Cancer - General
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General Cancer
Cancer Prevention Overview (PDQ®)
"The summaries in the cancer prevention section of PDQ address the prevention of specific types of cancer. Prevention is defined as the reduction of cancer mortality via reduction in the incidence of cancer. This can be accomplished by avoiding a carcinogen or altering its metabolism; pursuing lifestyle or dietary practices that modify cancer-causing factors or genetic predispositions; and/or medical intervention (chemoprevention) to successfully reverse preneoplastic changes. Much of the promise for cancer prevention comes from observational epidemiologic studies that show associations between modifiable lifestyle factors or environmental exposures and specific cancers. … The most consistent finding, over decades of research is the strong association between tobacco use and cancers of many sites. Hundreds of epidemiologic studies have confirmed this association. Further support comes from the fact that lung cancer death rates in the United States have mirrored smoking patterns with increases in smoking followed by dramatic increases in lung cancer death rates, and more recently decreases in smoking followed by decreases in lung cancer death rates in men. Infections may also be associated with cancer development. Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is a necessary event for subsequent cervix cancer, and vaccine-conferred immunity results in a marked decrease in precancerous lesions. … Additional examples of modifiable cancer risk factors include alcohol consumption (associated with increased risk of oral, esophageal, breast, and other cancers), physical inactivity (associated with increased risk of colon, breast, and possibly other cancers), and obesity (associated with colon, breast, endometrial, and possibly other cancers). Observational evidence shows associations between alcohol consumption, physical inactivity, and obesity and increased incidence of certain cancers."
Highlighted Articles
Vitamin D and prevention of breast cancer: Pooled analysis. (J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol. 2007)
"CONCLUSIONS: Intake of 2000IU/day of Vitamin D(3), and, when possible, very moderate exposure to sunlight, could raise serum 25(OH)D to 52ng/ml, a level associated with reduction by 50% in incidence of breast cancer, according to observational studies."
Sun Exposure and Prostate Cancer Risk: Evidence for a Protective Effect of Early-Life Exposure (Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers & Prevention 2007)
"These findings suggest that, in addition to sun exposure in adulthood, sun exposure in early life protects against prostate cancer."
Highlighted Internet Site
NCI - General Cancer Prevention Information (includes specific cancers)
CONTINUE YOUR INFOMEDSEARCH RESEARCH with our previous InfoMedLinks. Start with InfoMedLinks 2006.
Notes
The 2007 Treatment Guidelines section will contain the 2007 published guidelines. To view Guidelines from previous years, view year 2006 Treatment Guidelines and 2005 InfoMedlinks (Articles section) or our Monthly Online Newsletter (under the Guidelines section).
Cancer - General
Daily Treatment Report
Cognitive Therapy-CBT-Psychotherapy
Device Therapy
Drug Side-Effects and Interactions
Bisphosphonate-associated osteonecrosis of the jaw. (Menopause Int. 2007) "The term 'osteonecrosis of the jaw' is typically used to describe the exposure of bone within the oral cavity. These lesions are often painful and can result in pathological fracture and disfigurement in severe cases. Infection and dental extractions commonly precede presentation, although lesions can occur spontaneously. There are no clear effective management strategies; surgery often makes the situation worse. The aetiology is far from clear. Historically, it was mainly associated with exposure to 'white phosphorus' contained in safety matches. More recently, it has presented as a complication of head and neck radio-therapy. The vast majority of contemporary reports refer to high-dose intravenous bisphosphonates used in the oncological setting. However, oral bisphosphonates, for the common indication of postmenopausal osteoporosis, have also been implicated, although the number of cases is minuscule considering the number of worldwide prescriptions."
Chemotherapy Fog Is No Longer Ignored as Illusion "Virtually all cancer survivors who have had toxic treatments like chemotherapy experience short-term memory loss and difficulty concentrating during and shortly afterward, experts say. But a vast majority improve. About 15 percent, or roughly 360,000 of the nation’s 2.4 million female breast cancer survivors, the group that has dominated research on cognitive side effects, remain distracted years later, according to some experts. And nobody knows what distinguishes this 15 percent. Most oncologists agree that the culprits include very high doses of chemotherapy, like those in anticipation of a bone marrow transplant; the combination of chemotherapy and supplementary hormonal treatments, like tamoxifen or aromatase inhibitors that lower the amount of estrogen in women who have cancers fueled by female hormones; and early-onset cancer that catapults women in their 30s and 40s into menopause."
Erythropoiesis Stimulating Agents: Aranesp (darbepoetin alfa), Epogen (epoetin alfa), Procrit (epoetin alfa) "[UPDATE 03/09/2007] FDA notified healthcare professionals of new safety information for erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESAs) Aranesp (darbepoetin alfa), Epogen (epoetin alfa), and Procrit (epoetin alfa). Four new studies in patients with cancer found a higher chance of serious and life-threatening side effects or death with the use of ESAs."
Drugs
Exercise
General Information
Cranberries may Improve Chemo "Drinking cranberry juice or taking cranberry extract may enhance the effectiveness of chemotherapy drugs used to fight ovarian cancer."
Control Chemotherapy Nausea & Vomiting
Doctors 'ignore cancer guidance'
Adjuvant therapy in the elderly: making the right decision. (J Clin Oncol. 2007)
Yoga gives immune boost to breast cancer survivors
Guidelines
Immunotherapy
Internet Sites
Treatment Information
NCI - Dictionary of Cancer Terms
NCI - Overview of Nutrition in Cancer Care
Drug-Food-Supplement Information
DrugDigest (drug interactions)
FDA - Drug Interactions: What You Should Know
NIH - Botanical Dietary Supplements: Background Information
NIH - Drug, Supplements, and Herbal Information
NIH - Herbal Supplements: Consider Safety, Too
NIH - Vitamin and Mineral Supplement Fact Sheets
Nutrition
Do antioxidants interfere with radiation therapy for cancer? (Integr Cancer Ther. 2007) "Although further studies are needed, the preponderance of evidence supports a provisional conclusion that dietary antioxidants do not conflict with the use of radiotherapy in the treatment of a wide variety of cancers and may significantly mitigate the adverse effects of that treatment."
Cancer Update: Two Studies Worth Heeding
Cancer wasting and quality of life react to early individualized nutritional counselling! (Clinical Nutrition 2007) "… individualized nutritional counselling was the single method capable of sustaining a significant impact on patients’ outcomes. The early provision of the appropriate mixture of foods and textures using regular foods may modulate outcomes in cancer patients."
Other
Radiation-Chemotherapy
Other Treatments
Experimental
Radiotherapy
Radiation-induced cardiovascular diseases: Is the epidemiologic evidence compatible with the radiobiologic data? (Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2007)
Supplements-Vitamins-CAM
Complementary therapies for cancer pain. (Curr Pain Headache Rep. 2007)
Cancer Treatments From the Kitchen: New research shows that flaxseed and ginseng have something to offer patients. Shark cartilage, however, comes up short. "Nutritionists and alternative-medicine practitioners alike are enamored of flaxseed. High in omega-3 fatty acids, it also has "800 times more lignan than anything else you could stick in your mouth," says Duke University cancer researcher Wendy Demark-Wahnefried. Lignan, a chemical found in the cell walls of plants, binds to testosterone in the body—and in many prostate-cancer patients, testosterone is what fuels tumor growth. Researchers have often suspected that lignan might stop prostate tumor cells from multiplying out of control. Before starting her most recent research, Demark-Wahnefried says, her team "put a man with rising [prostate-specific antigen or PSA] levels on flaxseed, and in three months his PSA had halved and his cancer cells were shrinking."
Management of cancer pain with complementary therapies. (Oncology (Williston Park). 2007)
Antioxidants and other nutrients do not interfere with chemotherapy or radiation therapy and can increase kill and increase survival, Part 2. (Altern Ther Health Med. 2007)
The use and perceived benefit of complementary and alternative medicine among Californians with cancer. (Psychooncology. 2007)
A critical review of complementary therapies for cancer-related fatigue. (Integr Cancer Ther. 2007)
Dietary supplements in patients with cancer: Risks and key concepts, part 1. (Am J Health Syst Pharm. 2007) "CONCLUSION: Counseling patients with cancer about dietary supplements requires a systematic thought process that considers the available theories and data, as well as the patients' views about the agents."
Carnitine may be useful for cancer-related fatigue "L-carnitine supplementation at up to 3 grams per day is safe and well-tolerated in cancer patients, and relieves cancer-related fatigue, according to a report in the Journal of Pain and Symptom Management."
Surgery
Transplantation
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