plus 3, Freezing breast cancer — clinical trial aims to kill cancer in its ... - Arizona Daily Star |
- Freezing breast cancer — clinical trial aims to kill cancer in its ... - Arizona Daily Star
- A Survivor's Story: Bonita cancer survivor readies for breast cancer ... - Naples Daily News
- Radiotherapy Crucial to Preventing Breast Cancer Recurrence - Redorbit.com
- Breast Cancer Charity Website Offers Breast Cancer Profiler Tool - YAHOO!
| Freezing breast cancer — clinical trial aims to kill cancer in its ... - Arizona Daily Star Posted: 03 Mar 2010 08:38 AM PST The University of Michigan in Ann Arbor is looking for participants for a clinical trial of cryoblation — freezing cancer tumors to stop the spread. U-M researchers are participating in a national clinical trial to evaluate using cryoablation for early stage breast cancer. Participants will undergo rapid freezing of their tumor, and their blood samples will be analyzed to assess changes in their immune system. All participants will be treated three to four weeks later with standard surgery to remove their tumor. For more information about the study, contact the U-M Cancer AnswerLine at 1-800-865-1125. A new study on mice with breast cancer conducted by researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center shows that freezing a cancer kills it in its place and also appears to generate an immune response to stop its spread. Researchers looked at two different cryoablation techniques, which both involve applying a cold probe to a tumor to freeze it. One method involves freezing the tumor rapidly, in about 30 seconds. The other freezes the tumor slowly, taking a few minutes. Results from the cryoablation were compared to results from mice whose tumors were removed with surgery. Both cryoablation techniques successfully killed the breast tumor. The mice treated with the rapid freeze had fewer tumors that spread to the lungs and improved survival compared to mice treated with surgery alone or mice treated with the slower freezing technique. The study showed that the benefit from the rapid freezing is likely due to changes in the immune system that help to kill the tumor. Freezing with the slower technique appeared to make the immune system not as able to kill the tumor. The study appears online in Annals of Surgical Oncology. Based on these results from mice, researchers are now conducting a clinical trial using cryoablation in patients with breast cancer. In this trial, researchers use the rapid freezing technique. Cryoablation is currently used routinely for prostate cancer, kidney cancer and a variety of cancers that have spread to the liver and bone. Breast cancer statistics: 192,280 Americans will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year and 40,610 will die from the disease, according to the American Cancer Society
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| A Survivor's Story: Bonita cancer survivor readies for breast cancer ... - Naples Daily News Posted: 03 Mar 2010 07:27 AM PST 2010 SOUTHWEST FLORIDA RACE FOR THE CURE 5K Competitive Run and 1 Mile Fun Walk Where: Coconut Point Mall, U.S. Highway 41 and Coconut Road, Estero. When: 8 a.m., March 13. Info: More details and registration at www.komenswfl.org Seven weeks ago, Joan Kurkian was diagnosed with breast cancer. Three weeks ago, she had a lumpectomy to remove the cancer. Now she awaits months, maybe years, of defensive treatment. But already, the 64-year-old Bonita resident is counting herself as a cancer survivor. "I think really it's your attitude," she says. "What I learned the most about all this is to live each day to the fullest." Doctors broke the news of breast cancer to Kurkian after her yearly mammogram. A breast ultrasound revealed four "abnormal calcifications" in her upper left breast. Those calcifications tested positive as ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), an early form of breast cancer. Kurkian, all things considered, took the news in stride. The former executive assistant at multibillion dollar corporation Rohm and Haas in Philadelphia was used to diffusing high-stress problems. "To me, this was a fire I had to put out. So I just said, 'OK. Next steps. What do we do?'" Kurkian said she has maintained that proactive, hopeful attitude since hearing the news. She credits her family for support: her husband, Edward, and her sisters. But she also is thankful for the role Susan G. Komen for the Cure has played in her cancer treatment, which in her case was largely educational and emotional support. On Saturday, March 13, Kurkian will be able to show her appreciation to the organization and her solidarity with breast cancer survivors, as well as women who might one day get the disease. Kurkian will be a participant in Race for the Cure held at Coconut Point in Estero. The event will include both a competitive race and non-competitive walk to raise money for Komen. The fundraising goal for the race is $900,000. That money will go to the many different local breast cancer programs that Komen supports. On its Web site, Komen calls itself "the world's largest grassroots network of breast cancer survivors and activists." The group offers grants for cancer research, education and resources for women with the disease. Kurkian says the biggest asset offered to her by Komen was Dara Leichter, her nurse navigator. Leichter is a registered nurse at the Regional Cancer Center in Fort Myers. As a breast health educator and navigator, she acts as case manager for women with breast cancer. She says about 15 women a month come to her after being diagnosed. "I follow women from diagnosis all the way through treatment," Leichter says. "Anything that is a barrier, I see how I can get it out of the way." Leichter says she was recently visited by a patient who could not afford health insurance. She also didn't qualify for Medicare or Medicaid. But Leichter was able to help her find grants to help her pay for treatment. Another woman, already undergoing treatment, was losing her hair but could not find an affordable wig that suited her age. Leichter found the money to purchase one. But the bulk of her job, Leichter says, is to educate women about their disease and options for treatment. On Friday, Leichter says she saw a patient that did not know what kind of cancer she had or what stage she was in. So Leichter spent the morning going through her charts and explaining it to the patient and her husband. Leichter's work is funded by the Komen organization. "Where Komen is so vital to me," says Leichter, "is they raise money and help with financial barriers. Education empowers women and (Komen) provides me funding for all of the literature." For Kurkian, Leichter served almost as a counselor who offered advice and explanations. "She was supporting. She was caring. She was compassionate," Kurkian said. "And she would give feedback when I was off course." When Kurkian was preparing to interview a fourth surgeon for her lumpectomy, Leichter advised her to trust her instincts and just choose a doctor. Kurkian said Leichter allowed her to understand enough about her disease to be able to make smart decisions. "I believe women have to be their own advocates," Kurkian said. "I think we have to stand up for ourselves." And for that, Kurkian says she is proud to be part of Race for the Cure next week. Kurkian will be walking with her coworkers from Brighton Collectibles, the accessories store at Coconut Point. Her team will be called the Brighton Babes. Some tough moments of treatment still await Kurkian. Her oncologist told her Monday she will begin radiation treatment next Tuesday, days before Race for the Cure, to eradicate the chances of cancer showing up again. She says she's been told horror stories by survivors and family members of survivors about the painful side effects of the treatment. But she says her attitude is strong and so is her faith in God. "I know I still have a ways to go. I know what it entails. I'm prepared without fear," she says. "But (the race) means that I've stepped over a hurdle in my life. It's like carrying a torch at the Olympics and saying, 'We can survive." Five Filters featured article: Chilcot Inquiry. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction. |
| Radiotherapy Crucial to Preventing Breast Cancer Recurrence - Redorbit.com Posted: 03 Mar 2010 07:27 AM PST Posted on: Wednesday, 3 March 2010, 09:28 CST Research: Impact of interval from breast conserving surgery to radiotherapy on local recurrence in older women with breast cancer: Retrospective cohort analysis The longer women wait for radiotherapy after breast cancer surgery, the more chance there is of local recurrence, concludes a study published on bmj.com today. The authors suggest that starting radiotherapy as soon as possible will minimise this risk. Four to six weeks is generally accepted as a reasonable interval between cancer surgery and radiotherapy, but evidence on the effect of waiting times in patients with breast cancer is mixed. So researchers from the United States, Canada and Japan studied the relation between interval to radiotherapy and recurrence of breast cancer. They analysed national cancer records for 18,050 US women who were diagnosed with early stage breast cancer during 1991-2002 when they were aged 65 or older. All women received breast conserving surgery and radiotherapy, but not chemotherapy. Demographic information was identified using data from the 2000 US population census, and women were followed up for an average of five years. The results showed that starting radiotherapy more than six weeks after surgery was associated with a modest but significant increase in local recurrence. More than one in four women (30%) in the study started radiotherapy after this time and 734 (4%) experienced a local recurrence at five years. Further analysis showed a continuous relation between time to radiotherapy and local recurrence, suggesting that initiating radiation therapy as soon as possible could minimise local recurrence risk. Longer times to radiotherapy were also found among Black and Hispanic women and among women who lived outside the southern states of the US, where rates of breast conserving surgery were higher, suggesting limitations in capacity of radiation delivery. The implication of a continuous relationship between start of radiotherapy and local recurrence is that there is no "safe" threshold in terms of waiting time and that radiotherapy should therefore be started as soon as possible, say the authors. The cost of increasing capacity to ensure uniformly short waiting times could be substantial and would need to be weighed against the small absolute benefit in local recurrence, they add. But, given the known negative impact of local recurrence on overall survival, and the large numbers of women treated with radiotherapy for breast cancer, it seems appropriate to consider whether this is a price we should be prepared to pay, they conclude. Minimising delay improves outcomes, so investment and planning are needed, say Ruth Jack and Lars Holmberg from King's College London, in an accompanying editorial. Healthcare providers need to assess where potential delays are occurring and ensure that they are reduced, as well as ensuring equal opportunities in accessing good care, they write. However they suggest that, if substantial investment is needed, the modest effects seen in this study would have to be weighed against other opportunities and priorities in cancer care. --- On the Net: Five Filters featured article: Chilcot Inquiry. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Breast Cancer Charity Website Offers Breast Cancer Profiler Tool - YAHOO! Posted: 02 Mar 2010 05:29 PM PST Handy web-based form makes it easy for breast cancer patients to learn about their treatment options. Mesa, AZ (PRWEB) March 2, 2010 -- The Breast Cancer Society, a charity that provides direct financial assistance to qualified breast cancer patients, now has a free Breast Cancer Profiler Tool on its website. The tool provides breast cancer patients with information specific to their cancer diagnosis to help them make more informed treatment decisions. The information in the NexCura Breast Cancer Profiler Tool is continuously updated by experts in cancer research and treatment. The tool contains information that addresses invasive ductal breast cancer, lobular breast cancer and ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS or non-invasive breast cancer) with limited information on the less common inflammatory breast cancer. The Cancer Profiler is a free service. To use it, go to https://www.cancerprofiler.nexcura.com/Secure/InterfaceSecure.asp?CB=30447. You must then register your email address with NexCura. Any information provided to NexCura is subject to NexCura's privacy policy, and NexCura promises to never share your e-mail address or personal medical information without your permission. About NexCura NexCura is a source of treatment information provided through the websites of healthcare organizations, advocacy groups, and charities. They offer Profiler tools for 29 conditions, including 80 percent of cancers as well as cardiovascular and pulmonary conditions. NexCura supplements the information in their Profiler tools with current, relevant news on behalf of medical and pharmaceutical companies. Information about updated research, new drugs, new indications, and cutting-edge clinical trials is included. According to NexCura's website, "When patients, caregivers and providers face critical treatment choices, NexCura delivers the timely, targeted, evidence-based and personally relevant knowledge they need. Using patented technology, the Profiler tools generate individualized treatment options information based on peer-reviewed clinical research." Who is The Breast Cancer Society? Many women who are battling breast cancer are forced to quit their jobs while undergoing treatment for cancer. This makes it especially difficult for them to afford everything from everyday basic needs to necessary breast cancer medication such as chemotherapy. To make matters more difficult, a great many of these women are single working mothers who are not only struggling to meet their own needs, but to meet the needs of their children as well. The primary focus of the Breast Cancer Society is to provide financial aid to qualified women by dispensing monthly grants to help pay for food, housing, child care, and other necessities. While there are many non-profit organizations whose primary mission it is to fund research and education - the types of groups that do everything from publicizing breast cancer statistics that promote awareness to spending those long laboratory hours in search of a cure for breast cancer - the Breast Cancer Society is one of the country's only national breast cancer charities with a primary focus on providing direct help and financial aid to those waking up to battle breast cancer every single day. The Breast Cancer Society recognizes that research and education efforts are vital, but there are many thousands of victims each year who need much more than just hope for a cure - they need immediate help in facing the financial challenges brought on by their illness. For this reason, the Breast Cancer Society places a great deal of value on their supporters. The charity relies on public support, mainly through channels of direct mail marketing, tele-fundraising, vehicle donations, corporate grants, volunteers, and so on. The guiding mission of the Breast Cancer Society is "to provide relief to those who suffer from the effects of breast cancer. We also work with and give support to other organizations that share in the goal of helping cancer patients." The Breast Cancer Society Inc. is a 501-C3 nonprofit charitable corporation which began operations in January of 2008. For more information about breast cancer statistics, how to afford your breast cancer medication, etc., visit the website or call the main office at (480) 284-4014. # # # Breast Cancer Society Five Filters featured article: Chilcot Inquiry. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction. |
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