human papillomavirus – Page 31

Sanofi Pasteur MSD’s HPV vaccine Gardasil(R) wins Prix Galien award

Source: www.medicalnewstoday.com Author: staff The two HPV vaccines currently licensed for use in the UK were jointly awarded the coveted Prix Galien Medal for Innovation at a ceremony held on Wednesday evening in the Palace of Westminster, House of Commons. "We are absolutely delighted at the recognition given to the world's leading HPV vaccine Gardasil® - this award reflects the work of many people, all around the world, involved in making the dream of a cancer vaccine a reality", said Dr Nicholas Kitchin, Medical Director, accepting the award on behalf of the Sanofi Pasteur MSD team. "Both companies have developed the technology of HPV vaccines down different paths," he continued, "we chose a quadrivalent vaccine strategy, targeting a broader range of HPV-related genital disease than cervical cancer alone, with the aim of delivering additional benefits for patients and healthcare systems." The joint award for the two HPV vaccines, developed by Sanofi Pasteur MSD and GSK, was presented by Andrew Lansley CBE MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Health. The distinguished panel of seven judges, chaired by Professor Sir Michael Rawlins, selected the HPV vaccines as the winners from seven innovative products that reached the final. Vaccines have won in four of the last five Prix Galien awards and the UK award for Gardasil® follows similar success in Prix Galien competitions in the USA and France. Current experience with the four-type HPV vaccine Thirty years after the discovery that human papillomavirus (HPV) can cause cervical cancer, 15 years after the start [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-29T18:53:38-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

HPV increases men’s risk for oral cancer, prompts calls for vaccine: pathology expert Dr. Shashi Pawar on HPV health concerns for men

Source: www.prweb.com Author: press release HPV, the human papillomavirus, is well known for its role in causing cervical cancer in women - so much so, in fact, that the National Institutes of Health recommend all girls be vaccinated against the virus when they are 11 or 12, prior to becoming sexually active. However, recent research shows that women are not the only ones at risk for developing HPV-related cancers. Oral cancers caused by the virus are increasing rapidly in men, and researchers suggest HPV may soon overtake tobacco use as the leading cause of these cancers of the mouth, tongue, throat and tonsils. "The human papillomavirus is one of the most insidious and dangerous sexually transmitted diseases for women, as it has been linked to a vast majority of cervical cancers," explains Dr. Shashi Pawar, PhD, FACMG, Director of Genetics at Acupath Laboratories. "We are now seeing the effects of HPV infection in men, and the marked increase in oral cancer - coupled with the well-known increased risk for penile and anal cancers - suggests that both sexes face equally serious health consequences from this virus," Dr. Pawar notes. Cumulative research spurs call for men's vaccine A benchmark study that tracked more than 30 years of oral cancer data from the National Cancer Institute found that the rate of oral cancer caused by the HPV virus, rather than lifestyle habits such as smoking or chewing tobacco, has risen steadily since 1973 and is now about even with the incidence rate [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-28T21:27:18-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Winnipeg schools pick religion over HPV vaccine

Source: www.canada.com/vancouversun Author: Jen Skerritt, Winnipeg Free Press At least four Winnipeg private schools have opted not to vaccinate Grade 6 girls against a sexually transmitted infection linked to cervical cancer for "religious reasons." The decision comes weeks before Manitoba Health officials roll out the controversial Gardasil vaccine in schools across the province. Dr. Carol Kurbis, medical officer of health for the Winnipeg region, confirmed public health nurses will not attend at least four city private schools to vaccinate 11 and 12-year-old girls against human papillomavirus (HPV) next month. "We don't have any ability to force them into the program and those schools have actually been co-operative in still distributing information out to parents," Kurbis said. "There's four or five, and they're relatively small schools." The province's $10.8-million HPV vaccine program is set to launch in Winnipeg schools the first week of October. Researchers still have no idea when the immunity against HPV wears off and some critics believe mass promotion could lead some women to believe they're protected against other sexually transmitted infections, like the potentially deadly HIV. Some parent groups worry the vaccine sends the wrong message and may encourage preteen girls to engage in sexual activity. Robert Praznik, director of education for the Archdiocese of Winnipeg, said he can't understand why certain schools would opt out of the vaccination program. Praznik said the Archdiocese has directed the 14 local Catholic elementary schools to leave the question of whether to vaccinate preteen girls against HPV up to parents. [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-20T08:24:06-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

As head and neck cancer risks evolve, more treatment options emerge

Source: Eurakalert (www.eurakalert.org) Author: staff Advances in understanding head and neck cancer over the last decade have led to more treatment options and improved quality of life for patients, according to a review published this week in the New England Journal of Medicine. The authors are Dong M. Shin, MD, Frances Kelly Blomeyer Distinguished Professor and associate director of Emory University School of Medicine¹s Winship Cancer Institute, and Robert Haddad, MD, assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and clinical director of its Head and Neck Oncology Program. At Winship, Shin is leading a head and neck cancer drug discovery program and conducting clinical trials aimed at preventing head and neck cancers from progressing or recurring. He and his co-workers recently showed that a compound from green tea enhances the effects of a FDA-approved drug (erlotinib) against head and neck cancer cells in animals, suggesting that it could work similarly in humans. The results are published in the September issue of International Journal of Cancer. The majority of head and neck cancers arise from the soft tissues of the mouth, throat, and voice box. Symptoms can include a sore throat, difficulty swallowing, and a changing voice. Even successful treatment can result in changes in the appearance of the patient's face. However, over the last decade, techniques have been developed that allow doctors to better preserve organ function in cases of larynx or tongue cancers, Shin says. Because smoking and alcohol consumption are risk factors, most patients are middle-aged males [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-09-11T06:05:11-07:00September, 2008|Oral Cancer News|

Prevalence and significance of human papillomavirus in oral tongue cancer: the Mayo Clinic experience

Source: Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Vol. 66, Issue 9, Pages 1875-1880 (September 2008) Authors: Xin-Hua Liang et al. Purpose Cigarette smoking and alcohol use have markedly decreased in the past 40 years. However, there has been an increasing trend in the incidence of tongue cancer, particularly in young patients without traditional risk factors. This study sought to examine the prevalence and significance of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection and its clinical significance in patients with oral tongue cancer. Patients and Methods Fresh-frozen tissues from 51 patients with oral tongue cancer, treated with primary surgery from January 2004 to December 2006, were included in the study. The presence of HPV infection in tumor specimens was analyzed by polymerase chain reaction with HPV L1 consensus primers (GP 5+/GP 6+) and HPV-16-specific E6 primer pairs. Demographic and clinical data were collected to analyze patient outcomes. Results The overall frequency of HPV in oral tongue cancer in our study was 1.96% (1/51). Young patients below the age of 45 years accounted for 15.7% (8/51) of the total number of patients. Eighty-seven percent of the younger age group, including a single patient with an HPV-16-positive tumor, were alive and free from disease during the follow-up period. The overall survival of the study group was 81.4%. Conclusions Our data suggest that the incidence of HPV in oral tongue cancer is low and is unlikely to play a significant role in the etiology, pathogenesis, and clinical outcomes of oral tongue cancer. In addition, HPV is unlikely to constitute [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-08-21T20:39:40-07:00August, 2008|Oral Cancer News|