Stand Up To Cancer

This week Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg underwent surgery for early stage pancreatic cancer, once again drawing attention to the highly lethal disease. Pancreatic cancer is usually asymptomatic until it has reached the metastatic stage; Ginsburg's tumor, which measures about 1 cm, was discovered last month during an annual exam. Good luck, Ruth!
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,488626,00.html

A new study indicates that most breast cancers in Latino women are discovered by self-exam, while only 23% are detected via mammography. But the same study shows that around half the women who found abnormalities themselves waited longer than a month to seek medical help, generally because of worries about inability to pay for costly exams and treatment without health insurance.
http://health.usnews.com/articles/health/healthday/2009/02/05/two-thirds-of-hispanic-women-discover-breast.html

But trouble paying for cancer care isn't limited to individuals without health insurance. According to a new report from the American Cancer Society, even people with insurance can be bankrupted by cancer. Among the 20 patients profiled in the report were people who lost their life savings or their jobs; some wound up filing for bankruptcy. "Two million cancer survivors today are forgoing care they need simply because that care is unavailable because they cannot afford it," said John Seffrin, CEO of ACS.
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/OnCall/story?id=6811555&page=1

On to more upbeat news: the US FDA just approved a new drug for the treatment of prostate cancer. Degarelix suppresses testosterone in patients, creating an inhospitable environment for the disease. The drug will be used to treat late-stage prostate cancers, which don't respond as well to radiation and chemotherapy.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29021326/

British researchers have found that around 40% of folks in North and South America, Australia, New Zealand and West Asia are unaware of the link between obesity and cancer. Their report, "Cancer Related Beliefs and Behaviour," essentially found that people with bad habits like overeating or smoking exist in a state of denial, pretending to themselves that these lifestyle factors don't contribute to cancer risk.
http://edition.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/02/04/cancer.riskfactors/

Finally, a little food news - my favorite kind. Extra virgin olive oil has lots of great uses around the kitchen, and it contains the coveted omega 3 fatty acids ("good" fats) we all keep hearing so much about. Now there's evidence to suggest that EVOO can also help combat breast cancer, inducing "tumoricid effects" against the HER2 oncogene. (Translation: it helps cause cancer cell death.) Score one for the Mediterranean diet!
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090205113743.htm

That's all for this week, but check back next Thursday for more!

--Cat

Posted on February 5, 2009 4:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

If you're anything like me, you're probably exhausted from trying to keep up with all the various permutations the economic stimulus package has been through in the past couple of weeks. But whether you support the stimulus or not, it does contain some good news - the NIH is getting $10 billion in funding, and 85% of that is earmarked for research!
http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/02/12/stimulus/index.html

File this one under "bizarre": Japanese researchers have created what they call a "living doll" made out of human liver cancer cells. It looks like something out of the Blair Witch Project, but it could one day allow new drugs to be tested in conditions much like those inside the human body - without putting any actual humans at risk.
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20126946.400-living-doll-made-of-human-cancer-cells.html

Bad news for pot smokers - well, male pot smokers, anyway. A new study indicates that smoking marijuana or hash once a week for an extended period doubles your chance of getting testicular cancer. And that's not all - the drug could also decrease sperm quality, decrease testosterone levels and cause impotency. Yikes!
http://blogs.usatoday.com/betterlife/2009/02/testicular-canc.html

Meanwhile, new research shows that a drug commonly used to treat bone loss has an unintended side effect - it can reduce the odds that some breast cancers will spread or recur by a third. Zoledronic acid reduced recurrences and metastases by 36% in a study of 1,800 premenopausal women, and researchers elsewhere are checking to see if it has a similar impact on patients with prostate and lung cancer.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/12/health/research/12bone.html?ref=health

Someone deep in the bowels of the NCI screwed up this week. The agency launched a new, interactive online tool designed to help older Americans assess their colon cancer risk. Unfortunately, the tool only works for white folks; if you tell it you're not white, it tells you it can't help. Ironic, considering black people have a much higher risk of developing the disease.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/13/health/12cancer.html?ref=health

Most people have a jumbo-sized bottle of multivitamins in their medicine cabinets, and pop the oversized pills once a day in hopes of warding off everything from the common cold to cancer. But new research shows that multivitamins don't lower cancer risk in older women. And they don't do anything about heart attacks or strokes, either. "Population studies have shown that if you eat fruits and vegetables, your chances of cancers are relatively low compared to people with deficient diets," said Aditya Bardia, an oncology fellow at Johns Hopkins University. "But when they tried to convert those nutrients into tablets, that's where the failure has been."
http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/02/10/multivitamins.cancer/

Finally, I loved this article in Forbes about "cancer miracles" - patients who miraculously recover from cancers that their doctors thought were terminal. One patient profiled was given two months to live in 2005, only to have his liver tumor vanish completely without treatment. Now scientists are focusing on what is different about "miracle patients" in hopes of finding new ways to tackle their research.
http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2009/0302/074_cancer_miracles.html

That's all for this week, but I'll be back next Thursday with more recommended reading!

--Cat

Posted on February 12, 2009 11:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

On Tuesday President Obama signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act into law. The stimulus package includes $10 billion in funding for the National Institutes of Health, which in turn funds the majority of cancer research in the US.

Thanks to everyone in the SU2C community who took time out of their lives to e-mail their senators about the importance of this funding. Grassroots support makes a big difference in the fight against cancer!

Posted on February 18, 2009 6:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

I thought I'd start off this week's roundup with a piece of wacky news from Biologist, the journal of the Institute of Biology. According to one researcher, there's a "cuddle chemical" generated by the body that helps fight off deadly diseases, including cancer and dementia. But without enough of the cuddle chemical (known to science as the hormone oxytocin), our body's chemistry is out of whack. Dr. Sigman says the solution is less time on the internet. I think the solution might be more hugs.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17852_3-10167352-71.html

On a serious note, new research confirms what many in the cancer community already knew - that cancer survivors often have a hard time finding work. Many wind up quitting their jobs or being fired during treatment, only to face an employment market that's harsh on those who might require extra time off for recovery. "This issue is so important to patients, because they often regard returning to work as indicative of complete recovery," said the study's chief author. "Employment is associated with a higher quality of life, and encouraging survivors to return to work also benefits aging societies economically."
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/18/health/18cancer.html?ref=health

Researchers have identified not one but two genetic mutations that play a role in the development of deadly brain tumors, according to the February issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. Thanks to these findings, one day physicians may be better able to distinguish between the different types of brain tumors and refine treatments. "You could use these genes to distinguish a subtype of glioma," said one of the study's authors. "Two tumors may look like a duck and walk like a duck, but the two tumors may be quite different."
http://health.usnews.com/articles/health/healthday/2009/02/18/genetic-mutations-linked-to-deadly-brain-cancer.html

Meanwhile, down in Cuba they're extending the lives of terminal lung cancer patients with the world's first lung cancer "vaccine." The drug does not cure or prevent lung cancer; rather, it stimulates the patient's body to make an antibody that prevents cancer cell growth. On average, the drug extends the lives of terminal patients by a few months - and in some cases, by a few years.
http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/02/19/cuba.cancer.vaccine/

Stateside cancer research got a big boost this past week when $10 billion in new funding for the NIH was approved as part of the economic stimulus bill. So Dr. John Mendelsohn, president of MD Anderson Cancer Center, has taken it upon himself to outline how the folks on Capitol Hill can continue fighting cancer in this country with a new bill to be co-sponsored by Sens Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) and Ted Kennedy (D-NY).
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/nation/stories/DN-cancer_19nat.ART.State.Edition1.4bfe315.html

Finally, you guys know how much I love to eat, so I thought you'd enjoy this interview with SU2C friend Dr. David Servan-Schreiber on cancer and the American diet. Covered are the cancer-fighting properties of such yummy treats as yellow curry and green tea - and the cancer-promoting properties of white sugar and white flour. I think I speak for everyone when I say I'm cool with cane sugar in my coffee. Meanwhile, pass the Thai food, please!
http://www.kpic.com/news/health/39853997.html

That's all for this week, but check back next Thursday for more!

--Cat

Posted on February 19, 2009 3:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In Tuesday's speech to the joint sessions of Congress, President Obama vowed to "launch a new effort to conquer a disease that has touched the life of nearly every American, including me, by seeking a cure for cancer in our time." That coupled with the inclusion of $10 billion in new funding for the NIH in the stimulus package suggests that we're in for an exciting four years when it comes to cancer research in this country. But it also puts the government in the position many Americans have been in for years now - i.e., how are we going to pay for all this progress?
http://uk.reuters.com/article/marketsNewsUS/idUKN2548079320090225

I loved this article, which looks at Jekyll-and-Hyde pharmaceuticals. Remember when it turned out that aspirin was good for more than just curing a headache? Well, this piece highlights eight drugs with similar "alter-egos," including finasteride, which is usually associated with hair loss treatment, but can also be used to prevent prostate cancer.
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/WellnessNews/story?id=6959196&page=1

The medical community has gone back and forth on the issue of whether calcium can lower colon cancer risk. Now a new study of half a million people may have finally ended the debate: the research indicates that older men and women who consumed large amounts of dairy foods were indeed at a reduced risk of developing various digestive cancers, including colon cancer. Pass the brie, please!
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/25/health/25cancer.html?ref=health

More good news from the food world: the so-called "French fry chemical," acrylamide, has been cleared of all charges that it increases the risk of breast cancer. Which is reassuring even if you're not big on fast food, because acrylamide also appears in potato chips, crackers, peanut butter and a personal favorite of mine, sweet potatoes.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,500692,00.html

If you're a big sunbather like me, you should definitely be sure to slather on the SPF 30 before hitting the beach. And, as it turns out, you should probably also slather on the coffee. Sounds weird, sure, but new research shows that caffeine kills off human cells that have been damaged by UV light. Meaning one day you might be seeing caffeine cream pop up next to the aloe gel in your local drug store.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29409056/

Results of a new study indicate that a full third of cancer cases could be prevented with lifestyle changes. A full third! Quitting smoking is obviously a big one, but eating better, exercising more and maintaining a healthy weight are all important - as is reducing alcohol intake. The researchers acknowledge that estimating cancer preventability is always a tricky proposition, but also note that the government could do a lot to help people live healthier with such quick fixes as adding bicycle lanes to public roads or banning junk food from vending machines.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/02/26/earlyshow/health/main4830367.shtml

Finally, here's a dispatch from the Disturbing Department: research out of Australia indicates that mouthwash - ordinary, toilet-cleaner-looking mouthwash - ups the risk of developing oral cancers by a whopping 900%. The guilty ingredient seems to be the alcohol, which the body breaks down into a carcinogenic compound; when people swish around mouthwash, the compound may be accumulating in their oral cavities. Yikes! The more you know . . .
http://www.naturalnews.com/025729.html

That's it for this week, but check back next Thursday for more!

--Cat

Posted on February 26, 2009 10:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

The mood at the Rose Bowl was upbeat and spirits were high as we set up our Stand Up To Cancer booth at the Amgen Bike Tour of California. Ginnifer Goodwin, Greg Grunberg, Luke Wilson and SU2C cofounder Laura Ziskin were on hand to help raise awareness for SU2C.

A wide variety of people passed by the SU2C tent. There were amateur bikers, regaled in full spandex and cleats, wheeling all kinds of bikes alongside them: mountain and road bikes, two-seaters, unicycles, and dog carriers. There were couples young and old, families, gray-bearded cyclists and kids with their first training-wheels-free bikes. Lance's fans were out in droves, many wearing their Livestrong bracelets. We were inspired by the many, many visitors whose lives had been touched by cancer - some of whom were even survivors.

We had our SU2C buttons in a glass bowl on the table, and people grabbed them as they went by. Many of them also took one or two of our cards, which had promotional codes on the back allowing the person to launch a star in our constellation for free. A few people even registered on standup2cancer.org right there on the spot.

Just before the finishers began their final laps, Ginnifer, Greg, Luke and Laura spoke about why supporting cancer research was important to them. Ginnifer spoke passionately about her mom, a cancer survivor, and about the importance of supporting friends and family who've been affected by the disease.

As the racers came into the area to make their final laps around the Rose Bowl, we joined the crowds of people heading over to see the action. We stood on our tiptoes and held our cameras high over our heads to try to capture the cyclists as they sped through the finish line each lap. They were going at breathtaking speed - I heard someone say it was near 50 mph. Everybody cheered loudly when the Peleton came by with their entourage of motorcycles and support vehicles.

After the final lap, the winner was announced over the PA to much cheering and applause. The crowd began filtering back to the festival grounds, and we hustled back to our tent to hand out more fistfuls of buttons. The sky was clouding over as it neared 4:30 p.m., and many of the cyclists began to disperse to avoid the possibility of a rainy ride home. We packed up the laptops, rolled up the Stand Up To Cancer banner, and called it a day.

--Lys

Posted on February 27, 2009 1:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)