HPV – Page 57 – Oral Cancer News

Mouth cancer expert calls for booze abstinence

Source: www.dentistry.co.uk Author: staff A mouth cancer expert is calling for an abstinence from alcohol to stem the rise in mouth cancer in the UK. New figures suggest that booze is largely to blame for an ‘alarming' rise in the rate of oral cancers among men and women in their forties. The figures, released by Cancer Research UK, show that since the mid-1990s, rates of oral cancers have gone up by 28% for men in their forties and 24% for women. Alcohol consumption has doubled since the 1950s and is the most likely culprit alongside smoking, says Cancer Research UK. Now Dr Vinod Joshi, founder of the Mouth Cancer Foundation is suggesting people should 'avoid drinking alcohol altogether'. The Department of Health's current advice is that men should not regularly drink more than 3-4 units of alcohol per day, and women should not regularly drink more than 2-3 units of alcohol per day. He says: 'In view of the latest reports from Cancer Research UK, the current alcohol guidelines that we've got are actually very high. 'To reduce the risk of mouth cancer risk, the Mouth Cancer Foundation recommends that people should limit or avoid drinking alcohol altogether.' For men, the Mouth Cancer Foundation recommends no more than occasional drinking of two standard drinks a day and for women no more than one standard drink a day. Experts suggest that increased alcohol consumption is to blame as they say cancers caused by smoking often take 30 years to develop, and [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-08-11T13:46:02-07:00August, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Mouth cancer from HPV virus reaches all-time high

Source: www.digitaljournal.com Author: staff The British Dental Health Foundation is insisting that the government include boys among the recipients of the HPV vaccinations. The foundation cites the record high in mouth cancer, affecting more men than women. Mouth cancer is at an all-time high in the United Kingdom, and one of the likeliest culprits for the dangerous surge is the sexually-transmitted HPV virus. Additionally, mouth cancer affects more men than women - and these statistics are driving the British Dental Health Foundation to question the UK government on including boys among the recipients of the HPV vaccination that is currently administered only to girls. "The cancer virus is transmitted through oral sex, and is thought to contribute to the doubling of mouth cancers." Dentistry Magazine reported on Friday. HPV is the most common sexually-transmitted virus - and one of the most dangerous, as it exists in its hosts without symptoms for years, and many strains of HPV progress into full-blown cancers of the cervix, mouth, anus, vagina, and penis. The British Dental Health Foundation is responding to a large-scale study of 46,000 mouth cancer cases in the United States. The study found that the number of deaths from sexually-transmitted HPV virus has increased by 33 percent over the past 30 years - and is now at its highest point. "It is admirable that the government is taking such positive steps to reduce the number of cervical cancer cases for the women of the future but, with mouth cancer killing more [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-08-01T14:18:34-07:00August, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Throat cancer from HPV proves treatable

Source: Sciencenews.org Author: Nathan Seppa Cancer of the throat that stems from a human papillomavirus infection responds to treatment better than throat cancer that’s triggered by other causes, researchers report online July 29 in Cancer Prevention Research. The scientists also find that blacks are less likely than whites to have throat cancer that’s attributable to HPV, which may explain why the cancer also proved more deadly in blacks in this study. Throat cancer, formally known as oropharyngeal cancer, includes malignancies at the base of the tongue, on the tonsils, in the back of the mouth or on the walls of the throat. The cancer has been linked to smoking and alcohol use, but it can also arise from HPV infections acquired via oral sex (SN: 5/12/07, p. 291). In the new study, researchers analyzed two sets of people with throat cancer. One group included 196 whites and 28 blacks participating in an ongoing international medical trial. While 66 of the white patients had HPV-positive cancer, only one of the blacks did. All received chemotherapy and radiation. Looking at survival among these patients over more than five years, the researchers found that HPV-negative throat cancer patients had a median survival of only 20 months. Race didn’t change this data significantly. In contrast, patients with HPV-positive throat cancer lived substantially longer. Their median survival time could not be accurately discerned because many patients were still alive when the study data were analyzed, says study coauthor Kevin Cullen, a medical oncologist at the University [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-07-30T19:12:26-07:00July, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Give Gardasil to boys too, experts say

Source: www.abc.net.au Author: Dina Rosendorff Recent evidence shows the human papilloma virus (HPV), which causes cervical cancer in women, is poised to become one of the leading causes of oral cancer in men because of changing sexual behaviours. The findings have reignited the debate over whether boys should be given the cervical cancer vaccine, Gardasil. A visiting British virologist, Professor Margaret Stanley, says governments around the world need to examine the long-term economic and health benefits of immunising boys and young men. The head of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases at Melbourne's Royal Women's Hospital, Professor Suzanne Garland, says Australia is leading the way in the rollout of the cervical cancer vaccine Gardasil, which immunises against HPV. "We are in our third year of rolling out the vaccine and we are in the order in the school-based group, in the high 70s, whereas in many other countries, they have only got 30 per cent who have been vaccinated," she said. But now the vaccination debate has switched genders. There are growing calls from the medical community for boys and young men to also be vaccinated against HPV. Advocates include one of Britain's top cervical cancer specialists, Professor Margaret Stanley from Cambridge University, who says a cervical cancer jab in the arms of boys would not just be for the sake of girls. "These HPVs don't just cause cancer in women. They cause it in men as well. Cancer in the mouth, cancer in the anus and those cancers are very hard [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-07-25T15:19:10-07:00July, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

HPV vaccine debate shifts to boys

Source: Buffalo News Author: Henry L. Davis New questions arise as cancer tied to HPV is rising in men Parents who face the dilemma of whether to protect their young daughters with a vaccine aimed at a sexually transmitted infection that causes cervical cancer now face a new question: Should they do the same for their sons? As evidence mounts of a rising number of other cancers linked to the human papillomavirus, or HPV, a debate has intensified over whether to give the vaccine to males. Advocates say vaccinating boys and men can prevent them from passing on the virus to their sexual partners. Critics still question the long-term safety and effectiveness of Merck & Co.’s Gardasil, despite studies indicating that its risks and lasting power are within the range of other vaccines. But a newer wrinkle in the debate is the discovery in recent years that oral HPV infections — most likely acquired from oral sex with multiple partners—significantly increase the risk of head and neck cancers. The rate of oral cancers is rising so steadily, especially in men, that, if the trend continues, there may be more oral cancers in the United States caused by HPV in 10 years than by tobacco or alcohol, a major study concluded last year. “We should be investing our care and dollars in preventing HPV infection instead of treating the cancers,” said Dr. Thom Loree of Roswell Park Cancer Institute. Physicians at the cancer center have begun publicly touting the benefits of [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-07-15T13:04:17-07:00July, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Vaccine debate shifts to boys

Source: www.buffalonews.com Author: Henry L. Davis Parents who face the dilemma of whether to protect their young daughters with a vaccine aimed at a sexually transmitted infection that causes cervical cancer now face a new question: Should they do the same for their sons? As evidence mounts of a rising number of other cancers linked to the human papillomavirus, or HPV, a debate has intensified over whether to give the vaccine to males. Advocates say vaccinating boys and men can prevent them from passing on the virus to their sexual partners. Critics still question the long-term safety and effectiveness of Merck & Co.’s Gardasil, despite studies indicating that its risks and lasting power are within the range of other vaccines. But a newer wrinkle in the debate is the discovery in recent years that oral HPV infections — most likely acquired from oral sex with multiple partners—significantly increase the risk of head and neck cancers. The rate of oral cancers is rising so steadily, especially in men, that, if the trend continues, there may be more oral cancers in the United States caused by HPV in 10 years than by tobacco or alcohol, a major study concluded last year. “We should be investing our care and dollars in preventing HPV infection instead of treating the cancers,” said Dr. Thom Loree of Roswell Park Cancer Institute. Physicians at the cancer center have begun publicly touting the benefits of the vaccine on males after seeing an increase in the number of throat [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-07-12T09:00:58-07:00July, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

New evidence supports HPV vaccine

MONDAY, July 6 (HealthDay News) -- The human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine is highly effective at preventing precancerous cervical lesions that can lead to cervical cancer, a new study shows. The researchers also found that the HPV-16/18 AS04-adjuvanted vaccine also appears to protect against other cancer-causing HPV types closely related to HPV-16/18, most notably HPV-31 and HPV-45. The study of women aged 15 to 25, who received three vaccine doses over six months, found that it was as much as 98 percent effective against HPV-16/18, and between 37 percent and 54 percent effective against 12 other cancer-causing HPV types. HPV-16/18 causes about 70 percent of cervical cancer cases, while the remaining 30 percent of cases are caused by other cancer-causing HPV types. The cross-protective effect of the HPV-16/18 vaccine could provide an additional 11 percent to 16 percent protection against cervical cancer. "Although the importance of continued tests for Pap or HPV in vaccinated and unvaccinated women must be emphasized, HPV vaccination has the potential to substantially reduce the incidence of cervical cancer and precancer, and the numbers of colposcopy referrals and cervical excision procedures," concluded Dr. Jorma Paavonen, of the University of Helsinki in Finland, and colleagues. The study, which was funded by GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals, maker of the HPV-16/18 AS04-adjuvanted vaccine Cervarix, appears online July 7 and in an upcoming print issue of The Lancet. In an accompanying editorial, two experts wrote that men must also be included in efforts to halt the spread of HPV. "Currently, the targets for [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-07-10T15:34:24-07:00July, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Council on Scientific Affairs issues statement

Source: ADA Author: Jennifer Garvin Growing evidence linking oral infection with human papillomavirus as a risk factor for oropharyngeal cancer prompted the ADA Council on Scientific Affairs to approve a new statement on the topic at its April meeting. The statement aims to promote awareness of the rising incidence of HPV-associated cancers, particularly in the region of the oropharynx (the middle region of the throat, including the tonsils and base of the tongue). Although the primary risk factors for oral cavity cancer remain tobacco use and excessive alcohol consumption, HPV infection is now associated with more than 7,300 cases of oropharyngeal cancer diagnosed annually in the United States. Surveillance data has shown a steady increase in HPV-related oropharyngeal cancers over the past three decades, particularly in white men between 40 to 59 years of age. "Oral HPV infection is now commonly accepted as an important risk factor for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma," said Dr. Mark Lingen, an oral pathologist and council member. "Over the last two decades, the paradigm of the traditional oral cancer patient has been redefined, and dentists should be aware of this new etiology when providing routine oral soft tissue examinations to patients." The council statement emphasizes that oral HPV infection has emerged as a significant risk factor for oropharyngeal cancers for both men and women, even in the absence of smoking and alcohol consumption. New evidence indicates that the association with oropharyngeal cancer is three times higher for men than women, and a higher [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-06-22T16:40:27-07:00June, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

New Information on Perinatal transmission of human papilomavirus DNA

Source: Virology Journal 2009, 6:83 Author: Staff Members The purpose was to study the perinatal transmission of human papillomavirus DNA (HPV-DNA) in 63 mother-newborn pairs, besides looking at the epidemiological factors involved in the viral DNA transmission. The following sampling methods were used: (1) in the pregnant woman, when was recruited, in cervix and clinical lesions of the vagina, vulva and perineal region; (2) in the newborn, (a) buccal, axillary and inguinal regions; (b) nasopharyngeal aspirate, and (c) cord blood; (3) in the children, buccal was repeated in the 4th week and 6th and 12th month of life. HPV-DNA was identified using two methodologies: multiplex PCR (PGMY09 and MY11 primers) and nested-PCR (genotypes 6/11, 16, 18, 31, 33, 42, 52 and 58). Perinatal transmission was considered when concordance was found in type-specific HPV between mother/newborn or mother/child. HPV-DNA genital was detected in 49 pregnant women submitted to delivery. Eleven newborns (22.4%, n=11/49) were HPV-DNA positive. In 8 cases (16.3%, n=8/49) there was type specific HPV concordance between mother/newborn samples. At the end of the first month of life three children (6.1%, n=3/49) became HPV-DNA positive, while two remained positive from birth. In 3 cases (100%, n=3/3) there was type specific HPV concordance between mother/newborn samples. In the 6th month, a child (2%, n=1/49) had become HPV-DNA positive between the 1st and 6th month of life, and there was type specific HPV concordance of mother/newborn samples. All the HPV-DNA positive children (22.4%, n=11/49) at birth and at the end first month of [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-06-22T15:06:37-07:00June, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Early detection is the key

Source: Newstime.com Author: Sandra Diamond Fox Standing before nearly 500 graduates of New York University's School of Dentistry at Madison Square Garden in Manhattan last month, two-time Emmy Award nominee Colleen Zenk Pinter stepped forward to accept the Dr. Harry Strusser Memorial Award for public service. While Pinter, 56, was accustomed to being on stage -- for more than 30 years she played the character of Barbara Ryan on CBS' "As The World Turns" -- speaking at NYU's graduation held very special meaning for her. She was being honored for her work in bringing awareness to oral cancer. Little more than two years ago, the Redding resident for 23 years and mother of six received the news that would change her life -- she was diagnosed with stage 2 squamous cell carcinoma of the ventral tongue. Oral cancer. Pinter's nightmare began in 2005 when she noticed a change in her speech. After an examination, her dentist said it was the result of her teeth shifting, which can sometimes occur after age 50. The following summer, when she developed a painful cold sore under her tongue, an oral surgeon eventually diagnosed it as a bacterial and fungal infection. Once the infection was treated, however, a tumor was discovered underneath it. Pinter started researching oral cancer. "I was in shock," she said. "I didn't fit the profile of people who had this type of cancer." Up until recently, oral cancer was often referred to as "the old man's cancer," and was mostly contracted by [...]

Charlotte Parker2009-06-19T09:56:13-07:00June, 2009|Oral Cancer News|