HPV – Page 21 – Oral Cancer News

Rate of HPV-associated cancers on the rise in U.S., according to new CDC report

Source: www.curetoday.com Author: Andrew J. Roth Though the first preventive human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccine was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration 10 years ago, the incidence of HPV-associated cancers is on the rise. From 2008 to 2012, the number of HPV-associated cancers diagnosed per year increased by approximately 16 percent compared with the previous five-year period, according to a new report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Nearly all sexually active individuals in the U.S. will get at least one type of HPV in their lifetime, making it the most common sexually-transmitted infection in the country. And though about 90 percent of HPV infections will clear a person’s system within two years, some infections persist and can cause cervical cancers and some types of vulvar, oropharyngeal, penile, rectal and cancers. There are over 40 HPV types, and vaccines are available for HPV types 16 and 18 (which account for 63 percent of HPV-associated cancers), as well as for types 31, 33, 45, 52 and 58 (which account for an additional 10 percent). Type 16 is the most likely to persist and develop into cancer. In this new report, the CDC analyzed data from its own National Program of Cancer Registries as well as the National Cancer Institute’s Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database. In total, 38,793 HPV-associated cancers (11.7 per 100,000 persons), on average, were diagnosed annually from 2008 to 2012 compared with 33,369 diagnoses (10.8 per 100,000 persons) from 2004 to 2008. [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2016-07-16T15:47:18-07:00July, 2016|Oral Cancer News|

HPV-related cancer Is ‘epidemic’—but few get vaccinated

Source: www.newser.com Author: Michael Harthorne, Newser Staff "Every parent should ask the question: If there was a vaccine I could give my child that would prevent him/her from developing six different cancers, would I give it to them?” Electra Paskett, co-director of the Cancer Control Research Program at Ohio State University, tells CBS News. The answer appears to be no. According to NBC News, a CDC report released Thursday shows a 17% increase in HPV-related cancers between 2004 and 2012 to nearly 39,000 per year. Dr. Lois Ramondetta, an expert in gynecologic oncology, says it's become an "epidemic" especially for men, in whom HPV can cause cancers of the mouth, tongue, and throat. HPV increases the risk of those cancers by at least seven times, and unlike with HPV-caused cervical cancer in women, there's no screening for them. The CDC report found 93% of all HPV-related cancers could be prevented with the currently available vaccine. That's approximately 28,500 fewer cases of cancer every year, AFP reports. And yet in 2014, only 40% of teen girls and 22% of teen boys received the necessary three doses of the vaccine, which works best if administered before teens become sexually active. Paskett calls those numbers "extremely sad." “We must change the perception of the HPV vaccine from something that prevents a sexually transmitted disease to a vaccine that prevents cancer," she tells CBS. (Some British teens invented condoms that change color near HPV and other STDs.)

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2016-07-11T21:21:07-07:00July, 2016|Oral Cancer News|

HPV vaccine important preventive tool for survivors of childhood cancer

Source: www.curetoday.com Author: Ellie Leick As childhood cancer survivors are at an increased risk of developing second cancers later in life, James Klosky recommends that this population receive the human papillomavirus (HPV) series of vaccines. A survey of 679 survivors one to five years out of treatment was conducted to evaluate how many received the vaccine compared with their healthy peers. A great disparity was discovered, as survivors — all of whom were between age 13 and 26 — were less likely to receive the vaccine. Researchers also investigated the reasons why many survivors did not receive it. Klosky, an associate member and director of psychological services in cancer survivorship at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, presented the findings from this research at the 2016 Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), a gathering of 30,000 oncology professionals in Chicago. CURE spoke with Klosky at the meeting to discuss the key takeaways and the importance of the HPV vaccine to survivors of childhood cancer. Can you give an overview of the study and its purpose? The HPV vaccine is the first vaccine that’s designed to prevent cancers. We are particularly interested in the application of this vaccine amongst survivors of childhood cancers, who are at increased risk for HPV-related cancers in young adulthood relative to their healthy peers. On average, the onset of these cancers occur seven years earlier in survivors of childhood cancers compared to their healthy peers. Additionally, survivors of childhood cancer have an increased [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2016-07-01T19:47:53-07:00July, 2016|Oral Cancer News|

HPV vaccination could be offered to schoolboys to decrease risk of cancer

Source: www.mirror.co.uk Author: Andrew Gregory A vaccination could soon be offered to every schoolboy to help tackle the rising rate of some cancers in men, a Government minister revealed on Thursday. Health chiefs are poised to drop their opposition to extending the jab to protect against the human papilloma virus (HPV), which is already given to all Year 8 girls. The likely move follows growing alarm over cancers of the mouth, throat, neck and head, as well as penile and anal cancer, amid growing evidence that they are caused by HPV. The NHS (National Health Service) spends more than £300m a year treating head and neck cancers, while giving the vaccine to all boys would cost just £22m, supporters say. Health Minister Jane Ellison has revealed that the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunization (JCVI) is investigating the change, with its verdict due early next year. Mrs Ellison - who has previously described giving the HPV jab to girls only as "a little odd" - said: "I understand the wish for it to be available to all adolescents regardless of gender. "The JCVI is reconsidering its initial advice on this and modeling is under way to inform its consideration. We will look at that as a priority when we get it. "I recognize the frustration that people have expressed and I have talked personally to Public Health England officials who are involved in the modelling work." The minister said money was already available to extend the vaccination program if [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2016-06-26T08:27:30-07:00June, 2016|Oral Cancer News|

Nivolumab Demonstrated Survival Benefit, Good Tolerance in Refractory HNSCC

Source: www.asco.orgAuthor: Tim Donald, ELS In the phase III comparative CheckMate 141 trial, nivolumab demonstrated a “significant improval in survival” in patients with recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), compared with therapy of the investigator’s choice, according to Robert L. Ferris, MD, PhD, FACS, of the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute (Abstract 6009). There were fewer treatment-related adverse events with the PD-1 inhibitor than with investigator’s choice therapy, Dr. Ferris said, and nivolumab stabilized patient-reported quality-of-life outcome measures, whereas the investigator’s choice therapy led to meaningful declines in function and worsening of symptoms. Dr. Robert L. Ferris “Nivolumab is a new standard-of-care option for patients with refractory or metastatic HNSCC after platinum-based therapy,” Dr. Ferris said. Dr. Ferris presented the trial results at the “Harnessing the Immune System in Head and Neck Cancer: Evolving Standards in Metastatic Disease” Clinical Science Symposium on June 6. He noted that in this trial of patients whose disease had progressed after platinum-based therapy, nivolumab doubled the 1-year overall survival (OS) rate, with 36.0% OS for the immunotherapeutic drug compared with 16.6% for the investigator’s choice therapy. These top-line results were presented at the 2016 American Association of Cancer Research meeting1; Dr. Ferris presented data the additional endpoints of quality of life, correlative biomarkers, and safety. There is an extremely poor prognosis for patients with platinum-refractory recurrent or metastatic HNSCC, with median OS of 6 months or fewer. Previous research, by Dr. Ferris and others, has shown that HNSCC can express T-cell [...]

Charlotte Parker2016-06-07T16:35:54-07:00June, 2016|Oral Cancer News|

Heading back to the office following head and neck cancer

Source: blogs.biomedcentral.com Author: Daniel Caley In Cancers of the Head & Neck launching today publishes the first study looking at disability and employment outcomes in patients with head and neck cancer related to the human papillomavirus (HPV). Dr Shrujal Baxi, Section Editor for survivorship and patient related outcomes and author of this study, explains more about their work in this Q&A: The rates of patients diagnosed with HPV-related head and neck cancer is rising annually. By 2020, there will be more cases of HPV-related head and neck cancer than HPV-related cervical cancer in the United States. Numerous studies have shown that most patients with this diagnosis are likely to be cured of their disease, placing an increased emphasis on quality of life and non-cancer outcomes in this population of survivors. The majority of patients diagnosed with HPV-related head and neck cancer are working-age adults and employment is a serious issue both financially and psychologically. How can treatment for head and neck cancer impact employment? Treatment for head and neck cancer often involves a combination of chemotherapy and radiation given over a six to seven week period, often known as concurrent chemoradiation or combined modality chemoradiation. This process is considered toxic and can impact a patient’s ability to function normally including speaking, chewing, breathing and swallowing. Many patients require numerous supportive medications to get through treatment including narcotics for pain and anti-nausea medications. Patients can lose on average 10-15% of their weight within a few months and can suffer from severe [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2016-06-05T09:53:53-07:00June, 2016|Oral Cancer News|

Frontline Cancer: vaccines for HPV near guarantee

Source: www.lajollalight.com Author: Dr. Scott Lippman Dear Scott: “Our son, who is 25, went to the GP yesterday and his doc wasn’t sure about giving the Gardasil I had been bugging him to get. Didn’t you tell me about the benefits of the HPV vaccination?” The note was from a friend. It was personal, but also a topic of wide public interest and one that remains much discussed among cancer researchers and physicians. That’s why I’m answering my friend here. Roughly 12 percent of all human cancers worldwide — more than 1 million cases per year — are caused by viral infections (called oncoviruses) and attributed to a relatively small number of pathogens: human papilloma virus (HPV), hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV) and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). Given the emphasis upon other causal factors of cancer, such as genetic mutations or environmental sources, it’s a statistic that’s not well known nor, I would argue, fully appreciated. Human viral oncogenesis is complex, and only a small percentage of the infected individuals develop cancer, but that 12 percent translates into more than 500,000 lives lost each year to virus-caused malignancies. Many of those deaths are preventable because effective vaccines already exist for HPV and HBV. Right now. No future discoveries required. I want to specifically talk about the HPV vaccine. Controversy has constrained its proven effectiveness as a public health tool, but if used as prescribed, the HPV vaccine could essentially eliminate cervical and other HPV-caused cancers. Infection with HPV [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2016-05-26T08:54:23-07:00May, 2016|Oral Cancer News|

Increased frequency of unknown primary SCC linked to HPV–positive disease

Source: www.healio.com Author: staff The occurrence of HPV–positive unknown primary squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck has significantly increased in recent years, according to the results of a retrospective study. HPV–positive unknown primary squamous cell carcinoma (UPSCC) appeared most prevalent among younger men. UPSCC of the head and neck is comparatively rare, accounting for approximately 4% of squamous cell carcinomas. Trends, frequency and detection rates of UPSCCs have not been studied in the context of HPV tumor status. Carole Fakhry, MD, MPH, associate professor of oncology and otolaryngology–head and neck surgery at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and colleagues conducted a retrospective study to observe the frequency of UPSCC over time, and to evaluate the proportion of UPSCCs that are HPV positive. Researchers accessed a case series of 84 patients (mean age, 57.3 years; range, 29-80; 88.1% men) with UPSCC treated at Johns Hopkins Hospital between January 2005 and June 2014. They determined HPV tumor status through p16 immunohistochemical analysis or through high-risk HPV DNA in situ hybridization, when clinically available. The researchers observed an increase in the frequency of UPSCC over time (P for trend = .01). The trend appeared significantly higher during the most recent calendar periods (14 cases during 2005-2008 vs. 39 cases during 2012-2014; P = .03). A total of 90.7% of patients (n = 69) had HPV–positive tumors. These patients appeared more likely to be men (91% vs. 42.9%; P = .005) and younger (56.1 years vs. 67.7 years; P = .002) than [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2016-04-11T07:26:51-07:00April, 2016|Oral Cancer News|

Suicide: A Major Threat to Head and Neck Cancer Survivorship

Source: www.jco.ascopubs.comAuthors: Nosayaba Osazuwa-Peters, Eric Adjei Boakye, and Ronald J. Walker , Mark A. Varvares TO THE EDITOR: The article by Ringash that was recently published in Journal of Clinical Oncology provided a compelling narrative of both the improvements made in head and neck cancer survivorship, as well as the challenges created by longer-term treatment and associated toxicities. There are currently at least 280,000 head and neck cancer survivors in the United States. As the article by Ringash stated, the upturn in head and neck cancer survivorship in the last three decades has coincided with the emergence of human papilloma virus-positive oropharyngeal cancer, as well as a decrease in tobacco use in the general population. These make it a challenge to isolate survival gains as a function of improved therapy from the natural prognostic value of a diagnosis of human papilloma virus-positive oropharyngeal cancer. Whatever the case, the fact that more than one-quarter million Americans are currently alive after a diagnosis of head and neck cancer means there needs to be a more deliberate effort in longer-term management of treatment-related toxicities, some of which are lifelong. We agree with Ringash’s conclusion that new models of care need to be developed in response to the significant quality-of-life issues faced by patients with head and neck cancer. The Institute of Medicine publication From Cancer Patient to Cancer Survivor: Lost in Transition, also cited by Ringash, called for a clear individualized survivorship plan for cancer patients. There is a serious need for this model to [...]

Charlotte Parker2016-03-24T15:06:02-07:00March, 2016|Oral Cancer News|

Call for NZ Government to fund HPV vaccine for boys

Source: www.nzherald.co.nz Author: Martin Johnston Throat-cancer patient Grant Munro paid for his son to be vaccinated against the sexually-transmitted HPV virus because the Government has refused. A 58-year-old scientific expert on viruses, he is backing a campaign by doctors calling for the extension of state funding of the controversial HPV vaccine to boys. Dr Munro, whose cancer was linked to HPV infection, says it is a form of discrimination against males that the Government will only pay for girls to have the vaccine. State medicines agency Pharmac said it had decided not to fund the Gardasil vaccine for boys at present, but it is an option for the future. Its advisory committee assigned a low priority to funding it for all males aged 11-19 and high priority for males 9-26 "who self-identify as having sex with other males". In Australia, the vaccine is government-funded for boys and girls. Gardasil can protect against four strains of HPV - human papilloma virus - that can cause pre-cancerous lesions in the genital tract and mouth, and genital warts. It has been offered to New Zealand girls partly to help reduce cervical cancer. Rates of throat-related cancers have risen sharply since the 1980s and HPV, from oral sex, is thought to be the cause. The actor Michael Douglas was treated for tongue cancer caused by HPV and has spoken of the link between HPV and performing oral sex. After Dr Munro was treated for a tonsil tumour that contained evidence of HPV, he paid [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2016-03-21T06:32:24-07:00March, 2016|Oral Cancer News|