Latest Cancer News Tue 01/24/2006

Latest Cancer News Tue 01/24/2006

Chronic Inflammation Could Spur Cancer (HealthDay)

TUESDAY, Jan. 24 (HealthDay News) -- People with a high white blood cell count -- a sign of inflammation -- are more likely to die of cancer, a new study finds.

Published: on Tue, 24 Jan 2006 17:02:25 GMT

UK breast cancer patients wrongly given all-clear (Reuters)

Twenty-two women were wrongly given the all clear at two Greater Manchester hospitals when they actually had breast cancer, a report on Tuesday revealed.

Published: on Tue, 24 Jan 2006 16:46:32 GMT

Proacta conducting clinical trial on cancer treatment (San Diego Daily Transcript)

La Jolla-based Proacta Inc, an early stage biotechnology company, announced Tuesday that cancer patient treatment is underway in its Phase I study of PR-104, a hypoxia targeted small molecule prodrug designed to improve the outcomes of current treatment regimens that can include chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

Published: on Tue, 24 Jan 2006 16:20:03 GMT

Alternative therapy common in prostate cancer (Reuters)

About one third of prostate cancer patients in the United States use some type of complementary or alternative medicine, a large national study shows.

Published: on Tue, 24 Jan 2006 15:25:08 GMT

Study: Omega-3s Won't Ward Off Cancer (Fox News)

Omega-3 fatty acids cut risk of heart disease and stroke and aid children's early mental development, but they do not fight cancer, new study says.

Published: on Tue, 24 Jan 2006 20:21:10 GMT

Cancer victim 'falsely reassured' (BBC News)

A solicitor for one of 22 women wrongly cleared of breast cancer says she was repeatedly reassured by medics.

Published: on Tue, 24 Jan 2006 14:43:55 GMT

Long-Term Survivors Clues to Beating Lung Cancer (MedicineNet.com)

Title: Long-Term Survivors Clues to Beating Lung Cancer Category: Health News Created: 1/24/2006 1:58:00 AM Last Editorial Review: 1/24/2006 1:58:27 AM

Published: on Tue, 24 Jan 2006 20:19:56 GMT

Deadly Skin Cancer on Rise Among Hispanics (MedicineNet.com)

Title: Deadly Skin Cancer on Rise Among Hispanics Category: Health News Created: 1/24/2006 1:58:00 AM Last Editorial Review: 1/24/2006 1:58:26 AM

Published: on Tue, 24 Jan 2006 20:21:02 GMT

Accentia Posts Positive Cancer Drug Data (AP)

Drug developer Accentia Biopharmaceuticals Inc. said Tuesday that 89 percent of patients taking its personalized cancer drug in a mid-stage study were alive after 3.8 years.

Published: on Tue, 24 Jan 2006 15:15:12 GMT

Longer sentence in cancer hoax (The Indianapolis Star)

MUNCIE, Ind. -- A woman sentenced to prison last month for her second scheme of bilking money from people by faking that she was ill from cancer will spend more time behind bars for the first time she carried out the plot.

Published: on Tue, 24 Jan 2006 20:01:05 GMT

What you need to know about prostate cancer ... - Part VII

What you need to know about prostate cancer ... - Part VII

How is prostate cancer diagnosed and staged?

If you have symptoms suspicious for prostate cancer, your doctor will do a digital rectal exam and a PSA blood test. If either of those two test are abnormal, then most likely your doctor will recommend that you receive a biopsy. Also, your doctor may want to get a biopsy if there is an abnormal result on a screening PSA or digital rectal exam. A biopsy is the only way to know for sure if you have cancer, because it allows your doctors to get cells that can be examined under a microscope. The most common way that a biopsy is done is with a transrectal ultrasound (TRUS). A transrectal ultrasound is a thin cylinder that emits sound waves and monitors them when they bounce off of tissue. It is inserted into your rectum, and allows your doctor to view your prostate and choose where to remove tissue from. Any suspicious areas are biopsied, plus some tissue will be removed from all of the different parts of the prostate (to make sure they don't miss any cancers that may be small and growing in one particular area). The procedure is done while you are awake, with the help of some numbing medicine. Unfortunately, a transrectal ultrasound isn't a perfect tool because even though many samples are taken, it can occasionally miss the area of the cancer. If this happens, and your PSA remains elevated, you will probably need to have the procedure repeated in a few months.

Once the tissue is removed, a doctor known as a pathologist will review the specimen. The pathologist can tell if it is cancer or not; and if it is cancerous, then the pathologist will characterize it by what type of prostate cancer it is and how abnormal it looks (known as the grade). The vast majority of all prostate cancers (at least 95%) are a subtype known as adenocarcinoma, but occasionally they can be small cell carcinomas or lymphomas (two rare types of prostate cancer that are treated differently than the more standard adenocarcinomas). The pathologist then characterizes how much the cancer looks like normal prostate tissue, and this is known as the grade of the tumor. Pathologists often use a scale when they grade prostate tumors known as the Gleason score. The Gleason score runs from 2 to 10, with 2 being a very normal looking tumor and 10 being a very abnormal looking tumor. Generally, the more abnormal the tumor looks, the more aggressive it is. We characterize grades on a scale because, together with staging, it gives us a way to offer a prognosis and it often guides our choice of therapy.

Prostate cancer is divided into four different stages to help guide our treatments and offer information about the chances for a cure. This staging is done in a limited fashion before surgery taking into account whether or not the tumor can be felt on digital rectal exam and the results of any imaging modalities; it is done definitively after a surgical procedure that removes lymph nodes and allows a pathologist to examine them for signs of cancer. The staging system is somewhat complex, but here is a simplified version of it:

* Stage I - tumor cannot be felt during a digital rectal exam; it was detected by an elevated PSA blood test or incidentally found during another prostate procedure for a benign condition.
* Stage II - tumor can be felt during a digital rectal exam, but it has not spread beyond the prostate and it hasn't spread to lymph nodes or other organs
* Stage III - tumor extends outside the prostate and can be in the seminal vesicles, but not in any other organs or lymph nodes
* Stage IV - tumor has spread to other organs or lymph nodes

Although the clinical stage is important, the pathological stage is a more accurate predictor of the course of your cancer because it actually examines the prostate and the lymph nodes in the area. If your stage, grade, or PSA are high enough, you may be referred for other tests before treatment to look for spread to other parts of your body. Tests like CT scans (a 3-D x-ray) or MRIs (like a CT scan but done with magnets) can examine the prostate and localized lymph nodes. Some patients are referred for a bone scan, which is a test using a radioactive tracer to look for metastasis to any of your bones. Another test that you may be referred for is called a ProstaScint scan, which uses a radioactive tracer that can localize prostate cancer to either bones or lymph nodes. Finally, if your doctors are very worried about spread to lymph nodes, they may choose to perform a surgical lymph node sampling before proceeding with any definitive treatment.

Learn more about Prostate Cancer on CancerBasics.info ...

Types of Cancer Blog Library :: Prostate Cancer

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Latest Cancer News Mon 01/23/2006

Latest Cancer News Mon 01/23/2006

Wife Of Jailed Deputy Dies Of Cancer (WESH)

Despite a heroic battle against stage IV breast cancer, Natalie Thomas died at her home in Orange County on Sunday.

Published: on Mon, 23 Jan 2006 23:32:07 GMT

Long-Term Survivors Hold Clues to Beating Lung Cancer (HealthDay)

MONDAY, Jan. 23 (HealthDay News) -- A tiny fraction of patients with incurable lung cancer survived five or more years past diagnosis after receiving low-dose radiation intended merely for pain relief, a team of Australian researchers report.

Published: on Mon, 23 Jan 2006 19:01:51 GMT

Deadly Skin Cancer on Rise Among Hispanics (HealthDay)

MONDAY, Jan. 23 (HealthDay News) -- The deadly skin cancer melanoma is increasing among Californians of Hispanic descent, especially men, according to a new study.

Published: on Mon, 23 Jan 2006 19:01:54 GMT

Skin Cancer Up Among Hispanics (Time Magazine)

The Study: Rates of invasive melanoma, a deadly form of skin cancer, are rising more rapidly among Hispanic men in California than nearly any other cancer, according to researchers at the University of Southern California.

Published: on Mon, 23 Jan 2006 17:24:33 GMT

Funding for bone cancer research (BBC News)

A scientist receives more than £200,000 to help improve cancer treatments.

Published: on Mon, 23 Jan 2006 22:56:43 GMT

New Hope in Treating Terminal Lung Cancer (Fox News)

Palliative radiation geared at treating symptoms, not cure, may actually prolong survival rates for worst case lung cancer.

Published: on Mon, 23 Jan 2006 23:06:09 GMT

Norwegian doctor admits forging cancer research (AFP)

A Norwegian mouth cancer specialist has admitted to fabricating research data published in several international scientific magazines, his lawyer was quoted as saying by Norwegian media.

Published: on Mon, 23 Jan 2006 12:15:24 GMT

White blood cell count, inflammation linked to cancer deaths (EurekAlert!)

In a study of more than 3,000 older Australians, those with a higher white blood cell count, a sign of inflammation, were more likely to die of cancer, according to an article in the January 23 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

Published: on Mon, 23 Jan 2006 21:11:54 GMT

Last-minute radiation saves lung cancer patients (Reuters)

Small doses of radiation meant to ease the symptoms of incurable lung cancer may actually save the lives of a few patients, surprised Australian researchers reported on Monday.

Published: on Mon, 23 Jan 2006 05:17:23 GMT

Defying the Odds With Lung Cancer (WebMD)

Lung cancer is the No. 1 cause of cancer deaths, but some people with seemingly untreatable advanced lung cancer beat the odds.

Published: on Mon, 23 Jan 2006 19:17:35 GMT