Thread: Cancer sucks

You're one lucky man, Birding.

Keep your spirit soaring !

NO MALIGNANCY.

The Dr took a biopsy during an annual check up 2 weeks ago and I went back today for the results to hear these two wonderful words. Followed by, no need for any more checks come back and see us if you have a problem.

Now can get on with the life with confidence.

Originally Posted by birding

NO MALIGNANCY.

The Dr took a biopsy during an annual check up 2 weeks ago and I went back today for the results to hear these two wonderful words. Followed by, no need for any more checks come back and see us if you have a problem.

Now can get on with the life with confidence.

Good luck to you.

Former US President Jimmy Carter says recent liver surgery revealed that he has cancer and it has spread to other parts of his body.

The 90-year-old statesman underwent surgery to remove a small mass in his liver earlier this month.

He said he would reveal more "when facts are known, possibly next week".

Jimmy Carter, former US president, reveals he has cancer - BBC News

Surprise! Scientists May Have Accidentally Found A Cure For Cancer

As far as accidents go, stumbling upon a potential cure for cancer is one we can all probably forgive. According to a recent study, a group of Danish scientists might have done just that by discovering that a potential malaria vaccine had the unexpected side effect of killing tumors.

Malaria is bloodborne disease caused by the Plasmodium parasite. It is spread through humans by mosquito bites and, according to UNICEF, kills up to a million people each year. Malaria is especially dangerous for pregnant women as the parasite may attack the placenta, which then puts the child’s life at risk. In their ongoing efforts to prevent these specific infections, scientists from the University of Denmark made a remarkable observation: Due to the similar characteristics between tumors and placentas, the same technique malaria uses to attack and destroy placentas could also be used to destroy cancer tumors.

“The placenta is an organ, which within a few months grows from only few cells into an organ weighing approximately 2 pounds, and it provides the embryo with oxygen and nourishment in a relatively foreign environment,” study author Ali Salanti said in a statement. “In a manner of speaking, tumors do much the same — they grow aggressively in a relatively foreign environment."

The researchers attempted to improve on this natural design by attaching a cancer-killing toxin to the malaria protein. They found that the combination was lethal; in lab tests, it was up to 90 percent effective in destroying various cancer samples. The lethal combination was also tested successfully in mice that were implanted with different types of human cancers. And while it may seem jarring to trade off cancer for malaria, Thomas Mandel Clausen, a PhD student involved with the research, explained that the the malaria protein only attaches to the tumor “without any significant attachment to other tissue.”

It will be at least four years before the treatment will be available for human testing, and researchers are hopeful it’ll be a significant step forward in cancer treatment research. However, since the protein they use attaches to carbohydrates found only in the placenta and cancer tumors, this life-saving characteristic will make the treatment too dangerous for cancer treatment in pregnant women. “Expressed in popular terms, the toxin will believe that the placenta is a tumor and kill it, in exactly the same way it will believe that a tumor is a placenta,” Salanti said.

Originally Posted by S Landreth

Surprise! Scientists May Have Accidentally Found A Cure For Cancer

As far as accidents go, stumbling upon a potential cure for cancer is one we can all probably forgive. According to a recent study, a group of Danish scientists might have done just that by discovering that a potential malaria vaccine had the unexpected side effect of killing tumors.

Malaria is bloodborne disease caused by the Plasmodium parasite. It is spread through humans by mosquito bites and, according to UNICEF, kills up to a million people each year. Malaria is especially dangerous for pregnant women as the parasite may attack the placenta, which then puts the child’s life at risk. In their ongoing efforts to prevent these specific infections, scientists from the University of Denmark made a remarkable observation: Due to the similar characteristics between tumors and placentas, the same technique malaria uses to attack and destroy placentas could also be used to destroy cancer tumors.

“The placenta is an organ, which within a few months grows from only few cells into an organ weighing approximately 2 pounds, and it provides the embryo with oxygen and nourishment in a relatively foreign environment,” study author Ali Salanti said in a statement. “In a manner of speaking, tumors do much the same — they grow aggressively in a relatively foreign environment."

The researchers attempted to improve on this natural design by attaching a cancer-killing toxin to the malaria protein. They found that the combination was lethal; in lab tests, it was up to 90 percent effective in destroying various cancer samples. The lethal combination was also tested successfully in mice that were implanted with different types of human cancers. And while it may seem jarring to trade off cancer for malaria, Thomas Mandel Clausen, a PhD student involved with the research, explained that the the malaria protein only attaches to the tumor “without any significant attachment to other tissue.”

It will be at least four years before the treatment will be available for human testing, and researchers are hopeful it’ll be a significant step forward in cancer treatment research. However, since the protein they use attaches to carbohydrates found only in the placenta and cancer tumors, this life-saving characteristic will make the treatment too dangerous for cancer treatment in pregnant women. “Expressed in popular terms, the toxin will believe that the placenta is a tumor and kill it, in exactly the same way it will believe that a tumor is a placenta,” Salanti said.

Wow. That's some seriously good news.

Jimmy Carter Says His Cancer Is Gone



Former president Jimmy Carter measures before making a cut with a miter saw at a Habitat for Humanity building site, Nov. 2, 2015, in Memphis, Tennessee.


PLAINS, GEORGIA—
Four months after announcing he was battling cancer, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter told members of his church in Plains, Georgia, there were no signs of the life-threatening disease.

Speaking by phone to VOA, Maranatha Baptist Church member, and close Carter friend Jill Stuckey, said the former president told a crowd of several hundred that medical tests conducted this week did not show signs of the cancer he was diagnosed with earlier this year.

"My most recent MRI brain scan did not reveal any signs of the original cancer spots nor any new ones," Carter said in a separate announcement issued Sunday by the former president’s Atlanta-based non-profit Carter Center.

“It went crazy after he said what he said,” Stuckey explained. “Everybody started clapping. His famous gorgeous grin came over his face. It was just a very joyous time. The best Christmas present we could ever receive.”

During an August news conference, Carter explained after removing a lesion on part of his liver, doctors also discovered four small cancerous lesions on his brain. Radiation treatment soon followed, as well as a course of drug treatments to help boost his immune system to help fight off the cancer in his body.

In a November statement to the media, the Carter Center announced “recent tests have shown there is no evidence of new malignancy, and his original problem is responding well to treatment.”

“There’s always going to be looking and watching,” Stuckey says. “He's not through seeing the inside of a hospital, but it’s probably going to be tests to keep track of his progress.”

After being diagnosed with cancer, Carter had promised to scale back his busy schedule as head of the Carter Center, but has showed few signs of slowing down.

He has regularly taught Sunday School lessons at his church in his hometown of Plains most weeks since the announcement, and along with his wife, Rosalynn, recently participated in a Habitat for Humanity home building effort in Memphis, Tennessee.

“He hasn‘t slowed down at all,” says Stuckey. “I heard Rosalynn Carter say they only eliminated one or two things. His schedule has been the same since the announcement. They’re never going to slow down as long as they have an ounce of energy.”

Carter, who turned 91 in October, holds the record for the longest post-White House career of any U.S. president.

Jimmy Carter Says His Cancer Is Gone

6 years ago, I got stage 3/4 throat cancer.

Game changer!

Cannot eat. I drink warm soy milk only. My mouth is always parched.
Bill - B3.5m.

Other than that, fine!

Ya reckon?seems your mental health took a hammering via your throat

Brandy, I think you're lying.
Very poor taste.

Members

Why would I lie?
35 radiotherapy sessions
24 hyperbaric treatments
Copious amounts of morphine for pain relief.

Yes, cancer sucks!

It does indeed. I have just returned from a hospital where a mates wife lies dying after a years fight with stomach cancer.

There but for fortune go you or I.

My MIL has it. Unlike me, she has never drank or smoke.
Many were getting radiotherapy.

POLLUTION?

I go in Monday to get a small but dodgy, irregular brown patch on my cheek looked at.

Marijuana.

http://www.cancer.org/treatment/trea...ana-and-cancer

That's very unfortunate, Humbert. 5 is an impressionable age.

My brother in law died last year, from pancreatic cancer. From when the symptoms started till he died was only 8 weeks. They have a 19 year old boy.

Originally Posted by Humbert

Yes, cancer sucks. My wife's 39 yr old sister who lives next door to us had a section of her colon removed yesterday and today we got the grim news. 6 mos to a year to live. Very sad, she has a 5 year old boy who is going to be devastated when he hears this.

Too sad. But that means your wife should make an appointment for a colonoscopy today. If caught early, this is near 100% curable. And it runs in the family.

Originally Posted by Takeovers

Originally Posted by Humbert

Yes, cancer sucks. My wife's 39 yr old sister who lives next door to us had a section of her colon removed yesterday and today we got the grim news. 6 mos to a year to live. Very sad, she has a 5 year old boy who is going to be devastated when he hears this.

Too sad. But that means your wife should make an appointment for a colonoscopy today. If caught early, this is near 100% curable. And it runs in the family.

Absolutely. We discussed it already.

New prostate cancer test that 'smells' the disease in urine could save lives and spare men from invasive procedures



New prostate cancer test that 'smells' the disease in urine and will save lives | Daily Mail Online

Originally Posted by Humbert

Yes, cancer sucks. My wife's 39 yr old sister who lives next door to us had a section of her colon removed yesterday and today we got the grim news. 6 mos to a year to live. Very sad, she has a 5 year old boy who is going to be devastated when he hears this.

Tell her not to give up. I had a bit of mine removed nearly 8 years ago and other than irregularity with having a crap I am fit and feeling good.

Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Broadcast: 06/09/2016
Reporter: Madeleine Morris
Melbourne-developed Venetoclax, that melts away cancer in some stage four patients, has been given fast-track approval in the United States.



A revolutionary Australian drug that melts away cancer in some stage four cancer patients has been given fast track approval for use in the US and Europe.

Venetoclax treats a type of leukaemia and it's one of the new generation of game-changing therapies for cancer treatment.

As Madeleine Morris reports, some of the world's most exciting work in this field is happening in Melbourne.

PROFESSOR JOHN SEYMOUR, PETER MACCULLUM CANCER CENTRE: We will just have a bit of a look.

MADELEINE MORRIS: For a man more comfortable conducting surgery than receiving it, a cancer diagnosis came as a shock to Robert Oblak.

ROBERT OBLAK: Twelve years ago I got diagnosed. That was a big shock at the time, you know, you get the big cancer word.

You have to learn to deal with that.

MADELEINE MORRIS: At the age of 39, Robert Oblak developed chronic lymphocytic leukaemia - a cancer of the blood and bone marrow. A round of chemotherapy got rid of it, then nine years later in 2013 it returned.

This time Robert was put on a trial for a new Australian developed drug called Venetoclax.

ROBERT OBLAK: I think I was the 11th person in the world to have it. It causes really no side effects. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Quite amazing. So even when it's killing cells, you feel great.

MADELEINE MORRIS: Not only did he have no side effects, his leukaemia completely disappeared.

JOHN SEYMOUR: Here are some scans from a patient who is on the trial of Venetoclax and this shows in their abdomen, all of this huge mass here is lymph nodes of their leukaemia and then as early as six weeks on treatment, we see very good shrinkage and then further shrinkage and this patient is still continuing on the drug now more than four years later with no detectible disease.

MADELEINE MORRIS: Professor John Seymour helped oversee the trial of what is being called by some, a miracle drug.

In the trial, nearly four out of five patients had a positive result, with complete remission for one in five.

Many of these patients had exhausted all other treatment options.

JOHN SEYMOUR: It works in a very different way and is able to work even when our conventional treatments have been ineffective.

MADELEINE MORRIS: Venetoclax is an example of a new class of targeted drugs which attack very specific cancer-causing biological factors like cell structure mutations.

JOHN SEYMOUR: Cells, when they're born, are destined to die. And cancer cells, in particular leukaemia cells, delay that death by using a protein called BCL-2 that stops the normal time of death.

Venetoclax works by specifically blocking the action of that BCL-2 and allowing the cells to die in the way they were destined to.

MADELEINE MORRIS: The drug was entirely developed and trialled in Melbourne and is based on research started 30 years ago at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute.

It's being given fast-tracked approval for use in the US and the European Union but it's still not been approved here in Australia.

ROBERT OBLAK: It's the new magic bullet, I think. We want this sort of targeted therapy, so it can knock out the cancer cells, leave everything else alone.

MADELEINE MORRIS: The future of cancer treatment lies not in the blunt instruments of chemotherapy and radiation, but in targeting therapies to hit specific cell and gene abnormalities.

TODD HARPER, CEO, CANCER COUNCIL VICTORIA: We will probably see some of these treatments able to be matched to a particular genetic profile of the individual or the cancer.

MADELEINE MORRIS: Already, this year alone here in Melbourne there have been some major breakthroughs in the genetics of breast cancer and pancreatic cancer which is fast becoming one of the world's biggest killers.

And with this billion dollar cancer hospital and research facility just opened, there are high hopes for much more, especially in the revolutionary field of immunotherapy.

JOHN SEYMOUR: So this is one of the labs where the team is looking at the mechanisms by which the cancer cells evade recognition by the immune system. And looking at the most effective combinations of drugs to allow the immune system to recognise and kill the cancer cells.

MADELEINE MORRIS: Over the last decade, immunotherapy has provided incredible new treatments for cancer. It works by harnessing the body's own immune system to defeat cancer and has been used most effectively so far in melanoma.

GREG LAWSON: So come November 2014, had multiple sites and because of the number of sites and some of the locations, deemed inoperable.

MADELEINE MORRIS: Greg Lawson is testament to the incredible power of this new breed of drugs. When the melanoma he had beaten a decade ago re-emerged with a vengeance, Greg was put on an immunotherapy drug that had not long been approved for the Australian market.

Twelve months later, his melanomas were completely gone and he had suffered virtually no side effects.

GREG LAWSON: It's really amazing. The fact that it's actually given me a position where I have no cancer in my body at the moment, is a great feeling.

MADELEINE MORRIS: But Greg knows only too well that immunotherapy doesn't work for everyone. Tragically, his wife Jill developed melanoma around the same time he did but when she was put on a different immunotherapy drug, her body couldn't tolerate it.

GREG LAWSON: She had two sets of the treatment but was so ill from the side effects that really the decision was made to have taken her from it in August 2014 two years ago. She passed. Yeah.

MADELEINE MORRIS: Greg is grateful he survived.

GREG LAWSON: I am so glad that researchers allowed that drug set to be created and now we have got Australian research companies developing drugs, targeted drugs for immunotherapy, it is just phenomenal.

MADELEINE MORRIS: Now, with breakthroughs for common cancers like melanoma, lung and breast cancer dramatically extending survival rates, the next challenge is to improve the outlook for the rarer cancers.

JOHN SEYMOUR: So cancers like mesothelioma, pancreatic cancer, liver and brain cancer, we are just not seeing the same level of improvement. So it's going to be important for future survival of cancer to make sure that we all have scientific advances in those areas.

Cancer drug 'like taking Panadol' developed in Australia, given fast-track approval in US - 06/09/2016

I wonder if it works for multiple myeloma?