-guided intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) significantly faster than was previously possible with conventional IMRT. The RapidArc treatment plans for these cases also did a better job of protecting surrounding normal tissues and organs. "Traditional IMRT has been a gold standard for several years in radiotherapy when it came to avoiding healthy tissue and targeting the tumor mass," said Ben Slotman, MD, PhD, professor and chairman of the Department of Radiation Oncology at the VU University Medical Center in Amsterdam, Netherlands. "We have been so satisfied with the faster treatment planning and the faster delivery with RapidArc that we plan to treat all of our head and neck IMRT candidates using this technology." Slotman and his colleagues recently treated a 46-year old male with throat cancer. "The RapidArc plan showed better and more even tumor coverage, compared with a standard 7-field IMRT plan," said Slotman. "With RapidArc, we were also able to spare more of the organs at risk than with IMRT," he added. When treating a tumor in the head or neck it is important to avoid the highly sensitive organs nearby, such as the spinal cord, eyes, brainstem, and other vital areas of the central nervous system. At the Center for Radiation Therapy of Beverly Hills, Henry Yampolsky, MD, recently used RapidArc [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-18T06:56:45-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Health scores after 1 year may predict survival in head and neck cancer patients

Source: www.eurekalert.org Author: staff Changes in patients' physical health status during the year after being diagnosed with head and neck cancer appear to predict survival at five years, according to a report in the September issue of Archives of Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. The TNM staging system for cancer (based on the tumor, involvement of lymph nodes and any distant spread) is effective in predicting whether cancer patients will die of their disease, according to background information in the article. However, it considers only factors directly related to cancer and not information about other medical conditions or the patient's overall health status. "These factors may have a meaningful effect on the management of patients with head and neck cancer from the initial assessment through treatment selection and management of complications," the authors write. Mark J. Jameson, M.D., Ph.D., then of the University of Iowa College of Medicine, Iowa City, and now of the University of Virginia Health System, Charlottesville, and colleagues studied 403 patients (64 percent men, average age 58.7) who were diagnosed with head and neck cancer between 1995 and 2005. Participants completed general physical health assessments when they were diagnosed and again three, six, nine and 12 months later and then were followed up for five years. Among all patients, scores on the health assessments decreased between diagnosis and the three-month point. Those who died during the second or third year exhibited no recovery in their scores, while those who died within the [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-16T08:43:58-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|