Cancer
Certain Types of Cancer Becoming More Common, While Rates of Others Decreasing
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Nation-wide statistics indicate that while some types of cancer are occurring less frequently, the rates of others are still surging upward. According to a new study published in Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, incidence of skin cancer is climbing in both sexes - more men are facing prostate cancer, while more women are diagnosed with breast cancer. Cancers showing a decrease in incidence in both sexes include lung, stomach and colon cancers.
“There are a variety of factors that may explain these numbers,” says study author Elizabeth Ward.
Does too much protein in the diet increase cancer risk?
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A great deal of research connects nutrition with cancer risk. Overweight people are at higher risk of developing post-menopausal breast cancer, endometrial cancer, colon cancer, kidney cancer and a certain type of esophageal cancer. Now preliminary findings from researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis suggest that eating less protein may help protect against certain cancers that are not directly associated with obesity.
The research, published in the December issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, shows that lean people on a long-term, low-protein, low-calorie diet or participating in regular endurance exercise training have lower levels of plasma growth factors and certain hormones linked to cancer risk.
Very obese fare worse after colon cancer diagnosis
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Obese patients are more likely to have a recurrence of colon cancer than their normal-weight counterparts and face an increased risk of dying from the disease, a new study shows.
While it’s not clear that losing weight would improve their prognosis, Dr. James J. Dignam of the University of Chicago and colleagues note, healthy lifestyle changes would probably have other beneficial effects for obese colon cancer patients.
There is strong evidence that being obese, defined as having a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or greater, both increases the likelihood of developing colon cancer and worsens prognosis for individuals diagnosed with the disease, Dignam and his team report in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
Diseased gums raise risk of pancreatic cancer
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Gum disease may increase the risk of developing deadly pancreatic cancer, even among those who have never smoked, according to research reported today in Boston at the American Association for Cancer Research’s Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research Meeting.
Two previous studies found positive associations between tooth loss or periodontitis (inflammation of the gums around the teeth) and pancreatic cancer. However, “residual confounding” by smoking and other known risk factors may have accounted for the findings.
To investigate further, Dr. Dominique S. Michaud of Harvard School of Public Health, Boston and colleagues analyzed 16 years of health data on nearly 52,000 male doctors in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study. This ongoing study, initiated in 1986, is looking at lifestyle factors related to cancer and other chronic diseases.
Cost-effectiveness of lipid screening in Hodgkin’s disease survivors
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Hodgkin’s lymphoma survivors who have lipid screening every five years to detect high cholesterol will live a half year longer than patients who don’t have the screening and the intervention is cost-effective, according to a study presented November 8, 2006, at the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology’s 48th Annual Meeting in Philadelphia.
“Although physicians are aware that Hodgkin’s lymphoma survivors are at increased risk of heart disease, it hasn’t been well-established how to best monitor these patients,” said Aileen Chen, M.D., M.P.P, lead author of the study and a radiation oncologist at the Dana-Farber Cancer Center in Boston. “Our study shows that lipid screening in Hodgkin’s survivors is cost effective and provides physicians with a guideline on how frequently they should be screening for high cholesterol, an important risk factor for heart disease.”
Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus tricks cells to become tumors
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Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine have discovered how the Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) subverts a normal cell process in order to promote tumor growth.
The finding, published in the most recent issue of PLoS Pathogens, offers new potential strategies for treating Kaposi’s sarcoma and other cancers associated with viruses.
Cancer risk from arthritis drugs overstated-study
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Two biotech drugs used to treat rheumatoid arthritis—Abbott Laboratories Inc.‘s Humira and Johnson & Johnson’s Remicade—may raise the risk of cancer and infections but not as much as was feared, researchers said on Tuesday.
A series of letters published in the Journal of the American Medical Association show that several teams have taken a fresh look at the safety of the two drugs and find that they may double the risk of cancer and infections.
Most of the researchers, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, agree that patients need to know about the risks but say the benefits mean the drugs should stay on the market.
Tight belts not a factor in esophageal cancer rise
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A new study from Sweden debunks the theory that men’s switch from suspenders to belts is behind the sharp rise in throat cancer seen over the past several decades.
While known risk factors for esophageal cancer include male gender, being overweight, and having gastric acid reflux, Drs. Jesper Lagergren and Catarina Jansson of the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm note, the reasons remain unclear why the disease is becoming more common.
Study Examines Effects of Aricept in Pediatric Brain Cancer Survivors
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A pediatric oncologist at Brenner Children’s Hospital is evaluating whether a drug typically used to treat Alzheimer’s patients will help brain cancer survivors avoid the learning and memory problems that are common after radiation therapy.
The drug, called Aricept™, will be given daily for six months to brain cancer survivors who have received cranial radiation. Sharon Castellino, M.D., will follow these patients for six months to see if the drug can help prevent a decline in their cognitive abilities.
Blocking stomach acid doesn’t raise cancer risk
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Overall, the use of drugs that reduce stomach acid, such as H2 blockers and proton pump inhibitors, do not increase the risk of cancer of the esophagus or stomach, according to a study reported in the journal Gut.
Common H2 blockers are ranitidine (Zantac) and cimetidine (Tagamet); and a common proton pump inhibitor is omeprazole (Prilosec).
“There have been concerns regarding the safety of long-time gastric acid suppression,” senior investigator Dr. Mats Lindblad told Reuters Health. “I think our large study clearly suggests that long-time gastric acid suppression does not increase the risk” of cancer of the esophagus or stomach.
CDC plans to subsidize cervical cancer vaccine
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U.S. health authorities added Merck & Co. Inc.‘s new vaccine for cervical cancer to a government-subsidized vaccine program for schoolchildren, helping to expand its availability, the company said on Wednesday.
The vaccine Gardasil prevents cervical cancer by protecting against the sexually transmitted human papilloma virus (HPV), which can trigger the disease, one of the most common cancers in women.
Merck said the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention included Gardasil in its Vaccines for Children program, under which the government buys vaccines for uninsured or poor schoolchildren.
Breakthrough in Eye Cancer Treatment
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Scientists at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital have demonstrated in a mouse model a new, locally applied treatment for the eye cancer retinoblastoma that not only greatly reduces the size of the tumor, but does so without causing the side effects common with standard chemotherapy. The treatment also appears to be suitable for certain forms of breast, lung, prostate and colon cancer, and is simple enough for widespread use even in countries with limited resources.
A report on this work appears in the Nov. 2 issue of the journal Nature.
Retinoblastoma occurs in about 5,000 young children worldwide each year, arising from the immature retina, which is the part of the eye responsible for detecting light and color. The cancer is fatal if left untreated.
HK scientists identify cancer-blocking protein
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Scientists in Hong Kong have identified a protein that can help suppress the growth of prostate cancer cells, the third most common cancer in men worldwide.
With half a million new cases a year, prostate cancer afflicts 1 in every 6 men in the United States and 1 in 50 males in Hong Kong.
But current therapies for advanced prostate cancer are far from satisfactory and have side effects.
New Study Finds Low 5 Year Colon Cancer Recurrence Rates
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Five years after a colonoscopy which detected no precancerous growths or polyps, the risk of having a potential cancer is very low according to findings of a study by researchers from Indiana University presented at the 71st Annual Scientific meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology (ACG). The risk of advanced adenomas, a type of colon polyp more likely to become cancerous, while still low, was higher in men than in women. These findings suggest a longer interval for follow-up screening may be safe, and support recommendations by the ACG and other groups to re-screen average risk patients after ten years.
Thomas Imperiale, M.D., FACG of Indiana University presented data from patients in a corporate-sponsored screening program supported by Eli Lilly in which employees are screened for colorectal cancer. Among the 2,436 patients who had no precancerous growths upon initial screening, 1,256 returned for screening approximately five years later. No cancers were found upon re-screening, and tests revealed polyps larger than 1 centimeter in 16 percent of the patients. Researchers identified advanced adenomas in 15 patients, or 1.2 percent. Men in the study were more likely to have polyps at all, and to have advanced adenomas.
Personalized Cancer Vaccine Improves Disease Free Survival
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The search for effective anti-cancer therapies increasingly leads medical scientists to immune-based agents like anti-vaccines, or a “personalized” approach based on a patient’s unique disease status. A new study reported by Tampa-based Accentia Biopharmaceuticals, achieves promising treatment objectives by exploiting both therapeutic approaches simultaneously.
Results from an ongoing clinical trial suggest that patients with non-Hodgkins lymphoma (NHL), a cancer of the lymphatic system, can benefit from treatment with a novel anti-cancer vaccine based on the patient’s specific tumor. The study results, published September 20 in the prestigious Journal of the National Cancer Institute, demonstrated that administration of the BiovaxID™ anti-cancer vaccine formulation resulted in long-lasting remission in NHL patients.
