Thread: Cancer sucks

Originally Posted by gonetwork

I sometime wonder why some people get cancer when they are young and others live to old age?

Hence the title of this thread, Cancer Sucks

It has no boundaries

By the way, welcome to TD

Originally Posted by gonetwork

I sometime wonder why some people get cancer when they are young and others live to old age?

Some claim it's in the genes.

Originally Posted by gonetwork

I sometime wonder why some people get cancer when they are young and others live to old age? .

here you go:

cancer - PubMed result

Mrs Muffs mother got diagnosed with cancer today. The old girl's got some kind of tumor behind her ear. Biopsy taken last week and confirmed to be malignant a few hours ago.
We'll have to wait for a scan to see how bad it's spread out. She's 76, probably not looking good. Shitty day.

Energy saving light bulbs "contain cancer causing chemicals"

Fears have been reignited about the safety of energy saving light bulbs after a group of scientists warned that they contain cancer causing chemicals.


Scientists claim that several carcinogenic chemicals are released when energy saving light bulbs are switched on






By Victoria Ward 7:16AM BST 20 Apr 2011 107 Comments


Their report advises that the bulbs should not be left on for extended periods, particularly near someone’s head, as they emit poisonous materials when switched on.

Peter Braun, who carried out the tests at the Berlin's Alab Laboratory, said: “For such carcinogenic substances it is important they are kept as far away as possible from the human environment.”

The bulbs are already widely used in the UK following EU direction to phase out traditional incandescent lighting by the end of this year.

But the German scientists claimed that several carcinogenic chemicals and toxins were released when the environmentally-friendly compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) were switched on, including phenol, naphthalene and styrene.

Andreas Kirchner, of the Federation of German Engineers, said: “Electrical smog develops around these lamps.

“I, therefore, use them only very economically. They should not be used in unventilated areas and definitely not in the proximity of the head.”

British experts insisted that more research was needed and urged consumers not to panic.
Dr Michelle Bloor, senior lecturer in Environmental Science at Portsmouth University, told the Daily Express: “Further independent studies would need to be undertaken to back up the presented German research.”
The Department for the Environment insists the bulbs are safe, despite the fact that they contain small amounts of mercury which would leak out if the glass was broken.
Advice on its website states: “Energy efficient light bulbs are not a danger to the public.
“Although they contain mercury, limited at 5mg per lamp, it cannot escape from a lamp that is intact.
“In any case, the very small amount contained in an energy efficient bulb is unlikely to cause harm even if the lamp should be broken.”
The latest report follows claims by Abraham Haim, a professor of biology at Haifa University in Israel, that the bulbs could result in higher breast cancer rates if used late at night.
He said that the bluer light that CFLs emitted closely mimicked daylight, disrupting the body's production of the hormone melatonin more than older-style filament bulbs, which cast a yellower light.
The Migraine Action Association has warned that they could trigger migraines and skin care specialists have claimed that their intense light could exacerbate a range of existing skin problems.
Energy saving light bulbs "contain cancer causing chemicals" - Telegraph

Originally Posted by Bangyai

Their report advises that the bulbs should not be left on for extended periods, particularly near someone’s head, as they emit poisonous materials when switched on.

Scary.

Yes electric appliances emit those materials in minute traces when new. I see the risk people have when sleeping 8 hours every night with an energy saving lamp switched on less than 30cm away from their head and exchanging them every week.

I am just 10 mths out from being operated on for throat cancer,so far so good,it hasnt left me looking like the handsome guy i was before the op,but i have come out of it hell of a lot better than what a lot of mouth cancer patients end up like.

If you see some of the worse case people who have had their nose,lips,teeth,half thier eye sockets,and parts of their jaw removed, you would be absolutely terrified of going for the operation.

I shared a daily ambulance trip to the radiotherapy treatment with a very brave young woman who had had all of the above done to her,there is no way i would want to live like that at all, i would have killed myself.

I am not in the clear yet, but count myself lucky so far.

How did i find out?? - i had a persistent itch under my tongue, doc thought it was an ulcer, after 6mths, he sent me to a specialist for a biopsy.

I would have to say it was a result of smoking for 40 odd years,well the operation cured that habit stone dead, but i still have 3 -4 beers a day habit, that i will try to kick as well.

My thia wife has got mouth ulcers, and realy believed i had given her cancer, it made my life hell for 3 odd months untill she finaly saw a specialist who told her they were ulcers,and to stop worrying, now you know what, the ulcers have gone.

^ thats it for me, im packing up, cheers colin

day 1

just got that allen carrs book from the library to help me along, only lasted half a day

Prostate cancer drug which extends life of men to go on sale in a year

A pill for men with prostate cancer who have 'run out of options' gives them four months' extra life, say new trial results.

They show men given abiraterone acetate and a steroid survived for nearly 15 months, while men given steroid treatment and a 'dummy' pill lived for 11 months on average.

The drug also eased the pain for twice as many men, according to a report yesterday in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The drug, known by its brand name of Zytiga, was discovered by British scientists at the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR).

It can be used in up to 80 per cent of patients with aggressive drug-resistant prostate cancer who have been treated with a range of antihormonal therapies and chemotherapies.

The aim is to make prostate cancer a chronic disease by combining new and older agents together for longer survival.

Professor Johann de Bono from the ICR and The Royal Marsden, chief trial investigator and lead author, said 'Men with advanced prostate cancer have very few therapies available to them and sadly around 10,000 patients in the UK die each year from this disease.

'We are thrilled that a drug discovered at The Institute of Cancer Research has been proven to significantly extend life for many men, giving doctors a valuable new treatment option.'


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1391018/Prostate-cancer-drug-gives-men-months-extra-life.html#ixzz1NVGeTQOj

Originally Posted by S Landreth

A pill for men with prostate cancer who have 'run out of options' gives them four months' extra life, say new trial results.

'We are thrilled that a drug discovered at The Institute of Cancer Research has been proven to significantly extend life for many men, giving doctors a valuable new treatment option.'

Four months - how much is a month worth when you know you will die. Interesting question.

Many of these new drugs are fantastically expensive (throusands or even tens of thousands of US dollars per month) - not sure it is "worth it", but there again I am not in that situation.

Originally Posted by nidhogg

Four months - how much is a month worth when you know you will die. Interesting question.

Or a family member

Originally Posted by sabaii sabaii

Originally Posted by nidhogg

Four months - how much is a month worth when you know you will die. Interesting question.

Or a family member

Fair point. Fuck it for me, but for a kid say (not for this particular cancer obviously)....

Hello all. I am survivor of 3 major cancers, having lost 14 inches of colon, followed by my gall bladder, then my right kidney. I also did 6 months of chemo for Hep C, which almost killed me.

--------------------------------------------
CAR AIR-CONDITIONING - VERY IMPORTANT!My car book says to roll down the windows to let out all the hot air before turning on A/C.[at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at]
WHY?[at] Car Air-conditioning - No wonder more folks are dying from cancer than ever before.[at] We wonder where this stuff comes from but here is an example that explains a lot of the cancer causing incidents.[at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at]
Many people are in their cars first thing in the morning and the last thing at night, 7 days a week. As I read this, it makes me feel guilty and ill.

Please pass this on to as many people as possible.

Guess it's not too late to make some changes

[at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at]
Car A/C (Air Conditioning) MUST READ!!!

Please do NOT turn on A/C as soon as you enter the car.[at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at]

Open the windows after you enter your car and then turn ON the AC after a couple of minutes.
[at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at]

Here's why:[at][at] According to research, the car dashboard, seats and air freshener emit Benzene, a Cancer causing toxin (carcinogen - take time to observe the smell of heated plastic in your car).

[at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at]
In addition to causing cancer, Benzene poisons your bones, causes anemia and reduces white blood cells.. Prolonged exposure will cause Leukemia, increasing the risk of cancer. Can also cause miscarriage.[at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at]

Acceptable Benzene level indoors is 50 mg per sq. ft. A car parked indoors with windows closed will contain 400-800 mg of Benzene.
If parked outdoors under the sun at a temperature above 60 degrees F, the Benzene level goes up to 2000-4000 mg, 40 times the acceptable level. People who get into the car, keeping windows closed will inevitably inhale, in quick succession, excessive amounts of the toxin. Benzene is a toxin that affects your kidney and liver.. What's worse, it is extremely difficult for your body to expel this toxic stuff.[at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at]
So friends, please open the windows and door of your car - give time for interior to air out -dispel the deadly stuff - before you enter.[at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at]
Thought: 'When someone shares something of value with you and you benefit from it, you have a moral obligation to share it with others.''[at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at][at]
[at]This is what[at] snopes.com[at] says.[at] It is not the air conditioning in the car but the Benzene producing agents that cause cancer. snopes.com: Benzene in Automobiles

-----------------------------------------

I hope this can help others.

I was in the military stationed in Ubon during the U.S./Vietnam war. Research by myself has uncovered the likelihood of Agent Orange exposure. In addition, I enthusiastically lived with and ate the foods of the Issan people. The Thai medical folk have recently uncovered the knowledge that the little freshwater crabs they pound up with chilies and fermented fish are carriers of Hep C (if not cooked) and the fermented fish is linked to bile duct cancer. These ingredients MUST be cooked. I still hope to get back to Ubon.

Originally Posted by sunsetter

just got that allen carrs book from the library to help me along, only lasted half a day

I quit using that book. Prior to that I'd tried all the patches, gums, even hypnotherapy.. Never worked.

Been quit 6 years now, and enjoy not smoking thanks to Carr's book. Not many books can change your life, but this one will.

Originally Posted by Humbert

Colon cancer is one the most treatable cancers if caught early. Please get a colonoscopy every 5 years. I have a very good friend who was diagnosed with colon cancer this past Spring. They caught it with a colonoscopy. He needed to have part of his bowel removed but thanks to supurb treatment at Bumrungrad he is alive and well today with no residual cancer.

My mother had polyps in her colon in her early 50s. From that point, she had colonoscopies every 6 months. She was diagnosed with colon cancer at 61. They removed part of her bowel, did radio and chemo, and she died at age 64.

Every case is different. Sometimes, nothing works.

What's with all the (at)(at)(at) in Notnow's post? Is he using vulgar language throghout?

Notnow, sorry to hear about your experience and I hope that you're on the road to better health. I'm not surprised about the a/c and benzene. I live in Dubai and most people her do exactly that. They get into their cars, keep the windows closed at all times, blast the a/c, never get any fresh air or sun.

Even at gas stations, people keep their cars running. I'm in the minority of people who drive with the windows open for some of the time, until it becomes too unbearable and I make sure to get some sun exposure every day.

I have a high tolerance for heat and and prefer living in a hot climate far more than one where it's -20 or colder for several months.

Originally Posted by Notnow

Acceptable Benzene level indoors is 50 mg per sq. ft.

Love this kind of nonsense. It may be a simple typo but to me it indicates the quality of the whole thing. Content per sq. ft. it should be a volume e.g. cubic ft.

Good for a laugh or for crying if you are so inclined but not to be taken serious.

Edit: just checked benzene and found it is what I know as benzol. There are now very low limits for it in the gasoline, not anything to worry about now. Maybe 20 years ago.

Conclusion, typical alarmist crap.

I pasted the Car airconditioning part in from an email. There were no lines and [at] visible. I want to edit that stuff out, but I need someone to tell me how, I have not been able to edit it. I am sorry that I did not preview it, the information is important to those of you in the tropical environments, much more than to me in Alaska.

Originally Posted by Takeovers

Originally Posted by Notnow

Acceptable Benzene level indoors is 50 mg per sq. ft.

Love this kind of nonsense. It may be a simple typo but to me it indicates the quality of the whole thing. Content per sq. ft. it should be a volume e.g. cubic ft.

Good for a laugh or for crying if you are so inclined but not to be taken serious.

Edit: just checked benzene and found it is what I know as benzol. There are now very low limits for it in the gasoline, not anything to worry about now. Maybe 20 years ago.

Conclusion, typical alarmist crap.

I agree that the sq ft is wrong. However, they are talking about the heated plastic and some other stuff giving off the benzene, not the gas.

Hormone-blocking drug reduces breast cancer risk

CHICAGO -- Millions of women at higher-than-usual risk of breast cancer have a new option for preventing the disease. Pfizer Inc.'s Aromasin cut the risk of developing breast cancer by more than half, without the side effects that have curbed enthusiasm for other prevention drugs, a major study found.

It was the first test in healthy women of newer hormone-blocking pills called aromatase inhibitors, sold as Arimidex, Femara and Aromasin, and in generic form. They're used now to prevent recurrences in breast cancer patients who are past menopause, and doctors have long suspected they may help prevent initial cases, too.

Prevention drugs aren't advised for women at average risk of breast cancer. Those at higher risk because of gene mutations or other reasons already have two choices for prevention - tamoxifen and raloxifene. But these drugs are unpopular because they carry small risks of uterine cancer, blood clots and other problems.

"Here's a third breast cancer prevention drug that may in fact be safer," said Dr. Allen Lichter, chief executive of the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

The study was discussed Saturday at the society's annual meeting in Chicago, along with another one that could change care for thousands of women each year with breast cancer that has spread to lymph nodes. It found that giving radiation to the armpit - not just the breast - after surgery significantly lowered the chances the cancer would come back.

The prevention study involved 4,560 women from the U.S., Canada, Spain and France. They had at least one risk factor - being 60 or older, a prior breast abnormality or pre-invasive cancer, or a high score on a scale that takes into account family history and other things.

They were given daily doses of exemestane, sold as Aromasin, or dummy pills. After about three years, there were 11 cases of invasive breast cancer among those on the drug versus 32 among the others. That worked out to a 65 percent reduction in risk for those on the drug - enough of a benefit that independent monitors decided all participants should be offered it.

Serious side effects, such as broken bones, high cholesterol and heart problems, were similar in both groups. Slightly more women on the drug reported hot flashes, fatigue, sweating, insomnia and joint pain, but quality-of-life scores were similar.

Earlier studies of aromatase inhibitors found they can cause bone loss, vaginal dryness, problems having sex, joint pain and muscle aches, so it will take longer study to see if these occur, Lichter said.

The study's leader, Dr. Paul Goss of Massachusetts General Hospital, figured that 26 women would need to take exemestane for five years to prevent a single case of breast cancer. Even though this study did not compare the drug to tamoxifen, previous studies suggested 96 women would need to take it for five years for each breast cancer prevented.

"This is a new option for prevention of invasive breast cancer for a wide pool of women," without the serious side effects of tamoxifen or raloxifene, Goss said.

Still, it could be a tough sell. These women have only about a 2 percent to 3 percent risk, individually, of being diagnosed with breast cancer in the next five years. A prevention pill that cuts that chance by 65 percent means they'll have about a 1 percent risk, said Dr. Eric Winer, breast cancer chief at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston.

"Many women are not willing to take a daily medicine" for such a small risk, he said.

Brand-name aromatase inhibitors cost $340 to $420 a month, although some are available as generics. Aromasin's U.S. patent expired in April and will expire in Europe and Japan in July.

Results of the study were published online by the New England Journal of Medicine. The Canadian Cancer Society, Pfizer and the Avon Foundation helped pay for the study. Goss and some other researchers have been paid speakers for Pfizer and other cancer drug makers.

A second study at the conference focused on treating breast cancer that has spread to the lymph nodes. Standard treatment is surgery followed by chemotherapy or hormone therapy and several weeks of radiation to the breast. Women with large tumors or many cancerous nodes also get radiation to the armpit and lower neck, but doctors don't know if this helps women with smaller tumors or only one to three cancerous nodes - a common situation.

Dr. Timothy Whelan of McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, led a study of 1,832 such women. All received standard treatment with radiation to the breast, and half also had radiation in the armpit and lower neck area.

After about five years, 90 percent of those given wider radiation were cancer-free versus 84 percent of the others, and there was a trend toward better survival with more radiation.

Lung inflammation and lymphedema - painful arm swelling caused by poor drainage - were more common with wider radiation, but doctors said these side effects were worth the benefit of fewer cancer recurrences.

The results are "potentially practice-changing" and will encourage doctors to offer wider radiation, Whelan said.

The National Cancer Institute and Canadian Cancer Society paid for the study.

Worldwide, about 1.3 million women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year and nearly 500,000 women die of the disease. Last year in the United States, there were about 207,000 new cases and 40,000 deaths from breast cancer.


Link: http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/06/04/2250934_p2/study-pfizer-drug-lowers-risk.html#ixzz1OQ2Dz7N2

New melanoma treatment breakthrough boost survival: studies

CHICAGO — Two new treatments, including therapy blocking a gene mutation occurring in half of melanoma patients, are prolonging lives of people suffering from the deadliest form of skin cancer, clinical trials unveiled Sunday show.

Vemurafenib neutralizes mutation of the key BRAF gene by inhibiting production of a protein which plays a major role in development of melanoma.

Users of the experimental drug were 63 percent less likely to die than people taking chemotherapy, a study showed.

The other treatment prolonging lives of those with advanced melanoma involves the anti-body ipilumumab, sold under the trade name Yervoy, which stimulates the immune system.

"The studies presented today highlight tremendous advances in the treatment of metastatic melanoma," Lynn Schuchter, a professor of oncology at the University of Pennsylvania, told the 47th annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), the world's largest oncology conference.

"Until recently we've had limited options for our patients, and little hope for long-term survival. In the past two years, we've seen remarkable progress with immunotherapy, and now, a promising targeted therapy," she said.

Results from a phase-three international clinical trial, show that Swiss laboratory Roche's orally administered vemurafenib -- also known as PLX4032 -- is the first drug to improve overall survival in patients with advanced melanoma compared to chemotherapy, the standard procedure in use since 1975.

"This is really a huge step toward personalized care in melanoma," lead author Paul Chapman, a physician at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, said in a statement about the findings unveiled at the conference here.

"This is the first successful melanoma treatment tailored to patients who carry a specific gene mutation in their tumor, and could eventually become one of only two drugs available that improves overall survival in advanced cancers."

The trial involved 675 patients suffering from previously untreated, inoperable late stage metastatic melanoma and with a V600E mutation in the BRAF gene. Half were treated with vemurafenib and half with conventional chemotherapy.

After three months, patients receiving vemurafenib had a 63-percent reduction in risk of death compared to those receiving chemotherapy, and a 74-percent reduction in the risk of disease progression compared to chemotherapy, according to the study.

Also, less than 10 percent of participants treated with vemurafenib had side effects, the most common being skin irritation and joint pain.

Vemurafenib is not yet approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), a required step before the drug goes on the US market.

A phase three clinical trial unveiled last year at ASCO for Yervoy, made by pharmaceutical giant Bristol-Myers Squibb, was also highlighted Sunday.

The trial of Yervoy, approved by the FDA in March, showed that the drug taken in combination with chemotherapy significantly prolongs the life of people with advanced melanoma compared with chemotherapy alone.

Survival rate at three years was 20.8 percent for patients with Yervoy plus chemotherapy, against 12.2 percent without Yervoy.

The next step, researchers said, is to test a combination of antibodies with Yervoy and vemurafenib among patients with advanced melanoma, and a clinical trial has already begun.

According to the World Health Organization, skin cancer leads to 66,000 deaths annually worldwide, 80 percent of which involve melanomas.

More than half the patients are under age 59.

Put sunscreen on the kids!: http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/06/06/new-melanoma-treatment-breakthrough-boost-survival-studies/

Cervical cancer vaccine a success, says Lancet report

The first evidence has emerged that nationwide vaccination programmes for young women against HPV, the virus that triggers cervical cancer, are likely to cut the numbers who get the disease.

A study in Australia, one of the first countries to introduce the vaccination, has shown a drop in high-grade cervical abnormalities – changes to the cells in the neck of the womb that can be the precursor tocancer.

Australia introduced nationwide HPV (human papilloma virus) vaccination for women aged 12 to 26 from 2007.

While it will take many years to find out whether vaccination programmes definitely reduce the numbers of cervical cancers in the population, Australian scientists were able to analyse the results from their screening programme to find out whether there has been any drop in the number of young women with abnormal cell changes that are the precursor of cancer.

Publishing in the Lancet medical journal, they report that the proportion of girls aged 17 and younger with high-grade abnormalities fell by almost half, from 0.80% to 0.42%.

But there was no drop in the numbers of women with cervical abnormalities who were older than 17. This is unsurprising since the vaccine is known to be most effective if given to girls before they become sexually active.

That finding, say the authors, "reinforces the appropriateness of the targeting of prophylactic HPV vaccines to pre-adolescent girls".

The findings were greeted with international interest.

"The not-so-cautious optimist in us wants to hail this early finding as true evidence of vaccine effect," write Dr Mona Saraiya and Dr Susan Hariri of the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, US, in a linked commentary for the journal.

But they said they wanted to know more about the vaccine status of the individuals (each woman is supposed to have three shots) and wanted more work to establish whether the reductions in potential cancers were really a result of vaccination or some other cause.

Michael Quinn, professor of gynaecology and gynaecologic oncology at the University of Melbourne, said: "The study is the first anywhere in the world to show falling rates of high-grade change in very young women.

"Although this is likely to be due to the effects of the vaccination programme, further analysis of information linking women's smear history to their vaccination history will be needed to prove that the fall is entirely due to vaccination rather than other factors."

Public health experts say that women should not assume they are not vulnerable to the disease after vaccination and should still go for regular screening checks.

The UK introduced its own cervical cancer vaccination programme in September 2008, offering the jab in school to 12- and 13-year-old girls, with catch-up programmes for those up to 18.

The cost was expected to be £100m a year. Of the two available vaccines, the UK decided to buy Cervarix, manufactured by the British company GlaxoSmithKline, even though it does not offer the additional protection against genital warts of the alternative, Gardasil.

In spite of worries that parents would refuse to have their daughters vaccinated against what is essentially a sexually-transmitted virus, the take-up has been good, according to figures from the Department of Health.

In the school year 2009/10, more than three-quarters of 12- to 13-year-olds were given all three doses of the vaccine.

Link: Cervical cancer vaccine a success, says Lancet report | Society | The Guardian

My aunt 78 has had coughing spells of several months at a time over the last 20 years and stomach pain on and off for the last 5 years.
Doc finally sent her for endoscopy which revealed diverticulitis and some sort of bowel blockage.
A follow up full body scan then showed a shadow on the lung, with comment malignant?. Non smoker or drinker.
Doc says can operate on bowel to remove blockage, but may be malignant if lung shadow is.
They dont give a shit, this should havebeen sorted years ago.
Waiting for biopsy results