Oral Cancer News – Page 327 – The Oral Cancer Foundation News Archive

As head and neck cancer risks evolve, more treatment options emerge

Source: Eurakalert (www.eurakalert.org) Author: staff Advances in understanding head and neck cancer over the last decade have led to more treatment options and improved quality of life for patients, according to a review published this week in the New England Journal of Medicine. The authors are Dong M. Shin, MD, Frances Kelly Blomeyer Distinguished Professor and associate director of Emory University School of Medicine¹s Winship Cancer Institute, and Robert Haddad, MD, assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and clinical director of its Head and Neck Oncology Program. At Winship, Shin is leading a head and neck cancer drug discovery program and conducting clinical trials aimed at preventing head and neck cancers from progressing or recurring. He and his co-workers recently showed that a compound from green tea enhances the effects of a FDA-approved drug (erlotinib) against head and neck cancer cells in animals, suggesting that it could work similarly in humans. The results are published in the September issue of International Journal of Cancer. The majority of head and neck cancers arise from the soft tissues of the mouth, throat, and voice box. Symptoms can include a sore throat, difficulty swallowing, and a changing voice. Even successful treatment can result in changes in the appearance of the patient's face. However, over the last decade, techniques have been developed that allow doctors to better preserve organ function in cases of larynx or tongue cancers, Shin says. Because smoking and alcohol consumption are risk factors, most patients are middle-aged males [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-11T06:05:11-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Seven patients affected by Royal Adelaide Hospital mistake

Source: The Independent Weekly (www.independentweekly.com.au) Author: staff Seven cancer patients may have suffered due to errors with their treatment at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, a review has found. Tabling the details in the South Australian parliament today, Health Minister John Hill said the impact on the individuals concerned was considered small but real. "The consulting oncologist will be contacting these patients to ensure they continue to have ongoing checks on their future health, though the patients will not require additional treatment," Mr Hill said. Earlier this year it was revealed more than 800 patients received incorrect radiation treatments at the RAH after one of its four linear accelerators was found to be delivering a dose five per cent below the recommended level between 2004 and 2006. The government ordered a review of all treatments on the machine during that period, bringing in a cancer expert from interstate. That review found most of the patients concerned had not been affected by the error. But it found there was the possibility of a reduced survival rate for five patients suffering from high-grade brain tumours. It also revealed a head and neck cancer patient had their care compromised by two per cent and required future monitoring and ordered future monitoring for a prostate cancer patient who received radiotherapy as the only treatment for the condition. SA Health chief executive Tony Sherbon said that while the review found the majority of patients did not have their treatments compromised, some would suffer psychological distress. "Some [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-10T07:11:56-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Sentinel node concept in clinically N0 laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancer

Source: Annals of Surgical Oncology 15:2568-2575 (2008) Authors: Masayuki Tomifuji, MD et al. Background: Sentinel nodes (SNs) are the lymph nodes that directly receive lymphatic flow from a primary cancer lesion. The SN concept implies that lymphatic metastasis initially occurs at SNs. SN navigation surgery can be introduced for cancers in which the SN concept is established. In SN navigation surgery, lymph node dissection beyond SNs can be omitted if SNs are metastasis free. Although the SN concept has been investigated frequently for oral and oropharyngeal cancer, it has so far been investigated less for laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancer. In this study, we investigated whether the SN concept is applicable for laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancer. Methods: Twenty patients with T2–T4 and clinically N0 laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancer were recruited. 99mTc-phytate was injected into several sites surrounding the tumor on the day before surgery. Lymphoscintigrams were acquired from at least two different viewpoints. SNs were surveyed intraoperatively, and neck dissections including at least levels II, III, and IV were performed. Results: SNs had occult metastases in five cases. In the remaining 15 cases, neither SNs nor other lymph nodes contained metastases, consistent with the SN concept. There was one false-negative case showing delayed nodal metastasis 2 years after initial surgery. The overall accuracy of the SN concept was 95%. Conclusion: Our study shows that SN biopsy is a reliable strategy to determine correct lymph node status in N0 laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancer. SN detection was valuable in evaluating the need for [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-10T07:06:32-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Azaya Therapeutics licenses promising treatment for head and neck cancers

Source: Medical News Today (www.medicalnewstoday.com) Author: press release Azaya Therapeutics, Inc., announced that it has signed a licensing agreement to further develop a breakthrough technology that uses liposomes to deliver radiation through direct injection into head and neck tumors, shrinking the tumor, delaying recurrence and avoiding the collateral tissue damage that often accompanies all other forms of radiation therapy. The company plans to begin a phase I clinical trial in early 2010. Azaya is licensing the technology, now known as Azaya Liposomal Encapsulated Radiation Therapy (ALERT), from the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UTHSCSA). "This is a very synergistic opportunity for the university and for Azaya," said Azaya Therapeutics President and CEO Michael T. Dwyer. "They have more than 15 years of expertise working with liposomes and a patent-pending method of using them to deliver radiation to a very specific tumor location. And Azaya has a patented system for producing liposomes quickly and efficiently. Licensing this technology from UTHSCSA adds a very promising new asset to Azaya's product portfolio. This treatment potentially has broad applicability to many different cancers including those of the prostate, breast and brain. It could become quite disruptive to the current cancer treatment paradigm." Liposomes - essentially extremely small bubble-like particles made of the same material as cell membranes - were engineered decades ago for use in the pharmaceutical industry but have always been difficult to size, load and produce on a large, commercially viable scale. Azaya Therapeutics' Protein Stabilized Nanoparticle (PSNTM) [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-08T14:16:33-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Dentist who told mouth cancer victim to gargle with Listerine allowed to carry on practising

Source: Daily Mail (www.dailymail.co.uk) Author: staff A dentist who told a patient suffering from mouth cancer to gargle with Listerine will be allowed to continue in practice. Nalin Dhamecha told Robin Read, 44, there was 'nothing untoward' with the ulcer on his tongue but the plumber only had a year to live. Mrs Read said: 'If he had been referred to a specialist and diagnosed, Robin's chances would have been so much greater.' 'It may have been that the cancer would have come back after treatment but at least he would have had a longer life. That's why this is not fair.' The GDC panel decided to allow Dhamecha to continue to practice, subject to conditions, describing him as a 'dedicated and valuable member of the dental profession'. It was ruled that Dhamecha's failure to spot the sore did not contribute to Mr Read's death. Panel Chair Dr John Gibson told the dentist even if you had detected the lesion on the tongue, the outcome would have been no different. Mr Read, who has a teenage daughter, first consulted Dhamecha at the Aberdeen House Dental Practice in Surrey, on two occasions in May 2006. The plumber had been visiting the surgery near his home since he was a child and began seeing Dhamecha when the previous dentist retired. Dhamecha suggested he use Bonjela and Listerine mouthwash to ease the ulcer, and took no history of Mr Read's smoking. When his mouth had still not healed by October that year, he [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-08T11:51:22-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Erbitux aims for first-line head, neck cancer use

Source: www.reuters.com Author: Ransdell Pierson ImClone Systems Inc. on Wednesday said it had asked U.S. regulators for permission to market its Erbitux medicine as a first-line treatment for head and neck cancer. The company's flagship product, which it sells in partnership with Bristol-Myers Squibb Corp, is already approved to treat colorectal cancer and patients with head and neck cancer who previously had failed to benefit from chemotherapy. ImClone said it had asked the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to grant its marketing application a priority review, a designation that would ensure an answer from the agency within six months instead of the customary 10-month review period. The New York-based drugmaker said its application was based on successful results of a late-stage trial involving 442 patients with previously untreated head and neck cancer. The trial showed that Erbitux, when added to current standard platinum-based chemotherapy, significantly increased the overall survival time for patients. Note: 1. Reporting by Ransdell Pierson, editing by Maureen Bavdek

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-04T16:24:01-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Azaya licenses Health Science Center technology to treat cancer

Source: San Antonio Business Journal (www.bizjournals.com) Author: staff Azaya Therapeutics Inc. has licensed a technology that could be beneficial in treating head and neck cancers, the company said Wednesday. The technology involves the use of liposomes to deliver radiation into the head and neck tumors through a direct injection. Company officials say they may be able to shrink the tumor, delay recurrence and avoid collateral tissue damage that often accompanies other forms of radiation therapy. Liposomes are small, bubble-like particles that are made of the same material as cell membranes. They were engineered decades ago by the pharmaceutical industry. The company is planning to begin a phase I clinical trial in early 2010. Azaya is licensing the technology from the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. Scientists have been developing the radiation-infused liposome technology for the past six years. Azaya President and CEO Michael T. Dwyer says this is a good collaborative opportunity for the company and the university. “They have more than 15 years of expertise working with liposomes and a patent-pending method of using them to deliver radiation to a very specific tumor location,” Dwyer says. “And Azaya has a patented system for producing liposomes quickly and efficiently.” Dwyer adds that this treatment has the potential for addressing other forms of cancer as well, including prostate, breast and brain cancer. Azaya is a San Antonio-based pharmaceutical company with a novel drug delivery platform. Its proprietary Protein Stabilized Nanoparticles technology platform is designed to address the [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-03T18:54:06-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Queens County dentists to screen for oral cancer at Mets game

Source: ReadMedia Newswire (readme.readmedia.com) Author: press release Dentists from the Queens County Dental Society (QCDS) will be offering free, two-minute oral cancer screenings at Shea Stadium before and during the Mets game on Tuesday, September 9, 2008. Screening stations will be set up on all levels of the stadium and will offer health care information as well as a drawing for free prizes, including a David Wright Mets jersey for those who are screened. "Screenings for oral cancer are quick, painless and can save lives," says Dr. Stuart Kesner, chairman of the event. "Early diagnosis is the key to surviving this disease," adds Dr, Kesner who notes that oral cancer currently kills more than 7,000 Americans each year and, if caught early, can be prevented. He thanks the Mets organization for the opportunity to partner with them in bringing this public health service to the team's fans. In recognition of the event, Dr. Kesner and Dr. Viren Jhaveri, President of QCDS, will be presented with a "Spirit Award" from the New York Mets prior to the game. Dr. Mark Feldman, President of the American Dental Association, Dr. Stephen Gold, President of the New York State Dental Association and the Honorable Jose Peralta, New York State Assemblyman, will be in attendance during the award ceremony. The Queens County Dental Society is a not-for-profit chapter of the American Dental Association, comprised of more than 1,000 members dedicated to promoting good oral health and oral cancer awareness throughout the community. This event is [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-03T18:49:46-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

CU finds supplement could help treat some cancers

Source: cbs4denver.com Author: Libby Smith Researchers in Colorado have found that a natural supplement called Resveratrol may help in treating certain cancers. Many people swear by Resveratrol because it's been shown to have anti-aging benefits and prevent cancer in some animals. Now local researchers are finding that Resveratrol may make radiation more effective in treating head and neck cancers. The study is currently in the lab at the University of Colorado Cancer Center, but researchers are hoping to eventually try their therapy on humans. "What we're trying to do is exploit what we know about Resveratrol to use in therapy," said Dr. Robert Sclafani, Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics. " Sclafani and Dr. David Raben, a radiation oncologist, are working together studying head and neck cancer cells grown in the laboratory and treating them with Resveratrol. "This compound or these types of compounds seem to have a lot of activity in stopping head and neck cancer cells from growing," Raben said. They've found Resveratrol fools the cancer cells into thinking their DNA has been damaged, much like radiation, but without damaging normal cells. By treating cancer with both Resveratrol and radiation, the radiation may be more effective and have fewer side effects. "It fools cancer cells into thinking that its DNA has been damaged very much like radiation does but without the toxicity," Sclafani said. "One of the other areas interesting about this particular compound is that we may even be able to prevent secondary head and neck cancers [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-03T06:48:38-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Study says smoking may hurt women more than men

Source: apnews.myway.com Author: Maria Cheng Women who smoke may develop heart disease at almost the same age as male smokers, wiping out the natural difference between the sexes, doctors said Tuesday. In research presented to the European Society of Cardiology, Norwegian researchers said that women who smoke have heart attacks nearly 14 years earlier than women who don't smoke. For men, the figure is about six years. "This is not a minor difference," said Dr. Silvia Priori, a cardiologist at the Scientific Institute in Pavia, Italy. "Women need to realize they are losing much more than men when they smoke," she said. Priori was not connected to the research. Dr. Morten Grundtvig and colleagues from the Innlandet Hospital Trust in Lillehammer, Norway, looked at data from 1,784 patients admitted for a first heart attack at a hospital in Lillehammer. They found that the men on average had their first heart attack at age 72 if they didn't smoke, and at 64 if they did. The women had their first heart attack at age 81 if they didn't smoke, and at age 66 if they did. After adjusting for other heart risk factors like blood pressure, cholesterol and diabetes, researchers found that the difference for women was 14 years and for men was six years. Previous studies looking at whether there is a difference between the genders in the risks of smoking have been inconclusive. Doctors have long suspected that female hormones protect women against heart disease. Estrogen is thought to [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-02T08:20:07-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|