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Athletes drive increase in high schoolers’ use of smokless tobacco, CDC study shows

Source: www.kyforward.comAuthor: www.kyforward.com web staff High-school athletes are using more smokeless tobacco, even though overall tobacco use among high-school students has declined, according to a study published by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. We can do more to protect America’s youth from a lifetime of addiction,” Tom Frieden, CDC director, said in a press release. “The fact is, smokeless tobacco products, such as chewing tobacco, snuff or dip, can cause cancer of the mouth, esophagus and pancreas. And the nicotine in these products is harmful to the developing brain. Because we know tobacco-free policies in schools and other public recreational areas work, we must take action now so that our children are safe from these toxins.” Student responses to the national Youth Risk Behavior Survey from 2001 through 2013 show that the share reporting any tobacco use dropped to 22.4 percent from 33.9 percent, and the rate of those smoking combustible tobacco products dropped to 19.5 percent from 31.5 percent. However, those who reported using smokeless tobacco products increased to 8.8 percent from 8.2 percent. The increased use of smokeless tobacco was driven by athletes. The rate among non-athletes remained unchanged at 5.9 percent but has “increased significantly” to 11.1 percent from 10 percent in youth athletes. Researchers suggest that athletes are aware of the adverse consequences of smoking on athletic performance, but may view smokeless tobacco as “less harmful, socially acceptable, or even a way to enhance athletic performance.” The 2013 YRBS found that 26.3 percent [...]

Charlotte Parker2015-10-19T16:38:45-07:00October, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

Alternative Tobacco Products as a Second Front in the War on Tobacco

Source: www.jamanetwork.comAuthors: Samir Soneji, PhD; James D. Sargent, MD; Susanne E. Tanski, MD, MPH; Brian A. Primack, MD, PhD Associations Between Initial Water Pipe Tobacco Smoking and Snus Use and Subsequent Cigarette Smoking: Results From a Longitudinal Study of US Adolescents and Young Adults Importance Many adolescents and young adults use alternative tobacco products, such as water pipes and snus, instead of cigarettes. Objective To assess whether prior water pipe tobacco smoking and snus use among never smokers are risk factors for subsequent cigarette smoking. Design, Setting, and Participants We conducted a 2-wave national longitudinal study in the United States among 2541 individuals aged 15 to 23 years old. At baseline (October 25, 2010, through June 11, 2011), we ascertained whether respondents had smoked cigarettes, smoked water pipe tobacco, or used snus. At the 2-year follow-up (October 27, 2012, through March 31, 2013), we determined whether baseline non–cigarette smokers had subsequently tried cigarette smoking, were current (past 30 days) cigarette smokers, or were high-intensity cigarette smokers. We fit multivariable logistic regression models among baseline non–cigarette smokers to assess whether baseline water pipe tobacco smoking and baseline snus use were associated with subsequent cigarette smoking initiation and current cigarette smoking, accounting for established sociodemographic and behavioral risk factors. We fit similarly specified multivariable ordinal logistic regression models to assess whether baseline water pipe tobacco smoking and baseline snus use were associated with high-intensity cigarette smoking at follow-up. Exposures Water pipe tobacco smoking and the use of snus at baseline. Main Outcomes [...]

Charlotte Parker2015-10-14T12:26:30-07:00October, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

UC Davis will use dogs to sniff out cancer

Source: www.willitsnews.com Author: staff A university team of physicians, veterinarians and animal behaviorists has begun training a pair of very special canines to sniff out cancer. One of the 4-month-old puppies is Alfie, a Labradoodle. months old. UC Davis clinicians are hoping to advance cancer screenings with the innate olfactory skills of man’s best friend. A university team of physicians, veterinarians and animal behaviorists has begun training a pair of very special canines who may represent high-tech health care on four feet in the effort to better screen for cancer, especially at early stages of the disease. About 4-months old, the puppies Alfie (a Labradoodle) and Charlie (a German Shepherd) are undergoing a rigorous twelve-month training program to develop their abilities to identify the scent of cancer in samples of saliva, breath and urine. According to sensory scientists, the olfactory acuity of dogs enables them to detect odorant concentration levels at 1 to 2 parts per trillion, roughly 10,000 to 100,000 times that of a human. UCD physicians and researchers believe Alfie and Charlie have the potential to add an important diagnostic element to patient care. Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States, and early detection of the disease gives patients the best chance of survival. “For the past number of years, we have been developing very high-end, expensive new tests to try and detect the presence of cancer,” said Ralph de Vere White, distinguished professor of urology and director of the UC [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-09-13T15:14:35-07:00September, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

Testimony by otolaryngologists in defense of tobacco companies 2009–2014

Source: www.onlinelibrary.wiley.comAuthor: Robert K. Jackler, MD Abstract Objectives/Hypothesis To examine expert testimony offered by otolaryngologists in defense of the tobacco industry and to assess whether opinions rendered were congruent with evidence in the scientific literature. Methods Data sources include publically available expert witness depositions and trial testimony of board-certified otolaryngologists employed by the tobacco industry in defense of lawsuits brought by smokers suffering from head and neck cancer. The cases, adjudicated in Florida between 2009 and 2014, focused on whether smoking caused the plaintiff's cancer. Results The study includes nine legal cases of upper aerodigestive tract cancer involving six otolaryngologists serving as expert witnesses for the tobacco industry. Cancer sites included larynx (5), esophagus (2), mouth (1), and lung (1). Five of the six otolaryngologists consistently, over multiple cases, offered opinions that smoking did not cause the plaintiff's cancer. By highlighting an exhaustive list of potential risk factors, such as human papillomavirus (HPV), alcohol, asbestos, diesel fumes, salted fish, mouthwash, and even urban living, they created doubt in the minds of the jurors as to the role of smoking in the plaintiff's cancer. Evidence shows that this testimony, which was remarkably similar across cases, was part of a defense strategy shaped by tobacco's law firms. Conclusions A small group of otolaryngologists regularly serve as experts on behalf of the tobacco industry. Examination of their opinions in relation to the scientific literature reveals a systematic bias in interpreting the data relating to the role played by smoking in head and neck [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-07-31T14:00:43-07:00July, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

For the war against oral cancer, what’s in your arsenal?

Source: www.dentistryiq.com Author: Dennis M. Abbott, DDS The face of oral cancer has changed: No longer is oral cancer a disease isolated to men over 60 years of age with a long history of smoking and alcohol consumption. Today, the demographic for the disease includes younger people of both sexes with no history of deleterious social habits who are otherwise healthy and active. It spans all socioeconomic, racial, religious, and societal lines. In other words, oral and oropharyngeal cancer is an equal opportunity killer. Today, as you read this article, 24 people in the US will lose their battles with oral cancer. That is one person for each hour of the day, every day of the year. Each of those lost is someone’s sister, a father’s son, a small child’s mommy, or maybe even a person you hold dear to your heart. The truth is, oral and oropharyngeal cancer has several faces . . . and each of those faces is a human being, just like you and me. So how can we, as dental professionals, be instrumental in the war against oral and head and neck cancer? Views of the oropharynx, the base of the tongue, and the epiglottis, taken with the Iris HD USB 3.0 intraoral camera using different points of focus. Photos courtesy of the author. The answer, as with most other cancers, lies in early detection. When oral and oropharyngeal cancer is detected early, the five-year survival rate can be as high as 80% [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-07-22T05:02:02-07:00July, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

U.S. Chamber of Commerce Works Globally to Fight Antismoking Measures

Source: www.nytimes.comAuthor: Danny Hakim A demonstration against World No Tobacco Day in Jakarta, Indonesia, in 2013. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and its foreign affiliates have joined efforts to fight antismoking laws around the world. Credit Romeo Gacad/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images KIEV, Ukraine — A parliamentary hearing was convened here in March to consider an odd remnant of Ukraine’s corrupt, pre-revolutionary government. Three years ago, Ukraine filed an international legal challenge against Australia, over Australia’s right to enact antismoking laws on its own soil. To a number of lawmakers, the case seemed absurd, and they wanted to investigate why it was even being pursued. When it came time to defend the tobacco industry, a man named Taras Kachka spoke up. He argued that several “fantastic tobacco companies” had bought up Soviet-era factories and modernized them, and now they were exporting tobacco to many other countries. It was in Ukraine’s national interest, he said, to support investors in the country, even though they do not sell tobacco to Australia. Mr. Kachka was not a tobacco lobbyist or farmer or factory owner. He was the head of a Ukrainian affiliate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, America’s largest trade group. From Ukraine to Uruguay, Moldova to the Philippines, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and its foreign affiliates have become the hammer for the tobacco industry, engaging in a worldwide effort to fight antismoking laws of all kinds, according to interviews with government ministers, lobbyists, lawmakers and public health groups in Asia, [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-06-30T09:53:56-07:00June, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

Head and neck cancer on rise in young men

Source: www.healthcanal.com Author: staff “The head and neck cancers we have found in younger men with no known risk factors such as smoking are very frequently associated with the same HPV virus that causes cervical cancer in women." said Kerstin Stenson, MD, a head and neck cancer surgeon at Rush and a professor of otolaryngology at Rush University. The cancer develops from an HPV infection, likely acquired several years earlier from oral sex. "Men are more susceptible to these cancers because they don’t seem to have the same immune response as women and do not shed the virus like women do,” Stenson said. 'Epidemic proportions' According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, cancers of the oropharynx (back of the throat, including the base of the tongue and tonsils) are usually caused by tobacco and alcohol, but recent studies show that about 72 percent of oropharyngeal cancers are caused by HPV. “There has been significant change in the last decade. Overall, head and neck cancers account for approximately 3 to 5 percent of all cancers, but what’s changed in the past decade is the HPV-associated oropharyngeal cancer. It has reached epidemic proportions,” said Stenson. The American Cancer Society estimates that 45,780 Americans will be diagnosed with cancer of the oral cavity and oropharynx in 2015. If this trend continues, the number of cases of HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer will surpass the number of cervical cancer cases. Early detection is key The current vaccine has been shown to decrease the incidence [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-03-23T06:22:35-07:00March, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

Cure Possible for Some HPV-Positive Oropharyngeal Cancers

Source: www.medscape.com Author: Fran Lowry In a subset of patients with human papillomavirus (HPV)-related oropharyngeal cancer, the goal of achieving a "cure" is a realistic one, even in patients who have limited distant metastases, a prospective study has shown. Of the patients with HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer and distant metastases, 10% survived more than 2 years after intensive treatment, which the researchers defined as a cure. The study was presented at the 5th International Conference on Innovative Approaches in Head and Neck Oncology (ICHNO) in Nice, France. The research was praised by Jean Bourhis, MD, head of the Department of Radiation Oncology at Centre Hospitalier Université Vaudois in Lucerne, Switzerland, and cochair of the ICHNO conference scientific committee. "This important piece of research adds substantially to what we know about the role and the importance of the human papillomavirus in oropharyngeal cancers and gives real hope of improvement in both diagnosis and treatment to those who are affected by the condition," he said in a statement. This study, from a world-leading group of head and neck cancer experts, is very interesting, and related to relevant clinical and interdisciplinary questions," said Daniel Zips, MD, professor of radiation oncology at the University of Tübingen in Germany. "HPV status is also important for the management of metastatic disease," he told Medscape Medical News. He agrees that for some patients with HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer, using the researchers' definition, a cure is possible. "I also agree that the results from this study might begin to change [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-03-12T07:00:10-07:00March, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

Researchers propose new staging model for HPV+ oropharyngeal cancer

Source: www.drbicuspid.com Author: Donna Domino Researchers are proposing a new tumor-staging model for predicting the outcomes and guiding treatments for patients with human papillomavirus (HPV)-related oropharyngeal cancer (OPC), according to a new study in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. Since HPV-related cancer differs significantly from smoking-related cancer, less intensive treatment strategies may be more appropriate, the study authors concluded. Treatment regimens for oropharyngeal cancer have intensified over time and carry a toxicity burden, the Canadian researchers noted. In the last few years, research has found that oropharyngeal cancer caused by HPV behaves differently than OPC caused by smoking and alcohol, yet both cancers use the same tumor classification model. Therefore, regardless of whether the OPC was caused by HPV or smoking, the treatment and perceived prognosis based on tumor staging has remained the same, even though patient outcomes vary considerably, the study authors noted (Journal of Clinical Oncology, February 10, 2015, Vol. 31:5, pp. 543-550). A new tumor-staging model will help separate patients with promising prognoses from those with negative ones to design the most appropriate treatment strategies for each group, according to the researchers from Toronto's Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. The researchers analyzed 899 oropharyngeal cancer patients, including 505 (56%) patients with HPV who had been treated with radiotherapy or chemoradiotherapy from 2001 to 2009. The HPV-positive patients (382) had higher recurrence-free survival rates after about four years compared with HPV-negative patients (123). Disease recurrence was 16.7% (64) among HPV-positive patients; 38.2% among HPV-negative patients (47). The tumor staging [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-02-25T08:55:13-07:00February, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

Great American Spit Out warns of new tobacco lures

Source: www.orlandosentinel.com Author: Kate Santich, Orlando Sentinel As anti-tobacco advocates celebrate today's Great American Spit Out — the "chew" equivalent of the Great American Smoke Out — health officials warn that new dissolvable and flavored varieties of smokeless-tobacco products are targeting teens in a mission to get them hooked. Newly released data from state health researchers show that, while cigarette smoking among Florida youth has reached an all-time low, smokeless tobacco use has been virtually unchanged for the past decade: roughly 5.5 percent among high school students statewide. And it's nearly 9 percent in some counties, including Lake. "The tobacco industry is targeting us," said Magi Linscott, a Pensacola-area 18-year-old named National Youth Advocate for 2014 by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. "They're trying to get a new generation of addicts." Recent product developments include colorfully packaged, kid-friendly flavors of tobacco-infused candy, mints, gum, breath strips and flavored toothpicks — all containing nicotine. Depending on the type, they are designed to be held in the mouth, chewed, or sucked until they dissolve and the juices swallowed. Along with more traditional chew, snuff and a teabag-like pouch of finely ground tobacco called snus ("snoose"), smokeless products may lure users with a false sense of safety. Shannon Hughes, Tobacco Free Florida bureau chief, said young people — and their parents — may not realize the dangers of the products, which increase the risk of oral cancer by 80 percent. "Adults think, 'Well, at least they're not smoking,'" Hughes said. "Yes, cigarettes do [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-02-21T08:34:54-07:00February, 2015|Oral Cancer News|