Christine

Over 1000 radio stations across the nation have agreed that lung cancer matters too. Deborah Mososini, MD, and new Board Member of Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation, lost her sister, Dana Reeve, to lung cancer and has joined us as the new voice for lung cancer. On July 23, 2007 a new battle against lung cancer was waged. From Pasco, Washington, to Odessa, Texas, to Memphis, Tennessee, to Asheville, North Carolina, back to San Francisco and across the country again to New York and Boston and EVERYWHERE in between, lung cancer will matter too. Stay tuned for the long list of radio stations and schedules and tune in. Lung Cancer is the deadliest of all cancer killers. It is stealing more of our friends and family members and people we have never met than breast cancer, prostate cancer, colon cancer, liver cancer, melanoma, and kidney cancer combined. Lung cancer doesn’t care where you live, whether you smoked or not, and with the help of the airwaves we are making sure that lung cancer hears us loud and clear…we are launching a multi-institutional, population-based early detection and screening program across the nation to change the course of lung cancer and save as many lives as we can. Call us today at 1.866.926.LUNG. Become a part of our ONE IN A MILLION CAMPAIGN. Any size donation will join forces with a million others and save countless lives. Contact your favorite radio station and ask them to air our public service announcement. Sample ad: Somebody just died…while you’re listening to me. And that somebody is somebody’s sister, brother, mom, dad, daughter, son or friend. 450 people die a day. 19 an hour. From Lung Cancer. Six-hundred and fifty thousand people will die of the world’s DEADLIEST cancer by the year 2010 if we don’t do something now. Where’s the outrage? Lung Cancer Matters Too. It’s not what you think. It’s not what you’ve heard. Don’t believe that if you don’t smoke you can NEVER get lung cancer. I’m Deborah Morosini and I lost my sister, Dana Reeve, to lung cancer. Please help us save lives at the Bonnie J. Addario (uh-dare-eee-O) Lung Cancer Foundation. Because we can. Donate today at www lung cancer foundation dot org or call 866.926.LUNG, that’s 866.926.LUNG (Spell-out L-U-N-G) Lung Cancer Matters Too. And so does EVERYONE we love.

http://www.cancerpage.com/news/article.asp?id=11132 NEW YORK JUL 19, 2007 (Reuters Health) - Given that long-term survival of untreated stage 1 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is virtually nil, and that five-year survival of surgically resected stage I NSCLC is as high as 80%, early surgical resection and ablative therapy is indicated, according to investigators at the University of California at San Francisco. To determine the survival rates of untreated NSCLC, Dr. Dan J. Raz and colleagues analyzed the California Cancer Center registry between 1999 and 2003, which included 101,844 incident cases of NSCLC. Of these, 19,702 were stage 1 disease and 1,432 cases had no treatment. Of the 1,432 patients who were not treated at diagnosis, only 42 patients were alive five years later. Five-year overall survival was 6%. For T1 tumors, specifically, it was 9%. And five-year overall survival was 11% for patients who did not undergo surgical resection. Untreated patients had a median survival of 9 months overall, 13 months for patients with T1 disease, and 14 months for patients who refused surgical resection. Five-year lung cancer-specific survival rates were 16% overall, 23% for T1 cancer and 22% for patients who declined treatment. "In contrast, the 5-year survival for patients with surgically resected stage I NSCLC is 60% to 80% in clinical studies," the authors write in the July issue of Chest. "Our results underscore the therapeutic benefit of surgical resection for early stage lung cancer," they note. "Despite ongoing controversy regarding overdetection of clinically insignificant lung cancers with screening, untreated lung cancer is a fatal disease in the great majority of patients with stage I disease." "Right now it is impossible to tell what the natural history is of a particular lung cancer, however there is a lot of exciting research going on about genomic prediction of outcome," Dr. Raz told Reuters Health. "In the not-so-distant future, clinicians are going to be treating lung cancer by first analyzing genomic markers and using that information to direct treatment-- which could one day include no treatment for indolent tumors." In their paper, the investigators noted that "While our study is observational, a randomized study of treatment of stage I NSCLC would be unethical to perform. Results from ongoing clinical trials of CT screening will provide important information on the benefit of treatment of screen detected cancers relative to the harm caused by treating clinically indolent cancers." "Our findings should not change the decision to screen patients for lung cancer," he emphasized. "Our findings do suggest that treatment of stage I lung cancers should not be delayed. Moreover, clinicians should consider therapies such as radiation or radiofrequency ablation to patients who are not surgical candidates."

http://www.reuters.com/article/health-S ... 1720070719 LONDON, July 19 (Reuters) - Swiss drugmaker Roche Holding AG's (ROG.VX: Quote, Profile, Research) Avastin medicine has been recommended for approval in non-small cell lung cancer, the European Medicines Agency said on Thursday. Recommendations for marketing approval by the agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use are normally endorsed by the European Commission within a couple of months. Avastin is the first in a class of drugs that seek to starve tumours of their blood and nutrients. It had global sales of about $2.5 billion in 2006 and Roche and U.S. partner Genentech Inc. (DNA.N: Quote, Profile, Research) hope expanded uses will boost the franchise. Avastin has already been approved in lung cancer in the United States.

Newswise — A novel radiotherapy approach has shown promise as a treatment option, and may possibly increase the cure rate, for people with early stage lung cancer who are unable to tolerate surgery, according to findings from a five-year study led by SUNY Upstate Medical University. SUNY Upstate was among 10 institutions nationwide participating in this first prospective radiotherapy study specific to high-risk patients with early stage lung cancer. The findings were presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting June 4 in Chicago. “Although the majority of patients with stage 1 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) may be cured following surgery to remove a whole section of the lung, a substantial portion of these patients have poor lung function or other medical problems, making them unsuitable for major surgery,” said the study’s principal investigator, Jeffrey A. Bogart, M.D., professor and chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology at SUNY Upstate Medical University. “We need to find a safe and effective way to treat this patient population.” Bogart noted that an earlier study tested an approach of limited surgery on these patients, removing the tumor with only a small portion of the diseased lung. However, while findings from this study indicated that limited surgery may be effective in certain patients, the role of limited surgical resection in the high-risk population remained unclear. This led investigators to test a new theory that would involve treating the tumor solely with dose-intensive accelerated three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy. “Our primary objectives were to determine the maximally accelerated course of conformal radiotherapy for high-risk stage 1 NSCLC and to describe the short- and long-term toxic effects of conformal radiotherapy in this population,” said Bogart. “We also wanted to assess the efficacy of such a technique.” Conformal radiotherapy uses advanced technology to precisely target the tumor and the surrounding normal structures in 3 dimensions using CT or MRI scans, and then sculpt the radiation dose to the shape of the tumor. “We are better able to conform the radiation dose to the exact location of the tumor, avoiding critical structures and providing more intense therapy directly to the tumor,” said Bogart. This, according to Bogart, reduces radiation exposure to the surrounding normal tissue, thus reducing the risk of radiation toxicity to the patient. To conduct the study, 40 male and female stage 1 NSCLC patients, ranging in age from 48 years to 87, were recruited between 2001 and 2005. “The radiotherapy schedule was reduced from 28 treatments in 5.5 weeks to 17 treatments in 3.5 weeks while maintaining a nominal dose of radiation of 7000 cGy. Bogart noted that just about one-half of all patients survived at least three years, a very promising result in this population. In addition, only three of the patients had a recurrence of the tumor in the same location in the lung. Importantly, only one of the patients had experienced a severe adverse effect of the radiation therapy, such as difficulty breathing. “Our outcomes demonstrated that accelerated 3-D conformal radiotherapy is feasible in high-risk early stage NSCLC and therapy can safely be completed in less than half the time of traditional regimens,” said Bogart. “Our outcomes were comparable to alternate therapies, such as limited resections, with less apparent severe radiation toxicity.” Bogart noted that more studies are being planned to test new, non-surgical ways to treat this patient population. Particularly exciting are recent advances at University Hospital that help account for the fact that many lung tumors move when a patient breathes. Technology such as four-dimensional CT scans (4DCT), respiratory gating and Image Guided Radiotherapy (IGRT) work together to first identify how a lung tumor moves (by monitoring the patients unique breathing pattern) and then permits delivery of radiation only when the tumor is in the proper position. The study, titled “Accelerated Conformal Radiotherapy for Stage 1 Non-small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC) in Patients with Pulmonary Dysfunction," or “CALGB 39904 was funded through the Cancer and Leukemia Group B (CALGB), a national clinical research group sponsored by the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health.

http://www.cancerpage.com/news/article.asp?id=11125 NEW YORK JUL 18, 2007 (Reuters Health) - Cigarette smokers who develop non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) have a less favorable outlook than do their counterparts who have never smoked, researchers report in the July issue of Chest. As Dr. Robert James Cerfolio told Reuters Health, "smoking cigarettes is the main cause of lung cancer. In this prospective study, we found that not only is it the main cause of NSCLC, but the more you have smoked the worse your prognosis." Dr. Cerfolio and Dr. Ayesha Bryant at the University of Alabama, Birmingham, note that the impact of smoking cigarettes on survival after a diagnosis of lung cancer is disputed. To investigate further, the researchers studied data on 730 patients with NSCLC. This had been prospectively gathered over a 6-year period. In total, 562 subjects were smokers and 168 had never smoked. Never smokers were more likely to be younger, to be women and to be symptomatic at the time of presentation. The overall 5-year survival rate was significantly higher in never-smokers (64%) than it was in smokers (56%). This was also true of stage-specific 5-year survival. For stage I disease, this was 75% versus 62%; for stage II, it was 53% versus 46%; and for stage III, it was 41% versus 36%. In addition, the 5-year survival rate was significantly lower in patients who had a smoking history of more than 20 pack-years. The researchers note that the findings need to be corroborated, but suggest that because smokers with stage I and stage II disease "have a worse prognosis than those who never smoked," perhaps they should be "more aggressively treated and/or more frequently followed up after undergoing resection

Congratulations!! You're not weak, you're human. Don't be so hard on yourself. One day at a time. It's tough, but making the decision to quit is the first step towards success. I've been smoke-free for 3 years and it's one of my proudest accomplishments. I know how hard it is to become a non-smoker, but you can do it!

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/20 ... 011352.htm Science Daily — Lung cancer patients may not need to wait till their radiation treatment is over to know if it worked. A PET scan several weeks after starting radiation treatment for lung cancer can indicate whether the tumor will respond to the treatment, according to a new study by researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center. Traditionally, PET, or positron emission tomography, has been used after radiation treatment for lung cancer to assess whether the tumor responded to treatment and whether the patients will have a chance of being cured. Using PET several weeks into treatment, researchers found a strong correlation between tumor responses during treatment and response three months after completion of the treatment. This could potentially allow doctors to change the radiation treatment plan before treatment ends to improve the outcome. "This demonstrates that PET scans can be performed earlier during the course of radiation treatment, which will allow us to modify the treatment regimen before the treatment is completed. Our sample size was small, but the results are very promising," says lead study author Feng-Ming Kong, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of radiation oncology at the U-M Medical School. In a pilot study of 15 people with early-stage non-small-cell lung cancer, researchers administered FDG-PET scans before beginning radiation therapy, three to four weeks into treatment and three months after completing treatment. An FDG-PET scan uses radioactive labeled glucose, which is drawn to cells that are being metabolized quickly. If a tumor is responding to radiation treatment, it would show decreased FDG activity in the cells. The concern in the past has been that normal lung tissue reacts to the radiation and may be in the way of determining through PET scan whether the tumor is shrinking. Kong's study found this was not an issue. "The confounding effect on normal tissue is not as significant during treatment as it is after treatment, which is a big surprise. This is the part I'm most excited about: The confounding effect is actually more remarkable after the treatment. That's counter to our traditional assumptions. We always assumed the confounding effect would be worse during treatment," Kong says. She says this finding makes sense, as normal lung tissue is slow to react to the assault of radiation therapy and typically there is a delay before lung inflammations or other problems develop. "The PET scan is better to perform during the course of treatment instead of months after treatment. It avoids the normal tissue confounding effect and allows the radiation therapist to modify the doses if necessary," Kong says. The researchers are continuing to study PET scans in a larger number of patients to verify the pilot findings. The next step is to assess whether changing the treatment regimen based on mid-treatment PET scan findings would lead to better tumor control and survival rates. If continued studies bear out the initial data, Kong is hopeful this work could eventually lead to a change in standard practice guidelines regarding PET for lung cancer.

http://www.upi.com/Health_Business/Anal ... risk/1594/ BOSTON, July 17 (UPI) -- Patients who receive a cardiac CT scan also receive significant levels of radiation that in some cases may lead to cancer later in life -- and young women are particularly at risk, a new study has found. The risk of cancer is high enough for young people and women that physicians should be very selective in ordering the common test, called a 64-slice CTCA or computed tomography coronary angiography, said Andrew Einstein, a professor of cardiology at Columbia University. The study found that of women in their twenties who are given a CTCA test, one out of 143 would go on to develop cancer, probably breast cancer. `"For every patient, docs need to make a risk-benefit analysis. And ultimately make a decision about what is best for the patient," Einstein told United Press International. "If a female patient comes in and says their mother died of heart attack at 40 and she has cholesterol through the roof and she smokes, you do what you can and you don't worry about the radiation," Einstein said. But, "sometimes people want to have CAT scans of their heart to see what it looks like. This is generally not appropriate. There should be a very good reason to get this test, as assessed by the person's doctor," he added. His study appears in Wednesday's Journal of the American Medical Association. However, Einstein stressed, "Patients shouldn't be alarmed" about the risks of the test. Coronary artery disease accounts for one out of five deaths. More than 6 million people per year show up at emergency rooms complaining of chest pain, Einstein said. The CTCA is heavily used by emergency rooms. The CTCA detects plaque blockages in coronary arteries and is given to people with known or suspected heart disease, Einstein said. The test involves getting an injection of dye in the arm, then going inside a large tube-like machine that takes the images. The CTCA will take hundreds of X-rays during one test, Einstein said. It takes 20 minutes to complete the test. 'It provides beautiful pictures of coronary arteries and can be life-saving," Einstein said. The 64-slice CTCA was approved for use in 2004 and is widely used. The CTCA test exposes the heart, lungs, breasts, thymus, esophagus and other organs to radiation, Einstein said. According to the study, women were at higher risk, and people who are younger were at higher risk of developing cancer due to exposure to a CTCA test. The risk decreased with age, mainly because there is less time for cancer to grow before one dies of another cause, Einstein said. The risk of cancer was quite low in men, especially older men. For 20-year-old men given the CTCA test, 1 out of 686 would be expected to develop lung or other cancer during their life, as a result of the test. For 60-year-old men, about 1 in 1,241 would develop cancer. And for 80-year old men who receive the test, 1 out of 3,261 would be expected to develop lung cancer during their lifetime. Women are more sensitive to radiation exposure, so the study took this into consideration. For 40-year old women who take the test, one out of 284 would be expected to develop breast, lung or other cancer as a result of a CTCA scan. "For a lot of patients, men and older people, this gives us reassurance that despite a perception of high risk, the cancer risk of CTCA is relatively low. That is not the case for younger women," Einstein said. For unknown reasons, the study found that of women under 32 who developed cancer from the test, the majority would develop breast cancer. For women over 32, lung cancer became the dominant cancer. In the study, Einstein calculated the risk of overall cancer or cancer of individual organs due to the CTCA by using a standard mathematical model called Monte Carlo simulations. He plugged in estimates about cancer and radiation exposure put forth by an expert panel of the National Academies of Science, called BEIR VII. The estimates are based on the cancers that resulted in Japan after the atomic bombs were dropped, and in women given X-rays to treat tuberculosis from the 1920s to 1954. These data show that it takes a minimum of 12 years after exposure to radiation for cancer to grow, Einstein said. People generally do not receive more than one CTCA in a lifetime but sometimes this does happen and the risk from the radiation exposure increases, he said. Other tests are available to detect heart disease, and Einstein suggested that in light of the study results, physicians consider using them with younger women when appropriate. Another good option is to use a CTCA scanner that offers extra protection against radiation exposure, called an ECTM. These machines are newer and less common but reduce exposure to radiation by 35 percent, Einstein said. The CTCA machines have been in use since the late 1990s, and from the beginning there has been concern about the radiation they expose patients to, said Ann Bolger, professor of cardiology at the University of California San Francisco and a spokeswoman for the American Heart Association. "This is a very eye-opening look at this issue," Bolger told UPI. "In women the sensitivity is increased and this is an issue we have to deal with," she said. However, "no matter who you are radiation exposure is potentially a very dangerous thing. It's very important to save the exposures for those times when it is medically necessary, and can be life saving," Bolger added. Wilfred Mamuya, a cardiologist at Massachusetts General Hospital, said physicians are very aware of the radiation exposure of the tests, and have made their concerns known to manufacturers. "I would have a hard time subjecting anyone to radiation who does not have cardiac symptoms," Mamuya told UPI. Manufacturers are trying to make cardiac imaging devices that emit less radiation, he said.

http://www.medicexchange.com/mall/depar ... ontentview NOTE: For eligibility information on this trial, sponsored by the American College of Surgeons Oncology Group, call Alison Kastl at (513) 584-0436. ----------------------------------------- A multidisciplinary University of Cincinnati (UC) team is testing whether tiny radioactive 'seeds' implanted during surgery can reduce the recurrence of lung cancer. The study could open up a new treatment option for patients currently considered too ill to undergo the standard surgical approach. The clinical trial will compare minimally invasive lung surgery with the same surgery combined with cancer-killing radioactive seeds (brachytherapy) in high-risk patients with early non-small-cell cancer, one of the two major forms of lung cancer. Standard care for patients with early non-small-cell lung cancer is a 'lobectomy,' the surgical removal of the entire lobe (or lobes) of the lung and surrounding lymph nodes. "However," says Sandra Starnes, MD, assistant professor of surgery and principal investigator of the Cincinnati arm of the national phase-3 study, "some patients already have extremely reduced lung function, and other serious medical conditions that make them poor candidates for the surgery." For this trial, the researchers will perform a less-extensive surgery-known as a sublobar section or extended wedge resection-to remove the cancerous lung tissue and a small margin of normal lung tissue around the tumor. "We hope that by pairing wedge resection surgery with targeted radiation therapy, which is delivered from inside the body, we'll be able to reduce cancer recurrence in these patients while maintaining their quality of life," said Kevin Redmond, MD, associate professor of radiology and study coinvestigator. Encased in titanium, the radiation seeds are just five millimeters long and no wider than the tip of a paperclip. The seeds are implanted along the suture line during surgery to deliver targeted radiation from inside the body over about six months. Redmond says brachytherapy has been used in prostate cancer for about 20 years and is currently being testing in other cancers, including brain and breast cancer. "Too many patients are declared ineligible for surgery and denied a potentially curative procedure because they weren't evaluated by a surgeon who specializes in this type of cancer," adds Starnes. "In reality, many patients with early-stage, non-small-cell lung cancers could get the care they need to beat early lung cancer if they were seen by a multidisciplinary thoracic oncology team." Nationally, researchers are looking for about 226 patients with stage-1, non-small-cell lung cancer. Patients will be randomized to have only lung surgery or surgery plus brachytherapy. Cancer status will be verified by biopsy prior to surgery. Patients will also undergo a pulmonary function test (breathing exercises) and complete a quality-of-life survey before and after surgery. Following treatment, researchers will track cancer recurrences for three years through periodic computed tomography (CT) scans of the chest and upper abdomen. According to the American Cancer Society, more than 185,600 people will be diagnosed with non-small-cell lung cancer in 2007. It is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. Although the most common form of the disease, non-small- cell lung cancer is typically less aggressive than small-cell lung cancer, the second major type of lung cancer. For eligibility information on this trial, sponsored by the American College of Surgeons Oncology Group, call Alison Kastl at (513) 584-0436. Source: University of Cincinnati

http://www.medicexchange.com/mall/depar ... ontentview A multidisciplinary University of Cincinnati (UC) team is testing whether tiny radioactive 'seeds' implanted during surgery can reduce the recurrence of lung cancer. The study could open up a new treatment option for patients currently considered too ill to undergo the standard surgical approach. The clinical trial will compare minimally invasive lung surgery with the same surgery combined with cancer-killing radioactive seeds (brachytherapy) in high-risk patients with early non-small-cell cancer, one of the two major forms of lung cancer. Standard care for patients with early non-small-cell lung cancer is a 'lobectomy,' the surgical removal of the entire lobe (or lobes) of the lung and surrounding lymph nodes. "However," says Sandra Starnes, MD, assistant professor of surgery and principal investigator of the Cincinnati arm of the national phase-3 study, "some patients already have extremely reduced lung function, and other serious medical conditions that make them poor candidates for the surgery." For this trial, the researchers will perform a less-extensive surgery-known as a sublobar section or extended wedge resection-to remove the cancerous lung tissue and a small margin of normal lung tissue around the tumor. "We hope that by pairing wedge resection surgery with targeted radiation therapy, which is delivered from inside the body, we'll be able to reduce cancer recurrence in these patients while maintaining their quality of life," said Kevin Redmond, MD, associate professor of radiology and study coinvestigator. Encased in titanium, the radiation seeds are just five millimeters long and no wider than the tip of a paperclip. The seeds are implanted along the suture line during surgery to deliver targeted radiation from inside the body over about six months. Redmond says brachytherapy has been used in prostate cancer for about 20 years and is currently being testing in other cancers, including brain and breast cancer. "Too many patients are declared ineligible for surgery and denied a potentially curative procedure because they weren't evaluated by a surgeon who specializes in this type of cancer," adds Starnes. "In reality, many patients with early-stage, non-small-cell lung cancers could get the care they need to beat early lung cancer if they were seen by a multidisciplinary thoracic oncology team." Nationally, researchers are looking for about 226 patients with stage-1, non-small-cell lung cancer. Patients will be randomized to have only lung surgery or surgery plus brachytherapy. Cancer status will be verified by biopsy prior to surgery. Patients will also undergo a pulmonary function test (breathing exercises) and complete a quality-of-life survey before and after surgery. Following treatment, researchers will track cancer recurrences for three years through periodic computed tomography (CT) scans of the chest and upper abdomen. According to the American Cancer Society, more than 185,600 people will be diagnosed with non-small-cell lung cancer in 2007. It is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. Although the most common form of the disease, non-small- cell lung cancer is typically less aggressive than small-cell lung cancer, the second major type of lung cancer. For eligibility information on this trial, sponsored by the American College of Surgeons Oncology Group, call Alison Kastl at (513) 584-0436. Source: University of Cincinnati

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/ ... 71607.php# Penn Philadelphia -- Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine identified a combination therapy as a way to sensitize resistant human cancer cells to a treatment currently being tested in clinical trials They propose that the therapy may help to selectively eliminate cancer cells while leaving healthy cells intact, providing a cancer treatment with fewer side effects. The Penn team reports their findings in the July issue of Cancer Cell. To test the ability of the combined therapy in treating cancerous tumors, senior author Wafik S. El-Deiry, MD, PhD, and colleagues administered TRAIL, a tumor necrosis factor, and sorafenib, an inhibitor currently used to treat renal cancer, to mice with colon carcinomas. The sorafenib and TRAIL therapy reduced the size of tumors in mice with few side effects, demonstrating the potential effectiveness of the combined treatment on human colon cancers. "Cancer cells will do whatever it takes to survive in harsh environments," explains El-Deiry, Professor of Medicine, Genetics, and Pharmacology. To kill hearty cancer cells, El-Deiry and other scientists are working on ways to alter them so they become more susceptible to cell death. In ongoing clinical trials, doctors are giving cancer patients extra doses of TRAIL (TNF-a-related apoptosis-inducing ligand), a molecule naturally produced by the body's immune system that promotes cell death, to help kill off cancer cells. While TRAIL-based therapy is promising, over 50 percent of all cancer cells show resistance to TRAIL. To create a more potent form of targeted cancer therapy, El-Deiry's research team began searching for ways to reverse TRAIL resistance in cancer cells. Recently, El-Deiry's research group found that TRAIL-resistant cells avoid death by producing 'survival' proteins called cIAP2 and Mcl-1. The oncogene c-Myc in part hampers a cancer cell's survival strategy by blocking the function of an intermediate protein that oversees cIAP2 and Mcl-1 production. Without these survival proteins, cancer cells are unable to resist the death initiated by TRAIL. In search of drugs that perform a similar cancer-cell death function to c-Myc, El-Deiry's lab turned to sorafenib, which is also being considered for the treatment of a variety of cancers. Like c-Myc, the researchers found that sorafenib blocked the intermediate and survival proteins when combined with TRAIL, causing TRAIL-resistant colon and lung cancer cell lines to die. "Our findings are exciting because TRAIL in combination with sorafenib appears to be much less toxic than current chemotherapy drugs," explains El-Deiry. "Plus, sorafenib is already available in a pill form."¨ While enthusiastic about his recent findings, El-Deiry notes sorafenib may be working to increase cell sensitivity to TRAIL through more biochemical pathways than the intermediate alone. "The ability of sorafenib to work through multiple pathways may be beneficial to cancer treatments because cancer may be altering multiple targets," says El-Deiry. In the future, El-Deiry plans to explore additional pathways sorafenib may be working through to increase TRAIL sensitivity and to compare the effectiveness of other drugs. "In addition to proposing a combination therapy that's rational, non-toxic, and effective in preclinical trials, our findings open up new avenues of molecular exploration for designing targeted anti-cancer therapies," said El-Deiry.

My maternal grandmother (non-smoker) and my mother (former smoker) both had NCSLC. I smoked for 20 years and quit cold turkey after my mother's diagnosis. In April 2006 my brother and I took advantage of a "buy one, get one free" spiral CT offer. My scan revealed a non-specific 3mm nodule, and I've been on the CT scan watch and wait merry-go-round ever since. The peace of mind I have because I am being proactive with my health is priceless.

http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNe ... 6320070713 Fri Jul 13, 2007 3:05PM EDT NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Testing exhaled breath with a small sensor array can detect lung cancer with moderate accuracy, researchers report. The testing device, which contains 36 spots impregnated with chemically sensitive compounds, works by detecting patterns of volatile organic compounds in exhaled breath. These spots change colors when exposed to particular chemicals. The goal of the study reported in the medical journal Thorax was to determine if various color patterns could be identified that accurately detect lung cancer. The study included 49 patients with non-small-cell lung cancer, 73 with various other, non-malignant lung diseases, and 21 healthy "controls." Data from 70 percent of the subjects were used to identify a pattern that indicated the presence of lung cancer, which was then tested in the remaining 30 percent. The predictive pattern identified by the researchers was able to spot 73 percent of cancers, while it incorrectly identified 28 percent of nonmalignant conditions as cancerous. "Further work may clarify the nature of the distinct breath constituents," conclude Dr. Peter J. Mazzone, from The Cleveland Clinic, Ohio, and colleagues. "This would help to guide refinement of the sensor array and breath collection system to maximize the diagnostic accuracy of the test." SOURCE: Thorax, July 2007

My mother was told not to drive even before she started WBR. She never drove again, which was fine with her. One less thing for her to worry about. Except for one day when I picked her up to take her for a visit with my brother's family. He lived only about a mile away taking side streets so I asked if she wanted to drive us there. She jumped at the chance and I'll never forget the smile on her face when she beeped the horn as we approached the house. Or, the smile on my brother's face when he realized who was driving. A moment of normalcy. And then he yelled at me for letting her drive in the first place.

Susan, The link below will direct to you a study which shows that the appearance of a rash in cancer patients treated with Tarceva is strongly associated with longer survival. I hope this is the case for your dad. http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/531266 Christine

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/s ... hub=Health MONTREAL — The lingering dangers caused by exposure to asbestos has prompted the Canadian Cancer Society to join a growing call for the federal government to ban the use and exportation of the fire-retarding mineral, The Canadian Press has learned. The society believes a comprehensive strategy is needed to address the health consequences of a substance that is said to kill thousands of people in Canada and around the world. "The Canadian Cancer Society is calling for our governments to start work on developing a comprehensive strategy that will lead to Canadians no longer being exposed to asbestos," Dr. Barbara Whylie, the group's CEO, said in an interview Wednesday. Exposure to asbestos has been linked to an increased risk of lung cancer, mesothelioma, asbestosis, laryngeal cancer, cancers of the gastrointestinal tract and other diseases. It is believed that asbestos fibres attract cancer-causing agents after they enter the lungs. In many cases, the latency period can be 20 to 30 years after exposure, she said. The World Health Organization says that about 125 million people are exposed to asbestos at work and that at least 90,000 die annually from asbestos-related diseases. In Canada, almost one-third of the 1,097 workplace deaths in 2005 were attributed to asbestos, said the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety. The cancer society's position brings it in line with labour unions, environmentalists, medical and scientific associations and victims' groups that have long called for a ban. Asbestos defenders criticized the society's move, arguing that the product is safe when properly used. They also say no distinction is made between the impact of chrysotile and more deadly forms of asbestos - crecodolite and amosite - which have already been banned. The use of asbestos in building insulation has long been eliminated in Canada, although many older buildings still contain the material. Health Canada says asbestos is safe as long as it's in a "controlled use." That means it should be encapsulated in concrete or other materials that prevent the fibres from becoming airborne and inhaled. Asbestos is a strong, heat resistant, flexible and inexpensive material that has been mined for more than a century. It can be woven, spun and bonded into many products and pressed to form paper. Today, it is used primarily in making cement blocks, automobile brake pads and sewer and water pipes. Labelling the ban movement as naive environmental idealism, asbestos advocates claimed a global prohibition would hurt Quebec mining communities and benefit the chemical industry which produces alternative substances that have unproven safety records. Jacques Dunnigan, a retired professor of toxicology at the University of Sherbrooke in Quebec, said the use of chrysotile is safe. "Workers in the mines of Thetford or Asbestos or users of finished products such as brake linings . . . because they are exposed to very low levels of Chrysotile only, the risk is practically nil," he said in an interview. Dunnigan claimed the Canadian Cancer Society has been pressured to act by the international ban asbestos movement, which seeks a complete elimination of all fibre types. Whylie said the non-profit agency's long experience fighting tobacco use has prompted its call for a comprehensive approach to banning asbestos. She said the group was prompted to act now to push the Canadian government to ratify in August 2008 the Rotterdam convention on the management of hazardous materials between countries. The potential health impact of past asbestos exposure could soon be felt, along with the impact of the degradation of buildings containing the insulator, she said. "I don't know if it's a sleeping giant but it certainly is a health risk that continues to be there that doesn't need to be there," Whylie said. The co-founder of a group called Ban Asbestos Canada praised the cancer group's move. "It's absolutely wonderful to see them taking a position on this because the fact is that thousands of people are dying needlessly from completely preventable cancer the world over and our policies here have a huge influence on the policies in developing countries and literally thousands of people are being exposed to this substance unnecessarily," said Kyla Sentes. Successive Canadian governments have defended the industry against global calls for restrictions in the product's use. In 1999, the former Liberal government went to the World Trade Organization to challenge the ban on asbestos in France. Canada has been among the world's leading producers of asbestos for decades. In 2002, it exported 235,000 tonnes of crude and milled asbestos worth $140 million. Canada is believed to have produced more than 65 million tonnes of asbestos since mining began in 1878. More than 90 per cent of the product mined exclusively in Quebec is exported to some 60 counties in the developing world, lead by India, Indonesia and Thailand. The mining of chrysotile or white asbestos, has been dramatically curtailed since its use peaked in 1973. World use has dropped by half in the 1990s as a ban spread among about 40 countries such as Australia, Saudi Arabia, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Gabon and members of the European Union. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued regulations to phase out the use of almost all asbestos products in 1989. But the rules were overturned in court two years later. Russia, Kazakhstan, Zimbabwe and Brazil have overtaken Canada as the leading global producers. Only a few hundred workers continue to mine asbestos, in the area surrounding Thetford Mines, Que. In an e-mail to the Canadian Press, a spokesman for Natural Resources Minister Gary Lunn suggested an outright ban on all forms of asbestos is not planned. "Comprehensive reviews of scientific studies over the last 40 years, has proven chrysotile to be a less potent carcinogen than other forms of asbestos," the e-mail said. "Furthermore, at the 2006 Rotterdam Convention, Canada, along with other countries, opposed the listing of chrysotile under the Prior Informed Consent Procedure."

The response to the Tarceva website has been quite positive. People have found it useful and informative, but there's always room for improvement. Thanks to feedback we received, we've made updates to the patient and caregiver sections. More user-friendly: The simplified look & feel makes it easier than ever to find what you're looking for. Interactive site host: A host will help welcome, guide and highlight key site information and features. You can either listen to the host or, through closed-captioning, read helpful tips. Easier to read: Shorter pages make the information more readable. Please visit the website at www.tarceva.com

http://professional.cancerconsultants.c ... x?id=40110 Researchers from Vanderbilt University have reported that a mass spectrometry test of serum prior to treatment can predict response of patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) to Tarceva® (erlotinib) and Iressa® (gefitinib).This study was published in the June, 2007 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Tarceva and Iressa are tyrosine kinase inhibitors that are active in a subset of patients with NSCLC. Responsive tumors were likely to be adenocarcinomas or bronchio-alveorlar carcinomas and occurred more frequently in non-smokers and women. Responses also occur more frequent in patients with specific mutations of EGFR. Researchers evaluated a predictive alogorithm based on matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI) mass spectrometry (MS) of serum. This alogorithm was based on 8 distinct features which were able to distinguish patients with good prognosis from patients with poor prognosis. Tests were performed on Serum before treatment with Tarceva or Iressa. After evaluated the reliability of the test on a training set two cohorts of patients were studied prospectively. In the first group of 67 patients the median survival of patients with a good prognosis was 207 days compared to 92 days for the poor prognosis group. In the second group of 96 patients median survival was 306 days for the good prognosis group and 107 days for the poor prognosis group. The test was not predictive of survival in patients not receiving Tarceva or Iressa.

http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show ... 4921.shtml MADISON, Wis., July 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Two new patient education tools are now available for people who have been diagnosed with lung cancer. National Lung Cancer Partnership is offering a patient education booklet for those recently diagnosed with lung cancer and a patient education video that explores making the decision to enter a lung cancer clinical trial. The booklet, "Living with a Diagnosis of Lung Cancer," is available in quantity at no charge to physician practices. The booklet is designed to help those recently diagnosed with lung cancer answer basic questions about what the diagnosis means, who may be part of their cancer care team, and what their treatments might entail. "When patients hear the words, 'You have lung cancer' their mind starts racing and they hear or remember very little of what comes next," said Joan Schiller, M.D., president, National Lung Cancer Partnership, and lead author of the booklet. "Even in this age of the internet with information at your fingertips, patients and their families often don't know what to ask or are intimidated about doing so. This booklet was designed to be an easy-to-read resource for many of the initial questions people might have, from what kinds of doctors will be treating you to whether or not a clinical trial is right for you." Also available in quantity and at no charge to practices is the patient education video designed to clarify the clinical trials process by showing lung cancer patients' personal experiences with them. Stories of Strength: Making the Decision to Enter a Lung Cancer Clinical Trial is the first lung cancer-specific video that discusses the pros and cons of joining a clinical trial, and why lung cancer patients should consider this option as part of their treatment plan. The video tells the story of four lung cancer survivors who chose to participate in clinical trials and describes what a clinical trial is, what it can involve and how it affected the treatments and outcomes of the four patients. The video can be viewed at http://www.nationallungcancerpartnershi ... fm?l=Video and the booklet may be downloaded from http://www.nationallungcancerpartnershi ... ?l=Booklet or ordered by sending an email including your name, address and the quantity requested to info@NationalLungCancerPartnership.org. The booklet and video serve as valuable resources in oncology and pulmonology practices and primary care centers.

http://www.pharmaceutical-business-revi ... 6564ED6DED GTx Inc has initiated a phase IIb trial evaluating Ostarine for the treatment of cancer cachexia, a muscle wasting condition. The phase IIb cancer cachexia trial is a randomized, double blind, placebo controlled study of muscle wasting in 150 patients with non-small cell lung cancer, colorectal cancer, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, or chronic lymphocytic leukemia. The study is being conducted at approximately 35 clinical sites in the US and Argentina. Participants are being randomized to receive placebo, Ostarine 1mg, or Ostarine 3mg for four months. The primary endpoint of the trial is the change in total lean body mass (muscle) at 16 weeks. Secondary endpoints include functional performance and safety. Memphis-based GTx said that it expects to report top line data in the summer of 2008. "We are pleased to initiate the Ostarine phase IIb cancer cachexia clinical trial on schedule," said Mitchell Steiner, CEO of GTx. "Cancer cachexia, as a large unmet medical need, is an important first indication for the late-stage development of Ostarine." Cachexia is a debilitating, progressive muscle wasting condition manifested by unintentional weight loss, muscle weakness, anemia, fatigue, and death. More than 50% of cancer patients present with or subsequently develop cachexia, which is associated with a poor prognosis and can adversely affect a patient's quality of life. There are no drugs approved by the FDA for the treatment of cancer cachexia.

http://www.wave3.com/Global/story.asp?S ... 6&nav=0RZF LOUISVILLE (AP) -- Kentucky's first black Supreme Court justice has lung cancer that has spread to his brain. Judge William McAnulty will undergo surgery next week to remove a one-inch segment of his brain. McAnulty said the cancer came from years of smoking, a habit he kicked in December. The judge joked he's just worried the surgery might make him a UK fan. McAnulty says he's expects to be out several months, but will read briefs and watch videotapes of oral arguments. He will also cast votes in cases and write opinions while he recovers. McAnulty was appointed to the court last year by Governor Fletcher, then was elected to a full eight-year term on the court last November.

http://www.genengnews.com/news/bnitem.a ... e=19903812 Variations in two genes related to inflammation may be a major risk factor for developing lung cancer, according to a team of scientists from the NCI and the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center. The effect of these genes is especially strong among heavy smokers, suggesting that the inflammatory response is important in modulating the damage caused by tobacco smoke. The polymorphisms were found in genes for interleukin (IL)1A and IL1B, two signaling molecules that immune system cells secrete in response to infection or tissue damage. “Essentially, sustained inflammation alters the microenvironment of the lung tissue, damaging cells and altering DNA,” reports lead author, Eric Engels, M.D., researcher at the viral epidemiology branch of the NCI’s division of cancer epidemiology and genetics. To examine the relationship between inflammation and lung cancer risk, the researchers compared differences in genes related to inflammation between more than 1,500 lung cancer patients and 1,700 controls. More than 80% of the cancer patients in the study were current or former smokers. Among the 59 variations in 37 inflammation-related genes studied, the researchers discovered that some variants in the genes for IL1A and 1B are found more frequently in patients with lung cancer and especially among heavy smokers. The effect was most profound in polymorphisms in IL1B. The IL1B protein is an integral part of the chemical cascade by which cell signals moderate the response to inflammation. Variations in the gene may lead to greater expression of the protein, which is more likely to turn on the cascade and sustain the damaging effects of inflammation. Over time, the constant damage of inflammation could lead to genetic damage and cancer, according to Dr. Engel.

http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/531266 Newswise — The appearance of a rash in cancer patients treated with erlotinib (Tarceva) is strongly associated with longer survival, according to researchers from the drug’s developer, OSI Pharmaceuticals, Inc. This is not the first time that rash has been associated with a survival advantage with EGFR inhibitors – a class of drugs which includes erlotinib, cetuximab, panitumumab and others designed to block overproduction of the epidermal growth factor receptor – but it is the most detailed analysis to date. The study, published in the July 1 issue of Clinical Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, reports that for patients taking Tarceva who developed a moderate to severe rash, survival without progression of disease was 245 percent longer than in patients who had a mild rash or none at all. In fact, in the majority of cases, the more severe the rash, the longer a patient’s cancer was held in check, researchers found. This rash, which often looks like acne, can be unpleasant enough for some people to consider discontinuing treatment, but “it is important for physicians and patients to understand that this a positive event because it means there is likely to be a better clinical outcome,” said the lead author, Bret Wacker, MS Director of Biostatistics at OSI Pharmaceuticals, Inc. “Further studies are needed to both identify patients most likely to develop rash and to determine if dose escalation to induce rash can improve efficacy.” Although few patients dropped out of the large Phase III clinical trials testing Tarceva in advanced non-small cell lung cancer and pancreatic cancer due to the rash, Wacker said he fears those who are taking Tarceva outside of a clinical trial may be likely to stop treatment. “Some patients are stopping treatment because of the rash, yet those are the ones who are most likely to benefit,” Wacker said. “This is a critical problem and rather than permanently discontinue treatment, patients should talk to their doctor about an effective and proactive strategy to manage the rash while continuing Tarceva therapy.” According to the researchers, these rashes can be controlled with mild steroids or antibiotics, and in most cases, they will improve with treatment. They are believed to be due to an inflammatory response as a result of EGFR inhibition in skin tissue, Wacker said. The analysis looked at two placebo-controlled, double-blind, randomized, Phase III clinical trials testing Tarceva in advanced non-small cell lung cancer and pancreatic cancer − studies which led to approval of the agent for treating both cancers. Wacker and his team excluded patients who died in the first month after starting the study because they may not have had time to develop the rash or the rash may have been under-reported in these ill patients. Of the 673 patients in the lung cancer study, called BR.21, and in the Tarceva-treated group, 81 percent developed a rash, the majority of which was grade 2 (The study graded rashes from 1, relatively mild, to 4, severe). The researchers found that the presence of any rash correlated with overall and progression-free survival and that these correlations increased with the grade of rash. Specifically, Tarceva-treated patients who did not develop a rash survived a median of 3.3 months, compared to 7.1 months for those with a grade 1 rash, and 11.1 months for patients with more severe, grade 2 rashes. They also found, however, that 18 percent of patients treated with a placebo also developed a rash, and that overall survival in these patients was also significantly longer (a median of 8.2 months compared to 4.7 months), compared to placebo patients who didn’t develop a rash. “We don’t know why some patients treated with a placebo developed a rash, but it could be due to the strength of their immune system, and that is why they survived longer,” Wacker said. In the second clinical trial (known as PA.3) that tested Tarceva and the chemotherapy drug gemcitabine against a placebo drug and gemcitabine in 521 patients with advanced pancreatic cancer, 71 percent of patients using Tarceva/gemcitabine developed a rash, compared with 30 percent of patients in the placebo group. This increased rate of rashes in the placebo group makes some sense, Wacker said, because rashes are known to occur with use of gemcitabine chemotherapy. But, unlike the BR.21 study, these pancreatic cancer patients with rashes in the placebo group did not experience an increase in survival compared to placebo group patients without a rash. In the Tarceva treatment group, only a more severe rash of grade 2 or higher was associated with increased survival. Patients with a grade 2 rash survived a median of 10.8 months, compared to treated patients with no rash (5.4 months) or a grade 1 rash (5.7 months). “These different results may be associated with the addition of gemcitabine with Tarceva, or the lower dose of Tarceva in this study, but we just don’t know,” he said. Wacker points out that lack of a rash doesn’t necessarily mean that patients will not benefit from Tarceva. “A small percentage of patients who didn’t develop a rash still had relatively long survival,” he said. “But, still, overall, patients who don’t develop a rash don’t do as well as those who do.” The study was funded by OSI Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

http://www.forbes.com/business/feeds/af ... 80360.html Genentech Inc has warned healthcare professionals that its Avastin drug caused at least one fatality in a recent clinical study in patients with limited-stage small cell lung cancer (SCLC), the US Food and Drug Administration said. 'The trial was stopped after the fatal event ... we will carefully observe the safety data in other (Avastin) trials,' said Roche spokeswoman Claudia Schmitt. The trial results would have no effect on other Avastin development programmes or on distribution in Europe, she added, pointing out that the drug has proved successful in other non-small cell lung cancer trials, including kidney and lung cancer tests. Genentech's small cell lung cancer trial was carried out on 29 patients and combined chemotherapy and radiation plus Avastin. It was stopped on March 12 and in April, Genentech sent out the letter to healthcare professionals. After the adverse events, there are no current plans to re-engineer the drug towards the treatment of non-small cell cancers, said Schmitt, adding that to date, she had no information regarding potential lawsuits in connection with the trial. According to the FDA, Genentech will take action and intends to revise the Avastin package insert to include more detailed information about possible adverse effects. The FDA said there were two confirmed serious adverse events of respiratory disease tracheoesophageal fistula (TE), one fatal, and a second death of unknown cause following an upper aerodigestive tract haemorrhage, in which TE fistula was suspected. Six other cases of TE fistula have also been reported in other lung and esophageal cancer studies using Avastin and chemotherapy alone or with concurrent radiation treatment, the FDA added. Avastin is not approved for the treatment of small cell lung cancer, although the current prescribing information includes a description of gastrointestinal tract fistula formation in patients with colorectal cancer treated with Avastin.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/loca ... 0371.story Published July 2, 2007, 9:21 PM CDT Beverly Sills, the bubbly redhead from Brooklyn who rose to iconic status as one of the most beloved and best-known American opera divas of her generation, died Monday of cancer. She was 78. The singer died at her New York home, according to her longtime manager, Edgar Vincent. Sills, a nonsmoker, suffered from inoperable lung cancer.