squamous cell carcinoma

Alcohol and cancer – facts and health risks

Source: mesothelioma.net Author: staff Alcohol and Cancer – Facts and Health Risks While there are proven health benefits of drinking alcohol in moderation, and some specific benefits due to the natural compounds found in red wine, drinking is not always good for your health. Drinking regularly and to excess can have some serious and negative impacts on health and may even be linked to an increased risk for mesothelioma or other cancers. Drinking alcohol in moderation during cancer treatment may be fine for some patients, but generally it should be avoided. It may aggravate side effects and studies are also investigating whether or not alcohol can increase the risk of a cancer recurrence. If you are going through treatment for mesothelioma or another type of cancer, talk to your medical team before indulging in a drink or two. Alcohol Consumption is a Risk Factor for Cancer Many studies have found and confirmed, over and over again, that drinking alcohol is a risk factor for developing cancer generally and for specific types of cancers. Specifically, drinking has been linked with throat and mouth cancers, esophageal cancer, liver cancer, colon cancer, breast cancer, stomach cancer, and pancreatic cancer. The more alcohol consumed, the greater the risk. According to research data, approximately 3.5 percent of cancer deaths are related to alcohol consumption. Some of the specific facts about drinking and cancer from research include: People who drink three to four alcoholic beverages per day have a two to three times increased risk of [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2017-12-15T08:00:31-07:00December, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

Expert says Nivolumab Poised to Change Standard of Care in SCCHN

Source: www.onclive.com Author: Laura Panjwani Nivolumab (Opdivo) is a game-changing agent for the treatment of patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN), according to Robert L. Ferris, MD, PhD. “Recent findings have shown us that this agent is really the new standard-of-care option for all platinum-refractory patients with head and neck cancer,” says Ferris, vice chair for Clinical Operations, associate director for Translational Research, and co-leader of the Cancer Immunology Program at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute. “This is regardless of whether patients are PD-L1–positive or negative or whether they are HPV-positive or negative.” The PD-L1 inhibitor received a priority review designation by the FDA in July 2016 based on the CheckMate-141 study, which demonstrated a median overall survival (OS) with nivolumab of 7.5 months compared with 5.1 months with investigator's choice of therapy (HR, 0.70; 95% CI, 0.51-0.96; P = .0101) in patients with recurrent or metastatic SCCHN. The objective response rate (ORR) was 13.3% with nivolumab and 5.8% for investigator's choice. The FDA is scheduled to make a decision on the application for the PD-1 inhibitor by November 11, 2016, as part of the Prescription Drug User Fee Act. Ferris was the lead author on an analysis that further evaluated preliminary data from CheckMate-141, which was presented at the 2016 ASCO Annual Meeting. In an interview with OncLive, he discusses the findings of this study, potential biomarkers for nivolumab, and questions that remain regarding the use of the immunotherapy in SCCHN. OncLive: What [...]

Charlotte Parker2016-08-24T13:28:58-07:00August, 2016|Oral Cancer News|

Nivolumab Could Change Head and Neck Cancer Treatment Paradigm

Source: www.Targetedonc.comAuthor: Laura Panjwani "To have an anti–PD-1 agent be proven to improve survival in head and neck cancer in a randomized phase III trial, and the potential for a new FDA approval in the near future is a game changer." - Robert Ferris, MD, PhD With the phase III CheckMate-141 trial being stopped early due to the anti–PD-1 agent nivolumab having met its primary endpoint of overall survival improvement in head and neck cancer, Robert Ferris, MD, PhD, couldn't be more elated. "This is what I've devoted my career to, and it is gratifying to see that really come to pass," said Ferris, professor and chief, Division of Head and Neck Surgery, vice chair for Clinical Operations, associate director for Translational Research, and coleader of the Cancer Immunology Program at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, in an exclusive interview with Targeted Oncology. "To have an anti–PD-1 agent be proven to improve survival in head and neck cancer in a randomized phase III trial, and the potential for a new FDA approval in the near future is a game changer. There is now hope for a lot of patients and physicians who have been frustrated by this difficult-to-treat disease. This opens up a whole new class of therapies for this population." Ferris, who acted as cochair/coprimary investigator for the trial alongside Maura Gillison, MD, PhD, Ohio State University, said the trial pitted nivolumab against the investigator’s choice of cetuximab (Erbitux), methotrexate, or docetaxel in patients with platinum-refractory squamous cell carcinoma [...]

Charlotte Parker2016-02-16T09:24:23-07:00February, 2016|Oral Cancer News|

HPV Persistence Predicts Poor Prognosis in Head/Neck Cancer

Source: www.medscape.comAuthor: Roxanne Nelson, RN, BSN Among patients with human papillomavirus–positive oropharyngeal cancer (HPV-OPC), persistence of HPV following treatment is associated with a poorer prognosis. Results of a new study show that the persistence of HPV16 DNA, detected in oral rinses after treatment has ended, may be predictive of disease recurrence. In a cohort of 124 patients with HPV-OPC, HPV16 DNA was detected in oral rinses from 54% (n = 67) of patients at the time of their diagnosis. Following treatment, it was detected in only six patients after treatment, including five patients with persistent oral HPV16 DNA that was also detected at diagnosis. All five patients with persistent HPV16 experienced disease recurrence, with three eventually dying of their cancer. Conversely, only nine of 119 patients without persistent oral HPV16 DNA developed recurrent disease. "Our findings indicate that persistent HPV16 DNA in oral rinses may be a useful early marker of disease that has either recurred or never fully responded to treatment," said first author Eleni Rettig, MD, of the Department of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland. "In the clinical setting, this could one day be a part of routine surveillance after treatment for HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancers, in addition to clinical examination and imaging," she told Medscape Medical News. The study was published online July 30 in JAMA Oncology. Biomarker Potential? In an accompanying editorial, Julie E. Bauman, MD, MPH, and Robert L. Ferris, MD, PhD, both of the University of Pittsburgh, in Pennsylvania, [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-07-30T17:19:55-07:00July, 2015|OCF In The News, Oral Cancer News|

Proteomic analysis of oral/head and neck cancer

Source: http://cancerres.aacrjournals.orgAuthor: Shen Hu, Lifeng Zhang, Jiang Jiang, Martha Arellano-Garcia, and David Wong Abstract: The stagnant survival rates over the past few decades for patients with oral/head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC/HNSCC) emphasize the need for identifying novel diagnostic and therapeutic targets based on molecular profiling of the tumor. In this study, we have conducted patient-based proteomic analysis towards the discovery of potential serum and tissue protein targets associated with OSCC/HNSCC. First, we have utilized quantitative proteomics based on gel electrophoresis and stable isotope labeling/tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) to identify differentially expressed serum proteins between lymph-node metastatic and non-metastatic OSCCs. Proteins in PAGE gel bands were digested and the resulting peptides were labeled with iTRAQ reagents and subsequently quantified with liquid chromatography (LC) with quadrupole time-of-flight MS or linear ion trap MS (LTQ). The differentially expressed proteins included transthyretin, alpha-fibrinogen, tetranectin, hemopexin, ficolin, HGF activator, plasminogen, clusterin, etc. Second, we have performed comparative proteomic analysis of human papillomavirus (HPV)-positive and HPV-negative HNSCCs because HPV has been recognized as an important risk factor for a subset of OSCC/HNSCC. Differentially expressed proteins were revealed by 2-D gel electrophoresis and then identified using in-gel tryptic digestion followed by LC-MS/MS (linear ion trap). Interesting targets associated with HPV-positive HNSCC included NHEJ1, PARK7 (oncogene DJ-1), superoxide dismutase, heat shock protein beta-1, fatty acid-binding protein, etc. NHEJ1 is a DNA repair protein involved in DNA nonhomologous end joining whereas PARK7 acts as a positive regulator of androgen receptor-dependent transcription and has cell-growth promoting and transforming activities. In addition, [...]

Charlotte Parker2014-10-10T11:26:28-07:00October, 2014|Oral Cancer News|

Early detection of head and neck cancer: development of a novel screening tool using multiplexed immunobead-based biomarker profiling

Source: http://cancerres.aacrjournals.org Authors: Faina Linkov, Alex Lisovich, Zoya Yurkovetsky, Adele Marrangoni, Lyudmila Velikokhatnaya, Brian Nolen, Matthew Winans, William Bigbee, Jill Siegfried, Anna Lokshin, and Robert Ferris Abstract: Squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck cancer (SCCHN) is an aggressive disease which has been linked to altered immune, inflammatory, and angiogenesis responses. A better understanding of these aberrant responses might improve early detection and prognosis of SCCHN and provide novel therapeutic targets. Previous studies examined the role of multiplexed serum biomarkers in small cohorts or SCCHN sera. We hypothesized that an expanded panel comprised of multiple cytokines, chemokines, growth factors, and other tumor markers, which individually may show some promising correlation with disease status, might provide higher diagnostic power if used in combination. Thus, we evaluated a novel multi-analyte LabMAP profiling technology that allows simultaneous measurement of multiple serum biomarkers. Concentrations of 60 cytokines, growth factors, and tumor antigens were measured in the sera of 116 SCCHN patients prior to treatment (active disease group), 103 patients who were successfully treated (no evidence of disease, NED, group), and 117 smoker controls without evidence of cancer. The multi-marker panel offering the highest diagnostic power was comprised of 25 biomarkers, including EGF, EGFR, IL-8, tPAI-1, AFP, MMP-2, MMP-3, IFN-α, IFN-γ, IP-10, RANTES, MIP-1α, IL-7, IL-17, IL-1Rα, IL-2R, G-CSF, mesothelin, IGFBP-1, E-selectin, cytokeratin (CK)19, V-CAM, and CA-125. Statistical analysis using an ADE algorithm resulted in a sensitivity of 84.5%, specificity of 98%, and 92% of patients in the active disease group correctly classified from a [...]

Charlotte Parker2014-10-10T11:05:56-07:00October, 2014|Oral Cancer News|

AACR says that new drug may assist therapy for Head and Neck Cancer

Source: hcplive.comAuthor: THURSDAY, Sept. 18, 2014 (HealthDay News) -- The investigational drug alpelisib (previously known as BYL719) appears to inhibit activation of the pathway that leads to resistance to cetuximab, an anti-epidermal growth factor receptor agent used in the treatment of head and neck cancer. These findings were presented at the American Association for Cancer Research's special conference "Targeting the PI3K-mTOR Network in Cancer," held from Sept. 14 to 17 in Philadelphia. Pamela Munster, MD, of the University of California in San Francisco, and colleagues tested the combination of BYL719 and cetuximab in vivo in a cetuximab-sensitive and a cetuximab-resistant xenograft model of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. In a phase Ib study, BYL719 was administered in combination with cetuximab in adults with recurrent or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck that was resistant or intolerant to platinum-based chemotherapy; prior cetuximab therapy was allowed. The researchers found that the addition of BYL719 to cetuximab showed an additive effect in the cetuximab-sensitive model. BYL719 restored sensitivity to cetuximab in the cetuximab-resistant model. In the phase Ib study, as of March 10, 2014, 37 patients have received BYL719 and cetuximab, and the overall response rate is 11%. Based on the data from preclinical studies and the phase Ib study, the combination of alpelisib and cetuximab for squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck is being explored in a phase II study. "Treatment resistance is often conveyed through activation of the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway, and alpelisib is an inhibitor of this pathway," [...]

Charlotte Parker2014-09-22T12:45:41-07:00September, 2014|Oral Cancer News|

Curt Schilling Reveals his Diagnosis of Oral Cancer and Believes Chewing Tobacco was the Cause

Source: boston.comAuthor: Steve Silva Curt Schilling, the former Red Sox pitcher and ESPN analyst, announced today during the WEEI/NESN Jimmy Fund Radio Telethon that he was diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma -- which is cancer in the mouth -- in February. "This all came about from a dog bite," Schilling said. "I got bitten by a dog and I had some damage to my finger and I went to see a doctor, and the day that I went to see the doctor, I was driving and I went to rub my neck and I felt a lump on the left side of my neck. And I knew immediately it wasn't normal. So there happened to be an ENT [Ear, Nose, and Throat] right next door to the hand doctor, and I thought what the heck, let me just stop in and see and so I waited in the office and went in there and they did the biopsy, and two days later, they diagnosed me with squamous cell carcinoma. "You know what the amazing thing was? And I was just dumbfounded by it. You've just been told you have cancer and you walk out into the public and the world's still going on and it was really a challenge to wrap my head around that. My second thought was, 'Yeah, really, you think I can handle this too?' So after a couple of tests, I got sent over to Brigham and Women's and Dana-Farber and that's where I met Dr. Haddad [...]

Charlotte Parker2014-08-20T11:31:16-07:00August, 2014|Oral Cancer News|

Nutritional and Zinc Status of Head and Neck Cancer Patients: An Interpretive Review

Source: Journal of the American College of NutritionAuthors: Ananda S. Prasad, MD, PhD, MACN, Frances W.J. Beck, PhD, Timothy D. Doerr, MD, Falah H. Shamsa, PhD, Hayward S. Penny, MS, RD, Steven C. Marks, MD, Joseph Kaplan, MD, Omer Kucuk, MD and Robert H. Mathog, MD Abstract In this review, we provide evidence based on our studies, for zinc deficiency and cell mediated immune disorders, and the effects of protein and zinc status on clinical morbidities in patients with head and neck cancer. We investigated subjects with newly diagnosed squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity, oropharynx, larynx, and hypopharynx. Patients with metastatic disease and with severe co-morbidity were excluded. Nutritional assessment included dietary history, body composition, and prognostic nutritional index (PNI) determination. Zinc status was determined by zinc assay in plasma, lymphocytes, and granulocytes. Pretreatment zinc status and nutritional status were correlated with clinical outcomes in 47 patients. Assessment of immune functions included production of TH1 and TH2 cytokines, T cell subpopulations and cutaneous delayed hypersensitivity reaction to common antigens. At baseline approximately 50% of our subjects were zinc-deficient based on cellular zinc criteria and had decreased production of TH1 cytokines but not TH2 cytokines, decreased NK cell lytic activity and decreased proportion of CD4+ CD45RA+ cells in the peripheral blood. The tumor size and overall stage of the disease correlated with baseline zinc status but not with PNI, alcohol intake, or smoking. Zinc deficiency was associated with increased unplanned hospitalizations. The disease-free interval was highest for the group which had both zinc sufficient and nutrition sufficient [...]

Charlotte Parker2013-07-03T17:11:10-07:00July, 2013|Oral Cancer News|

The New Face of Oral Cancer

Source: nursing.advanceweb.comBy Jonathan BassettPosted on: April 22, 2013 For decades tobacco was the primary cause of oral cancer but a more insidious culprit has emerged. Jerry Wilck had no reason to suspect anything. Why would he? He only smoked for a couple of years and gave it up more than 40 years ago. He didn't drink excessively, didn't have a family history of cancer, and took good care of himself. In fact, maybe the only reason the 59-year-old consulted an oral surgeon about the small sore on his tongue - the result of a habit of running this particular spot along his teeth - was that there happened to be such a specialist right there in his office. Wilck was a general practice dentist in Langhorne, Pa., and particularly attuned to anomalies of the soft tissues of the mouth. His oral surgeon took no chances and ordered a biopsy. Wilck was "floored" the night in March 2005 when the lab report arrived by fax from the oral pathology department at Temple University in Philadelphia - squamous cell carcinoma. Wilck immediately consulted with John Ridge, MD, PhD, FACS, chief of head and neck surgery at Temple's Fox Chase Cancer Center. After surgical removal of part of his tongue and lymph nodes from his neck, along with a round of physical and speech therapy, Wilck is now cancer free and has full use of his jaw, throat and voice. "I was lucky," confessed Wilck, who retired from practice in 2009 and now spends a [...]

Charlotte Parker2013-06-10T12:26:21-07:00June, 2013|OCF In The News, Oral Cancer News|