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john

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It is interesting that my mom was taking thyroid medication since I think

she had Grave's disease. Probably not a huge connection, but is interesting

Anticancer Res. 1999 Nov-Dec;19(6A):4839-44. Related Articles, Links

Spontaneous remission of cancer--a thyroid hormone dependent phenomenon?

Hercbergs A.

Department of Radiation Oncology, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, OH 44195, USA. hercbea@radonc.ccf.org

Spontaneous remission (SR) of neoplasia is a rare biological event. Very few reports provide evidence for an eliciting event or mechanism. The only case in the literature of SR of lung cancer following myxedema coma is suggested to have been an instance of thyroid hormone deprivation-induced total tumor apoptosis. Review of the collective data suggests that the thyroid hormones modulate pleiotropic neoplasia--abetting mechanisms and that hypothyroidism may enhance the predisposition of neoplasms to spontaneous and therapy induced regression by lowering thresholds for apoptosis.

Publication Types:

Case Reports

Review

Review, Tutorial

PMID: 10697597 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE

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Guest Karen C

Ok, John - you are always a WEALTH of information - but can you tell me what this means? I'm not speaking this language.

I'm interested because I am hypothyroid and take synthroid, although I am not the lung cancer patient here. I am a melanoma survivor, though.

Take care,

Karen C.

(David C's wife)

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I tried to find more information and the only thing out there is that there *may* be a link between breast cancer and thyroid function.

This is controversial and I read it has been debated for a decade.

There has been no link to thyroid replacement therapy and any cancer.

The only thing is that those with hypothyroid seem to have less of a chance of getting breast cancer.

I think it is interesting but I guess the jury is still out.

my *guess* is the link between the thyroid and metabolism. There are some articles that drugs affecting ATP (the cells energy source) have anti-tumor effects.

Thus being hypothyroid may be giving less energy to cancer cells. Cancer cells metabolic rate is faster (I think) than normal cells as seen in a PET scan

Hypothyroidism is bad also (as you know) - you won't have any energy and a lot of other bad effects.

Again do your own research - I think the sites I get the info are reliable but I might misinterpret or not understand things and/or the source might not good

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Estimating The Risk Of Cancer

Dutch scientists have developed a new tumour growth model in which the tumour is a part of the host's body. The model reveals that a low-calorie diet delays the growth of a tumour, and thus increases the life expectancy. Furthermore, tumours were found to develop faster in younger than in older hosts.

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Related section: Health & Medicine

Ingeborg van Leeuwen has developed a new tumour growth model. The model views the tumour as an integral part of the body. Existing models regard the tumour as an independent unit, separate from the host in which it grows. The tumour growth rate was found to be dependent on the age-dependent metabolic rate of the host. The model also established the relationship between the tumour growth process and the host's food intake.

Animals which follow a low-calorie diet have a higher life expectancy upon developing a tumour than animals without any dietary restrictions. The researcher also predicts that tumours generally develop faster in younger than in older hosts. This is because the energy available per cell decreases with age.

Van Leeuwen also developed a model that established the effect of food intake on growth and ageing. The model consists of two modules. The first describes the energy dynamics of an organism and provides equations for the feeding rate, fat content, change in body weight and metabolic rate. The second module describes the ageing of an organism. This description is based on the theory that ageing is the result of oxidative damage caused by free radicals. The two modules are linked together by the fact that the rate of production of free radicals depends on the metabolic rate, which in turn depends on the energy uptake and body size. In the end, a combination of the two modules results in an equation in which the life expectancy depends on the food consumption and bo

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Basically the article says that hypothyroidism *might* cause cells to die more easily either with therapy or spontaneously.

The article talks about a patient who had a spontaneous remission and the person went into a coma caused by the hypothyroidism. Once the "myxedema coma" has treated the women had no cancer. The article suggests a link between between spontaneous remission and hypothyroid.

There really is not much research in this - I tried to find more articles but only came upon the article about hypothyroidism and "breast cancer risk"

Apoptosis means "cell death". It is a little different than necrosis. Necrosis can lead to inflamation. Apoptosis is the natural death of cells and will not lead to inflamation.

hypothyroidism may enhance the predisposition of neoplasms to spontaneous and therapy induced regression by lowering thresholds for apoptosis

If the hypothesis is correct *maybe* there is a way to turn this idea into a treatment.

It this any clearer??

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Guest Karen C.

John, thanks for the clarification. It makes more sense now.

I have to tell you, I have a cousin who died at age 38 of breast cancer. She had a very fast growing aggressive type of breast cancer. She was diagnosed in April and died in June the following year. She never had even a week of remission. And when I was diagnosed with hypothyroid recently, I found out that she also had it and took synthroid, and had for at least ten years. So it sure didn't help her . . . but also the doctors all said that a person of that age who gets something like breast cancer, their reproductive hormones are still very active which more or less feeds the cancer. also, her youngest child was two years old and the docs thought that perhaps that pregnancy and breastfeeding had something to do with it, but that was just a theory on their part and nothing they could prove or say for certain.

I am just not going to worry about it, but I am going to get my annual mammagrams FAITHFULLY. I just had one and got the great NED letter in the mail from the radiologist on Friday.

I think the best thing to do is live your life, get your screenings and tests on a regular basis, and try not to think about it otherwise. I also had melanoma last year and I have decided to get a full body skin screening by a good dermatologist as well as the twice-annual check by my surgeon. Stay out of the sun, and not worry about it after that.

One thing I just found out, I tried to donate blood and I am permanently banned because of my melanoma, which was detected early and needed no more treatment than to be surgically removed with a clear margin. Lung cancer patients, however, can give blood after being NED five years.

Take care,

Karen C.

(David C's wife)

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This is only somewhat related, but thought y'all might find it interesting and informative. On March 4th last year (2003) my best friend's sister, who was 16 weeks pregnant with her second child at the time, went in for a simple checkup and was told that the spot on her nose (that she thought was just some of that pregnancy acne) didn't look right and she should go to another doctor. She'd had a small melanoma spot taken off her arm late in the first pregnancy, so I guess they were suspicious of anything. Anyway, within a few days they realized that the melanoma was all over the place, including a basketball-sized tumor on her uterus which had penetrated the placenta wall and attached itself to the baby, thereby rendering a C-section to save the mother's life impossible. The doctors said that the growth hormones had "taken ahold" of the cancer and therefore made it spread like wildfire. Interestingly, we heard from several other people who knew of others to whom this had happened. It was just horrible . . . you could almost literally see the tumors growing in her body. She and the family were told on March 15th (yes, only 11 days after that mere checkup) that she had 2-4 weeks to live, and there would be no way to save the baby either. The whole family dropped everything and went to Disney World, cause that's what she wanted to do, but she only had one good day down there before having to be life-flighted back to Atlanta. She died on March 29, 2003. All this in only 25 days. Amazing. Her beautiful first child, who was two this past October, and to whom I am very close, will never know her mother, all because of this beast we call cancer.

I didn't share this with y'all to scare or sadden you. I for one didn't know something like this could happen so fast. But I fully intend to let people know about it - especially those who have had brushes with melanoma.

Blessings,

TeeTaa

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Guest Karen C.

TeeTaa -

oh my gosh! that is the most horrible cancer story I have ever heard, but am not surprised.

I have had a 'brush" with melanoma as I said above - and this is scaring me more than ever - I guess all I can say is thank goodness I'm 45 and my hormones are slowing down (I know this from extensive testing on my reproductive hormones over the years due to my infertility).

I'm speechless, and I feel so upset for this gal's family, especially that two year, and that baby who was literally murdered in the mother's womb by cancer.

I don't know what else to say . . .

Karen C. (David C's wife)

p.s. on a happier note - LOVE the family photo!

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