House Committee Looks to Dilute Tobacco Control Act

Source: www.medpagetoday.com Date: July 12, 2017 Author: Salynn Boyles The U.S. House Appropriations Committee made a move Wednesday to greatly weaken the FDA's authority to regulate tobacco products, including flavored cigars and electronic cigarettes, and health advocacy groups were quick to condemn it. The committee approved a rider to the agriculture funding bill that would exempt certain cigars from FDA's authority and weaken its regulatory oversight over e-cigarettes, little cigars, and hookah tobacco. Prior to the vote, the House committee defeated an amendment by Rep. Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.) to remove language from the bill that will effectively eliminate FDA's authority to review the health hazards of thousands of tobacco products. A second rider would exempt from FDA authority certain cigars, including many that are cheap, flavored and are most likely to appeal to children, said American Lung Association (ALA) President Harold Wimmer. "These dangerous riders were added to this bill for the benefit of the tobacco industry and come at a time when e-cigarettes are the most commonly used tobacco product among kids," Wimmer said in a written press statement. The riders are similar to those passed by the House Appropriations Committee last year, but the language restricting FDA's authority under the Tobacco Control Act was dropped from the final FY2017 bill later in the appropriations process. New language in the FY2018 bill does require the FDA to develop standards for the flavors added to e-cigarettes. ALA spokesperson Erika Sward told MedPage Today that it is not clear if the [...]

2017-07-13T11:02:13-07:00July, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

Mayo Clinic Q and A: Throat cancer symptoms

Source: newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org Author: Dr. Eric Moore, Otorhinolaryngology, Mayo Clinic DEAR MAYO CLINIC: Are there early signs of throat cancer, or is it typically not found until its late stages? How is it treated? ANSWER: The throat includes several important structures that are relied on every minute of the day and night to breathe, swallow and speak. Unfortunately, cancer can involve any, and sometimes all, of these structures. The symptoms of cancer, how early these symptoms are recognized and how the cancer is treated depend on which structures are involved. All of the passageway between your tongue and your esophagus can be considered the throat. It includes three main areas. The first is the base of your tongue and tonsils. These, along with the soft palate and upper side walls of the pharynx, are called the oropharynx. Second is the voice box, or larynx. It consists of the epiglottis — a cartilage flap that helps to close your windpipe, or trachea, when you swallow — and the vocal cords. Third is the hypopharynx. That includes the bottom sidewalls and the back of the throat before the opening of the esophagus. Tumors that occur in these three areas have different symptoms, behave differently and often are treated differently. That’s why the areas of the throat are subdivided into separate sections by the head and neck surgeons who diagnose and treat them. For example, in the oropharynx, most tumors are squamous cell carcinoma. Most are caused by HPV, although smoking and alcohol can [...]

Novel vaccine therapy can generate immune responses in patients with HPV-related head and neck cancer

Source: www.news-medical.net Author: staff A novel vaccine therapy can generate immune responses in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCCa), according to researchers at the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania. The treatment specifically targets human papillomavirus (HPV), which is frequently associated with HNSCCa, to trigger the immune response. Researchers will present the results of their pilot study during the 2017 American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting in Chicago (Abstract #6073). HNSCCa is a cancer that develops in the mucous membranes of the mouth, and throat. While smoking and tobacco use are known causes, the number of cases related to HPV infection - a sexually transmitted infection that is so common, the Centers for Disease Control says almost all sexually active adults will contract it at some point in their lifetimes - is on the rise. The CDC now estimates 70 percent of all throat cancers in the United States are HPV-related. Sixty percent are caused by the subtype known as HPV 16/18. "This is the subtype we target with this new therapy, and we're the only site in the country to demonstrate immune activation with this DNA based immunotherapeutic vaccine for HPV 16/18 associated head and neck cancer," said the study's lead author Charu Aggarwal, MD, MPH, an assistant professor of Hematology Oncology in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. The vaccine is delivered as an injection of antigens - which leads the immune system to start producing antibodies and [...]

Study reveals high environmental cost of tobacco

Source: www.cnn.com Date: May 31st, 2017 Author: Jacopo Prisco Details of the environmental cost of tobacco are revealed in a study released Wednesday by the World Health Organization, adding to the well-known costs to global health, which translate to a yearly loss of $1.4 trillion in health-care expenses and lost productivity. From crop to pack, tobacco commands an intensive use of resources and forces the release of harmful chemicals in the soil and waterways, as well as significant amounts of greenhouse gases. Its leftovers linger, as tobacco litter is the biggest component of litter worldwide. "Tobacco not only produces lung cancer in people, but it is a cancer to the lungs of the Earth," said Dr. Armando Peruga, who previously coordinated the WHO Tobacco Free Initiative and now works as a consultant. He reviewed the new report for the WHO. Commercial tobacco farming is a worldwide industry that involves 124 countries and occupies 4.3 million hectares of agricultural land. About 90% of it takes place in low-income countries, with China, Brazil and India as the largest producers. Because tobacco is often a monocrop -- grown without being rotated with other crops -- the plants and the soil are weak in natural defenses and require larger amounts of chemicals for growth and protection from pests. "Tobacco also takes away a lot of nutrients from the soil and requires massive amounts of fertilizer, a process that leads to degradation of the land and desertification, with negative consequences for biodiversity and wildlife," Peruga [...]

2017-05-31T11:27:48-07:00May, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

More patients presenting with HPV-associated oral cancers in Lubbock, TX

Source: lubbockonline.com Author: Ellysa Harris Detecting oral cancers in patients in their 50s and 60s has never been uncommon. But local dentists and doctors say finding it in younger patient populations has become a new norm. Oral cancers driven by Human Papillomavirus are now the fastest growing oral and oropharyngeal cancers, according to the Oral Cancer Foundation website. And local health officials say they’ve seen a few more cases than usual. Dr. Joehassin Cordero, FACS, professor, chairman and program director ofTexas Tech’s Health Sciences Center Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, said less people are smoking and that has contributed to the decrease in the number of cases of oral cancers in the past two decades. “In that same period, we have seen an increase in the HPV oropharyngeal cancer,” he said. “And oropharyngeal cancer — what it means it’s affecting the base of your tongue and tonsils.” Dr. Brian Herring, a Lubbock dentist, chalks the increase up to increased awareness. “I’m assuming probably for years and years and years it has affected the mouth but we didn’t know that,” he said. “As we get better at cellular diagnostics and molecular diagnostics, things like that, we’re finding that there is a large portion of cancers that do have an HPV component.” What’s more alarming, said Dr. Ryan Higley, oral surgeon with West Texas Oral Facial Surgery, is it’s being diagnosed in younger people. Higley said oral cancers are generally diagnosed between the ages of 55 and 65, mostly in women. [...]

Symptoms of throat cancer depend on which throat structures are affected

Source: tribunecontentagency.com Author: Eric Moore, M.D. Dear Mayo Clinic: Are there early signs of throat cancer, or is it typically not found until its late stages? How is it treated? Answer: The throat includes several important structures that are relied on every minute of the day and night to breathe, swallow and speak. Unfortunately, cancer can involve any, and sometimes all, of these structures. The symptoms of cancer, how early these symptoms are recognized and how the cancer is treated depend on which structures are involved. All of the passageway between your tongue and your esophagus can be considered the throat. It includes three main areas. The first is the base of your tongue and tonsils. These, along with the soft palate and upper side walls of the pharynx, are called the oropharynx. Second is the voice box, or larynx. It consists of the epiglottis — a cartilage flap that helps to close your windpipe, or trachea, when you swallow — and the vocal cords. Third is the hypopharynx. That includes the bottom sidewalls and the back of the throat before the opening of the esophagus. Tumors that occur in these three areas have different symptoms, behave differently and often are treated differently. That’s why the areas of the throat are subdivided into separate sections by the head and neck surgeons who diagnose and treat them. For example, in the oropharynx, most tumors are squamous cell carcinoma. Most are caused by HPV, although smoking and alcohol can play a role [...]

The scary reason doctors say kids need HPV vaccinations

Source: www.washingtonpost.com Author: Sarah Vander Schaaff When actor Michael Douglas told a reporter that his throat cancer was caused by HPV contracted through oral sex, two themes emerged that had nothing to do with celebrity gossip. The first was incredulity — since when was oral sex related to throat cancer? Even the reporter thought he had misheard. The second was embarrassment. This was too much information, not only about sexual behavior but also about one’s partners. Douglas apologized, and maybe the world was not ready to hear the greater truth behind what he was suggesting. That was four years ago. Today, there is no doubt in the medical community that the increase in HPV-related cancers such as the one Douglas described — which he later explained was found at the base of his tongue — is caused by sexual practices, in his case cunnilingus. And there is an urgency to better treat and prevent what is becoming the one type of oral cancer whose numbers are climbing, especially among men in the prime of their lives who have decades to live with the consequences of their cancer treatment. The number of people diagnosed with HPV-related oropharyngeal cancer, tumors found in the middle of the pharynx or throat including the back of the tongue, soft palate, sides of throat and tonsils — is relatively small — about 12,638 men and 3,100 women in the United States each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But these numbers are [...]

Mouth cancer rates soar over 20 years

Source: www.sciencedaily.com Author: staff A new Cancer Research UK analysis reveals that rates of mouth (oral) cancer have jumped by 68 per cent1 in the UK over the last 20 years. The figures -- released during Mouth Cancer Action Month -- reveal the cancer is on the rise for men and women, young and old, climbing from eight to 13 cases per 100,000 people over the last two decades. For men under 50, the rate has jumped by 67 per cent in the last 20 years2 -- going up from around 340 cases to around 640 cases each year. For men aged 50 and over, rates have increased by 59 per cent climbing from around 2,100 cases to around 4,400 cases annually. Oral cancer is more common in men, but there have been similar increases women3. In women under 50, oral cancer rates have risen by 71 per cent in the last 20 years, with annual cases climbing from around 160 to around 300. Rates for women over 50 have also gone up by 71 per cent, with cases increasing from around 1,100 to around 2,200. Around nine in 10 cases are linked to lifestyle and other risk factors. Smoking is the biggest avoidable risk factor, linked to an estimated 65 per cent of cases. Other risk factors include alcohol, diets low in fruit and vegetables, and infections with the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV). Oral cancers include cancer of the lips, tongue, mouth (gums and palate), tonsils and the middle [...]

2016-11-29T07:10:47-07:00November, 2016|Oral Cancer News|

Curbing oral cancer

Source:.businessmirror.com.ph Author: Henrylito D. Tacio “Cancer is the third leading cause of death in the country today. Most of it can be prevented since its risk factors are lifestyle and environmentally related. Early detection of cancer is a crucial key to the survival and recovery of its victims. The earlier you detect the malignancy the higher the survival rate of the patient.” —Dr. Vic Fileto Chua of Movement for Early Detection of Cancer What's the leading cause of oral cancer? Is it smoking or heavy drinking? Although smoking and drinking may cause oral cancer, the leading cause is oral sex, a sexual act that involves the stimulation of the genitalia using the mouth. Studies have shown that 64 percent of cancers of the oral cavity, head, and neck in the United States are caused by human papillomavirus (HPV), which is commonly spread via oral sex. The more oral sex you have – and the more oral sex partners you have – the greater the risk of developing these potentially deadly cancers. “An individual who has six or more lifetime partners—on whom they’ve performed oral sex—has an eightfold increase in risk compared to someone who has never performed oral sex,” explained Dr. Maura Gillison, an oncologist at Ohio State University. Gillison headed a team of researchers who examined 271 throat-tumor samples collected over 20 years ending in 2004. They found that the percentage of oral cancer linked to HPV surged to 72 percent from about 16 percent. The study, which was [...]

2016-11-17T12:44:14-07:00November, 2016|Oral Cancer News|

HPV and mouth cancer

Source: www.hippocraticpost.com Author: Thea Jourdan Mouth cancer kills nearly 2000 people in the UK each year. The Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) of which there are over 100 different types, is more commonly associated with cervical cancer and genital warts, but it can also cause oral cancer, particularly of the back of the tongue and tonsils. The virus incorporates itself into the cell’s DNA and causes the cell to multiply out of control, leading to cancer. In Britain, the number of mouth and throat cancers have increased by 40 per cent in just a decade, to 6,200 cases a year. According to Cancer Research UK, the HPV virus, which is transmitted to the mouth region from the genitals during oral sex, may be key to the ‘rapid rise’. Statistics also show that the more sexual partners you have the greater your chance of acquiring mouth cancer. “There is now scientific evidence that a proportion of mouth and throat cancers are linked to HPV infection,” says Hazel Nunn, head of health information at Cancer Research UK. “We know that HPV is found in the mouth but we do not yet know how it gets there – whether through oral sex or otherwise. HPV virus has been found on the fingers and elsewhere on the body. It is possible that oral sex is having an impact but more research needs to be done into the kinds of behaviour that leads to this infection.” “HPV has been causing mouth cancer for decades but the [...]

2016-11-07T08:10:14-07:00November, 2016|Oral Cancer News|
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