5/24/2008 New York City, NY Tara Parker-Pope New York Times (nytimes.com) Hamilton Jordan, the former White House chief of staff for President Jimmy Carter, was a well-known force in the health community. During the past 24 years he battled four different forms of cancer and urged cancer patients to empower themselves with information. After bouts with non-Hodgkins lymphoma, prostate cancer and skin cancer, Mr. Jordan, 63, yesterday died as a result of mesothelioma, another form of cancer. Mr. Jordan often speculated that his lymphoma may have resulted from exposure to the chemical Agent Orange while serving as a volunteer during the Vietnam War. Mesothelioma also has been linked to the chemical. In his 2001 memoir, “No Such Thing as a Bad Day,'’ Mr. Jordan outlined his “Top 10 Tips for Cancer Patients.'’ He spoke about them during this undated interview with WebMD. Here they are: No. 1: Be an active partner in the medical decisions that are made about your life. Don’t be passive. Learn about your disease, and participate in the decisions that are made….For example with my lymphoma, if I would have accepted the first treatment offered, I’d be dead today. It was assumed that I only had a mass in my chest. I later learned that the lymphoma was all through my body. No. 2: Seek and know the truth about your illness, and prognosis. If you don’t have the facts, and don’t know the truth, you won’t make good decisions. It takes courage to ask questions [...]

5/23/2008 Ketchum, ID staff CancerConsultants.com Three recent publications have suggested an association between periodontal disease and/or tooth loss and an increased risk of developing cancer. There are many factors associated with an increased or decreased risk of developing various types of cancer. Until recently there had been few studies looking at the association between periodontal disease and/or tooth loss and the risk of developing various types of cancer. However, periodontal disease and/or tooth loss has been the subject of several recent studies; three of these studies are summarized here. Japanese researchers have reported that there is a significant association between tooth loss and risk of cancers of the head and neck, esophagus, and lung. The details of this study were published in the May 1, 2008 issue of Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention.1 They looked at 5,240 patients with cancer and 10,480 control patients without cancer. They categorized patients into four groups based on the number of remaining teeth. They found that a decreased number of remaining teeth was associated with a 68% increased risk of head and neck cancer and a more than double increase in the risk of esophageal and lung cancer. Researchers from the Imperial College London and Harvard School of Public Health have reported that periodontal disease was associated with an increase in overall cancer risk in never smokers.2 This study looked at 48,375 male health professionals with a follow-up of over 17 years. There were 5,720 persons with cancer, excluding non-melanoma skin cancer and non-aggressive [...]

5/23/2008 Buffalo, NY Lois Baker Univ. of Buffalo Reporter (www.buffalo.edu/reporter) Persons with periodontitis who also are infected with human papillomavirus (HPV) are at increased risk of developing tongue cancer, new research conducted at the School of Dental Medicine has shown. Periodontitis is a chronic inflammatory disease that destroys connective tissue and bone supporting the teeth. It has been associated with various systemic diseases, including diabetes and heart disease. Researchers from UB and Roswell Park Cancer Institute published the first study showing an association between long-standing periodontitis and risk of tongue cancer in the May 2007 issue of Archives of Otolaryngology—Head and Neck Surgery. Studies conducted elsewhere have found that HPV is an independent risk factor for a subset of head and neck cancers. The UB researchers now have shown that the two infections appear to work in tandem to boost the chances of developing tongue cancer. Mine Tezal, assistant professor in the Department of Oral Diagnostic Sciences, UB dental school, and research scientist at Roswell Park Cancer Institute, presented results of this research recently at the 2008 American Association of Dental research meeting. “Evidence of periodontitis-HPV synergy has important practical implications,” said Tezal, “because there is a safe treatment for periodontitis, but no treatment for HPV infection. If these results are confirmed by other studies, this has a tremendous relevance in predicting and intervening in the initiation and prognosis of HPV-related diseases, including head and neck cancers.” The study involved 30 patients newly diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma on the [...]

5/22/2008 Chicago, IL Brian Boyer Medill Reports (news.medill.northwestern.edu) Men are neither vaccinated nor screened for human papillomavirus, but two university studies suggested last week that it may be the cause of cancer for many men, and that those cancers could have been prevented. The virus, better known as HPV, is the primary cause of cervical cancer in women. Recent research, at the University of Michigan and University of Louisville, suggests that it is also the cause of a disease that disproportionately affects men, cancers of the head and neck. "You should be testing everybody," said Payal Desai, leader of a pilot study at the Louisville's James Graham Brown Cancer Center. Both men and women carry HPV, the virus that will affect at least 50 percent of sexually active people, according to the Food and Drug Administration, though only a fraction of those will develop cancer. More than 35,000 new cases of head and neck cancer are expected to be diagnosed in the United States in 2008, according to the American Cancer Society. Twice as many men as women will develop the disease, which the society estimates will kill 7,590 Americans this year. Currently a screening test only exists for women. Similarly, a vaccine for HPV exists, but is only approved for use in women ages 9 to 26. Studies are under way to test the efficacy of the HPV vaccine in men, according to the FDA. If the vaccine were successful in preventing HPV infections in men, the studies suggest [...]

5/22/2008 Omaha, NE Peter M Crosta MedicalNewsToday.com According to a study published in the May issue of Archives of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, patients may be able to prevent depression during therapy if they begin a regimen of the antidepressant citalopram prior to beginning head and neck cancer (HNC) treatment. Providing background information, the authors note that, "Treatment for head and neck cancer can be arduous and debilitating." They add that, "Psychiatric morbidity in these patients is frequent and underdiagnosed. Major depressive disorder has been reported in up to 40 percent of patients with head and neck cancer, typically within the first three months of diagnosis." To determine the link between treatment with the antidepressant citalopram hydrobromide and major depressive disorder in patients undergoing therapy for HNC, William M. Lydiatt, M.D. (University of Nebraska Medical Center and Nebraska Methodist Hospital, Omaha) and colleagues conducted a randomized clinical trial. During randomization, 15 participants were placed in a group that received 40 milligrams per day of the antidepressant citalopram and 13 were assigned to take placebo. During the 12 weeks that the patients took these medications, they underwent HNC treatment; every four weeks, the patients received a depression screening. After 12 weeks, 22 patients were assessed. Four weeks after stopping the medication, 23 patients finished a final study visit. The researchers found that, "The numbers of subjects who met predefined cutoff criteria for depression during the 12 weeks of active study were five of 10 (50 percent) taking placebo and two of [...]

5/22/2008 New York City, NY John Pohl Oral Cancer Foundation - Past Events NYU Dental Students Show They Have a Lot to Teach About Giving Back The Oral Cancer Foundation recently honored the two student co-chairs of Oral Cancer Walk 2008, an awareness-building and fund-raising event coordinated by the New York University Dental School’s chapter of SNDA (Student National Dental Association). The two honorees are fourth-year student Marcus Johnson and third-year student Dmitry Baron. Marcus and Dmitry both worked on the 2006 and 2007 events and, despite extremely busy schedules, enthusiastically embraced the challenge of running this year’s event. Oral Cancer Walk 2008 took place the morning of Saturday, April 19 in Harlem’s Marcus Garvey Park, drew over 900 walkers, and raised over $30,000 to support the cause of the early detection of oral cancer. Funds raised through the event sponsor the work of The Oral Cancer Foundation. The event also featured free oral cancer, blood pressure, and cholesterol screenings in conjunction with the Harlem Hospital, speeches from oral cancer survivors, and musical entertainment both before and after the walk. Dr. Jocelyn Jeffries, the chair of Oral Cancer Walk 2007, attended the event and lent her moral support to the new event leadership. “For Marcus and Dmitry to find the time to coordinate such a significant event while tending to their dental school studies represents a tremendous sacrifice,” said Brian Hill, Founder and Executive Director of the Oral Cancer Foundation, which again was both one of the event’s sponsors, and [...]

5/22/2008 Soweto, South Africa Zinhle Mapumulo Sowetan (www.sowetan.co.za) The virtues of eating avocado pears have long been encouraged, but new research has shown that this super food could actually help prevent oral and prostate cancer. A study conducted at Ohio State University in the United States has found that the phytochemicals in the fruit are able to kill certain types of cancer cells and may even prevent some precancerous cells from developing. Dietician Jane Badham said the study was one of the first-ever research linking avocados with oral cancer, and the possible prevention of it. “Scientists found that phytochemicals extracted from avocados target multiple signalling pathways and increase the amount of reactive oxygen within the cells, leading to cell death in pre-cancerous cell lines. The phytochemicals did not, however, harm normal cells,” Badham said. She said more research was still necessary. This is an average of 1400 new cases of oral cancer every year, according to the South African National Cancer Registry. But experts agree that the incidence is probably much higher. Three-quarters of oral cancer patients are males. The Ohio study follows research done in 2005 at the University of California, Los Angeles, (UCLA), where scientists noted that avocados may inhibit prostate cancer. Badham said: “What was most exciting about the UCLA research is how carotenoids, vitamins and other phytochemicals in avocados may have a synergistic effect against prostate cancer.”

5/21/2008 Rochester, NY staff Biocompare.com By inducing a specific gene to increase expression of a key enzyme, vitamin D protects healthy prostate cells from the damage and injuries that can lead to cancer, University of Rochester Medical Center researchers report. “Many epidemiological studies have suggested the beneficial properties of vitamin D,” said Yi-Fen Lee, associate professor of urology at the Medical Center who led the research. “Our findings reflect what we see in those studies and demonstrate that vitamin D not only can be used as a therapy for prostate cancer, it can prevent prostate cancer from happening.” The International Journal of Cancer published the findings in its June 15 issue. Lee and her research team discovered one mechanism involving vitamin D that protects cells from oxidative stress. The vitamin D used in the study is 1,25-hydroxylvitamin D3, the most potent and active form of vitamin D in the human body. Nonmalignant human prostate epithelial cells also were used. Normal metabolism in cells generates reactive oxygen species (ROS), molecules of peroxide, for example, or so-called free radicals. These substances can play a role in cell signaling and even kill bacteria. Exposure to some chemicals or forms of radiation can produce high levels of ROS that can damage DNA and play a significant role in speeding aging or causing cancer. Lee found that vitamin D links with a gene known as G6PD, increasing its activity and the production of an enzyme called glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase. Increased activity of the enzyme clears cells [...]

5/21/2008 web-based article staff HemOncToday.com Induction chemotherapy as a selection method for concurrent chemoradiotherapy was found to be an effective treatment method for advanced oropharyngeal cancer, and better response to the treatment was associated with the presence of human papilloma virus. Previous research into the increasing incidence of oral/oropharyngeal tumors has indicated HPV as an etiologic factor. Although some reports suggest that HPV-positive individuals with these tumors have better outcomes, the reports have not been unanimous. Researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center in Ann Arbor tested the efficacy of induction chemotherapy followed by concurrent chemoradiotherapy or surgery/radiotherapy and assessed the effect of HPV on response and outcome. Study design The study included 66 patients (51 men) with stage III to IV squamous cell carcinoma of the oropharynx. Patients were treated with one cycle of cisplatin (100 mg/m2) or carboplatin (AUC 6) as well as 5-fluorouracil (1,000 mg/m2 per day for five days). This regimen was used as a selection method for those eligible for chemoradiotherapy: patients who achieved a greater than 50% response at the primary tumor received chemoradiotherapy. Patients with a complete histologic response were given adjuvant paclitaxel. Pretreatment biopsies of 42 patients were tested for high-risk HPV. Fifty-four of the 66 patients (81%) achieved the 50% response rate and 53 of these patients received chemoradiotherapy. Among those 53 patients, 49 (92%) achieved a complete histologic response with a 73.4% rate of organ preservation. The four-year overall survival rate was 70.4% with a disease-specific survival rate [...]

5/21/2008 Robert Langreth Forbes.com ImClone Systems' breakthrough colon cancer drug Erbitux has become a billion-dollar best seller as a one-size-fits-all drug for patients who have failed treatment with chemotherapy. But emerging new gene findings indicate that the high-priced drug may be useless in nearly half of colon cancer patients--and that a simple gene test could allow doctors to predict in advance which patients are likely to benefit. The drug, co-marketed by ImClone and Bristol-Myers Squibb, costs $38,000 for a four-month course of treatment. The result is one of the first examples of personalized medicine in colon cancer. It helps explain why tumors shrink dramatically in a minority of patients who get the drug while most others get little benefit. The new gene test could allow doctors to give the drug only to patients who are likely to benefit, and avoid those who are likely to just get side effects. Side effects of the drug include skin rashes and infections in the fingers and toes. A series of studies published over the last several months indicate that about 35% to as much as 45% of colon patients probably should not be taking Erbitux or a similar drug from Amgen called Vectibix. These patients have tumors with a mutation in a growth-promoting gene called kras that may render the drugs ineffective. Erbitux and Vectibix are antibodies that bind to receptors on the cell surface called EGF and blocks signals that turn kras on. But the mutations apparently cause kras to become permanently [...]