| Paper Reveals Potential New Treatment for Ovarian Cancer
New effective therapies for the treatment of advanced stage ovarian cancer are urgently needed.A paper published February 9, 2009, in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) by Dr. Janet Sawicki, Professor at the Lankenau Institute for Medical Research (LIMR), a team headed by Daniel G. Anderson, Ph.D. and Robert Langer, Sc.D. of the David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and David Bumcrot, Director of Research at Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, shows that a new therapy suppresses ovarian tumor growth and metastasis in preclinical studies.Ovarian tumors highly express two proteins, claudin-3 and -4. These proteins are associated with both an increase is cellular motility and survival of ovarian tumor cells. Claudin-3 is also over expressed in breast and prostate tumors.
Investigating the impact of extraneous distractions on
Five cases presented red flag cancer symptoms.
Half the consultations were interrupted. Two independent assessors, blinded to the occurrence of interruptions, assessed consultation performance using the Leicester Assessment Package (LAP) for clinical competence.
Results: : 24 of 36 consultations were video recorded with sufficient audio-visual clarity to allow scoring. The association between LAP score and three variables could be studied: a variety of interruptions, different GPs and various scenarios.
Agreement between assessors on GP performance was poor and showed an increased bias with increasing LAP score. Despite this, the interruption did not significantly impact on assessor LAP scores (Mean difference: 0.22, p=0.83) even after controlling for assessor, different GPs and scenarios.
Prostate Cancer Treatment Milestone: 1600th Patient Treated
The Sonablate® 500 is not approved for use in the U.S. but is undergoing Phase III clinical trials as a treatment for prostate cancer across the U.S. at elite medical institutions such as the NYU School of Medicine. HIFU is a state-of-the-art technology that uses the power of ultrasound to destroy deep-seated tissue with pinpoint accuracy for treatment of prostate cancer. HIFU focuses sound waves in a targeted area, which rapidly increases the temperature in the focal zone, causing tissue destruction. One of the leading HIFU technologies is called Sonablate® 500, which is distributed and marketed outside the U.S. by International HIFU (http://www.InternationalHIFU.com). The Sonablate® 500 is designed to be the most advanced HIFU therapy available. "Clinical trials outside the U.S.
Speaking up for men’s health
Prostate cancer is the most common type of cancer in men over 50 years and symptoms only present in the advanced stages of the disease. As a Men's Health Ambassador, Mr Anderson talks to groups about prostate cancer, prostate enlargement, prostatitis and continence health. Mr Anderson said he had already made one presentation, to Moruya Rotary Club in November. “I'm looking for men's groups to talk to," he said. “It doesn't have to be just men. Their partners can come too. “Most of the time the reason why men do get their prostate checked is because their partners encourage them." Mr Anderson said the talk goes through the problems associated with prostate cancer, the importance of annual check-ups and what treatments are available. “It's a layman's talk," he said.
Speaking up for men’s health
Prostate cancer is the most common type of cancer in men over 50 years and symptoms only present in the advanced stages of the disease. As a Men's Health Ambassador, Mr Anderson talks to groups about prostate cancer, prostate enlargement, prostatitis and continence health. Mr Anderson said he had already made one presentation, to Moruya Rotary Club in November. “I'm looking for men's groups to talk to," he said. “It doesn't have to be just men. Their partners can come too. “Most of the time the reason why men do get their prostate checked is because their partners encourage them." Mr Anderson said the talk goes through the problems associated with prostate cancer, the importance of annual check-ups and what treatments are available. “It's a layman's talk," he said.
Veterans Organizations Call For Early Lung Cancer Detection Research
Lung cancer takes more lives each year in the military and civilian populations than the next four most common cancers -- breast, prostate, colon and pancreas -- combined. The LCA board member Admiral T. Joseph Lopez (USN ret.) called lung cancer "the stealth killer" since it often takes decades to develop and exhibits no clear symptoms until late stage. "That's why this pilot screening research program is so very important," he said. Only 16% of lung cancer is being diagnosed at an early stage when it can be cured. In addition to greater exposure to known lung cancer carcinogens such as asbestos on older ships and submarines and Agent Orange, veterans have higher "ever smoked" rates than the civilian population. Admiral Lopez and Lung Cancer Alliance President Laurie Fenton-Ambrose praised the veterans' organizations for going on record again for their strong support of early detection research.
Cat Credited With Discovering Owner's Lung Cancer
Lionel Adams, 59, suffers from bronchitis, asthma and emphysema, but had no reason to believe he also had lung cancer. But a furry friend named Tiger knew better. "He would climb into bed and take his paw and drag it down my left side -- he was adamant there was something there," Adams said, referring to the 8-year-old cat's strange behavior, which started about seven months ago. "And it was right where the cancer was." Adams paid a visit to his family doctor and mentioned his cat's odd behavior. An X-ray revealed that Adams did have a mass on his left side, which was later determined to be a cancerous tumor. Doctors removed part of Adams' lung to rid him of the cancer. Click here to read more on this story from the The Calgary Sun.
Why Don't You Want Sex?
Aside from relieving the pain from PMS symptoms, sex also boosts your immune system: it helps to heal, and to prevent you from getting sick at all! Serious illnesses can pose long-term libido problems: hypothyroidism (an underactive thyroid, most common in women over 50), cancer, diabetes, heart and lung disorders, and STD's can all hurt your libido. 3. Medication The most common medication that decreases libido and inhibits sexual function is the antidepressant; most notoriously, Prozac, Zoloft, and Paxil. These drugs not only lower libido, they also make it harder to achieve orgasm. With over 232 million anti-depressant prescriptions filled in 2007, no wonder America is sex-starved. Also, medications taken for hypertension (high blood pressure) often lower libido, even causing erectile dysfunction in men.
Silibinin Suppresses Growth of Human Prostate Carcinoma PC-3
Silibinin is currently under phase II clinical trial in prostate cancer patients; however, its antitumor effects and mechanisms are not completely understood. Herein, we studied the efficacy and associated mechanisms of silibinin against orthotopically growing advanced human prostate carcinoma PC-3 tumors. Athymic male mice were orthotopically implanted with PC-3 cells in prostate and 1 week later after surgical recovery were gavaged daily with silibinin (100 mg/kg body weight) for 7 weeks. Silibinin treatment reduced the lower urogenital weight (including tumor, prostate, and seminal vesicle) by 40% (P < 0.05) without any toxicity in mice. Silibinin decreased proliferating cell nuclear antigen expression and proliferating cells (P < 0.001) but increased cleaved caspase-3-positive cells (P < 0.01) and apoptotic cells (P < 0.001) and suppressed tumor microvessel density (P < 0.001) and vascular endothelial growth factor expression (P = 0.02).
Statins Fail Breast Cancer Prevention Test in Rats
Several epidemiologic studies have demonstrated an association between statin use and a reduced risk of cancer, particularly colon and prostate cancer. Other data have suggested that statins also may reduce the rate of breast cancer occurrence, the authors said. Statins' postulated chemopreventive activity might arise from decreased cholesterol synthesis, leading to a reduction in the prenylation and activation of oncogenes and proteins that are known or hypothesized to contribute to oncogenesis, they said. In vitro, statins have demonstrated activity that increases levels of two proteins that diminish cell proliferation. To examine statins' chemopreventive potential in breast cancer, the authors used the lipophilic agent atorvastatin and the less lipophilic lovastatin.
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