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Global Rise in Cancer Cost $300 Billion in 2010, Harvard Economist Says During Press Briefing Hosted by the American Cancer Society and the United Nations

23 June 2011 United Nations — Newly diagnosed cancer cases cost the global economy $300 billion in 2010, as illnesses once believed to be largely confined to wealthier countries took hold in developing nations, a Harvard University economist said during a press briefing hosted by the American Cancer Society Global Health Programs and the United Nations Department of Public Information. Tobacco use, alcohol intake, obesity and decreased physical activity have grown in poorer countries, causing the rise of cancer and diabetes, said David E. Bloom, professor of economics and demography at Harvard’s School of Public Health in Boston. Bloom and other researchers held a briefing today in advance of the United Nations High Level Meeting on noncommunicable diseases. The Sept. 19-20 meeting will be the first gathering of the UN Assembly dealing with cancer, cardiovascular illness, chronic lung conditions and diabetes. These diseases cause 60 percent of deaths worldwide, killing 36.1 million people annually, according to an April report by the World Health Organization. “Noncommunicable diseases will evolve into a staggering economic burden in the coming years,” Bloom said. “It’s a huge impediment to the mitigation of poverty.” Bloom said treating newly diagnosed cancer cases cost $300 billion globally in 2010, and obstructive pulmonary disease -- often correlated with smoking tobacco -- costs $4 billion a year. Not Confined to Health “Economic policy makers like ministers of finance and ministers of planning see noncommunicable diseases as an issue confined to the health sector,” a misperception that needs to be addressed, [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-06-24T08:42:35-07:00June, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

Oral, Head and Neck Cancers Continue to Increase While Most U.S. Cancer Death Rates are on the Decline

Source: SHOTS (NPR's Health Blog) The rate at which Americans die from cancer continues to fall, according to the latest estimates from the American Cancer Society. As a result, nearly 900,000 cancer deaths were avoided between 1990 and 2007, the group figures. Survival gains have come as mortality rates have declined for some of the most common malignancies, including colorectal cancer, breast cancer in women and prostate cancer. Still, the ACS estimates there will nearly 1.6 million new cancers diagnosed this year, and about 572,000 deaths from the disease. The incidence of cancers hasn't budged much for men in recent years, after falling quite a bit during the first half of the last decade. Cancer incidence for women has been falling since 1998. The report was just published online by CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians. Lung cancer remains the biggest killer for both men and women. All told, about 160,000 people in the U.S. are expected to die from it this year. Starting in 1987, more women have died from lung cancer each year than breast cancer. One section of the report focuses on a persistent and, in some cases, widening gap in cancer death rates between people with the least education and those with the most. Educational attainment is often used in research as a proxy for socioeconomic status. American Cancer Society epidemiologist Elizabeth Ward, one of the report's authors, tells Shots, "People of a lower socioeconomic status are more likely to smoke and less likely to get [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-06-22T10:26:11-07:00June, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

Immunity Drugs Used to Fight Cancer

Source: The Wall Street Journal Scientists are scrambling to develop medications that fight cancer by spurring the body's immune system, a form of treatment that some cancer specialists believe may hold the key to keeping a patient permanently disease-free. The new efforts come in the wake of recent Food and Drug Administration approvals of Dendreon Corp.'s Provenge, an immunotherapy drug used to treat prostate cancer, and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.'s Yervoy, for melanoma. Other immunotherapy drugs are being developed for a number of other cancers, including lung, brain and kidney cancers. Unlike most traditional therapies that attack a cancer directly, immunotherapy uses the body's own internal defenses to ward off the disease, with the ultimate hope of building up a long-term resistance to the cancer. "If we are ever going to use the word 'cure', the immune system is going to have to come into play," says Stephen Hodi, director of the melanoma center at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston. One of the ways that cancer survives and ultimately spreads through the body is by exploiting a function in all cells that prevents the immune system from killing them. Researchers have found that cancer cells have multiple methods of avoiding detection and suppressing the immune system's response. "Why would cancer devote so much energy to avoid the immune system if the immune system didn't have the potential to reject the cancer?" says Robert Vonderheide from the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania. There are big hurdles to advancing the [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-06-14T10:26:14-07:00June, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

Study Confirms Major Side Effects Years After Cancer Treatment

Source: Medical News Today When people finish treatment for cancer, they want to bounce back to their former vital selves as quickly as possible. But a new Northwestern Medicine study - one of the largest survivor studies ever conducted - shows many survivors still suffer moderate to severe problems with pain, fatigue, sleep, memory and concentration three to five years after treatment has ended. "We were surprised to see how prevalent these symptoms still are," said study co-investigator Lynne Wagner, an associate professor of medical social sciences at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and a clinical health psychologist at the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University. "This is one of the first looks at what's really happening for survivors in terms of symptoms and treatment among community-based treatment settings across the U.S." The persistent pain in survivors who are cancer-free and no longer receiving any treatment is particularly puzzling, Wagner noted, because good treatment exists. "It seems we haven't come a long way in managing pain despite a lot of medical advances, " she said. "This is eye opening. It tells us we need to be better in clinical practice about managing our survivors' pain." Wagner presented the findings June 4 at the 2011 American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting in Chicago. Sunday is National Cancer Survivors Day. Cancer survivors seem to slip through the cracks in healthcare in terms of getting treatment for their pain and other symptoms. "We don't have a great system [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-06-13T09:33:38-07:00June, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

Cellular p16 localization and survival outcomes in head and neck cancer.

Source: ASCO.org Background: Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) constitutes approximately 3-5 percent of all cancers. Recent data suggest an increasing incidence rate among younger people who are often non-smokers and non-drinkers, which are believed to be caused by human papillomavirus (HPV) infection. HPV positive tumors are typically found in the oropharynx and have better response to treatment and better disease outcome despite more advanced nodal stages. Therefore, HPV-positive HNSCCs represent a unique clinical subgroup with a separate tumor entity. Methods: Patients treated for HNSCC from 2002 to 2006 at UNC hospitals and had banked tissue available were eligible for this study. Tissue microarrays (TMA) were generated in triplicate. Immunohistochemical (IHC) staining for p16 was performed and scored separately for nuclear staining and cytoplasmic staining. Human papilloma virus (HPV) staining was also carried out using monoclonal antibody E6H4. P16 expression, HPV status and other clinical features were correlated with progression-free (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Results: 135 patients had sufficient sample for this analysis. Median age of diagnosis was 57 years (range 20-82), with 68.9% males, 8.9% never smokers and 32.6 % never drinkers. 3 year OS rate and PFS rate was 63.0% and 54.1% respectively. Based on the p16 staining score, patients were divided into three groups: high nuclear any cytoplasmic staining group (HNAC), low nuclear low cytoplasmic staining group (LNLC) and low nuclear high cytoplasmic staining group (LNHC). HNAC and LNLC groups had significantly better overall survival than LNHC groups with hazard ratios of 0.01 and 0.37 [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-06-03T12:35:21-07:00June, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

Two Elements Predict Swallowing Difficulties after Radiotherapy

Source: International Medicine News LONDON – Nonglottic cancer and the presence of dysphagia before treatment are highly predictive for severe acute and late swallowing difficulties after radiotherapy for head and neck cancer, according to new data from the DAHANCA 6&7 randomized trial. Patients with nonglottic cancer were more likely than those with other cancer types to experience severe dysphagia at both 6 and 12 months. Dysphagia before treatment was also associated with both acute and late severe swallowing difficulties. "The peak incidence of dysphagia is seen during the first 6 months after radiotherapy," Hanna Rahbek Mortensen, Ph.D., reported in an analysis of the DAHANCA (Danish Head and Neck Cancer Group) 6&7 trial findings at the European Society for Therapeutic Radiation Oncology Anniversary Congress. "After 1 year, however, there is no further increase in severity or prevalence," said Dr. Mortensen of the department of experimental clinical oncology at Åarhus (Denmark) University Hospital. The trial involved 1,478 patients with squamous cell carcinomas of the glottic larynx, supraglottic larynx, pharynx, or oral cavity who were who were treated with five or six weekly fractions of radiotherapy in 1992-1999. The total dose of radiotherapy delivered was 66-68 Gy in 33-34 fractions. Efficacy data from the trial have already been published; they showed improved disease-specific but not overall survival of five vs. six fractions of radiotherapy (Lancet 2003;362:933-40). The aim of the present analysis was to use prospectively collected data from the trial to determine whether any factors could be used to establish which patients [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-05-18T13:29:04-07:00May, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

The Diary of a Mouth Cancer Survivor

Latest figures say 30% of the population will get cancer at some stage in their lives. When this happened to photographer, Keith Hern, he wrote about the experience and photographed his treatment. Bangers & Mash is the resultant book in which Keith gives a detailed account of everything from teh mental trauma of diagnosis to the harsh side-effects, to the sheer relief of getting the all-clear. Bangers & Mash is no ordinary life story – it's a tourist's guide to cancer treatment in both words and pictures. 'Being treated for cancer is like being in a foreign country' is how author Keith Hern puts it, 'and what you really need is a guidebook'. Early on in Keith's battle against throat cancer he began to keep a diary but, being a photographer, Keith's diary is in pictures as well as words. Recruiting amused nurses and tolerant radiographers to hold the camera, Keith's book de-mystifies cancer treatment and chronicles every step of the way back to health. Not always a comfortable read, Bangers & Mash is fast-paced and completely compelling but, most importantly, is intended to help patients and their families understand "what they are in for'. The big lesson is that it's not all bad. The book doesn't pull any punches, but you do learn how it is possible to live through the treatment and get on with your life. The book has already been widely circulated through the nursing staff at the Royal Marsden hospital where Keith was treated, is [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-05-17T10:19:37-07:00May, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

New Research Shows Chemo Brain Could Last More Than 5 Years

Source: New York Times “Chemo brain,” the foggy thinking and forgetfulness that cancer patients often complain about after treatment, may last for five years or more for a sizable percentage of patients, new research shows. The findings, based on a study of 92 cancer patients at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, suggest that the cognitive losses that seem to follow many cancer treatments are far more pronounced and longer-lasting than commonly believed. The study, published in The Journal of Clinical Oncology, is a vindication of sorts for many cancer patients, whose complaints about thinking and memory problems are often dismissed by doctors who lay blame for the symptoms on normal aging or the fatigue of illness. “It’s clearly established now that chemo brain does exist and can continue long-term,” said Karen L. Syrjala, co-director of the Survivorship Program at Fred Hutchinson and the study’s lead author. “The real issue here is that recovery from cancer treatment is not a one-year process but a two- to five-year process. People need to understand the extent to which the cells in their bodies have really been compromised by not only the cancer, but also the treatment.” The 92 patients in the study had all undergone chemotherapy as part of bone marrow or stem cell transplants to treat blood cancers. Although the range of effects of different cancers and treatments probably varies, researchers said the finding that cognitive recovery can take five years or more is likely to apply to breast cancer [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-05-09T10:44:19-07:00May, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

U of A study finds ways to help end dry mouth in cancer patients

Source: e! Science News For patients suffering from cancer in the mouth or throat, a recent study shows that a treatment called submandibular gland transfer will assist in preventing a radiation-induced condition called xerostomia. Also known as dry mouth, xerostomia occurs when salivary glands stop working. University of Alberta researcher Jana Rieger likens the feeling of xerostomia to the experience of the after-effects of having surgery and anesthetic—but the feeling is permanent. While the importance of healthy saliva glands may be an afterthought for some patients when battling cancer, the long-lasting effects create a number of problems for them when they are in remission. "We need saliva to keep our mouths healthy," said Rieger. "Without saliva, people can lose their teeth, dentures don't fit properly and the ability to swallow and speak is severely altered." The study conducted by Rieger, a speech language pathologist in the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine, looked at functional outcomes—speech changes, swallowing habits and the quality of life of patients with mouth and throat cancers—as they received two different types of treatments prior to and during radiation. The first group of patients underwent the submandibular gland transfer. This method was pioneered by Hadi Seikaly and Naresh Jha at the University of Alberta in 1999. The transfer involves moving the saliva gland from under the angle of the jaw to under to the chin. Prior to this procedure, the saliva gland was in line for the radiation. Seikaly says, "Most patients, when they are cured from cancer, [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-05-05T09:37:29-07:00May, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

Modest Drinking can Heighten your Risk for Cancer

Source: MedScape.org April 14, 2011 — "A considerable proportion of the most common and most lethal cancers is attributable to former and current alcohol consumption," concludes a large European study published online April 8 in BMJ. The researchers attribute about 10% of all cancers in men and about 3% of all cancers in women to previous and current alcohol consumption. The estimates come from an analysis of data from the huge ongoing European Prospective Investigation Into Cancer (EPIC) and from representative data on alcohol consumption compiled by the World Health Organization (WHO). The risk increases even with drinking moderate amounts. "This research supports existing evidence that alcohol causes cancer and that the risk increases even with drinking moderate amounts," coauthor Naomi Allen, DPhil, an epidemiologist at Oxford University, United Kingdom, said in a statement. The original data in the EPIC study were collected from 1992 to 2000, so "the results from this study reflect the impact of people's drinking habits about 10 years ago," Dr. Allen noted. "People are drinking even more now than they were then, and this could lead to more people developing cancer because of alcohol in the future," she added. Data From 8 Countries The EPIC study, which is still ongoing, is one of the largest studies of diet and cancer ever conducted. It involved more than half a million people in Europe. For this analysis of alcohol and cancer, the researchers used EPIC data from 363,988 participants from 8 European countries — France, Italy, Spain, [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-04-26T10:06:35-07:00April, 2011|Oral Cancer News|