This autumn, HIV and sexual health charity Terrence Higgins Trust (THT) will launch a new evening class to teach gay and bisexual men how they can enjoy the best - and safest - anal sex. 'Mind Your Backs, Guys' is a free, confidential, three-hour session at a central London location. The first session will run on Wednesday 22 September from 6.00pm - 9.00pm.
As well as looking at the biology of anal sex and how men can get pleasure from it, the session will also look at potential health risks, how men can stop HIV getting into the body, and how to achieve better orgasms.
Gordon Mundie, Groupwork Co-ordinator at THT, said: "As sex education in schools is still very much geared around procreation, with little attention paid to sex as recreation, we know many gay men leave the education system with big gaps in their knowledge. Our new course has been designed to increase guys' confidence about anal sex, which should help them make good, informed decisions about the type of sex they have."
"Guys don't often get the chance to talk openly and frankly about the sex that they are having or would like to have. This group offers that opportunity, and a safe space to ask questions"
The session will be repeated on Wednesday 20th October, and again on Wednesday 16th February.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Alcohol Consumption After Breast Cancer Diagnosis May Increase Recurrence Risk
In the Life After Cancer Epidemiology (LACE) study, 1,897 participants diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer between 1997 and 2000 and recruited on average 2 years post-breast cancer diagnosis were evaluated for the association between alcohol intake and breast cancer recurrence and death. The women, who were generally light drinkers, were followed for an average of 7.4 years. The study reported an increase in risk of breast cancer recurrence and breast cancer death, but no effect on total mortality, to be associated with consumption of 3 to 4 or more drinks per week when compared with women not drinking following their cancer diagnosis.
Previous research has been mixed on this topic. Almost all large studies have shown no increase in all-cause mortality for women who drink moderately following a diagnosis of breast cancer (as does this study). As for recurrence of breast cancer, most have shown no increase in risk, although one previous study of women with estrogen-receptor
Previous research has been mixed on this topic. Almost all large studies have shown no increase in all-cause mortality for women who drink moderately following a diagnosis of breast cancer (as does this study). As for recurrence of breast cancer, most have shown no increase in risk, although one previous study of women with estrogen-receptor
Immutep Announces Final Results In Phase I/II Chemoimmunotherapy Trial In Metastatic Breast Cancer
Immutep S.A. announced the publication of a clinical research paper showing that its lead product, IMP321, given with first-line paclitaxel achieved clinical benefit in 90 per cent of metastatic breast carcinoma (MBC) patients. Correlations were observed with both the patients' monocyte (i.e. the primary target cell for IMP321) count before treatment and the degree of activation of monocytes during treatment.
The study was an open-label fixed-dose-escalation trial carried out in three cancer centers in the Paris region. The lead center was the René Huguenin Cancer Centre in Saint Cloud. The other centers were Tenon Hospital and the Georges Pompidou European Hospital in Paris. The immuno-monitoring was done by Immutep at its laboratories near Paris.
MBC patients were administered one dose of IMP321 s.c. every two weeks for a total of 24 weeks (12 injections). The repeated single doses were administered the day after chemotherapy at day 2 and day 16 of the 28-day cycles of paclitaxel (6 cycles). Blood samples were taken 13 days after the sixth and the twelfth IMP321 injections to determine sustained APC, NK and memory CD8 T cell responses. Thirty patients received IMP321 in three cohorts (doses: 0.25, 1.25 and 6.25 mg).
IMP321 induced both a sustained increase in the number and activation of APC (monocytes and dendritic cells) and an increase in the percentage of NK and long-lived cytotoxic effector-memory CD8 T cells. Clinical benefit was observed for 90 per cent of patients with only 3 progressors at 6 months. Also, the objective tumor response rate of 50 per cent compared favorably to the 25 per cent rate reported in the historical control group.
IMP321 is a recombinant soluble LAG-3Ig fusion protein that binds to MHC class II with high avidity and mediates APC and then antigen-experienced memory CD8
The study was an open-label fixed-dose-escalation trial carried out in three cancer centers in the Paris region. The lead center was the René Huguenin Cancer Centre in Saint Cloud. The other centers were Tenon Hospital and the Georges Pompidou European Hospital in Paris. The immuno-monitoring was done by Immutep at its laboratories near Paris.
MBC patients were administered one dose of IMP321 s.c. every two weeks for a total of 24 weeks (12 injections). The repeated single doses were administered the day after chemotherapy at day 2 and day 16 of the 28-day cycles of paclitaxel (6 cycles). Blood samples were taken 13 days after the sixth and the twelfth IMP321 injections to determine sustained APC, NK and memory CD8 T cell responses. Thirty patients received IMP321 in three cohorts (doses: 0.25, 1.25 and 6.25 mg).
IMP321 induced both a sustained increase in the number and activation of APC (monocytes and dendritic cells) and an increase in the percentage of NK and long-lived cytotoxic effector-memory CD8 T cells. Clinical benefit was observed for 90 per cent of patients with only 3 progressors at 6 months. Also, the objective tumor response rate of 50 per cent compared favorably to the 25 per cent rate reported in the historical control group.
IMP321 is a recombinant soluble LAG-3Ig fusion protein that binds to MHC class II with high avidity and mediates APC and then antigen-experienced memory CD8
Monday, September 20, 2010
Breast Cancer Signal May Be 'Turned Off' By Watercress
New scientific research from the University of Southampton has revealed that a plant compound in watercress may have the ability to suppress breast cancer cell development by 'turning off' a signal in the body and thereby starving the growing tumour of essential blood and oxygen.
The research, unveiled at a press conference, shows that the watercress compound is able to interfere with the function of a protein which plays a critical role in cancer development.
As tumours develop they rapidly outgrow their existing blood supply so they send out signals which make surrounding normal tissues grow new blood vessels into the tumour which feed them oxygen and nutrients.
The research, led by Professor Graham Packham of the University of Southampton, shows that the plant compound (called phenylethyl isothiocyanate) found in watercress can block this process, by interfering with and 'turning off' in the function of a protein called Hypoxia Inducible Factor (HIF).
Professor Packham, a molecular oncologist at the University of Southampton, comments: "The research takes an important step towards understanding the potential health benefits of this crop since it shows that eating watercress may interfere with a pathway that has already been tightly linked to cancer development.
"Knowing the risk factors for cancer is a key goal and studies on diet are an important part of this. However, relatively little work is being performed in the UK on the links between the foods we eat and cancer development."
Working with Barbara Parry, Senior Research Dietician at the Winchester and Andover Breast Unit, Professor Packham performed a pilot study in which a small group of breast cancer survivors, underwent a period of fasting before eating 80g of watercress (a cereal bowl full) and then providing a series of blood samples over the next 24 hours.
The research team was able to detect significant levels of the plant compound PEITC in the blood of the participants following the watercress meal, and most importantly, could show that the function of the protein HIF was also measurably affected in the blood cells of the women.
The two studies, which have been published in the British Journal of Nutrition and Biochemical Pharmacology, provide new insight into the potential anti-cancer effects of watercress, although more work still needs to be done to determine the direct impact watercress has on decreasing cancer risk.
Watercress Alliance member Dr Steve Rothwell says: "We are very excited by the outcome of Professor Packham's work, which builds on the body of research which supports the idea that watercress may have an important role to play in limiting cancer development."
A summary of the research has been accepted for inclusion in the Breast Cancer Research Conference which is taking place in Nottingham from 15 to 17 September.
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in the western world and currently affects approximately 1 in 9 women during their lifetime.
Notes:
The study published in the British Journal of Nutrition was called 'In vivo modulation of 4E binding protein 1 (4E-BP1) phosphorylation by watercress: a pilot study.' Researchers were Syed Alwi SS, Cavell BE, Telang U, Morris ME, Parry BM, Packham G.
The second study, 'Inhibition of hypoxia inducible factor by phenethyl isothiocyanate' was published in Biochemical Pharmacology. Researchers were Wang X-h, Cavell BE, Alwi SSS, Packham G.
The research, unveiled at a press conference, shows that the watercress compound is able to interfere with the function of a protein which plays a critical role in cancer development.
As tumours develop they rapidly outgrow their existing blood supply so they send out signals which make surrounding normal tissues grow new blood vessels into the tumour which feed them oxygen and nutrients.
The research, led by Professor Graham Packham of the University of Southampton, shows that the plant compound (called phenylethyl isothiocyanate) found in watercress can block this process, by interfering with and 'turning off' in the function of a protein called Hypoxia Inducible Factor (HIF).
Professor Packham, a molecular oncologist at the University of Southampton, comments: "The research takes an important step towards understanding the potential health benefits of this crop since it shows that eating watercress may interfere with a pathway that has already been tightly linked to cancer development.
"Knowing the risk factors for cancer is a key goal and studies on diet are an important part of this. However, relatively little work is being performed in the UK on the links between the foods we eat and cancer development."
Working with Barbara Parry, Senior Research Dietician at the Winchester and Andover Breast Unit, Professor Packham performed a pilot study in which a small group of breast cancer survivors, underwent a period of fasting before eating 80g of watercress (a cereal bowl full) and then providing a series of blood samples over the next 24 hours.
The research team was able to detect significant levels of the plant compound PEITC in the blood of the participants following the watercress meal, and most importantly, could show that the function of the protein HIF was also measurably affected in the blood cells of the women.
The two studies, which have been published in the British Journal of Nutrition and Biochemical Pharmacology, provide new insight into the potential anti-cancer effects of watercress, although more work still needs to be done to determine the direct impact watercress has on decreasing cancer risk.
Watercress Alliance member Dr Steve Rothwell says: "We are very excited by the outcome of Professor Packham's work, which builds on the body of research which supports the idea that watercress may have an important role to play in limiting cancer development."
A summary of the research has been accepted for inclusion in the Breast Cancer Research Conference which is taking place in Nottingham from 15 to 17 September.
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in the western world and currently affects approximately 1 in 9 women during their lifetime.
Notes:
The study published in the British Journal of Nutrition was called 'In vivo modulation of 4E binding protein 1 (4E-BP1) phosphorylation by watercress: a pilot study.' Researchers were Syed Alwi SS, Cavell BE, Telang U, Morris ME, Parry BM, Packham G.
The second study, 'Inhibition of hypoxia inducible factor by phenethyl isothiocyanate' was published in Biochemical Pharmacology. Researchers were Wang X-h, Cavell BE, Alwi SSS, Packham G.
Urgent Steps Needed To Tackle Inadequate Support For Women With Secondary Breast Cancer
57% of breast care nurses who took part in a UK survey for the charity Breast Cancer Care feel that there is inadequate provision for women with secondary breast cancer, a progressive incurable disease that kills half a million women worldwide every year after the cancer spreads to other organs. Many said that they felt ill equipped to care for women with secondary breast cancer and that their time was dominated by meeting the needs of women with primary breast cancer. Only 14% said their organisation had a secondary breast cancer nurse specialist and only 13% of the nurses providing specialist care worked full-time.
The support provided for women with secondary breast cancer is inadequate and urgent steps are needed to provide better services for patients with this progressive incurable disease, which kills half a million women worldwide every year. Those are the key recommendations to emerge from a trio of papers in the September issue of the European Journal of Cancer Care.
Fifty-seven per cent of breast care nurses who took part in a UK survey for Breast Cancer Care told researchers that they felt there was inadequate provision for women whose cancer has spread to other organs, most commonly the bones, lungs, liver and brain. Many also said that they felt ill equipped to care for them.
Forty per cent of the 276 nurses who responded said that they saw caring for women with secondary breast cancer as part of their role, but the majority said that their time was dominated by meeting the needs of patients with primary breast cancer.
Fourteen per cent said that their organisation had a secondary breast care nurse specialist in post and 19 per cent said there was a nurse responsible for secondary breast cancer care. However, eight per cent said that their organisation had no nurses providing care for women with secondary breast cancer and less than 13 per cent of the nurses providing specialist care worked full-time.
A strong theme to emerge from the survey was the fact that breast care nurses felt that their time was dominated by meeting the needs of patients with primary breast cancer.
Many stated that they would like to offer a better support to women with secondary breast cancer, but felt they lacked knowledge and experience of the physical and emotional effects of this progressive disease and didn't have the staff numbers or time available to provide an effective service.
"It is clear that nursing support for UK women with secondary breast cancer is currently inadequate, although many health professionals are aware of the problem and are beginning to address it" says lead author Elizabeth Reed, a nurse and Research Officer for the charity.
"Breast Cancer Care wants to see well structured, co-ordinated services, dedicated resources and better training and support for those nurses who are already providing this specialist care and those looking to develop services for women with secondary breast cancer.
"Any patient with secondary breast cancer should have the assurance that they can access a specialist nurse who is equipped to give them the support they need."
The paper, which is being published ahead of the UK's first ever secondary breast cancer awareness day, held by Breast Cancer Care on October 13, is accompanied by an international literature review and editorial.
Uncertainty, lack of control and poor emotional functioning are some of the main issues facing women with secondary breast cancer, according to the literature review, which was carried out by a Clinical Nurse Specialist in Secondary Breast Cancer. It indicates that living with secondary breast cancer is a complex experience that is influenced by a large number of factors. However many of these factors are under-researched, compared to those affecting women diagnosed with primary breast cancer, and women with secondary breast cancer need a great deal more support than they currently receive.
The editorial, by a Professor of Breast Cancer Medicine, states that the true impact of coping with an incurable condition and uncertain future is something that often goes unrecognised by healthcare professionals. It stresses that training specialist nurses for patients diagnosed with secondary breast cancer must be an urgent priority. This will enable these women to receive the same level of support as women with primary breast cancer and benefit from a longer and better quality of life.
Moores UCSD Cancer Center Designated An ACR Breast Imaging Center Of Excellence
Moores UCSD Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego has been designated a Breast Imaging Center of Excellence by the American College of Radiology (ACR).
"We are committed to providing care above the standard and this prestigious certificate recognizes our extraordinary effort," said Haydee Ojeda-Fournier, MD, assistant professor of clinical radiology at Moores UCSD Cancer Center. "ACR leads the way toward the latest developments in science and patient care. To be a member of this elite group of Breast Imaging Centers of Excellence is quite an honor."
By awarding facilities the status of a Breast Imaging Center of Excellence, the ACR recognizes breast imaging centers that have earned accreditation in all of the College's voluntary breast-imaging accreditation programs and modules, in addition to the mandatory Mammography Accreditation Program.
UCSD breast imaging services are fully accredited in mammography, stereotactic breast biopsy, breast ultrasound and ultrasound-guided breast biopsy. Peer-review evaluations, conducted in each breast imaging modality by board-certified physicians and medical physicists who are experts in the field, determined that Moores UCSD Cancer Center has achieved high practice standards in image quality, personnel qualifications, facility equipment, quality control procedures, and quality assurance programs.
"Fewer than six percent of the imaging centers in California received this designation," said Anne Wallace, MD, professor of clinical surgery and director of the UCSD Breast Care Team. "Being recognized by ACR as a breast imaging center of excellence confirms what I experience every day as the surgeon leading the breast team at Moores UCSD Cancer Center. Our colleagues in breast imaging are not only kind, caring and efficient, but their amazing ability to catch and re-diagnose findings makes UCSD's breast imaging team world-class."
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Stress Significantly Acclerates Breast Cancer Metastasis In Mice, UCLA Cancer Researchers Show For The First Time
Chronic stress acts as a sort of fertilizer that feeds breast cancer progression, significantly accelerating the spread of disease in animal models, researchers at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center have found.
Researchers discovered that stress is biologically reprogramming the immune cells that are trying to fight the cancer, transforming them instead from soldiers protecting the body against disease into aiders and abettors. The study found a 30-fold increase in cancer spread throughout the bodies of stressed mice compared to those that were not stressed.
It's long been thought that stress fuels cancer growth in humans. This study provides a model that not only demonstrates that stress can speed up cancer progression, but also details the pathway used to change the biology of immune cells that inadvertently promote the spread of cancer to distant organs, where it is much harder to treat.
The study appears in the Sept. 15, 2010 issue of the peer-reviewed journal Cancer Research.
"What we showed for the first time is that chronic stress causes cancer cells to escape from the primary tumor and colonize distant organs," said Erica Sloan, a Jonsson Cancer Center scientist, first author of the study and a researcher with the Cousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology. "We not only showed that this happens, but we showed how stress talks to the tumor and helps it to spread."
In addition to documenting the effects of stress on cancer metastasis, the researchers were also able to block those effects by treating stressed animals with drugs that block the nervous system's reprogramming of the metastasis-promoting immune cells, called macrophages.
Beta blockers, used in this study to shut down the stress pathways in the mice, are currently being examined in several large breast cancer databases for their role in potential prevention of recurrence and cancer spread, said Dr. Patricia Ganz, director of cancer prevention and control research at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center. If preliminary findings indicate benefit, early phase clinical trials are being considered at the Jonsson Cancer Center testing beta blockers as a means of preventing breast cancer recurrence. Other healthy lifestyle behaviors may also influence the biological pathways described in the study, such as exercise and stress reduction techniques.
"We're going to be focusing on younger women, because they may have a multitude of things weighing on them when they're diagnosed with breast cancer. Younger women have more significant life demands and typically are under more stress," Ganz said.
Ganz said her proposed research will focus on "host factors," or things affecting the patient, that may be aiding the cancer progression and could help explain why a group of patients with the same type and stage of disease have varying rates of recurrence and cancer spread.
"This study provides evidence for a biological relationship between stress and cancer progression and identifies targets for intervention in the host environment," Ganz said. "Because of this study, we may be able to say to a patient in the future that if you follow this exercise regimen, meditative practice or take this pill every day it will help prevent recurrence of your cancer. We can now test these potential interventions in the animal model and move those that are effective into the clinic."
In Sloan's study, mice with breast cancer were divided into two groups. One group of mice was confined in a small area for a short period of time every day for two weeks, while the other group was not. The breast cancer cells were genetically engineered to include the luciferase gene, which is the molecule that makes a firefly glow. The growth and spread of the cancer in the mice was monitored using sensitive cameras that can pick up the luciferase signal and allowed Sloan and her team to observe both the development of primary tumors and the spread of metastases throughout the body, said Steven Cole, an associate professor of hematology/oncology, a Jonsson Cancer Center researcher and senior author of the study.
What was interesting, Cole said, was that the primary tumors did not seem to be affected by stress and grew similarly in both groups of mice. However, the stressed animals showed significantly more metastases throughout the body than did the control group. The cancer, in effect, acted differently in the stressed mice.
"This study is not saying that stress causes cancer, but it does show that stress can help support cancer once it has developed," Cole said. "Stress helps the cancer climb over the fence and get out into the big, wide world of the rest of the body."
Cole said Sloan detailed the biology of the stress-induced changes in the cancer cells along every step of the pathway, providing a road map by which stress promotes cancer metastasis. Additionally, she proved that using beta blockers in stressed mice prevented the same cancer progression seen in the stressed mice that did not receive medication.
When cancer occurs, the immune system sends out macrophages to try to repair the tissue damage caused by uncontrolled growth of cancer cells. The macrophages, in an attempt to help, turn on inflammation genes that are part of the normal immune response to injury. However, the cancer cells feed on the growth factors involved in a normal immune response. Blood vessels that are grown to aid healing instead feed the cancer the oxygen and nutrients it needs to grow and spread, and the extra cellular matrix, which provides structural support for normal cells, is attacked during the immune response, In Sloan's study, mice with breast cancer were divided into two groups. One group of mice was confined in a small area for a short period of time every day for two weeks, while the other group was not. helping the cancer cells escape from the primary tumor and spread to distant parts of the body.
"Many of the genes that promote cancer metastasis get turned on during the immune response by macrophages," Cole said. "This study shows that stress signaling from the sympathetic nervous system enhances the recruitment of macrophages into the primary tumor, and increases their expression of immune response genes that inadvertently facilitate the escape of cancer cells into other parts of the body."
Sloan showed that the beta blockers prevented the macrophages from hearing the signals sent by the sympathetic nervous system, and stopped them from infiltrating the tumor and encouraging cancer spread.
The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Defense and the Jonsson Cancer Center.
Researchers discovered that stress is biologically reprogramming the immune cells that are trying to fight the cancer, transforming them instead from soldiers protecting the body against disease into aiders and abettors. The study found a 30-fold increase in cancer spread throughout the bodies of stressed mice compared to those that were not stressed.
It's long been thought that stress fuels cancer growth in humans. This study provides a model that not only demonstrates that stress can speed up cancer progression, but also details the pathway used to change the biology of immune cells that inadvertently promote the spread of cancer to distant organs, where it is much harder to treat.
The study appears in the Sept. 15, 2010 issue of the peer-reviewed journal Cancer Research.
"What we showed for the first time is that chronic stress causes cancer cells to escape from the primary tumor and colonize distant organs," said Erica Sloan, a Jonsson Cancer Center scientist, first author of the study and a researcher with the Cousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology. "We not only showed that this happens, but we showed how stress talks to the tumor and helps it to spread."
In addition to documenting the effects of stress on cancer metastasis, the researchers were also able to block those effects by treating stressed animals with drugs that block the nervous system's reprogramming of the metastasis-promoting immune cells, called macrophages.
Beta blockers, used in this study to shut down the stress pathways in the mice, are currently being examined in several large breast cancer databases for their role in potential prevention of recurrence and cancer spread, said Dr. Patricia Ganz, director of cancer prevention and control research at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center. If preliminary findings indicate benefit, early phase clinical trials are being considered at the Jonsson Cancer Center testing beta blockers as a means of preventing breast cancer recurrence. Other healthy lifestyle behaviors may also influence the biological pathways described in the study, such as exercise and stress reduction techniques.
"We're going to be focusing on younger women, because they may have a multitude of things weighing on them when they're diagnosed with breast cancer. Younger women have more significant life demands and typically are under more stress," Ganz said.
Ganz said her proposed research will focus on "host factors," or things affecting the patient, that may be aiding the cancer progression and could help explain why a group of patients with the same type and stage of disease have varying rates of recurrence and cancer spread.
"This study provides evidence for a biological relationship between stress and cancer progression and identifies targets for intervention in the host environment," Ganz said. "Because of this study, we may be able to say to a patient in the future that if you follow this exercise regimen, meditative practice or take this pill every day it will help prevent recurrence of your cancer. We can now test these potential interventions in the animal model and move those that are effective into the clinic."
In Sloan's study, mice with breast cancer were divided into two groups. One group of mice was confined in a small area for a short period of time every day for two weeks, while the other group was not. The breast cancer cells were genetically engineered to include the luciferase gene, which is the molecule that makes a firefly glow. The growth and spread of the cancer in the mice was monitored using sensitive cameras that can pick up the luciferase signal and allowed Sloan and her team to observe both the development of primary tumors and the spread of metastases throughout the body, said Steven Cole, an associate professor of hematology/oncology, a Jonsson Cancer Center researcher and senior author of the study.
What was interesting, Cole said, was that the primary tumors did not seem to be affected by stress and grew similarly in both groups of mice. However, the stressed animals showed significantly more metastases throughout the body than did the control group. The cancer, in effect, acted differently in the stressed mice.
"This study is not saying that stress causes cancer, but it does show that stress can help support cancer once it has developed," Cole said. "Stress helps the cancer climb over the fence and get out into the big, wide world of the rest of the body."
Cole said Sloan detailed the biology of the stress-induced changes in the cancer cells along every step of the pathway, providing a road map by which stress promotes cancer metastasis. Additionally, she proved that using beta blockers in stressed mice prevented the same cancer progression seen in the stressed mice that did not receive medication.
When cancer occurs, the immune system sends out macrophages to try to repair the tissue damage caused by uncontrolled growth of cancer cells. The macrophages, in an attempt to help, turn on inflammation genes that are part of the normal immune response to injury. However, the cancer cells feed on the growth factors involved in a normal immune response. Blood vessels that are grown to aid healing instead feed the cancer the oxygen and nutrients it needs to grow and spread, and the extra cellular matrix, which provides structural support for normal cells, is attacked during the immune response, In Sloan's study, mice with breast cancer were divided into two groups. One group of mice was confined in a small area for a short period of time every day for two weeks, while the other group was not. helping the cancer cells escape from the primary tumor and spread to distant parts of the body.
"Many of the genes that promote cancer metastasis get turned on during the immune response by macrophages," Cole said. "This study shows that stress signaling from the sympathetic nervous system enhances the recruitment of macrophages into the primary tumor, and increases their expression of immune response genes that inadvertently facilitate the escape of cancer cells into other parts of the body."
Sloan showed that the beta blockers prevented the macrophages from hearing the signals sent by the sympathetic nervous system, and stopped them from infiltrating the tumor and encouraging cancer spread.
The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Defense and the Jonsson Cancer Center.
Friday, September 17, 2010
The ASCO Post Publishes Multiple Perspectives On Outcome Of ODAC Meeting Regarding Bevacizumab In Advanced Breast Cancer
The ASCO Post captured initial reactions to the Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee (ODAC) recommendation that the breast cancer indication for bevacizumab (Avastin) be revoked in interviews with ODAC voting members, breast cancer specialists, oncologists in private practice, third-party payers, and a patient advocate..
"It is important that the breast cancer community rest assured that ODAC is an independent, unbiased panel of experts in oncology whose mission is to provide their best objective scientific and clinical recommendations to the FDA for drug approval," said ODAC Chair, Wyndham Wilson, MD, PhD. Dr. Wilson is Chief of the Lymphoid Therapeutics Section of the Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute.
Bevacizumab is currently approved in combination with paclitaxel for the first-line treatment of advanced HER2-negative breast cancer, based on encouraging results of the E2100 trial (N Engl J Med 357:2666-2676, 2007). The FDA provisionally granted accelerated approval but requested confirmatory data from the manufacturer, Genentech. In November 2009, Genentech supplied the results of the AVADO (J Clin Oncol 28:3239-3247, 2010) and RIBBON-1 trials (J Clin Oncol 27(abstract 1005), 2009). On July 20, 2010, ODAC recommended against conversion to full approval.
Joanne Mortimer, MD, a member of ODAC, who voted to approve bevacizumab in advanced breast cancer in December 2007 based on the E2100 study, said, "The additional data from AVADO and RIBBON-1 supported an increased response rate, but also confirmed the increased toxicity and lack of survival advantage with bevacizumab. Like the majority of panel
"It is important that the breast cancer community rest assured that ODAC is an independent, unbiased panel of experts in oncology whose mission is to provide their best objective scientific and clinical recommendations to the FDA for drug approval," said ODAC Chair, Wyndham Wilson, MD, PhD. Dr. Wilson is Chief of the Lymphoid Therapeutics Section of the Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute.
Bevacizumab is currently approved in combination with paclitaxel for the first-line treatment of advanced HER2-negative breast cancer, based on encouraging results of the E2100 trial (N Engl J Med 357:2666-2676, 2007). The FDA provisionally granted accelerated approval but requested confirmatory data from the manufacturer, Genentech. In November 2009, Genentech supplied the results of the AVADO (J Clin Oncol 28:3239-3247, 2010) and RIBBON-1 trials (J Clin Oncol 27(abstract 1005), 2009). On July 20, 2010, ODAC recommended against conversion to full approval.
Joanne Mortimer, MD, a member of ODAC, who voted to approve bevacizumab in advanced breast cancer in December 2007 based on the E2100 study, said, "The additional data from AVADO and RIBBON-1 supported an increased response rate, but also confirmed the increased toxicity and lack of survival advantage with bevacizumab. Like the majority of panel
Sexual Health Specialists Support FPA Campaign On STIs In The Over 50s, UK
Specialists who run the UK's sexual health clinics strongly support the FPA's campaign to raise awareness of increasing STI risk in the over 50s.
Peter Greenhouse, Sexual Health Consultant at Bristol, and spokesperson for the British Association for Sexual Health and HIV (BASHH), commented:
"The post-pill, pre-AIDS generation - who are now well into "Middle Youth" - were less likely to use condoms than any generation before or since, and will have carried a higher risk of STIs from their teenage years onwards: from here to infirmity, so to speak.
"We're especially concerned about the risks of undiagnosed HIV for this generation, which are increased in postmenopausal women because of vaginal fragility, particularly if they're not using hormone replacement therapy.
"Most doctors don't think to ask older people about their sexual activity, let alone their HIV risk: About a third of all cases of HIV are undiagnosed, so we want older people to get themselves checked if they think they may be at risk.
"Sexual Health clinics aren't just for youngsters: Older people shouldn't feel embarrassed to attend, because most of us who run the clinics are from the same generation, and we've 'been there'."
Notes
1. BASHH is the lead professional representative body for those managing STIs and HIV in the UK. It seeks to innovate and deliver excellent tailored education and training to healthcare professionals, trainers and trainees in the UK and to determine, monitor and maintain standards of governance in the provision of sexual health and HIV care.
Peter Greenhouse, Sexual Health Consultant at Bristol, and spokesperson for the British Association for Sexual Health and HIV (BASHH), commented:
"The post-pill, pre-AIDS generation - who are now well into "Middle Youth" - were less likely to use condoms than any generation before or since, and will have carried a higher risk of STIs from their teenage years onwards: from here to infirmity, so to speak.
"We're especially concerned about the risks of undiagnosed HIV for this generation, which are increased in postmenopausal women because of vaginal fragility, particularly if they're not using hormone replacement therapy.
"Most doctors don't think to ask older people about their sexual activity, let alone their HIV risk: About a third of all cases of HIV are undiagnosed, so we want older people to get themselves checked if they think they may be at risk.
"Sexual Health clinics aren't just for youngsters: Older people shouldn't feel embarrassed to attend, because most of us who run the clinics are from the same generation, and we've 'been there'."
Notes
1. BASHH is the lead professional representative body for those managing STIs and HIV in the UK. It seeks to innovate and deliver excellent tailored education and training to healthcare professionals, trainers and trainees in the UK and to determine, monitor and maintain standards of governance in the provision of sexual health and HIV care.
Sexual Health Week, UK
The HPA fully supports the FPA's sexual health campaign - The Middle Age Spread - which reminds older adults they are also risk of STIs and should wear condoms with all new or casual partners.
The HPA recently launched its annual STI figures which showed that the two groups most at risk of an STI remains young adults and men who sex with men. However, there was an increase in diagnoses among all age groups. The agency also published findings early this year showing that HIV diagnoses have doubled in the over 50's in the past decade. The HPA supports any campaign or initiatives which will encourage the practice of safe sex.
Dr Gwenda Hughes, head of STIs at the Health Protection Agency said:
"The Health Protection Agency collects and publishes annual data on sexually transmitted infections in England and the UK. Although rates of infection are highest in young adults, we have seen an increase in diagnoses in all age groups, including those aged over 45. We are doing more testing and using more sensitive tests, which means we are picking up more infections, however, we think the rise may also by due to more people having unsafe sex. Anybody who has a new sexual partner is at risk of an STI, whatever their age.
"It is important to continually reinforce the safe sex message: If you have a new or casual sexual partner, using a condom is the surest way to avoid a sexually transmitted infection."
In a recent study conducted by scientists at the HPA, it was found that numbers of HIV were also increasing in the over 50s.
Dr Valerie Delpech, Head of HIV surveillance at the Health Protection Agency said:
"Although adults aged 50 and over account for just eight percent of all new HIV diagnoses, the fact that cases have more than doubled in recent years serves as a timely reminder that anybody is at risk of HIV infection if they do not use protection and practice safe sex.
"HIV remains a serious infection particularly when diagnosed late. The fact that we've seen an increase in the number of older adults getting diagnosed, and in particular getting diagnosed late, highlights the need for raised awareness in that age group.
"Medical guidelines issued in 2008 encouraged widespread testing in areas where there is a high prevalence of HIV and the HPA fully supports any NHS or charity organisation initiative which will encourage increased testing and increased offering of testing across the UK."
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