vaccine – Page 17 – Oral Cancer News

After being diagnosed, Zenk Pinter is an oral cancer spokesperson

Source: www.acorn-online.com Author: Susan Wolf Colleen Zenk Pinter of Redding, an actor who stars as Barbara Ryan on As the World Turns, has partnered with the Oral Cancer Foundation, Yale New-Haven Hospital and Roswell Park Cancer Institute to be a spokesperson for oral cancer. Ms. Pinter was diagnosed with oral cancer in March 2007 and is now cancer-free. “I had no risk factors for this ‘old man’s cancer,’ she said, but her doctors said hers was probably due to human papilloma virus (HPV), which is most often associated with cervical cancer. HPV is the most common sexually transmitted disease in the country, and it is estimated that about 70% of American men and women will be infected at some point in their lives. According to Ms. Zenk Pinter, a growing number of women are being diagnosed with oral cancer, from one in 10 to now a 50-50 split. “The difference is HPV,” she said. She is a proponent of the Gardasil® vaccine against HPV for both girls and boys. It doesn’t help if only half of the population (girls) is being vaccinated. Why boys? “Simple. HPV is sexually transmitted.” Physicians and researchers advocate that the vaccine be given to both sexes, Ms. Zenk Pinter said. During her speech at New York University School of Dentistry graduation, where she received the 2009 Harry S. Strusser Memorial Award for Public Service and Outstanding Contributions to Public Health, Ms. Zenk Pinter implored the graduating doctors and surgeons to thoroughly check their patients for [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-11-28T07:11:44-07:00November, 2009|OCF In The News, Oral Cancer News|

HPV vaccine clears viral infection and may reduce cancerous lesions

Source: www.newswise.com Author: staff Breakthrough study reports complete and partial remissions following vaccination A new vaccine designed to stimulate an immune response against a cancer-causing human papillomavirus (HPV-16) can eliminate chronic infection by the virus and may cause regression of precancerous genital lesions in women who receive the vaccine. According to a report published in the November 5 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine (2009;361:1838-47), the vaccine successfully induced HPV-specific immune responses in 100% of patients with advanced vulvar intraepithelial neoplasia (VIN3), a life-threatening disease that in the majority of cases results from HPV infection and for which there is as yet no satisfactory standard therapy. Among the women who participated in the study, the majority (79%) experienced measurable regression of their VIN3 lesions within 1 year of vaccination. Nine of the women (47%) experienced complete disappearance of lesions and were still symptom-free two years following vaccination. The virus was undetectable in four of five women whose disease had regressed completely after the first year. According to researchers who conducted the phase II study at the Leiden University Medical Center in Leiden, The Netherlands, spontaneous regression of HPV-16 positive VIN3 lesions is very rare, occurring in less than 1.5% of patients. The induction of HPV-specific T-cell immune responses following vaccination, and the researchers’ observation that stronger vaccine-induced immune responses correlated with better clinical outcome indicate that the vaccine is the most likely cause of the high response rate among the patients treated in the study. Unlike recently approved [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-11-10T20:37:37-07:00November, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

FDA approves two HPV vaccines: Cervarix for girls, Gardasil for boys

Sources: www.cancer.gov/ncicancerbulletin Author: news bulletin The FDA has approved a second vaccine to prevent cervical cancer and cervical precancers, the vaccine’s manufacturer, GlaxoSmithKline, announced last week. The approval is based on data from a large clinical trial showing that the vaccine, Cervarix, prevented precancerous lesions in 93 percent of those who received the full vaccine sequence of three injections over 6 months. Cervarix is a bivalent vaccine, meaning it is specifically designed to protect against two human papillomavirus (HPV) types, HPV 16 and 18, which together are responsible for three-quarters of cervical cancers in North America. Clinical trial data also indicate that Cervarix offers more modest protection against precancerous lesions associated with HPV 31, GSK explained in a statement, as well as other tumor-causing (or oncogenic) HPV types. The company expects the vaccine to be available in the United States by the end of the year. The FDA last week also approved the HPV vaccine Gardasil for the prevention of genital warts in boys. Gardasil is already approved and is being actively used in girls and young women for the prevention of cervical cancer. Gardasil is a quadrivalent vaccine that is designed to specifically protect against infections with four HPV types: 16, 18, 6, and 11. HPV types 6 and 11, which are not considered to be oncogenic, cause genital warts. The agency’s approval of Gardasil for boys aged 9 to 26 is based on data from a randomized clinical trial of more than 4,000 males aged 16 to 26, [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-10-21T04:44:55-07:00October, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

HPV vaccine studied for first time in men

Source: www.sciencedaily.com Author: staff A vaccine designed to protect against the most common causes of genital warts and cervical and penile cancer is now being evaluated in young men. The Medical College of Georgia is a site for the first international study of a vaccine that protects against four strains of human papillomavirus in men age 16 to 23. “It’s a great opportunity for men to protect themselves from developing genital warts and penile cancer,” says Dr. Daron G. Ferris, a principal investigator on the study who directs the MCG Gynecologic Cancer Prevention Center. “It’s also a great way for men to protect their sexual partners from developing warts as well as cervical cancer, lower genital tract cancers and precancerous changes of the cervix.” MCG also is studying the vaccine in boys and girls age 10 to 15 and is still enrolling women age 15 to 45 in several other studies. “We are interested in looking at the efficacy of this vaccine in populations that will become target populations, should the Food and Drug Administration approve the vaccine,” Dr. Ferris says. MCG was the largest site in North America for the study in women age 15 to 25 of a vaccine for HPV types 16 and 18, the two most common causes of cervical and penile cancer. That vaccine was reported 100 percent effective at preventing the persistent HPV infections that cause cervical cancer in the Nov. 13 issue of the British journal, The Lancet. This newest study in men [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-10-16T15:44:16-07:00October, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Girls aware of HPV vaccine’s benefits

Source: www.sciencedaily.com Author: Dr. Stacy Tessler Lindau, Dr. G. Caleb Alexander Contrary to concerns that the human papillomavirus vaccine might promote promiscuity, a national survey of girls and young women found that the majority of respondents did not believe the HPV vaccine protected them against other sexually transmitted infections. The study, conducted by University of Illinois at Chicago and University of Chicago researchers, appears online and in the November issue of the Journal of Adolescent Health. The findings are reassuring in that girls and young women did not think that the vaccine provided benefits beyond protecting them from HPV, said Dr. Rachel Caskey, assistant professor of pediatrics and general internal medicine at UIC and lead author of the study. "We also found that they did not think that they could stop cervical cancer screening, or pap smears, which is critical." Researchers used a national sample, representative of the U.S. population, to conduct an online survey of more than 1,000 females ages 13 to 26. The data provide some of the first nationally representative estimates of both adolescents' and young women's adoption of the HPV vaccine, barriers to vaccination, and sources of information about HPV and the HPV vaccine, according to the researchers. Knowledge about the HPV virus itself ran the gamut, said Caskey. Some people knew absolutely nothing and a few people were moderately informed. Knowledge about the HPV vaccine, however, was better. "Messages about the vaccine are getting across, though they are not including messages about the virus itself," [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-10-16T15:34:41-07:00October, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Scientists identify common HPV genotypes In Northern India, encourage vaccination

Source: www.sciencedaily.com Author: press release Although a wide spectrum of human papillomavirus is seen across the population of India, HPV-16 and HPV-18 are the most common types and a vaccination targeting these types could eliminate 75 percent of the cervical cancers in the region, according to data presented at the American Association for Cancer Research Frontiers in Basic Cancer Research Meeting. Cervical cancer caused by HPV is the most common cancer among Indian women, with an estimated 132,000 new cases and 74,000 deaths annually. "In terms of cancer death, India has one fourth of the global burden and when you standardize for age it is the highest in the world," said A. Raj Kumar Patro, a doctoral student in the Department of Microbiology at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi. "Most women present with an advanced state of the disease and compliance with treatment is very poor." To effectively vaccinate against HPV, scientists need a greater understanding of the genotype. More than 100 HPV genotypes have been identified in humans and at least 40 are found in the anogenital tract, which makes HPV a moving target. Patro and colleagues examined 106 women with invasive cervical cancer, 524 women with an unhealthy cervix and a community-based population of women who underwent HPV testing. Among the women with invasive cervical cancer, 83 percent were linked with HPV-16 or HPV-18. Of those who presented with an unhealthy cervix, 15.5 percent had HPV. HPV-16 and HPV-18 were associated with 34.3 [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-10-13T13:28:27-07:00October, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

37% of U.S. teen girls got HPV vaccine

Source: www.medscape.com Author: Daniel J. DeNoon More than one in three U.S. teen girls has had at least one shot of Gardasil, a CDC survey shows, but only 18% of girls got the three shots needed for protection. The survey includes girls vaccinated through 2008, two years after Gardasil's approval. A second HPV vaccine, GlaxoSmithKline's Cervarix, is expected to be approved this year. Gardasil, from Merck, protects against the four strains of the sexually transmitted human papillomavirus (HPV) that cause most cases of cervical cancer and genital warts. But other HPV strains also cause these diseases, so even vaccinated women still need regular Pap exams. Gardasil's acceptance varied widely by state. More than half of all teen girls aged 13 to 17 had at least one shot of the HPV vaccine in six states: Arizona, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Fewer than one in five girls got the vaccine in three states: Georgia, Mississippi, and South Carolina. Coverage was highest in Rhode Island (54.7%) and New Hampshire (54.4%) and lowest in Mississippi (15.8%) and Georgia (18.5%). Cervical cancer is more common in women of Hispanic descent and in people living below the poverty level. Perhaps because the Vaccines for Children (VFC) program provides the expensive vaccine to uninsured children, girls in these groups had higher rates of coverage than other girls. The CDC reported results of the survey in today's issue of Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Source: MMWR, Sept. 17, 2009; vol 58: pp 997-1001.

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-09-25T12:57:21-07:00September, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

FDA Advisory Committee recommends approval for use of GARDASIL® in boys and men

Source: www.merck.com Author: press release Merck & Co., Inc. announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee agreed that efficacy, immunogenicity and safety data from clinical trials in males support the use of GARDASIL¨ [Human Papillomavirus Quadrivalent (Types 6, 11, 16 and 18) Vaccine, Recombinant] in boys and men 9 through 26 years of age for the prevention of genital warts caused by human papillomavirus (HPV) types 6 and 11. "Merck has been committed to pursuing the use of GARDASIL in both males and females since the vaccine was discovered over a decade ago," said Peter S. Kim, Ph.D., executive vice president, and president of Merck Research Laboratories. "We are pleased that the Advisory Committee agrees that the data support the use of GARDASIL in boys and men.” The committee’s recommendation will be considered by the FDA in its review of the supplemental Biologics License Application (sBLA) that Merck submitted for GARDASIL in December 2008. The FDA is not bound by the committee’s guidance, but takes its advice into consideration when reviewing vaccines. Merck expects a decision from the FDA in the fourth quarter of 2009 after the agency has completed its review of Merck's application. “Today's discussion with the Advisory Committee brings the public health community closer to being able to provide GARDASIL to both men and women," said Anna R. Giuliano, Ph.D., Moffitt Cancer Center. GARDASIL has been approved for use in the U.S. since June 2006 and is [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-09-09T21:02:25-07:00September, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

HPV virus linked to some forms of breast cancer, vaccine may help

Source: www.digitaljournal.com Author: staff Scientists working out of the University of South Wales have found that a vaccine for the HPV virus could prevent some forms of breast cancer. The study proves another important link between viral infections and more complex disease. Researchers around the world are finding remarkable connections between common viral infections and the later onset of complex and life-threatening diseases. Recent stories have found viral links to prostate cancer, to Parkinson's disease, to skin cancer, to mouth cancer, and to autism and schizophrenia. Some forms of breast cancer can now be added to this list. Australian scientists working out of the University of South Wales announced an important link between the very common HPV virus and a variety of breast cancers. Their findings suggest that an HPV vaccine could prevent these cancers from presenting themselves years later. The research suggests that tens of thousands of lives could be saved every year by administering the HPV vaccine to young females. The HPV virus is the most commonly distributed sexually transmitted disease, and it is well known to have a direct causal relationship with 90 to 95 percent of all cervical cancers. It has also been linked to mouth cancers. The study linking the HPV virus to these breast cancers was published in the British Journal of Cancer and was conducted using genetic probes of cancerous breast cells. The scientists were able to confirm the presence of HPV nuclei across a variety of tissues sampled. "The finding that high [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-09-05T18:42:10-07:00September, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Cervical cancer vaccine Gardasil still faces questions

Source: www.philly.com Author: Marie McCullough Three years after the world's first cervical-cancer vaccine was hailed as a public-health breakthrough, Gardasil is facing renewed questions about its safety and value. In today's Journal of the American Medical Association, federal researchers analyze 12,424 voluntary reports of post-vaccination "adverse events" ranging from headaches to deaths. They conclude that only two complaints - fainting and dangerous blood clots -- are more common than expected and may be related to the immunization. But an accompanying editorial points out that many questions about Gardasil remain - key among them, whether it really will reduce the toll of cervical cancer. Another opinion piece in JAMA looks at Merck & Co.'s marketing strategy, contending the company coopted professional medical societies to promote and recommend the vaccine. Merck - already on the defensive over Gardasil's second-quarter sales, which slumped sharply in the United States and worldwide - said in a statement that "we welcome continued study and discussion" of the product's safety. "The bottom line is that Gardasil has a very positive benefit-risk profile," Richard M. Haupt, head of Merck's clinical program for the vaccine, said in an interview. Gardasil, a series of three shots, protects against two strains of the sexually transmitted human papillomavirus (HPV) that cause 70 percent of cervical-cancer cases. Gardasil also wards off two other HPV strains that cause 90 percent of genital warts in men and women. Next month, advisers to the Food and Drug Administration will consider whether to recommend expanding Gardasil's current [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-08-19T06:37:56-07:00August, 2009|Oral Cancer News|