alcohol – Page 22 – Oral Cancer News

Interaction between tobacco and alcohol use and the risk of head and neck cancer: pooled analysis in the international head and neck cancer epidemiology consortium

Source: Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers & Prevention, 10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-08-0347 Authors: Mia Hashibe et al. Background: The magnitude of risk conferred by the interaction between tobacco and alcohol use on the risk of head and neck cancers is not clear because studies have used various methods to quantify the excess head and neck cancer burden. Methods: We analyzed individual-level pooled data from 17 European and American case-control studies (11,221 cases and 16,168 controls) participating in the International Head and Neck Cancer Epidemiology consortium. We estimated the multiplicative interaction parameter ({psi}) and population attributable risks (PAR). Results: A greater than multiplicative joint effect between ever tobacco and alcohol use was observed for head and neck cancer risk ({psi} = 2.15; 95% confidence interval, 1.53-3.04). The PAR for tobacco or alcohol was 72% (95% confidence interval, 61-79%) for head and neck cancer, of which 4% was due to alcohol alone, 33% was due to tobacco alone, and 35% was due to tobacco and alcohol combined. The total PAR differed by subsite (64% for oral cavity cancer, 72% for pharyngeal cancer, 89% for laryngeal cancer), by sex (74% for men, 57% for women), by age (33% for cases <45 years, 73% for cases >60 years), and by region (84% in Europe, 51% in North America, 83% in Latin America). Conclusions: Our results confirm that the joint effect between tobacco and alcohol use is greater than multiplicative on head and neck cancer risk. However, a substantial proportion of head and neck cancers cannot be attributed to tobacco [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-02-04T08:54:19-07:00February, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Variations in gene DNA boost drinkers’ cancer risk

Source: www.washingtonpost.com Author: staff Variations in the DNA of certain genes can increase the risk of cancer in people who drink alcohol, according to researchers who reviewed studies on alcohol consumption, genetic polymorphisms and cancer. Their analysis suggests that such variations, called gene polymorphisms, in two enzymes -- alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) and aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) -- involved in metabolizing alcohol significantly increase alcohol drinkers' risk of cancers of the head and neck and the esophagus. The researchers looked at the effect of gene variations in other enzymes involved in alcohol and folate metabolism but found there wasn't enough data to fully assess the effect of those gene variants on cancer risk. They said that currently available data does not allow for a quantitative evaluation by meta-analysis of the link between gene variations and cancer risk in people who drink alcohol. "We have highlighted the need for large, multicenter studies and for approaches to the study of multiple polymorphisms," wrote Dr. Nathalie Druesne-Pecollo and colleagues at the French National Institute of Agronomical Research. The review was published in the February issue of the The Lancet Oncology. Previous research has shown a clear link between alcohol consumption and health risk, according to background information in the review. Recent figures show that drinking alcohol was a major contributing factor in the development of almost 400,000 cancers worldwide in 2002. In that same year, 323,900 cancer deaths (3.6 percent of all cancer deaths) were alcohol-related. Source: The Lancet Oncology, news release, Jan. 30, 2009

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-02-01T07:18:31-07:00February, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Mouthwash cancer link questioned

Source: www.bupa.co.uk/health_information Author: staff Mouthwashes that contain alcohol should only be available on prescription from a dentist because of a possible link with oral cancer, according to researchers in Australia. Professor Michael McCullough and Dr Camile Farah looked at previous research to see whether using mouthwashes containing alcohol is linked to oral (mouth) cancer. The review highlights the fact that certain mouthwashes contain more alcohol than some alcoholic drinks. Drinking alcohol is one of the main risk factors for oral cancer, along with smoking. Smoking and drinking together increase the risk even further. The researchers recommend that mouthwashes that contain alcohol should only be available on prescription from a dentist, and should only be used for short periods of time to treat specific conditions. However, Dr Nigel Carter, Chief Executive of the British Dental Health Foundation, told the health information team: "The public can continue to use alcohol-containing mouthwashes with the utmost confidence. There is absolutely no proven link with mouth cancer. This is a poor piece of research and has led to unnecessary scaremongering." One of the studies that the researchers looked at showed that mouthwash users were more likely to develop oral cancer, even if they didn't smoke or drink. However, this study was carried out in Latin America where mouthwash isn't routinely used. Those who used it may have been trying to treat problems caused by poor oral hygiene. It may have been this poor hygiene, rather than the mouthwash use, that increased the risk of oral [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-01-16T13:37:50-07:00January, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Using mouthwash could increase risk of cancer by nine times, claim scientists

Source: news.scotsman.com Author: Shan Ross Mouthwashes containing alcohol can cause oral cancer and should be removed from supermarket shelves, a dental health study claims. Scientists say there is now "sufficient evidence" that such mouthwashes contribute to an increased risk of the disease. The ethanol in mouthwash is thought to allow cancer-causing substances to permeate the lining of the mouth. Michael McCullough, associate professor of oral medicine at the University of Melbourne, Australia, who led the study, said: "We see people with oral cancer who have no other risk factors than the use of (mouthwash containing alcohol], so what we've done is review all the evidence. "Since this article, further evidence has come out, too. We believe there should be warnings. If it was a facial cream that had the effect of reducing acne but had a four to fivefold increased risk of skin cancer, no-one would be recommending it." Professor McCullough, chair of the Australian Dental Association's therapeutics committee, said the alcohol in mouthwashes "increases the permeability" of the mucus membrane to other carcinogens, such as nicotine. A toxic breakdown product of alcohol called acetaldehyde that may accumulate in the oral cavity when swished around the mouth is also a "known human carcinogen," he said. Top-selling mouthwashes contain as much as 26 per cent alcohol. Smoking and alcohol are well-established risk factors in causing cancer, but the use of mouthwash containing alcohol is more controversial. Prof McCullough and co- author Dr Camile Farah, director of research at the University of [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-01-14T07:24:27-07:00January, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Other ailments can affect survival of head and neck cancer

Source: record.wustl.edu Author: Gwen Ericson Current estimates for head and neck cancer survival are largely inaccurate because they widely disregard many of the most common diseases such patients have in addition to their primary cancer, said Jay Piccirillo, M.D., a head and neck specialist at the School of Medicine, the Siteman Cancer Center and Barnes-Jewish Hospital. This highlights a broader problem with cancer survival statistics, which generally don't take into account the effect of coexisting conditions or comorbidities, Piccirillo said. In a recent study, Piccirillo, professor of otolaryngology and director of the Clinical Outcomes Research Office at the School of Medicine, showed that the risk of death increased up to sevenfold when patients with head and neck cancer developed new or more severe coexisting ailments such as heart problems, diabetes or lung disorders after cancer diagnosis. The study, published in the October issue of the Archives of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, is the first to look at comorbidities in head and neck cancer patients in the period following diagnosis. "For decades, we have used a cancer-staging system based on tumor size, lymph node involvement and whether cancer has spread to other parts of the body when estimating a patient's survival while mostly ignoring how sick patients are from other diseases," Piccirillo said. "In fact, national databases used to estimate cancer survival don't account for comorbidities, and, as a result, we don't have very accurate estimates of how long patients are likely to survive their cancers." Some past studies of [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-12-12T10:59:26-07:00December, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Smoking and drinking linked to throat and stomach cancer

Source: uk.reuters.com Author: Michael Kahn Drinking alcohol and smoking cigarettes appear to increase the risk of certain common throat and stomach cancers, Dutch researchers reported on Monday. The findings, presented at an American Association for Cancer Research meeting in Washington, underline other health recommendations for people to follow a healthy lifestyle and drink and smoke only in moderation. "It appeared that current smokers have the highest risks, and former smokers have an intermediate risk compared with never smokers," Jessie Steevens, an epidemiologist at Maastricht University in the Netherlands, said in a statement. The incidence of stomach cancer has fallen dramatically in the United States and western Europe over the past 60 years but the disease remains a serious problem in much of the rest of the world, where it is a leading cause of cancer death, according to the Mayo Clinic. Oesophageal, or throat, cancer is a form of cancer that starts in the inner layer of the oesophagus, the 10-inch-long tube that connects the throat to the stomach. The researchers followed more than 120,000 Dutch residents for more than two decades to investigate risk factors for oesophageal adenocarcinoma and gastric cardia adenocarcinoma -- a type of stomach cancer -- as well as oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma, which resembles head and neck cancer. Other studies have linked oesophageal cancer in general to drinking and smoking, but Steevens and colleagues wanted to refine the risk of the different types of the tumours. They found that for oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma -- [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-11-19T18:43:46-07:00November, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Dietary factors and oral and pharyngeal cancer risk

Source: Oral Oncol, November 4, 2 Authors: Ersilia Lucenteforte et al We reviewed data from six cohort studies and approximately 40 case-control studies on the relation between selected aspects of diet and the risk of oral and pharyngeal cancer. Fruit and vegetables were inversely related to the risk: the pooled relative risk (RR) for high vegetable consumption was 0.65 from three cohort studies on upper aerodigestive tract cancers and 0.52 from 18 case-control studies of oral and pharyngeal cancer; corresponding RRs for high fruit consumption were 0.78 and 0.55. beta-carotene, vitamin C and selected flavonoids have been inversely related to the risk, but it is difficult to disentangle their potential effect from that of fruit and vegetables. Whole grain, but not refined grain, intake was also favorably related to oral cancer risk. The results were not consistent with reference to other foods beverages, and nutrients, but it is now possible to exclude a strong relation between these foods and oral and pharyngeal cancer risk. In western countries, selected aspects of diet may account for 20-25% of oral and pharyngeal cancer, and the population attributable risk increases to 85-95% when tobacco and alcohol consumption are also considered. Authors: Ersilia Lucenteforte, Werner Garavello, Cristina Bosetti, and Carlo La Vecch Authors' affiliation: Dipartimento di Epidemiologia, Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche "Mario Negri", via Giuseppe La Masa 19, 20156 Milan, Italy

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-11-15T09:58:35-07:00November, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Patient perception of risk factors in head and neck cancer

Source: Head Neck, October 28, 2008 Author: Leeor Sommer et al. Background: A previous study at our institution noted that only 15% of newly diagnosed patients with oral cancer could identify smoking or alcohol abuse as major risk factors for the development of their cancer. The objective of this study was to determine the effectiveness of a simple educational intervention in 189 consecutively identified patients with head and neck malignancy. Methods: Patients were interviewed prior to and immediately following reading a written educational pamphlet. The patients were then interviewed 5 weeks later to determine longer-term recall. Recall success was correlated to patient demographic parameters including level of education, occupation, sex, age, and place of residence. Results: Immediate recall success increased, on average, 27% from preintervention knowledge, with the largest increase for the risk factor of alcohol abuse. Five-week postintervention recall success decreased on average 10.5% for all risk factors with the largest decrease being seen for smokeless tobacco use (12%). The immediate and 5-week recall success increases were both statistically significant when compared to the preintervention recall success (p

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-11-03T09:56:33-07:00November, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Mouthwash and oral cancer risk: an update

Source: Oral Oncol, October 24, 2008 Author: Carlo La Vecchia The possible relationship between mouthwash use and oral cancer risk has been the subject of at least 10 case-control studies published over the last three decades. Three of these reported relative risks above unity and seven no consistent association. Only a few studies, moreover, included information on different types of mouthwash, and addressed the issue of alcohol-containing mouthwash. Thus, critical review of published data revealed that a link between mouthwash use, specifically alcohol-containing mouthwash, and oral cancers is not supported by epidemiological evidence. Author's affiliation: Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche "Mario Negri" Milano e Istituto di Statistica Medica e Biometria "G.A. Maccacaro", Universit degli Studi di Milano, Via Giuseppe La Masa 19, 20156 Milano, Italy

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-11-03T09:44:40-07:00November, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Mouthwash or hogwash?

Source: Times Online (www.timesonline.co.uk) Author: Peta Bee Waking up with the unpleasant hum of dog breath is far from uncommon. Whether it is the after-effects of a curry, or a more lingering problem of sewer-scented oral odour, around 95 per cent of Britons suffer bad breath at some time in their lives. Such is the social embarrassment that £350 million a year is spent on products that promise to sweeten breath. But is it money well spent? An increasing number of medical experts think not, with some going as far as to caution that swilling with a mouthwash can cause more problems than it purports to cure. Central to the debate about the efficacy of mouthwashes is that many contain exceptionally high levels of alcohol. Some varieties - such as the UK's bestselling brand Listerine - contain 26.9 per cent alcohol, double the amount in wine and more than five times that in beer. It is not just that the alcohol in these products is risky to young children who might get hold of them. According to some critics, it may also render a mouthwash useless. Alcohol can dry out the mouth by drawing moisture from the tissues and slowing the flow of saliva. With limited saliva to flush away or dilute bacteria, it is suggested that rinses that contain alcohol cause germs to become more, not less, concentrated in the mouth - making smelly breath possibly worse. Dr Philip Stemmer, a dentist who runs the Fresh Breath Centre in [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-15T22:18:18-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|