news-record.com
Greensboro, North Carolina
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Young cancer survivor touches senator
from NEWS & RECORD
news-record.com
Greensboro, North Carolina
By: Doug Clark, Staff Writer
news-record.com
Greensboro, North Carolina
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Mayo docs identify gene for lung cancer growth
Jacksonville Business Journal reports -
“Lung cancer stem cells appear to be the major drivers in many common lung cancers, and in order for a therapeutic treatment to be effective, it has to disrupt these cancer stem cells,” said Dr. Alan Fields, the study’s senior author and chair of the Department of Cancer Biology at Mayo Clinic Florida. “We show that aurothiomalate, the agent now being tested in lung cancer patients, can, in fact, target these cells.”
The study was funded by grants from the National Cancer Institute, the V-Foundation and the American Lung Association/LUNGevity. Other Mayo Clinic researchers who participated in the study were Dr. Roderick Regala, Dr. Rebecca Davis, Alyssa Kunz, and Dr. Andras Khoor. Also collaborating on the study was Michael Leitges of the University of Oslo.
“Lung cancer stem cells appear to be the major drivers in many common lung cancers, and in order for a therapeutic treatment to be effective, it has to disrupt these cancer stem cells,” said Dr. Alan Fields, the study’s senior author and chair of the Department of Cancer Biology at Mayo Clinic Florida. “We show that aurothiomalate, the agent now being tested in lung cancer patients, can, in fact, target these cells.”
The study was funded by grants from the National Cancer Institute, the V-Foundation and the American Lung Association/LUNGevity. Other Mayo Clinic researchers who participated in the study were Dr. Roderick Regala, Dr. Rebecca Davis, Alyssa Kunz, and Dr. Andras Khoor. Also collaborating on the study was Michael Leitges of the University of Oslo.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Check out the Upstate Women's Show - Featuring Lung Cancer Survivor, Keish Kirkland of WYFF 4
ASCO: The August Bulletin from Cancer.Net
Check out the August Bulletine from Cancer.Net - trusted cancer information from the American Society of Clinical Oncology
THIS MONTH ON CANCER.NET: Olympic swimmer Eric Shanteau and ASCO leaders visit Wall Street, going back to school and work after cancer, where to turn for questions on clinical trials, and much more!
WYFF4 reports: Upstate University To Impose Fines On Smokers
Lander University Imposes Fines On Student, Faculty Smokers
GREENWOOD, S.C. -- Lander University is preparing to give added emphasis to its status as the first state college or university in South Carolina to ban the use of tobacco products on its campus, a prohibition that was introduced with the start of the fall semester in 2007.
Lander president Daniel Ball accepted the recommendations of a committee that he appointed to come up with a strategy for introducing the tobacco-free policy to newcomers, and reminding returning students, faculty and staff that the use of tobacco is not allowed anywhere on Lander property. The ban includes campus parking lots and the university’s off-campus student housing facilities. The smoking ban also applies to visitors.
Read more.
GREENWOOD, S.C. -- Lander University is preparing to give added emphasis to its status as the first state college or university in South Carolina to ban the use of tobacco products on its campus, a prohibition that was introduced with the start of the fall semester in 2007.
Lander president Daniel Ball accepted the recommendations of a committee that he appointed to come up with a strategy for introducing the tobacco-free policy to newcomers, and reminding returning students, faculty and staff that the use of tobacco is not allowed anywhere on Lander property. The ban includes campus parking lots and the university’s off-campus student housing facilities. The smoking ban also applies to visitors.
Read more.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Jacksonville.com reports: Times-Union reporter free to fly again after cancer fight
After 8 weeks of chemotheropy, tests come back cancer free.
By Jessie-Lynne Kerr
The news from the doctors last week was very positive - the latest PET/CAT scan showed no return of the cancer that was discovered in my lungs March 10.
They even said I could attempt to return to a somewhat normal, at least for me, way of life and try the things that got put on hold while I fought the cancer.
The combination of aggressive chemotherapy and twice-a-day radiation killed the tumors after just eight weeks. Another week of chemo followed, depleting my white blood cell count and necessitating shots of Neupogen to stimulate the bone marrow to make more.
Most of June was spent getting daily low-dose radiation to the brain, since small-cell lung cancer, the type I have, has a tendency to return with a vengeance and go to the brain.
It was painless, but it took its toll in other ways.
My eyebrows now must be deftly drawn and brushed on each morning with the latest from Maybelline.
And the radiation killed parts of the stubble that had begun to reforest my bald scalp. At first it looked as if it continued to grow in that pattern, I would be sporting a Mohawk.
But soon, some of that melted away, too. Now it is just a circular patch of very dark stubble on the very crown of my head, and a rather ugly misshapen patch below. And I can't blame it on being a rookie at football camp.
Didn't someone famous once say that a woman's crowning glory was her hair?
It is hard to imagine that now in my case.
I faced reality and took care of some necessary stuff we don't like to talk about because it means we are confronting our own mortality. I have paid for my cremation and for the interment of my ashes at the memorial garden at church. A lawyer prepared my will, designation of health surrogate, living will and all that legal stuff to spare my son the tasks.
Cleared to go on my own way for three months without any further treatment, except for a monthly irrigation of the port in my chest to facilitate getting chemo, I am to call the radiologist if I experience any bone pain, seizures or cough up bloody mucous.
He told me it could be up to three months before the overwhelming fatigue I am experiencing eases up. My esophagus, which was burned by the radiation, is healing nicely and I am not too worried about the 20 pounds or so that I've lost due to a poor appetite because I was (and still am) overweight. But for those of you trying to lose some weight, find another way.
My lung doctor told me I was doing great but when I told him of my anxiety waiting to get the results of the latest scan, he told me that is called "scanxiety." I had a tendency to think the worst whenever a felt a twinge that seemed somehow different.
After all this, you would think I'd be due a vacation, right?
Well I have one planned. In February I bought a round-trip airline ticket to New York to attend a Hall of Fame induction ceremony at my high school on Staten Island. I had to cancel because of the lung cancer.
But now I have been cleared to fly again and I plan to go to New York the first week of October and visit a cousin. We plan to drive up to her cabin in the Adirondacks for a few days and take in Mother Nature's repainting of the landscape.
Life - now - is good. And with only a 20 percent chance I'll be here in five years, every moment is too precious to waste.
Read more.
By Jessie-Lynne Kerr
The news from the doctors last week was very positive - the latest PET/CAT scan showed no return of the cancer that was discovered in my lungs March 10.
They even said I could attempt to return to a somewhat normal, at least for me, way of life and try the things that got put on hold while I fought the cancer.
The combination of aggressive chemotherapy and twice-a-day radiation killed the tumors after just eight weeks. Another week of chemo followed, depleting my white blood cell count and necessitating shots of Neupogen to stimulate the bone marrow to make more.
Most of June was spent getting daily low-dose radiation to the brain, since small-cell lung cancer, the type I have, has a tendency to return with a vengeance and go to the brain.
It was painless, but it took its toll in other ways.
My eyebrows now must be deftly drawn and brushed on each morning with the latest from Maybelline.
And the radiation killed parts of the stubble that had begun to reforest my bald scalp. At first it looked as if it continued to grow in that pattern, I would be sporting a Mohawk.
But soon, some of that melted away, too. Now it is just a circular patch of very dark stubble on the very crown of my head, and a rather ugly misshapen patch below. And I can't blame it on being a rookie at football camp.
Didn't someone famous once say that a woman's crowning glory was her hair?
It is hard to imagine that now in my case.
I faced reality and took care of some necessary stuff we don't like to talk about because it means we are confronting our own mortality. I have paid for my cremation and for the interment of my ashes at the memorial garden at church. A lawyer prepared my will, designation of health surrogate, living will and all that legal stuff to spare my son the tasks.
Cleared to go on my own way for three months without any further treatment, except for a monthly irrigation of the port in my chest to facilitate getting chemo, I am to call the radiologist if I experience any bone pain, seizures or cough up bloody mucous.
He told me it could be up to three months before the overwhelming fatigue I am experiencing eases up. My esophagus, which was burned by the radiation, is healing nicely and I am not too worried about the 20 pounds or so that I've lost due to a poor appetite because I was (and still am) overweight. But for those of you trying to lose some weight, find another way.
My lung doctor told me I was doing great but when I told him of my anxiety waiting to get the results of the latest scan, he told me that is called "scanxiety." I had a tendency to think the worst whenever a felt a twinge that seemed somehow different.
After all this, you would think I'd be due a vacation, right?
Well I have one planned. In February I bought a round-trip airline ticket to New York to attend a Hall of Fame induction ceremony at my high school on Staten Island. I had to cancel because of the lung cancer.
But now I have been cleared to fly again and I plan to go to New York the first week of October and visit a cousin. We plan to drive up to her cabin in the Adirondacks for a few days and take in Mother Nature's repainting of the landscape.
Life - now - is good. And with only a 20 percent chance I'll be here in five years, every moment is too precious to waste.
Read more.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
USA Today reports: Surgeon general pick 'would do anything to heal'
President Obama on Monday nominated for surgeon general an influential rural family physician who has spent the past two decades caring for a shrimping community along the Gulf Coast.
Obama said Regina Benjamin understands the needs of the poor and uninsured and is a tireless promoter of wellness programs, making her qualified to be America's advocate during health care reforms.
Benjamin founded her non-profit clinic in 1990 for a diverse community of 2,500 near her home in Bayou La Batre, Ala., and had to rebuild it three times. It was destroyed twice by hurricanes and once by fire. After Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Obama said, she mortgaged her own house for the reconstruction and told the pharmacy to send her patients' bills to her when they couldn't afford their medicine.
"And for all that she's seen and overcome, she represents what's best about health care: doctors and nurses who give and care and sacrifice for the sake of their patients, those Americans who would do anything to heal a fellow citizen," Obama said. "When people couldn't pay, she didn't charge them. When the clinic wasn't making money, she didn't take a salary for herself."
Benjamin, 51, became the first African-American woman to be named to the American Medical Association's board of trustees in 1995 and last year received one of the MacArthur Foundation's $500,000 "genius grants." After graduating from the University of Alabama School of Medicine in 1984, she worked in Alabama as part of her obligation to the National Health Service Corps, a Department of Health and Human Services program that places physicians in underserved communities in exchange for tuition reimbursement.
Public health also has become "very personal" to her.
"My father died of diabetes and hypertension. My older brother and only sibling died at age 44 of HIV-related illness. My mother died of lung cancer because as a young girl, she wanted to smoke, just like her twin brother. My uncle Buddy, my mother's twin, is at home right now on oxygen struggling for each breath because of the years of smoking."
Those preventable diseases, she said, were why her family wasn't present with her at the nomination announcement: "While I cannot change my family's past, I can be a voice in the movement to improve our nation's health care and a nation's health for the future."
Read more.
Obama said Regina Benjamin understands the needs of the poor and uninsured and is a tireless promoter of wellness programs, making her qualified to be America's advocate during health care reforms.
Benjamin founded her non-profit clinic in 1990 for a diverse community of 2,500 near her home in Bayou La Batre, Ala., and had to rebuild it three times. It was destroyed twice by hurricanes and once by fire. After Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Obama said, she mortgaged her own house for the reconstruction and told the pharmacy to send her patients' bills to her when they couldn't afford their medicine.
"And for all that she's seen and overcome, she represents what's best about health care: doctors and nurses who give and care and sacrifice for the sake of their patients, those Americans who would do anything to heal a fellow citizen," Obama said. "When people couldn't pay, she didn't charge them. When the clinic wasn't making money, she didn't take a salary for herself."
Benjamin, 51, became the first African-American woman to be named to the American Medical Association's board of trustees in 1995 and last year received one of the MacArthur Foundation's $500,000 "genius grants." After graduating from the University of Alabama School of Medicine in 1984, she worked in Alabama as part of her obligation to the National Health Service Corps, a Department of Health and Human Services program that places physicians in underserved communities in exchange for tuition reimbursement.
Public health also has become "very personal" to her.
"My father died of diabetes and hypertension. My older brother and only sibling died at age 44 of HIV-related illness. My mother died of lung cancer because as a young girl, she wanted to smoke, just like her twin brother. My uncle Buddy, my mother's twin, is at home right now on oxygen struggling for each breath because of the years of smoking."
Those preventable diseases, she said, were why her family wasn't present with her at the nomination announcement: "While I cannot change my family's past, I can be a voice in the movement to improve our nation's health care and a nation's health for the future."
Read more.
USA Today reports: Did toxic chemical in Iraq sicken GIs?
Larry Roberta's every breath is a painful reminder of his time in Iraq. He can't walk a block without gasping for air. His chest hurts, his migraines sometimes persist for days and he needs pills to help him sleep.
James Gentry came home with rashes, ear troubles and a shortness of breath. Later, things got much worse: He developed lung cancer.
David Moore's postwar life turned into a harrowing medical mystery: nosebleeds and labored breathing that made it impossible to work, much less speak. His desperate search for answers ended last year when he died of lung disease at age 42.
What these three men — one sick, one dying, one dead — had in common is they were National Guard soldiers on the same stretch of wind-swept desert in Iraq during the early months of the war in 2003.
James Gentry came home with rashes, ear troubles and a shortness of breath. Later, things got much worse: He developed lung cancer.
David Moore's postwar life turned into a harrowing medical mystery: nosebleeds and labored breathing that made it impossible to work, much less speak. His desperate search for answers ended last year when he died of lung disease at age 42.
What these three men — one sick, one dying, one dead — had in common is they were National Guard soldiers on the same stretch of wind-swept desert in Iraq during the early months of the war in 2003.
These soldiers and hundreds of other Guard members from Indiana, Oregon and West Virginia were protecting workers hired by a subsidiary of the giant contractor, KBR Inc., to rebuild an Iraqi water treatment plant. The area, as it turned out, was contaminated with hexavalent chromium, a potent, sometimes deadly chemical linked to cancer and other devastating diseases.
Friday, July 3, 2009
LA Daily News reports: Equality and better treatment sought for lung cancer patients
As an emergency physician, Dr. Michael Weitz battles illnesses to save the lives of others.
In his own personal fight with lung cancer, he is battling the stigma that his disease carries.
Weitz, who is one of the 215,000 people diagnosed each year with lung cancer, knows what others think: "You did it to yourself," the Woodland Hills man said.
But Weitz never smoked cigarettes - did nothing he knows of that would infect the delicate tissue of his lungs.
Yet even for those with lung cancer who have never smoked, the condition comes with a negative stereotype. They often are asked, "Did you smoke?"
It's a perception health advocates say needs to be shattered. Why, they ask, should state or federal funding toward the detection and treatment of lung cancer be any different than, say, for illnesses associated with obesity, alcoholism or other kinds of cancer?
"We have to get to the point of saying it doesn't matter," said Kim Norris, a Los Angeles resident who founded the Lung Cancer Foundation of America.
The foundation's goal is to raise enough funds to lead to lung cancer research and treatment. The five-year survival rates for all stages of lung cancer haven't changed in decades, a result of little progress toward finding better treatments, Norris said.
Norris and others note that research for lung cancer treatment remains "under-funded, under-researched and under-reported," because government funders view it as the "the black sheep" of cancers.
"Just because smoking is legal - and the Department of Defense once handed out cigarettes during wars - doesn't mean (those who smoked) deserve (lung cancer)."
Read more.
In his own personal fight with lung cancer, he is battling the stigma that his disease carries.
Weitz, who is one of the 215,000 people diagnosed each year with lung cancer, knows what others think: "You did it to yourself," the Woodland Hills man said.
But Weitz never smoked cigarettes - did nothing he knows of that would infect the delicate tissue of his lungs.
Yet even for those with lung cancer who have never smoked, the condition comes with a negative stereotype. They often are asked, "Did you smoke?"
It's a perception health advocates say needs to be shattered. Why, they ask, should state or federal funding toward the detection and treatment of lung cancer be any different than, say, for illnesses associated with obesity, alcoholism or other kinds of cancer?
"We have to get to the point of saying it doesn't matter," said Kim Norris, a Los Angeles resident who founded the Lung Cancer Foundation of America.
The foundation's goal is to raise enough funds to lead to lung cancer research and treatment. The five-year survival rates for all stages of lung cancer haven't changed in decades, a result of little progress toward finding better treatments, Norris said.
Norris and others note that research for lung cancer treatment remains "under-funded, under-researched and under-reported," because government funders view it as the "the black sheep" of cancers.
"Just because smoking is legal - and the Department of Defense once handed out cigarettes during wars - doesn't mean (those who smoked) deserve (lung cancer)."
Read more.
SCCA: SC Cancer Registry publishes 10-year report
June 17, 2009
DHEC's S.C. Cancer Registry publishes first 10-year report
The S.C. Central Cancer Registry has published its first 10-year report of cancer trends in the state, the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control announced today.
"This report is a milestone for the state," said DHEC Commissioner Earl Hunter. "Cancer is one of the leading causes of deaths and illness. It is critical not only to be able to track the number of deaths, but to have information on the number of people who have been diagnosed with the disease. This cancer survival data provides another avenue to measure the burden of cancer on our residents."
"The S.C. Central Cancer Registry has maintained national standards of quality, timeliness, and completeness evidenced by certification from the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries each year since 1997," he said. "Meeting those standards in all categories assures that the data are valid and reliable for use in the healthcare and research communities across the state and nation."
According to the report, deaths due to cancer decreased by 18.2 percent from 1996 through 2005 for all races and genders combined. The total incidence for all cancers decreased by 3.2 percent over the 10-year period.
"Decreasing cancer death rates is a sign of progress in the fight against cancer," he said. "But there is still much to be done. The report shows that there are still cancer disparities, as indicated by the differences in cancer death rates among races."
The five leading types of cancer were prostate, lung, breast, colorectal and bladder. The five leading causes of cancer deaths were lung, colorectal, breast, prostate and pancreatic.
Five-year observed survival rates for all cancers combined in the state were 51.4 percent, meaning a little over half the patients with cancer survive for five years. The median survival time, which is the time at which half the patients with cancer are still living, was 66.5 months or about 5.5 years. Survival was highest for white females (55.8 percent), followed by white males (50.3 percent), black females (47.1 percent) and black males (44.6 percent).
Cancers with the poorest survival for all race and gender groups in order from the poorest to the best were liver, pancreatic, lung, brain and esophageal.
"The survival data will help our public health efforts by providing insights about where our next steps need to be for the best results as we work to fight cancers," Hunter said.
For more information and data from this report, please visit the DHEC Web site or you may call the Cancer Registry toll-free at 1-800-817-4774.
DHEC's S.C. Cancer Registry publishes first 10-year report
The S.C. Central Cancer Registry has published its first 10-year report of cancer trends in the state, the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control announced today.
"This report is a milestone for the state," said DHEC Commissioner Earl Hunter. "Cancer is one of the leading causes of deaths and illness. It is critical not only to be able to track the number of deaths, but to have information on the number of people who have been diagnosed with the disease. This cancer survival data provides another avenue to measure the burden of cancer on our residents."
"The S.C. Central Cancer Registry has maintained national standards of quality, timeliness, and completeness evidenced by certification from the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries each year since 1997," he said. "Meeting those standards in all categories assures that the data are valid and reliable for use in the healthcare and research communities across the state and nation."
According to the report, deaths due to cancer decreased by 18.2 percent from 1996 through 2005 for all races and genders combined. The total incidence for all cancers decreased by 3.2 percent over the 10-year period.
"Decreasing cancer death rates is a sign of progress in the fight against cancer," he said. "But there is still much to be done. The report shows that there are still cancer disparities, as indicated by the differences in cancer death rates among races."
The five leading types of cancer were prostate, lung, breast, colorectal and bladder. The five leading causes of cancer deaths were lung, colorectal, breast, prostate and pancreatic.
Five-year observed survival rates for all cancers combined in the state were 51.4 percent, meaning a little over half the patients with cancer survive for five years. The median survival time, which is the time at which half the patients with cancer are still living, was 66.5 months or about 5.5 years. Survival was highest for white females (55.8 percent), followed by white males (50.3 percent), black females (47.1 percent) and black males (44.6 percent).
Cancers with the poorest survival for all race and gender groups in order from the poorest to the best were liver, pancreatic, lung, brain and esophageal.
"The survival data will help our public health efforts by providing insights about where our next steps need to be for the best results as we work to fight cancers," Hunter said.
For more information and data from this report, please visit the DHEC Web site or you may call the Cancer Registry toll-free at 1-800-817-4774.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
ABC News reports: Senate Votes for FDA to Regulate Tobacco
Years in the Making, Senate Votes to Give FDA Power to Regulate Tobacco
Times have changed now that even tobacco states have smoking bans. Today, after two weeks of wrangling and a decade of considering the change, the U.S. Senate endorsed increased regulation of tobacco.
Senators voted 79-17 to regulate tobacco in the same way the government regulates everything else you put in your body -- from Froot Loops to aspirin.
At Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, organization president Matthew L. Myers called the vote "a truly historic victory" and "the strongest action Congress has ever taken to reduce tobacco use."
"Forty-five years after the first U.S. Surgeon General's report linking cigarette smoking to lung cancer, the most deadly product sold in America will no longer be the least-regulated product sold in America," Myers said in a statement.
The bill would give the federal government the power to regulate cigarette ingredients, to ban the marketing of "light cigarettes" and to require graphic warning labels.
Read more.
Times have changed now that even tobacco states have smoking bans. Today, after two weeks of wrangling and a decade of considering the change, the U.S. Senate endorsed increased regulation of tobacco.
Senators voted 79-17 to regulate tobacco in the same way the government regulates everything else you put in your body -- from Froot Loops to aspirin.
At Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, organization president Matthew L. Myers called the vote "a truly historic victory" and "the strongest action Congress has ever taken to reduce tobacco use."
"Forty-five years after the first U.S. Surgeon General's report linking cigarette smoking to lung cancer, the most deadly product sold in America will no longer be the least-regulated product sold in America," Myers said in a statement.
The bill would give the federal government the power to regulate cigarette ingredients, to ban the marketing of "light cigarettes" and to require graphic warning labels.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
The New York Times: George MacPherson, Theater Producer, Dies at 78
George MacPherson, a theater producer who helped bring down the curtain on bus-and-truck road shows and usher in the big-box-office age of polished national touring companies, died on Wednesday in Orangeburg, S.C., where he lived. He was 78.The cause was lung cancer, said his daughter, Morag.
Mr. MacPherson, who got his first taste of show business glamour as a veterinarian with the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus, helped theater producers maximize returns on their shows by sending out touring companies with high production values and first-rate performers to markets beyond the big cities.
This approach, restructured in the early 1980s at American Theater Productions, where he was executive director, led to increased subscription sales and a boom for the tour business, which nearly doubled its gross revenues from 1988 to 1991.
“In those days, touring was pretty rudimentary,” said Miles Wilkin, the chief executive of the tour producer Broadway Across America. “George was adept at working with New York producers, acquiring shows and then realizing their full potential on the road.”
Read more.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Men with cancer bond in support group
It was about five years ago when Walt Beigegrain flopped onto his bed, crossed his arms and felt a lump on his chest.
“What is that?” he wondered. About five weeks later, after summoning the courage to seek help, his doctor initially confirmed that yes, he had a lump, but it couldn’t be breast cancer, because men don’t get breast cancer. Another physician echoed those same thoughts.
However, tests showed a different story, and Beigegrain’s breast cancer was in Stage II, which is a treatable phase.
“I figured, ‘So what, I have breast cancer,’ ” he said. “I can deal with that.”
Beigegrain did deal with that. He had the tumor removed in surgery. He now can talk openly about his breast cancer, but he knows other men suffer alone after being diagnosed with breast cancer or any other form of the disease.
They needn’t.
For the past few years, a local all-male group, Men Against Cancer Helping Others, or MACHO, has been attracting more members than any of the numerous cancer-support groups for women organized through St. Mary’s Hospital, said Debra Hesse, coordinator of cancer survivor programs for St. Mary’s Cancer Center.
At a recent meeting, men gathered around tables at a coffee shop near the hospital and greeted one another with strong handshakes and pats to the back.
Dressed in blue jeans, button-up shirts or T-shirts and sneakers or hiking boots, the men stick to an agenda that usually includes a guest speaker and review of a book related to cancer.
But outside of those general guidelines, men said they’ve grown to feel free to be themselves, and conversations can include guys asking each other advice about their battles with similar forms of cancer or tips on how to be a better husband to a spouse with the disease.
But the reason the meetings work, they said, is because a group dynamic helps ease the stigma men feel about getting cancer.
Also the focus is neither a “prayer session, or a pity party,” they said.
“The male instinct is, if there’s a problem, I need to fix it,” said Michael Appel, the lead pharmacist who helps run meetings.
Read more.
“What is that?” he wondered. About five weeks later, after summoning the courage to seek help, his doctor initially confirmed that yes, he had a lump, but it couldn’t be breast cancer, because men don’t get breast cancer. Another physician echoed those same thoughts.
However, tests showed a different story, and Beigegrain’s breast cancer was in Stage II, which is a treatable phase.
“I figured, ‘So what, I have breast cancer,’ ” he said. “I can deal with that.”
Beigegrain did deal with that. He had the tumor removed in surgery. He now can talk openly about his breast cancer, but he knows other men suffer alone after being diagnosed with breast cancer or any other form of the disease.
They needn’t.
For the past few years, a local all-male group, Men Against Cancer Helping Others, or MACHO, has been attracting more members than any of the numerous cancer-support groups for women organized through St. Mary’s Hospital, said Debra Hesse, coordinator of cancer survivor programs for St. Mary’s Cancer Center.
At a recent meeting, men gathered around tables at a coffee shop near the hospital and greeted one another with strong handshakes and pats to the back.
Dressed in blue jeans, button-up shirts or T-shirts and sneakers or hiking boots, the men stick to an agenda that usually includes a guest speaker and review of a book related to cancer.
But outside of those general guidelines, men said they’ve grown to feel free to be themselves, and conversations can include guys asking each other advice about their battles with similar forms of cancer or tips on how to be a better husband to a spouse with the disease.
But the reason the meetings work, they said, is because a group dynamic helps ease the stigma men feel about getting cancer.
Also the focus is neither a “prayer session, or a pity party,” they said.
“The male instinct is, if there’s a problem, I need to fix it,” said Michael Appel, the lead pharmacist who helps run meetings.
Science Daily reports: Stem Cell Protein Offers A New Cancer Target
A protein abundant in embryonic stem cells is now shown to be important in cancer, and offers a possible new target for drug development, report researchers from the Stem Cell Program at Children's Hospital Boston.
Last year, George Daley, MD, PhD, and graduate student Srinivas Viswanathan, in collaboration with Richard Gregory, PhD, also of the Stem Cell Program at Children's, showed that the protein LIN28 regulates an important group of tumor-suppressing microRNAs known as let-7. Increasing LIN28 production in a cell prevented let-7 from maturing, making the cell more immature and stem-like. Since these qualities also make a cell more cancerous, and because low levels of mature let-7 have been associated with breast and lung cancer, the discovery suggested that LIN28 might be oncogenic.
Now, publishing Advance Online in Nature Genetics on May 31, Daley, Viswanathan and colleagues show directly that LIN28 can transform cells to a cancerous state, and that it is abundant in a variety of advanced human cancers, particularly liver cancer, ovarian cancer, chronic myeloid leukemia, germ cell tumors and Wilm's tumor (a childhood kidney cancer). They believe that overall, LIN28 and a related protein, LIN28B, may be involved in some 15 percent of human cancers. By blocking or suppressing LIN28, it might be possible to revive the let-7 family's natural tumor-suppressing action.
"Linking this protein to advanced cancer is a very exciting new result," says Daley, Director of Stem Cell Transplantation at Children's, and also affiliated with Children's Division of Hematology/Oncology, the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Harvard Stem Cell Institute. "It gives us a new target to attack, especially in the most resistant and hard-to-treat cases."
Last year, George Daley, MD, PhD, and graduate student Srinivas Viswanathan, in collaboration with Richard Gregory, PhD, also of the Stem Cell Program at Children's, showed that the protein LIN28 regulates an important group of tumor-suppressing microRNAs known as let-7. Increasing LIN28 production in a cell prevented let-7 from maturing, making the cell more immature and stem-like. Since these qualities also make a cell more cancerous, and because low levels of mature let-7 have been associated with breast and lung cancer, the discovery suggested that LIN28 might be oncogenic.
Now, publishing Advance Online in Nature Genetics on May 31, Daley, Viswanathan and colleagues show directly that LIN28 can transform cells to a cancerous state, and that it is abundant in a variety of advanced human cancers, particularly liver cancer, ovarian cancer, chronic myeloid leukemia, germ cell tumors and Wilm's tumor (a childhood kidney cancer). They believe that overall, LIN28 and a related protein, LIN28B, may be involved in some 15 percent of human cancers. By blocking or suppressing LIN28, it might be possible to revive the let-7 family's natural tumor-suppressing action.
"Linking this protein to advanced cancer is a very exciting new result," says Daley, Director of Stem Cell Transplantation at Children's, and also affiliated with Children's Division of Hematology/Oncology, the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Harvard Stem Cell Institute. "It gives us a new target to attack, especially in the most resistant and hard-to-treat cases."
Science Daily reports: Brain Irradiation In Lung Cancer
A national Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) study led by a Medical College of Wisconsin Cancer Center physician at Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee has found that a course of radiation therapy to the brain after treatment for locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer reduced the risk of metastases to the brain within the first year after treatment.
"With improved treatments for non-small cell lung cancer, patients are living longer and we are seeing more brain metastases," says study author Elizabeth Gore, M.D. "This study compared the efficacy of prophylactic (preventive) cranial irradiation (PCI) vs. observation in these patients, and found that those not receiving cranial irradiation were two and one-half times more likely to develop brain metastasis than those who did."
"With improved treatments for non-small cell lung cancer, patients are living longer and we are seeing more brain metastases," says study author Elizabeth Gore, M.D. "This study compared the efficacy of prophylactic (preventive) cranial irradiation (PCI) vs. observation in these patients, and found that those not receiving cranial irradiation were two and one-half times more likely to develop brain metastasis than those who did."
Friday, June 5, 2009
Looking for volunteers in the Midlands Area to help me organize a Free To Breathe 5K Lung Cancer Awareness Walk...
I'm looking for fellow volunteers/advocates that may be interested in helping me organize a Free To Breathe Lung Cancer 5K Awareness Walk in Columbia. Possibly Saturday, November 14, 2009 at the Riverfront Park in downtown Columbia. (November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month)
Everyday is still a struggle, since losing my mother in 2007. My faith, family, and close friends keep me going. My dream is to one day bring a state chapter of the National Lung Cancer Partnership here to South Carolina, to support survivors and caregivers, as well as, raise money for much needed research.
The National Lung Cancer Partnership is a group of leading doctors, researchers, patient advocates, and lung cancer survivors who are working together to improve treatments for lung cancer patients. They raise research dollars through their Free To Breathe campaign, a 5K fundraising awareness walk.
You can find more information here:
Our neighboring state of North Carolina started the first state chapter in 2006 and have many events planned for this year. I'd love to one day do the same here.
Please consider helping me.
While I Breathe, I Hope...for a CURE for Lung Cancer!
Angie B. Derrick
You can send me a message here, or at scagainstlungcancer@gmail.com
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Lung Cancer Deaths Rise With Hormone Replacement Therapy
Doctors once thought that hormone therapy, or HRT, could protect women from chronic diseases, especially heart disease. However, a new study by U.S researchers released on Saturday indicated that the use of hormone-replacement therapy by menopausal women increases their risk of death from lung cancer by 60 percent after five years.
The trial studied the use of Wyeth's combined estrogen/progestin hormone-replacement therapy, Prempro. Dr. Rowan Chlebowski of Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles led the analysis and presented results at a meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology in Florida.
The study examined non-small-cell lung cancer, by far the most common type. While the study found no big difference in the number of lung cancers that developed in hormone users after five years on the pills and more than two years later, lung cancer proved fatal in 46 percent of hormone users who developed it versus 27 percent of those given placebos.
The study gave 16,608 women either Prempro or placebos. It was stopped in 2002 when researchers saw more breast cancers in those on Prempro, but researchers continue to follow women in the study.
Lung cancer is the world's top cancer killer. In the U.S alone, there were more than 215,000 new cases and nearly 162,000 deaths from it last year.
The trial studied the use of Wyeth's combined estrogen/progestin hormone-replacement therapy, Prempro. Dr. Rowan Chlebowski of Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles led the analysis and presented results at a meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology in Florida.
The study examined non-small-cell lung cancer, by far the most common type. While the study found no big difference in the number of lung cancers that developed in hormone users after five years on the pills and more than two years later, lung cancer proved fatal in 46 percent of hormone users who developed it versus 27 percent of those given placebos.
The study gave 16,608 women either Prempro or placebos. It was stopped in 2002 when researchers saw more breast cancers in those on Prempro, but researchers continue to follow women in the study.
Lung cancer is the world's top cancer killer. In the U.S alone, there were more than 215,000 new cases and nearly 162,000 deaths from it last year.
Transgene sees cancer deal this summer
Transgene expects to strike a worldwide partnership agreement this summer for lung cancer vaccine TG4010, a possible blockbuster, that could speed up the French biotech's plans to become a pharmaceutical group.
Next to advanced non-small cell lung cancer, TG4010 could work on several other cancer types like prostate and breast cancer, possibly making it a rival to Roche's Avastin.
Next to advanced non-small cell lung cancer, TG4010 could work on several other cancer types like prostate and breast cancer, possibly making it a rival to Roche's Avastin.
Newsday.com reports: Bill to regulate tobacco products a sharp departure for industry-friendly Congress
In the half-century since the surgeon general issued his culture-changing report linking smoking to lung cancer, the tobacco industry has had little trouble defeating efforts to regulate cigarettes and other products. That could change this year.
The Senate is debating legislation that would give the Food and Drug Administration authority to control ingredients going into tobacco products, restrict marketing and ads aimed at young people, and ban words such as "light" or "low tar" that may mislead people about the health risks of smoking.
The legislation, said Matthew Myers, president of Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, is "by far the strongest bill to reduce tobacco use that this nation has ever seriously considered."
Myers and other supporters, such as the American Heart Association and the American Lung Association, say the stars may finally be aligned for decisive action on the tobacco issue. The House passed a similar bill by a wide margin and President Barack Obama supports it. It also commands a majority in the Senate, although tobacco-state senators say they won't give up without a filibuster fight.
The Senate is debating legislation that would give the Food and Drug Administration authority to control ingredients going into tobacco products, restrict marketing and ads aimed at young people, and ban words such as "light" or "low tar" that may mislead people about the health risks of smoking.
The legislation, said Matthew Myers, president of Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, is "by far the strongest bill to reduce tobacco use that this nation has ever seriously considered."
Myers and other supporters, such as the American Heart Association and the American Lung Association, say the stars may finally be aligned for decisive action on the tobacco issue. The House passed a similar bill by a wide margin and President Barack Obama supports it. It also commands a majority in the Senate, although tobacco-state senators say they won't give up without a filibuster fight.
From Japan: 1 in 8 with lung cancer show asbestos exposure, study finds
Pleural plaques, or a thickening of lung membranes due to asbestos exposure, were found in one in eight lung cancer patients, according to medical research papers jointly released Monday by 12 medical institutions in Japan.
The research team said the number of people who died from asbestos-related lung cancer might amount to several thousand people a year.
About 60,000 people die from lung cancer each year in the nation.
In fiscal 2007, only 660 people were recognized as suffering from asbestos-related lung cancer and thus eligible for government aid, indicating that many lung cancer patients are excluded from the aid as the exposure has not been confirmed as the cause of their diseases.
Between 2006 and 2007, the 12 medical institutions in six prefectures, including Tokyo, Hokkaido and Aichi, examined 471 patients, aged 26 to 94 who were diagnosed with nonmetastatic lung cancer, to check if they had developed pleural plaques.
The 12 institutions belong to the Japan Federation of Democratic Medical Institutions.
The research team discovered pleural plaques in 28 patients, or 5.9 percent, through chest X-rays, and in 58 patients, or 12.3 percent, through high-resolution computer tomography.
Pleural plaques were detected through the CT scan mainly in people engaged in professions involving repeated asbestos exposure, with 14 out of 35 patients working in the construction industry and six out of 23 in the metal manufacturing and processing industry.
The research team said the number of people who died from asbestos-related lung cancer might amount to several thousand people a year.
About 60,000 people die from lung cancer each year in the nation.
In fiscal 2007, only 660 people were recognized as suffering from asbestos-related lung cancer and thus eligible for government aid, indicating that many lung cancer patients are excluded from the aid as the exposure has not been confirmed as the cause of their diseases.
Between 2006 and 2007, the 12 medical institutions in six prefectures, including Tokyo, Hokkaido and Aichi, examined 471 patients, aged 26 to 94 who were diagnosed with nonmetastatic lung cancer, to check if they had developed pleural plaques.
The 12 institutions belong to the Japan Federation of Democratic Medical Institutions.
The research team discovered pleural plaques in 28 patients, or 5.9 percent, through chest X-rays, and in 58 patients, or 12.3 percent, through high-resolution computer tomography.
Pleural plaques were detected through the CT scan mainly in people engaged in professions involving repeated asbestos exposure, with 14 out of 35 patients working in the construction industry and six out of 23 in the metal manufacturing and processing industry.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
WYFF4 of Greenville: Keisha Kirkland Extends Thanks For Support
On the last day of her treatment for stage three lung cancer, WYFF News 4 Weather Anchor Keisha Kirkland extended a video thank you to all viewers for the messages and calls of support.
Kirkland was diagnosed in November and shortly afterward underwent surgery to remove the upper right lung mass.
Go here to view what Keisha has to say in her own words.
Kirkland was diagnosed in November and shortly afterward underwent surgery to remove the upper right lung mass.
Go here to view what Keisha has to say in her own words.
An opinion from LA Times: Tobacco regulations are no regulations at all
A proposal to put cigarettes under FDA supervision is so limited that it's really a smoke screen for Big Tobacco.
This week, the U.S. Senate is considering legislation that would, for the first time, give the Food and Drug Administration regulatory authority over tobacco products. Numerous anti-smoking and health groups support the legislation. So does this mean Congress is finally on the verge of stepping up to take on Big Tobacco?
Hardly. The bill in question was crafted, in part, by the nation's leading cigarette company, Philip Morris, as part of a deal worked out between the tobacco giant and an anti-smoking group -- the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. The health groups supporting the legislation have been seduced by the few concessions that Philip Morris dangled before them and have lost sight of the long-term damage that this bill will do to the public's health.
The legislation would do a few good things, including requiring stronger warning labels on cigarette packages and limiting cigarette advertising directed at youths. But the bill's fine print contains numerous loopholes inserted to appease Philip Morris. In the end, it ensures that federal regulation of tobacco products will remain more about politics than about science.
Read more.
This week, the U.S. Senate is considering legislation that would, for the first time, give the Food and Drug Administration regulatory authority over tobacco products. Numerous anti-smoking and health groups support the legislation. So does this mean Congress is finally on the verge of stepping up to take on Big Tobacco?
Hardly. The bill in question was crafted, in part, by the nation's leading cigarette company, Philip Morris, as part of a deal worked out between the tobacco giant and an anti-smoking group -- the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. The health groups supporting the legislation have been seduced by the few concessions that Philip Morris dangled before them and have lost sight of the long-term damage that this bill will do to the public's health.
The legislation would do a few good things, including requiring stronger warning labels on cigarette packages and limiting cigarette advertising directed at youths. But the bill's fine print contains numerous loopholes inserted to appease Philip Morris. In the end, it ensures that federal regulation of tobacco products will remain more about politics than about science.
Read more.
USA Today reports: Using CT scans to screen for lung cancer may carry risks
Lung cancer screenings may carry hidden dangers, researchers announced Saturday at the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting in Orlando.
The National Institutes of Health is running a large study to find out if screening patients with CT scans can save lives. Some doctors are already offering the screenings in the hopes of finding tumors early, when they might be more curable. Lung cancer kills more people than any other tumor, with 215,000 new cases a year and 162,000 deaths, according to the American Cancer Society.
But the scan's results aren't always clear or easy to interpret, leading to false alarms.
People who are screened have a 21% chance of being unnecessarily frightened by findings that initially seem suspicious, but turn out to be benign, says lead author Jennifer Croswell.
Yet the exams, performed with CT scans, can produce more than just anxiety, according to Croswell's report, a pilot study for the ongoing National Lung Screening Trial, which includes 50,000 patients.
Suspicious findings can lead to invasive follow-up exams, such as biopsies or even surgeries in which doctors crack open the chest to access to the lungs, Croswell says.
Out of 1,600 smokers and ex-smokers in the study who had the CT scans, 40 had real cancer, but eight had unnecessary surgery for non-cancerous conditions.
Yet Croswell can't say whether the screenings actually helped anyone. That's because the larger study hasn't gone on long enough to show whether screening saves lives, she says. And because lung surgeries are risky, she says it's possible for the screenings themselves to cause death.
CT scans also expose people to radiation, which increases the risk of cancer, says Peter Bach, a pulmonologist at New York's Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.
Other research has suggested that tumors found through screening could be much less lethal than lung cancers that are found because they cause symptoms, so that finding these slow-growing cancers may not help anyone. Also, longtime smokers or ex-smokers could die of other causes, such as heart attacks or strokes, long before their cancer becomes a threat.
In fact, people who get CT scans are 100 times more likely to get a false alarm then they are to die of lung cancer, says Bach, the author of a 2007 study on lung cancer screening.
The American Cancer Society does not recommend lung screenings and they are not covered by insurance, Bach says. Insurers do cover follow-up tests and lung cancer treatments.
The National Institutes of Health is running a large study to find out if screening patients with CT scans can save lives. Some doctors are already offering the screenings in the hopes of finding tumors early, when they might be more curable. Lung cancer kills more people than any other tumor, with 215,000 new cases a year and 162,000 deaths, according to the American Cancer Society.
But the scan's results aren't always clear or easy to interpret, leading to false alarms.
People who are screened have a 21% chance of being unnecessarily frightened by findings that initially seem suspicious, but turn out to be benign, says lead author Jennifer Croswell.
Yet the exams, performed with CT scans, can produce more than just anxiety, according to Croswell's report, a pilot study for the ongoing National Lung Screening Trial, which includes 50,000 patients.
Suspicious findings can lead to invasive follow-up exams, such as biopsies or even surgeries in which doctors crack open the chest to access to the lungs, Croswell says.
Out of 1,600 smokers and ex-smokers in the study who had the CT scans, 40 had real cancer, but eight had unnecessary surgery for non-cancerous conditions.
Yet Croswell can't say whether the screenings actually helped anyone. That's because the larger study hasn't gone on long enough to show whether screening saves lives, she says. And because lung surgeries are risky, she says it's possible for the screenings themselves to cause death.
CT scans also expose people to radiation, which increases the risk of cancer, says Peter Bach, a pulmonologist at New York's Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.
Other research has suggested that tumors found through screening could be much less lethal than lung cancers that are found because they cause symptoms, so that finding these slow-growing cancers may not help anyone. Also, longtime smokers or ex-smokers could die of other causes, such as heart attacks or strokes, long before their cancer becomes a threat.
In fact, people who get CT scans are 100 times more likely to get a false alarm then they are to die of lung cancer, says Bach, the author of a 2007 study on lung cancer screening.
The American Cancer Society does not recommend lung screenings and they are not covered by insurance, Bach says. Insurers do cover follow-up tests and lung cancer treatments.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Science Daily reports: Drug Combination Improves Outcome For Advanced Non-small Cell Lung Cancer
A new, international study found that the combination of two drugs delays disease progression for patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Results from the Phase III "ATLAS" trial were presented May 30 by Dr. Vincent Miller of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) at the American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting.
The goal of the study was to determine whether adding erlotinib (Tarceva®), a targeted agent, to maintenance therapy with bevacizumab (Avastin®), an agent commonly used as a component of treatment for advanced NSCLC would delay disease progression. Maintenance therapy involves using one or more agents of a chemotherapy regimen, but not the entire regimen, to delay disease progression and possibly improve survival after patients have previously received stronger standard chemotherapy, which can have significant side effects.
"This is the first study to show the addition of erlotinib to maintenance therapy prolongs progression-free survival in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer," said Dr. Miller, a thoracic oncologist at MSKCC and one of the study's lead authors. "Knowing which patients will get the greatest benefit from this combination, based on the identification of biomarkers, will be an important next step in this research," Dr. Miller added.
Read more.
The goal of the study was to determine whether adding erlotinib (Tarceva®), a targeted agent, to maintenance therapy with bevacizumab (Avastin®), an agent commonly used as a component of treatment for advanced NSCLC would delay disease progression. Maintenance therapy involves using one or more agents of a chemotherapy regimen, but not the entire regimen, to delay disease progression and possibly improve survival after patients have previously received stronger standard chemotherapy, which can have significant side effects.
"This is the first study to show the addition of erlotinib to maintenance therapy prolongs progression-free survival in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer," said Dr. Miller, a thoracic oncologist at MSKCC and one of the study's lead authors. "Knowing which patients will get the greatest benefit from this combination, based on the identification of biomarkers, will be an important next step in this research," Dr. Miller added.
Science Daily reports: Activated Stem Cells In Damaged Lungs Could Be First Step Toward Cancer
Stem cells that respond after a severe injury in the lungs of mice may be a source of rapidly dividing cells that lead to lung cancer, according to a team of American and British researchers.
"There are chemically resistant, local-tissue stem cells in the lung that only activate after severe injury," said Barry R. Stripp, Ph.D., professor of medicine and cell biology at Duke University Medical Center. "Cigarette smoke contains a host of toxic chemicals, and smoking is one factor that we anticipate would stimulate these stem cells. Our findings demonstrate that, with severe injury, the resulting repair response leads to large numbers of proliferating cells that are derived from these rare stem cells."
Stripp said this finding could be related to the increased incidence of lung cancer in people with chronic disease states, in particular among cigarette smokers.
The findings were published in the advance online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences during the week of May 25.
Read more.
"There are chemically resistant, local-tissue stem cells in the lung that only activate after severe injury," said Barry R. Stripp, Ph.D., professor of medicine and cell biology at Duke University Medical Center. "Cigarette smoke contains a host of toxic chemicals, and smoking is one factor that we anticipate would stimulate these stem cells. Our findings demonstrate that, with severe injury, the resulting repair response leads to large numbers of proliferating cells that are derived from these rare stem cells."
Stripp said this finding could be related to the increased incidence of lung cancer in people with chronic disease states, in particular among cigarette smokers.
The findings were published in the advance online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences during the week of May 25.
Read more.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Lung Cancer Alliance Calls American Cancer Society's Claim of Progress Selective
Lung Cancer Alliance (LCA) said that the American Cancer Society's claim of "progress in cancer fight" earlier this week was based on "selective culling of statistics and ignores the dismal truth that we have made very little progress on the most lethal cancers, including lung cancer, which causes one in every two cancer deaths, or in metastatic cancer of any kind."
LCA President & CEO Laurie Fenton Ambrose agreed that progress has been made with certain cancers such as breast, prostate and colon which have widely accepted screening tests for early detection and ACS deserves credit for promulgating information to the public on the importance of these tests.
"But this is not time to be celebrating when half of all cancers still have survival rates of less than 50% and when we are facing a 45% increase in the overall number of new cancer cases by the year 2030," she said, citing a recent report on the upcoming tidal wave in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
"There could be no stronger wake-up call," she said. "We can't continue to tout selected changes in incidence and mortality rates over a limited number of cancers over a limited period of time. We have to step back and look at the big picture and try to figure out why we have not done better and where we have to go from here."
LCA President & CEO Laurie Fenton Ambrose agreed that progress has been made with certain cancers such as breast, prostate and colon which have widely accepted screening tests for early detection and ACS deserves credit for promulgating information to the public on the importance of these tests.
"But this is not time to be celebrating when half of all cancers still have survival rates of less than 50% and when we are facing a 45% increase in the overall number of new cancer cases by the year 2030," she said, citing a recent report on the upcoming tidal wave in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
"There could be no stronger wake-up call," she said. "We can't continue to tout selected changes in incidence and mortality rates over a limited number of cancers over a limited period of time. We have to step back and look at the big picture and try to figure out why we have not done better and where we have to go from here."
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Top NC advocate of smoking ban has lung surgery
The powerful state House Democratic leader who drove the Legislature to pass a statewide indoor smoking ban had surgery Tuesday to remove part of his lung, his legislative aide said.
House Majority Leader Hugh Holliman, D-Davidson, had surgery at Forsyth Medical Center in Winston-Salem and was recovering in the hospital's intensive care unit, his legislative assistant, Carol Bowers, said after speaking with the legislator's wife, Ellen.
Holliman had a lower lobe of his right lung removed, Bowers said. Test results will determine later whether the removed section was cancerous, Bowers said. He was in stable condition Tuesday, hospital spokeswoman Freda Springs said.
Holliman's surgery came a week after he was collecting plaudits from Gov. Beverly Perdue as the driving force behind legislation that will ban smoking inside restaurants and bars when it takes effect in January. Perdue called the law a turning point for the state that remains the country's largest tobacco grower.
Read more.
House Majority Leader Hugh Holliman, D-Davidson, had surgery at Forsyth Medical Center in Winston-Salem and was recovering in the hospital's intensive care unit, his legislative assistant, Carol Bowers, said after speaking with the legislator's wife, Ellen.
Holliman had a lower lobe of his right lung removed, Bowers said. Test results will determine later whether the removed section was cancerous, Bowers said. He was in stable condition Tuesday, hospital spokeswoman Freda Springs said.
Holliman's surgery came a week after he was collecting plaudits from Gov. Beverly Perdue as the driving force behind legislation that will ban smoking inside restaurants and bars when it takes effect in January. Perdue called the law a turning point for the state that remains the country's largest tobacco grower.
Read more.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
The State reports: SC legislators try to end shortened session
South Carolina legislators appear to be heading home without final deals worked out on big issues.
Thursday's adjournment will come with no final agreements on raising the state's cigarette tax and there's little expectation the Senate will be able to move a bill adding new restrictions to the state's payday lending industry.
The Legislature set a 5 p.m. deadline to adjourn. That's two weeks earlier than usual and comes after the House and Senate both took several weeks off without pay to save money.
That's left a last-minute scramble to deal with legislation. The Senate has to deal with 30 budget vetoes.
Lawmakers will return briefly in June to deal with vetoes. They've also allowed themselves the option of coming back to deal with budget problems later in the year.
Thursday's adjournment will come with no final agreements on raising the state's cigarette tax and there's little expectation the Senate will be able to move a bill adding new restrictions to the state's payday lending industry.
The Legislature set a 5 p.m. deadline to adjourn. That's two weeks earlier than usual and comes after the House and Senate both took several weeks off without pay to save money.
That's left a last-minute scramble to deal with legislation. The Senate has to deal with 30 budget vetoes.
Lawmakers will return briefly in June to deal with vetoes. They've also allowed themselves the option of coming back to deal with budget problems later in the year.
The State reports: Isotope shortage could delay cancer tests
Canadian officials have again shut down a nuclear reactor that produces much of the world's radioactive isotopes used to diagnose cancer patients through medical imaging.
Patients in line for medical tests to diagnose cancer and heart ailments may have a longer wait as hospitals try to conserve a scarce supply of isotopes, doctors say.
The latest shutdown of an Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. nuclear reactor at Chalk River, Ontario - which provides about half the global supply of isotopes used in medical imaging - is expected to last about a month as technicians repair a leak of heavy water.
Government-owned AECL said Tuesday it has enough medical isotopes for the coming week, but will unable to meet demand by Saturday.
The AECL said its NRU reactor was shut down last Thursday after a power outage. The leak was discovered shortly after that.
The 52-year-old reactor was ordered closed by Canada's nuclear regulator in 2007 until mandated safety upgrades had been completed. The nearly monthlong shutdown that resulted sparked a critical global shortage of medical isotopes used in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer and heart ailments, and only ended when Canada's Parliament voted to bypass the regulator's order.
Another lengthy shortage will force hospitals to delay non-urgent tests, said Dr. Karen Gulenchyn, a nuclear medicine expert who helped advise former Canadian health minister Tony Clement during the last isotope shortage in December 2007.
"It may mean that if you have an elective study booked ... that patient is going to be deferred and have to wait until the situation is resolved," she said.
Patients in line for medical tests to diagnose cancer and heart ailments may have a longer wait as hospitals try to conserve a scarce supply of isotopes, doctors say.
The latest shutdown of an Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. nuclear reactor at Chalk River, Ontario - which provides about half the global supply of isotopes used in medical imaging - is expected to last about a month as technicians repair a leak of heavy water.
Government-owned AECL said Tuesday it has enough medical isotopes for the coming week, but will unable to meet demand by Saturday.
The AECL said its NRU reactor was shut down last Thursday after a power outage. The leak was discovered shortly after that.
The 52-year-old reactor was ordered closed by Canada's nuclear regulator in 2007 until mandated safety upgrades had been completed. The nearly monthlong shutdown that resulted sparked a critical global shortage of medical isotopes used in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer and heart ailments, and only ended when Canada's Parliament voted to bypass the regulator's order.
Another lengthy shortage will force hospitals to delay non-urgent tests, said Dr. Karen Gulenchyn, a nuclear medicine expert who helped advise former Canadian health minister Tony Clement during the last isotope shortage in December 2007.
"It may mean that if you have an elective study booked ... that patient is going to be deferred and have to wait until the situation is resolved," she said.
The State reports: A taste of help to keep cancer patients' pounds up
The statistic is shocking: Severe malnutrition and weight loss play a role in at least one in five cancer deaths. Yet nutrition too often is an afterthought until someone's already in trouble.
A move is on to change that, from hospitals that hire fancy gourmet chefs to the American Cancer Society's dietitians-on-call phone service.
With cancer, you've got to "bring a lot more nutrients to each spoonful of food," Certified Master Chef Jack Shoop is learning. A former restaurateur, he's newly in charge of the kitchen at the Cancer Treatment Centers of America in Philadelphia.
Don't underestimate the added temptation should the result resemble Bon Appetit: "The visual heartiness, and the actual heartiness, of these foods has to be understood for them to embrace it," Shoop insists.
Tempting the palate is a huge hurdle: At diagnosis, up to a quarter of patients already have their appetite sapped, and most treatments can bring side effects that worsen the problem. Aside from the well-known nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, some cancers inhibit absorption of the nutrients patients force down. Not to mention strangely altered taste, mouth sores, dry mouth, difficulty swallowing and constipation.
About half of all cancer patients eventually suffer serious weight loss and malnutrition, a wasting syndrome called cachexia where they don't just lose excess fat but vital muscle. A healthy person's body adjusts when it doesn't get enough calories, slowing metabolism to conserve nutrients. A cancer patient's body doesn't make that adjustment; metabolism even may speed up.
The National Cancer Institute estimates cachexia is the immediate cause of death for at least 20 percent of cancer patients, although advanced cancer might have eventually claimed many of them.
How much weight loss is too much? The institute defines patients as at-risk when they've lost more than 10 percent of their usual weight. Other research suggests that patients who lose more than 5 percent of their pre-cancer weight have a worse prognosis than people who can hang onto the pounds.
For their best shot at doing that, the American Cancer Society urges patients to ask to be assessed by a registered dietitian up front, right at diagnosis. While that's common at designated cancer centers where dietitians work on-staff, it's not routine elsewhere and surveys suggest just a third of patients have access to cancer nutritionists where they're being treated.
"Patients who are well-nourished as they're going through treatment have shorter hospital stays, are better able to tolerate treatment," not to mention have better quality of life, says Colleen Doyle, nutrition chief at the society, which offers nutrition advice through its hot line at 1-800-ACS-2345.
Desperate patients often hunt their own nutrition advice on the Internet but can't tell the good from the bad. The No. 1 Web-perpetuated myth: that sugar feeds tumor cells. Not true, says Maureen Huhmann, who chairs the American Dietetic Association's oncology nutrition group. In fact, protein-packed milkshakes and smoothies can literally be lifesaving for some patients.
"I don't want people to start losing weight because they cut foods out of their diet when they don't really need to," says Huhmann.
Then there are people overweight when diagnosed who delight at shedding pounds - until they learn they're not just losing fat but muscle, too.
"You can be overweight and even obese and still be malnourished. It's a dilemma," says Carolyn Lammersfeld, the Cancer Treatment Centers' nutrition director who works with Shoop, the chef, to help patients find palatable options.
Typically, a cancer patient needs as much as twice the protein of a healthy person and about 10 percent more calories. Some tumors bring bigger nutritional threats than others: Gastrointestinal and lung cancers tend to cause more weight loss than breast cancer.
Anti-nausea medications developed in the past decade bring relief to many patients, although they're not always covered by insurance. Among options are a synthetic version of an ingredient from marijuana; cancer experts don't promote smoking marijuana although some advocates claim it helps. Doctors also can prescribe appetite stimulants and, for worst cases, feeding tubes.
But eating by mouth is best, and dietitians can offer tips to help: Snacking throughout the day instead of trying to force down large meals can help, and high-fat or high-fiber foods make nausea last longer.
In his Philadelphia hospital cafeteria, Shoop gives taste tests to introduce patients to healthful foods they may never have tried: Quinoa, a grain with the same amino acids of meat, or Arctic char, a salmon-like fish but less fatty.
Doing his own butchering allows Shoop to make stocks and sauces with the bones to add even more protein to meat dishes. Garnish with mushrooms, he advises, for a bit more.
And he teaches caregivers how to add 400 extra calories and 20 grams of protein to a simple smoothie, milkshake or oatmeal - using whole milk or yogurt, some protein powder, and grinding up fruits, nuts and flax seed.
"If you're not getting answers, keep searching," says Lammersfeld. "People need to know that weight loss and not being able to eat is not a good thing during cancer treatment."
A move is on to change that, from hospitals that hire fancy gourmet chefs to the American Cancer Society's dietitians-on-call phone service.
With cancer, you've got to "bring a lot more nutrients to each spoonful of food," Certified Master Chef Jack Shoop is learning. A former restaurateur, he's newly in charge of the kitchen at the Cancer Treatment Centers of America in Philadelphia.
Don't underestimate the added temptation should the result resemble Bon Appetit: "The visual heartiness, and the actual heartiness, of these foods has to be understood for them to embrace it," Shoop insists.
Tempting the palate is a huge hurdle: At diagnosis, up to a quarter of patients already have their appetite sapped, and most treatments can bring side effects that worsen the problem. Aside from the well-known nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, some cancers inhibit absorption of the nutrients patients force down. Not to mention strangely altered taste, mouth sores, dry mouth, difficulty swallowing and constipation.
About half of all cancer patients eventually suffer serious weight loss and malnutrition, a wasting syndrome called cachexia where they don't just lose excess fat but vital muscle. A healthy person's body adjusts when it doesn't get enough calories, slowing metabolism to conserve nutrients. A cancer patient's body doesn't make that adjustment; metabolism even may speed up.
The National Cancer Institute estimates cachexia is the immediate cause of death for at least 20 percent of cancer patients, although advanced cancer might have eventually claimed many of them.
How much weight loss is too much? The institute defines patients as at-risk when they've lost more than 10 percent of their usual weight. Other research suggests that patients who lose more than 5 percent of their pre-cancer weight have a worse prognosis than people who can hang onto the pounds.
For their best shot at doing that, the American Cancer Society urges patients to ask to be assessed by a registered dietitian up front, right at diagnosis. While that's common at designated cancer centers where dietitians work on-staff, it's not routine elsewhere and surveys suggest just a third of patients have access to cancer nutritionists where they're being treated.
"Patients who are well-nourished as they're going through treatment have shorter hospital stays, are better able to tolerate treatment," not to mention have better quality of life, says Colleen Doyle, nutrition chief at the society, which offers nutrition advice through its hot line at 1-800-ACS-2345.
Desperate patients often hunt their own nutrition advice on the Internet but can't tell the good from the bad. The No. 1 Web-perpetuated myth: that sugar feeds tumor cells. Not true, says Maureen Huhmann, who chairs the American Dietetic Association's oncology nutrition group. In fact, protein-packed milkshakes and smoothies can literally be lifesaving for some patients.
"I don't want people to start losing weight because they cut foods out of their diet when they don't really need to," says Huhmann.
Then there are people overweight when diagnosed who delight at shedding pounds - until they learn they're not just losing fat but muscle, too.
"You can be overweight and even obese and still be malnourished. It's a dilemma," says Carolyn Lammersfeld, the Cancer Treatment Centers' nutrition director who works with Shoop, the chef, to help patients find palatable options.
Typically, a cancer patient needs as much as twice the protein of a healthy person and about 10 percent more calories. Some tumors bring bigger nutritional threats than others: Gastrointestinal and lung cancers tend to cause more weight loss than breast cancer.
Anti-nausea medications developed in the past decade bring relief to many patients, although they're not always covered by insurance. Among options are a synthetic version of an ingredient from marijuana; cancer experts don't promote smoking marijuana although some advocates claim it helps. Doctors also can prescribe appetite stimulants and, for worst cases, feeding tubes.
But eating by mouth is best, and dietitians can offer tips to help: Snacking throughout the day instead of trying to force down large meals can help, and high-fat or high-fiber foods make nausea last longer.
In his Philadelphia hospital cafeteria, Shoop gives taste tests to introduce patients to healthful foods they may never have tried: Quinoa, a grain with the same amino acids of meat, or Arctic char, a salmon-like fish but less fatty.
Doing his own butchering allows Shoop to make stocks and sauces with the bones to add even more protein to meat dishes. Garnish with mushrooms, he advises, for a bit more.
And he teaches caregivers how to add 400 extra calories and 20 grams of protein to a simple smoothie, milkshake or oatmeal - using whole milk or yogurt, some protein powder, and grinding up fruits, nuts and flax seed.
"If you're not getting answers, keep searching," says Lammersfeld. "People need to know that weight loss and not being able to eat is not a good thing during cancer treatment."
The State reports: Study links cigarette changes to rising lung risk
It may be riskier on the lungs to smoke cigarettes today than it was a few decades ago - at least in the U.S., says new research that blames changes in cigarette design for fueling a certain type of lung cancer.
Up to half of the nation's lung cancer cases may be due to those changes, Dr. David Burns of the University of California, San Diego, told a recent meeting of tobacco researchers.
It's not the first time that scientists have concluded the 1960s movement for lower-tar cigarettes brought some unexpected consequences. But this study, while preliminary, is among the most in-depth looks. And intriguingly it found the increase in a kind of lung tumor called adenocarcinoma was higher in the U.S. than in Australia even though both countries switched to so-called milder cigarettes at the same time.
"The most likely explanation for it is a change in the cigarette," Burns said in an interview - and he cited a difference: Cigarettes sold in Australia contain lower levels of nitrosamines, a known carcinogen, than those sold in the U.S.
That's circumstantial evidence that requires more research, he acknowledged.
Up to half of the nation's lung cancer cases may be due to those changes, Dr. David Burns of the University of California, San Diego, told a recent meeting of tobacco researchers.
It's not the first time that scientists have concluded the 1960s movement for lower-tar cigarettes brought some unexpected consequences. But this study, while preliminary, is among the most in-depth looks. And intriguingly it found the increase in a kind of lung tumor called adenocarcinoma was higher in the U.S. than in Australia even though both countries switched to so-called milder cigarettes at the same time.
"The most likely explanation for it is a change in the cigarette," Burns said in an interview - and he cited a difference: Cigarettes sold in Australia contain lower levels of nitrosamines, a known carcinogen, than those sold in the U.S.
That's circumstantial evidence that requires more research, he acknowledged.
Friday, May 15, 2009
Time for the "Golf for Conner" fundraiser golf tournament!
Join The Christopher Conner Foundation in making the 2nd Annual Golf for Conner Tournament a success! They are looking teams, sponsors, and silent auction items for the 2nd annual "Golf for Conner" tournament. Any donation would be greatly appreciated. The foundation realizes times are tough, but every little bit counts. Please help them get the word out to as many people as possible.
Please visit the "Golf for Conner" group page on Facebook.
Below is some more information on the tournament, as well as a link to the registration and sponsor forms.
Thanks for your help!
Time for the "Golf for Conner" fundraiser golf tournament!!
The link above will allow you to print the registration form & also the sponsor form. Send them in ASAP!!
What:Golf Tournament fundraiser event in honor of our dear friend Chris Conner.
This event will host an array of musical talent throughout the day into the eveningincluding a Silent Auction. All profits will go towards an Educational Fund for his son Ace Conner & also to support the Christopher Conner Foundation.
Where: The Country Club of Lexington1066 Barr RoadLexington, SC 29072
Where: The Country Club of Lexington1066 Barr RoadLexington, SC 29072
When:Wednesday, May 20th, 2009Morning & Afternoon Tee Times7:30 am Registration, Shotgun Start at 8:30 am (30 teams)12:00 pm Registration, Shotgun Start at 1:30 pm (30 teams)
Silent Auction:Forms attached
If anyone has contacts they may be able to collect an Auction Item from, it would greatly be appreciated!
Contacts:
Brad Alewine, Shannon Howard Pooser, Molly Palmer Lowder, Brent Caughman, Charles Wilkie
"Golf for Conner"
PO Box 566Lexington, SC 29071
803-214-2226
May's Issue of Woman's Health Magazine reports: When a Fit Body Fails You
Being active, not smoking, and eating right can go a long way toward protecting you against lung cancer. But it's not always enough.
Emily Miner gave up smoking at age 6. "I was on a camping trip with my cousins," the 39-year-old Californian recalls. As the family sat around the campfire, her uncle lit a cigar. Intrigued by the sharp scent of the smoke, Emily persuaded him to let her try it. "I took a huge puff and turned green," she says. "That was it for me."
Thirty years later, Emily was a picture of healthy living: She ran a family winery in Napa Valley with her husband, Dave, had two young daughters, and was training for a half—marathon. So the discovery that a deadly disease was ravaging her was nothing short of shocking.
It started out as back pain, a recurring twinge. When an MRI showed a tumor on her spine and spots on her lungs, Emily and her oncologist assumed it must be breast cancer that had spread, a diagnosis not unknown in young, healthy women. No one was prepared for the biopsy result, which showed that Emily had lung cancer that had metastasized to her spine.
The number of lung cancer deaths among American women has grown by 600 percent since 1950. The disease is highly fatal, killing more women each year than breast and all gynecologic cancers combined. Today, one in every 16 women will develop lung cancer. And though the increase in its incidence is most likely due to a surge in the number of women smokers, nonsmokers aren't immune, says Michael Thun, M.D., vice president emeritus and research director of epidemiology for the American Cancer Society.
"No one's risk is zero," Emily says emphatically. "Look at me."
Read more.
Emily Miner gave up smoking at age 6. "I was on a camping trip with my cousins," the 39-year-old Californian recalls. As the family sat around the campfire, her uncle lit a cigar. Intrigued by the sharp scent of the smoke, Emily persuaded him to let her try it. "I took a huge puff and turned green," she says. "That was it for me."
Thirty years later, Emily was a picture of healthy living: She ran a family winery in Napa Valley with her husband, Dave, had two young daughters, and was training for a half—marathon. So the discovery that a deadly disease was ravaging her was nothing short of shocking.
It started out as back pain, a recurring twinge. When an MRI showed a tumor on her spine and spots on her lungs, Emily and her oncologist assumed it must be breast cancer that had spread, a diagnosis not unknown in young, healthy women. No one was prepared for the biopsy result, which showed that Emily had lung cancer that had metastasized to her spine.
The number of lung cancer deaths among American women has grown by 600 percent since 1950. The disease is highly fatal, killing more women each year than breast and all gynecologic cancers combined. Today, one in every 16 women will develop lung cancer. And though the increase in its incidence is most likely due to a surge in the number of women smokers, nonsmokers aren't immune, says Michael Thun, M.D., vice president emeritus and research director of epidemiology for the American Cancer Society.
"No one's risk is zero," Emily says emphatically. "Look at me."
Read more.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
The State reports: Higher cigarette tax will make S.C. more physically and fiscally fit
Most people know that smoking carries a major health impact. A recent study by the Harvard School of Public Health confirms that smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States. It is a primary cause of lung cancer, heart and vascular disease and emphysema, is associated with many digestive cancers, bladder cancer, breast cancer, reproductive disturbances, is a contributor to age-related mental decline and so on.
Most, however, do not consider that smoking also exacts a significant fiscal toll on our state.
The U.S. Center for Disease Control estimates that every pack of cigarettes sold generates $7 in smoking-related health-care costs and lost worker productivity. That cost is paid by every taxpayer, every private health insurance customer (individual and business) and by employers — regardless of whether any of them smoke or not. As such, smoking creates both physical loss in the form of damage to life and health, and fiscal loss in the form of medical treatment for smoking-related illness and lost worker productivity.
Some would consider this a hidden tax that every citizen pays to treat the deadly habit of a few.
One of the most effective ways to drive down this human and financial toll is to reduce the number of smokers by helping people choose not to smoke in the first place.
The sooner South Carolina enacts an increase in the cigarette tax, the sooner our state starts to save lives and reduce the toll. We make an investment in our physical and financial health today and tomorrow. Fewer people begin to smoke, and more smokers quit. We, our children and grandchildren enjoy healthier, longer, more productive lives. We spend less emotion and money treating illness and disease.
The S.C. Tobacco Collaborative and our partners strongly urge our legislators to consider South Carolina’s physical and fiscal health, and pass the cigarette tax increase this session. We cannot afford to wait.
Mr. Bowie is executive director of the S.C. Tobacco Collaborative, a partnership of individuals, organizations and agencies committed to reducing the toll of tobacco use in South Carolina. He is a S.C. native and resident of Chapin.
Most, however, do not consider that smoking also exacts a significant fiscal toll on our state.
The U.S. Center for Disease Control estimates that every pack of cigarettes sold generates $7 in smoking-related health-care costs and lost worker productivity. That cost is paid by every taxpayer, every private health insurance customer (individual and business) and by employers — regardless of whether any of them smoke or not. As such, smoking creates both physical loss in the form of damage to life and health, and fiscal loss in the form of medical treatment for smoking-related illness and lost worker productivity.
Some would consider this a hidden tax that every citizen pays to treat the deadly habit of a few.
One of the most effective ways to drive down this human and financial toll is to reduce the number of smokers by helping people choose not to smoke in the first place.
The sooner South Carolina enacts an increase in the cigarette tax, the sooner our state starts to save lives and reduce the toll. We make an investment in our physical and financial health today and tomorrow. Fewer people begin to smoke, and more smokers quit. We, our children and grandchildren enjoy healthier, longer, more productive lives. We spend less emotion and money treating illness and disease.
The S.C. Tobacco Collaborative and our partners strongly urge our legislators to consider South Carolina’s physical and fiscal health, and pass the cigarette tax increase this session. We cannot afford to wait.
Mr. Bowie is executive director of the S.C. Tobacco Collaborative, a partnership of individuals, organizations and agencies committed to reducing the toll of tobacco use in South Carolina. He is a S.C. native and resident of Chapin.
WTVD-TV Raleigh-Durham, NC reports:
The North Carolina Legislature voted to pass a broad smoking ban Wednesday.
The measure would ban lighting up in all enclosed restaurants and bars.
The final 62-56 vote came in the House where Majority Leader Hugh Holliman urged fellow House members to support the Senate version of the bill.
The Senate version bans smoking in nearly all restaurants and bars. It leaves out workplaces where children visit, which the House agreed to last month.
According to the state Division of Public Health, secondhand smoke is responsible for $289 million in state health care costs resulting from lung cancer and other diseases.
While the bill is meant to protect the public's health from second hand smoke, it provides some exceptions to private clubs, cigar bars and non-profit establishments and some feel like that is discrimination.
Opponents of the smoking ban also argue it violates the right of business owners to choose whether to allow smoking, and of their patrons.
"The bill that we have before us that we are being asked to vote on is as I've said before a terrible intrusion - a terrible governmental intrusion of personal freedom," Harnett County Rep. David Lewis said.
The bill now goes to Governor Beverly Perdue for her approval, and she has indicated she will sign it.
Read more.
The measure would ban lighting up in all enclosed restaurants and bars.
The final 62-56 vote came in the House where Majority Leader Hugh Holliman urged fellow House members to support the Senate version of the bill.
The Senate version bans smoking in nearly all restaurants and bars. It leaves out workplaces where children visit, which the House agreed to last month.
According to the state Division of Public Health, secondhand smoke is responsible for $289 million in state health care costs resulting from lung cancer and other diseases.
While the bill is meant to protect the public's health from second hand smoke, it provides some exceptions to private clubs, cigar bars and non-profit establishments and some feel like that is discrimination.
Opponents of the smoking ban also argue it violates the right of business owners to choose whether to allow smoking, and of their patrons.
"The bill that we have before us that we are being asked to vote on is as I've said before a terrible intrusion - a terrible governmental intrusion of personal freedom," Harnett County Rep. David Lewis said.
The bill now goes to Governor Beverly Perdue for her approval, and she has indicated she will sign it.
Read more.
Monday, May 11, 2009
The New York Times: Doctor Sounds Alarm Ahead of Tobacco Vote
For three decades, Dr. David M. Burns has written and edited some of the seminal work on tobacco science and the hazards of modern cigarettes: surgeon general’s reports, National Cancer Institute monographs, World Health Organization studies.
And he is hardly a dispassionate scientist. As a pulmonologist who has cared for hundreds of smokers who died of lung cancer, he is an unabashed campaigner against smoking.
That is why, with the Senate just weeks away from a vote on landmark legislation to regulate tobacco, Dr. Burns, 61, is now willing to sidestep the protocols of peer-reviewed science. He wants to sound one more alarm about the dangers of smoking.
Dr. Burns says he has new information, based on two years of study, indicating that cigarettes — even the supposedly safer ones — pose a much higher risk of lung cancer than before the surgeon general first declared them a health hazard in 1964.
He said the risk of a smoker’s developing lung cancer may be twice as high as it was then, even though tar and nicotine have been reduced.
Read more.
And he is hardly a dispassionate scientist. As a pulmonologist who has cared for hundreds of smokers who died of lung cancer, he is an unabashed campaigner against smoking.
That is why, with the Senate just weeks away from a vote on landmark legislation to regulate tobacco, Dr. Burns, 61, is now willing to sidestep the protocols of peer-reviewed science. He wants to sound one more alarm about the dangers of smoking.
Dr. Burns says he has new information, based on two years of study, indicating that cigarettes — even the supposedly safer ones — pose a much higher risk of lung cancer than before the surgeon general first declared them a health hazard in 1964.
He said the risk of a smoker’s developing lung cancer may be twice as high as it was then, even though tar and nicotine have been reduced.
Read more.
Mail Online from the UK reports: Women smokers get lung cancer earlier than men, says study
Women are more vulnerable to the deadly side effects of smoking than men, a lung cancer study found.
Research into patients with the disease found women tended to be diagnosed at a younger age than men - even though they had smoked fewer cigarettes.
They were also more likely to develop one of the most common forms of the cancer, researchers said.
It adds to the growing pile of evidence suggesting that women are more vulnerable to the cancer-causing chemicals, or carcinogens, in tobacco than men.
The study looked at 683 lung cancer patients treated at a Swiss clinic between 2000 and 2005. It found that female smokers were statistically most likely to develop adenocarcinoma - a common form of lung cancer - and were more likely to be diagnosed with the disease at an earlier age.
Study leader Dr Martin Frueh, from St Gallen Canton Hospital in Switzerland, said: 'Our findings suggest that women may have an increased susceptibility to tobacco carcinogens.'
Read more.
Research into patients with the disease found women tended to be diagnosed at a younger age than men - even though they had smoked fewer cigarettes.
They were also more likely to develop one of the most common forms of the cancer, researchers said.
It adds to the growing pile of evidence suggesting that women are more vulnerable to the cancer-causing chemicals, or carcinogens, in tobacco than men.
The study looked at 683 lung cancer patients treated at a Swiss clinic between 2000 and 2005. It found that female smokers were statistically most likely to develop adenocarcinoma - a common form of lung cancer - and were more likely to be diagnosed with the disease at an earlier age.
Study leader Dr Martin Frueh, from St Gallen Canton Hospital in Switzerland, said: 'Our findings suggest that women may have an increased susceptibility to tobacco carcinogens.'
Read more.
Friday, May 8, 2009
The Post and Courier reports: Tax increase may be stubbed out
Vote by Senate panel ignites debate that's likely to delay proposals until January
South Carolina smokers probably won't have to pay an extra 50 cents for a pack of cigarettes this year, thanks to a legislative battle that's broken out in the session's final days.
And because of that same conflict, low-income workers probably won't get help this year paying for health insurance.
"The cigarette tax proposals may be delayed until January with no clear-cut agreement over how to spend the money," said Sen. Larry Grooms, R-Bonneau. "It's a straight-up tax increase."
A decision Thursday by the Senate Finance Committee opens up a major fight on the Senate floor that likely won't be resolved with only six legislative days left before the anticipated summer adjournment.
South Carolina smokers probably won't have to pay an extra 50 cents for a pack of cigarettes this year, thanks to a legislative battle that's broken out in the session's final days.
And because of that same conflict, low-income workers probably won't get help this year paying for health insurance.
"The cigarette tax proposals may be delayed until January with no clear-cut agreement over how to spend the money," said Sen. Larry Grooms, R-Bonneau. "It's a straight-up tax increase."
A decision Thursday by the Senate Finance Committee opens up a major fight on the Senate floor that likely won't be resolved with only six legislative days left before the anticipated summer adjournment.
The Greenville News reports: Bill to raise cigarette taxes goes to Senate floor
A bill to raise the tax on cigarettes by 50 cents per pack was sent to the Senate floor this morning (Thursday, May 7, 2009) but without any plan to spend the revenue.
The 16-5 vote by the Senate Finance Committee comes two days after the panel deadlocked on the issue over disagreement on how to spend the money.
The panel this morning specified only that $5 million be spent for lung cancer research at the Hollings Cancer Center in Charleston. The remainder of the projected $144 million to be collected beginning July 1 would go into a trust fund.
Lawmakers would decide later how the funds would be spent.
Read more.
The 16-5 vote by the Senate Finance Committee comes two days after the panel deadlocked on the issue over disagreement on how to spend the money.
The panel this morning specified only that $5 million be spent for lung cancer research at the Hollings Cancer Center in Charleston. The remainder of the projected $144 million to be collected beginning July 1 would go into a trust fund.
Lawmakers would decide later how the funds would be spent.
Read more.
Thursday, May 7, 2009
The State reports: Committee OK's 50-cent hike to SC cigarette tax
South Carolina's cigarette tax would increase by 50-cents per pack under a plan advancing through the Legislature.
The Senate Finance Committee on Thursday voted 16-5 to raise the nation's lowest per pack tax from 7 cents to 57 cents.
The nod came after lawmakers scrapped plans to use the $145 million that would be raised by the tax to set up a new health insurance program for the state's low-income residents.
Instead, much of the money would go to a trust fund for future health care needs. Some $5 million would go to a cancer research center at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston.
South Carolina's cigarette tax hasn't been increased since 1977.
The Senate Finance Committee on Thursday voted 16-5 to raise the nation's lowest per pack tax from 7 cents to 57 cents.
The nod came after lawmakers scrapped plans to use the $145 million that would be raised by the tax to set up a new health insurance program for the state's low-income residents.
Instead, much of the money would go to a trust fund for future health care needs. Some $5 million would go to a cancer research center at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston.
South Carolina's cigarette tax hasn't been increased since 1977.
The Boston Herald reports: Cancer sidelines Jerry Remy, voice of Red Sox
Jerry Remy, the voice of the Red Sox [team stats] for more than 20 years, is fighting the aftereffects of lung cancer and will be out of the broadcast booth indefinitely.
Remy underwent surgery late last year, NESN revealed yesterday, and has since battled an infection and pneumonia.
On his Twitter site, Remy said he suffered his setback as he left for spring training. “In hindsight, it was a mistake to go and I am paying the price for it now,” he wrote.
He added he’ll be back in time “to take the team all the way to the 2009 World Series.”
Read more.
Remy underwent surgery late last year, NESN revealed yesterday, and has since battled an infection and pneumonia.
On his Twitter site, Remy said he suffered his setback as he left for spring training. “In hindsight, it was a mistake to go and I am paying the price for it now,” he wrote.
He added he’ll be back in time “to take the team all the way to the 2009 World Series.”
Read more.
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
The State reports: Backlog may snuff cigarette tax hike
Advocates of raising the state’s lowest-in-the-nation cigarette tax are worried a legislative backlog could prevent the bill from becoming law until the Legislature returns next year.
The Senate Finance Committee today is expected to vote on the plan, which would raise the tax by 50 cents a pack. The $139 million the tax is expected to raise would help employers purchase health insurance for low-income employees, or for those employees to purchase insurance directly.
The bill has widespread support, but lawmakers said the delays over payday lending, stimulus money and other legislation mean the cigarette tax might run out of time this session.
“It’s a very real possibility,” said Sen. Harvey Peeler, R-Cherokee. “It’s not an impossible jump, but there’s a lot of things ahead of it.”
Peeler said he has heard little opposition to the bill so far. Sen. Thomas Alexander, R-Oconee and chairman of the subcommittee studying the bill, expected minor changes to the House plan.
Lawmakers said one change would use tax revenue to fund the Hollings Cancer Center and another amendment might change the way smokeless tobacco products are taxed.
Contact your Senator now!
The Senate Finance Committee today is expected to vote on the plan, which would raise the tax by 50 cents a pack. The $139 million the tax is expected to raise would help employers purchase health insurance for low-income employees, or for those employees to purchase insurance directly.
The bill has widespread support, but lawmakers said the delays over payday lending, stimulus money and other legislation mean the cigarette tax might run out of time this session.
“It’s a very real possibility,” said Sen. Harvey Peeler, R-Cherokee. “It’s not an impossible jump, but there’s a lot of things ahead of it.”
Peeler said he has heard little opposition to the bill so far. Sen. Thomas Alexander, R-Oconee and chairman of the subcommittee studying the bill, expected minor changes to the House plan.
Lawmakers said one change would use tax revenue to fund the Hollings Cancer Center and another amendment might change the way smokeless tobacco products are taxed.
Contact your Senator now!
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Routine Exam May Have Been Life-Saver for Greenville's WYFF Weathercaster Keisha Kirkland
If you're young and healthy, it's easy to think that there's not much reason to worry about your health and that an annual physical is something that other, older people have to think about, not you.
But for WYFF 4 Weathercaster Keisha Kirkland, getting that annual physical may have just saved her life.
Keisha, 36, said that she felt perfectly healthy, but because of a family history of heart disease, she had some tests run several months ago.
Her heart was fine, but doctors found that she had the beginning stages of lung cancer.
"I’ve never smoked. I’m young, you know, in shape, I exercise, eat well," Keisha told WYFF News 4's Jane Robelot. "But, hey, I’m still dealing with this."
Dr. James Stephenson of Greenville Hospital System, Keisha's surgeon, said discovering the cancer was almost as unlikely as her chances of having it.
"She decided to have a calcium scoring test to look for heart disease due to some family history," Stephenson said. "Just by chance this abnormal area in her lung was noted on that scan."
Read Keisha Kirkland's Bio.
But for WYFF 4 Weathercaster Keisha Kirkland, getting that annual physical may have just saved her life.
Keisha, 36, said that she felt perfectly healthy, but because of a family history of heart disease, she had some tests run several months ago.
Her heart was fine, but doctors found that she had the beginning stages of lung cancer.
"I’ve never smoked. I’m young, you know, in shape, I exercise, eat well," Keisha told WYFF News 4's Jane Robelot. "But, hey, I’m still dealing with this."
Dr. James Stephenson of Greenville Hospital System, Keisha's surgeon, said discovering the cancer was almost as unlikely as her chances of having it.
"She decided to have a calcium scoring test to look for heart disease due to some family history," Stephenson said. "Just by chance this abnormal area in her lung was noted on that scan."
Read Keisha Kirkland's Bio.
Dr. Joan Schiller, National Lung Cancer Partnership President, was nominated to receive the Lynn Kotsiantos Lifetime Achievement Award
Congratulations!
Dr. Joan Schiller, Partnership President, was nominated to receive the Lynn Kotsiantos Lifetime Achievement Award by the Respiratory Health Association of Metropolitan Chicago (RHAMC). The award is made every year in honor of Lynn, a young mother who died from lung cancer.
Dr. Schiller will accept the award at RHAMC's May 7th Inspiration benefit for women's lung health in Chicago, IL.
Dr. Joan Schiller, Partnership President, was nominated to receive the Lynn Kotsiantos Lifetime Achievement Award by the Respiratory Health Association of Metropolitan Chicago (RHAMC). The award is made every year in honor of Lynn, a young mother who died from lung cancer.
Dr. Schiller will accept the award at RHAMC's May 7th Inspiration benefit for women's lung health in Chicago, IL.
Spring issue of CR magazine reports: The High Costs of Cancer Mortality
A new analysis helps put research funding into perspective
By Hannah Hoag
...new studies found that at least 25 percent of cancer’s costs could be attributed to lung cancer. In 2008, an estimated 161,840 people died of the disease in the U.S., far more than died of any other cancer. The researchers further calculated that if lung cancer mortality rates declined by 1 percent annually, the value of life lost in 2020 due to lung cancer would drop from a projected $433 billion to $355 billion. A 4 percent annual decline in these mortality rates would put the estimated value of life lost to lung cancer in 2020 at $192 billion.
“The issue with lung cancer is that we are so naive about what we really know,” says Regina Vidaver, the executive director of the National Lung Cancer Partnership. “We need more knowledge in every single aspect, certainly in understanding [cell] signaling pathways and where they go wrong in cancer initiation and drug-resistance development.”
Even so, Laurie Fenton Ambrose, the president and chief executive officer of the Lung Cancer Alliance, is optimistic that a 1 percent annual decline in mortality is possible with additional funding for lung cancer research, including efforts aimed at finding cancers earlier. “Most cancers that have seen improvements are due to a more robust mechanism to detect their cancers early,” she says.
Read more.
By Hannah Hoag
...new studies found that at least 25 percent of cancer’s costs could be attributed to lung cancer. In 2008, an estimated 161,840 people died of the disease in the U.S., far more than died of any other cancer. The researchers further calculated that if lung cancer mortality rates declined by 1 percent annually, the value of life lost in 2020 due to lung cancer would drop from a projected $433 billion to $355 billion. A 4 percent annual decline in these mortality rates would put the estimated value of life lost to lung cancer in 2020 at $192 billion.
“The issue with lung cancer is that we are so naive about what we really know,” says Regina Vidaver, the executive director of the National Lung Cancer Partnership. “We need more knowledge in every single aspect, certainly in understanding [cell] signaling pathways and where they go wrong in cancer initiation and drug-resistance development.”
Even so, Laurie Fenton Ambrose, the president and chief executive officer of the Lung Cancer Alliance, is optimistic that a 1 percent annual decline in mortality is possible with additional funding for lung cancer research, including efforts aimed at finding cancers earlier. “Most cancers that have seen improvements are due to a more robust mechanism to detect their cancers early,” she says.
Read more.
Lung Cancer Alliance to Canadian Medical Association Journal Editorial on Lung Cancer Screening
Monday, April 20, 2009: Last week, the Canadian Medical Association Journal published an editorial discussing lung cancer screening. In the piece, they misrepresented LCA's position on lung cancer screening. In addition, they came to the conclusion that the best use of funding for lung cancer would be in tobacco control and cessation programs. LCA President & CEO, Laurie Fenton Ambrose, sent in a Letter to the Editor of the Canadian Medical Association Journal clarifying LCA's position on lung cancer screening and urging those within the community to address the disease in a comprehensive manner with tobacco cessation programs, early detection and treatment research.
Dear Editor,
The editorial in the April 14, 2009 Canadian Medical Association Journal entitled "A Pause for Thought on Lung Cancer Screening", by M.B. Stanbrook and K. Flegel accuses the Lung Cancer Alliance of having "promoted" CT screening for lung cancer. For the record, our position is that those at high risk for lung cancer (those with greater than 20 pack year smoking history, those with a family history of lung cancer, those with exgtensive exposure to asbestos, radon, Agent Orange and other carcinogens) should speak with their doctors about the risks and benefits of a CT scan.
Please note that we emphasize those at high risk, not population based screening. Even before mammograms and psa testing became widely accepted population based screening tests in the US. (The 5-year survival rates for those cancers are now 88% and 99% respectively and whether or not screening played a role in this increase in survival rates you can debate). The 5-year survival rate for lung cancer is still only 15%.
Lung cancer is far more lethal for the individual patient and in its overall public health impact. Nearly one in every three cancer deaths in the United States is due to lung cancer and only 16% of patients are being diagnosed at an early, most curable stage. Advances in CT scanning now present an alternative to late stage diagnosis for those at hight risk and recent papers coming out of ongoing European trials are further refining the process of CT screening.
Certainly we can look forward to a simple biomarker to further refine the optimal population subset for a CT scan, and we have adocated strongly for reseach funding in these areas. But in the meantime are you suggesting that those at high risk should do nothing? Your conclusion is: "In the meantime, given how much we know about the prevention of lung cancer, targeting smoking avoidance and cessation, rather than detection and management of lung cancer, would seem a better investment."
Sadly this statement ignores the fact that over 50% of lung cancer is being diagnosed in people who have already quit, many of them decades ago. Another 15 to 20% have never smoked. Without considering these individuals,any investment analysis in lung cancer in 2009 and the future is incomplete and suspect.
Sincerely,
Laurie Fenton Ambrose
President & CEO
Lung Cancer Alliance
Laurie Fenton Ambrose
President & CEO
Lung Cancer Alliance
The New York Times: Voices of Lung Cancer
Lung cancer is the biggest cancer killer in the country, killing more than 160,000 people a year. Yet the disease remains low on the list of cancer funding priorities. In 2006, the National Cancer Institute spent $1,518 for each new case of lung cancer and $1,630 for each lung cancer death. By comparison, the agency spent $13,452 per death on breast cancer, which takes 41,000 lives annually.
Read more.
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Monday, April 20, 2009
Breath of Hope: Lung Cancer The Invisible Disease
A new lung cancer documentary has been released and has started airing on Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) Stations across the country.
“Breath of Hope: Lung Cancer The Invisible Disease” is an hour long documentary that profiles lung cancer survivors from across the country, including LCA-MA advocate Kevin Brumett.
Hosted by Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning actress S. Epatha Merkerson of Law and Order fame, “Breath of Hope” attempts to eradicate the stigma of lung cancer by sharing the perspectives of survivors and their families as well as information from leading experts in the field.
The documentary, produced by CRW Productions in partnership with CancerCare and with input from LCA, has aired in more than 15 major markets, showing the true face of the disease in San Francisco, Philadelphia, Denver, Orlando, Indianapolis and Knoxville, TN.
For more information about “Breath of Hope”, or to see where and when it will air, please visit the documentary website, http://breathofhope.net/.
HealthDay News reports: Urine Test Could Gauge Smokers' Lung Cancer Risk
Those with higher levels of a compound had nearly 9 times the risk, scientists say
By Randy Dotinga HealthDay Reporter
SUNDAY, April 19 (HealthDay News) -- Someday, a simple urine test might spot smokers at highest risk for lung cancer, scientists report.
The research is still in its preliminary stages, and it may be years before such a test becomes publicly available. But if it works, the urine-based screen could give added motivation to smokers who can't find other reasons to quit, said study author Dr. Jian-Min Yuan, an associate professor at the University of Minnesota.
Read more.
By Randy Dotinga HealthDay Reporter
SUNDAY, April 19 (HealthDay News) -- Someday, a simple urine test might spot smokers at highest risk for lung cancer, scientists report.
The research is still in its preliminary stages, and it may be years before such a test becomes publicly available. But if it works, the urine-based screen could give added motivation to smokers who can't find other reasons to quit, said study author Dr. Jian-Min Yuan, an associate professor at the University of Minnesota.
Read more.
Moonlight and Magnolias Gala - sponsored by the American Cancer Society of Greenville
Moonlight and Magnolias Gala - Saturday, May 9th - Downtown Greenville
Your support of the American Cancer Society’s mission of health awareness, research, education, advocacy and service is vitally important. At the Moonlight & Magnolias Gala, we honor and celebrate cancer survivors who benefit from your generosity in beating this dreaded disease. These survivors inspire us with their courage, strength, and zest for life.
Visit with these marvelous individuals and hear their inspiring stories in the “Voices and Faces” section on their website: http://www.moonlightandmagnolias.com/index.php
South Carolina Cancer Alliance meeting - Friday, April 24th in Columbia
Register TODAY for the next meeting of the SC Cancer Alliance to be held Friday, April 24, 2009 at the Columbia Conference Center located at 169 Laurelhurst Avenue, Columbia, SC. The meeting will begin at 9:30 AM with task force meetings.
We have a great agenda lined up for you for this meeting, including:
“NCI Designation & What it Means for South Carolina” Carolyn E. Reed, MD MUSC Hollings Cancer Center
“Clinical Trials Matching Service” Simbonika Spencer, MPH of the American Cancer Society
“SCCA Legislative Update” Ted Riley, Esq., SCCA Lobbyist, Riley, Pope & Laney, LLC
You won’t want to miss this great meeting. Register online at www.sccanceralliance.org. Please submit any questions to Laura Stuckey at laura.stuckey@sccanceralliance.org
The mission South Carolina Cancer Alliance is to reduce the impact of cancer on ALL people in South Carolina. The SCCA is a 501(c)3 organization. To donate, go to www.sccanceralliance.org.
We have a great agenda lined up for you for this meeting, including:
“NCI Designation & What it Means for South Carolina” Carolyn E. Reed, MD MUSC Hollings Cancer Center
“Clinical Trials Matching Service” Simbonika Spencer, MPH of the American Cancer Society
“SCCA Legislative Update” Ted Riley, Esq., SCCA Lobbyist, Riley, Pope & Laney, LLC
You won’t want to miss this great meeting. Register online at www.sccanceralliance.org. Please submit any questions to Laura Stuckey at laura.stuckey@sccanceralliance.org
The mission South Carolina Cancer Alliance is to reduce the impact of cancer on ALL people in South Carolina. The SCCA is a 501(c)3 organization. To donate, go to www.sccanceralliance.org.
Friday, April 10, 2009
News from Winston-Salem: Local Radio DJ Remains Upbeat About Battle With Cancer
A beloved local radio DJ gave his first media interview on Friday about his recent battle with lung cancer.
Bill Dobson, who goes by "Brother Bill" on his afternoon radio show at WTQR-FM, in Greensboro, announced several weeks ago that he was undergoing surgery to treat the disease.
Dobson said he had been experiencing pain for a year and a half but struggled to get a conclusive diagnosis.
"Everybody thought it was everything from arthritis to you name it," Dobson said in an interview on WTQR Friday morning.
Bill Dobson, who goes by "Brother Bill" on his afternoon radio show at WTQR-FM, in Greensboro, announced several weeks ago that he was undergoing surgery to treat the disease.
Dobson said he had been experiencing pain for a year and a half but struggled to get a conclusive diagnosis.
"Everybody thought it was everything from arthritis to you name it," Dobson said in an interview on WTQR Friday morning.
Thursday, April 9, 2009
The New York Times: New Yorkers Often Exposed to Cigarette Smoke, Study Finds
More than half of all nonsmokers in New York City have elevated levels of a nicotine byproduct in their blood indicating recent exposure to cigarette smoke, a city health department study has found. The figure is surprisingly high given the city’s stringent public smoking ban, among the toughest in the country.
Some 56.7 percent of nonsmokers living in the city were found to have elevated levels of the nicotine metabolite cotinine, compared with an average 44.9 percent of nonsmokers nationwide. Among the ethnic groups studied, nonsmokers of Asian descent were most often affected, with 68.7 percent of those examined showing elevated blood levels of cotinine.
The long-term health consequences of the finding are not known, but secondhand smoke is estimated to account for at least 35,000 deaths from heart disease and 3,000 deaths from lung cancer in nonsmokers nationwide each year.
Researchers with the health department said they were unsettled by the finding, which they called “puzzling.”
Some 56.7 percent of nonsmokers living in the city were found to have elevated levels of the nicotine metabolite cotinine, compared with an average 44.9 percent of nonsmokers nationwide. Among the ethnic groups studied, nonsmokers of Asian descent were most often affected, with 68.7 percent of those examined showing elevated blood levels of cotinine.
The long-term health consequences of the finding are not known, but secondhand smoke is estimated to account for at least 35,000 deaths from heart disease and 3,000 deaths from lung cancer in nonsmokers nationwide each year.
Researchers with the health department said they were unsettled by the finding, which they called “puzzling.”
The New York Times: Constantine Papadakis, Drexel University President, Dies at 63
Constantine N. Papadakis, the president of Drexel University, died on Sunday, three days after taking medical leave. He was 63.
The cause was pulmonary complications of lung cancer, which was in remission, a statement from Drexel said. Dr. Papadakis raised the endowment, enrollment and profile of Drexel, a onetime commuter school.
The cause was pulmonary complications of lung cancer, which was in remission, a statement from Drexel said. Dr. Papadakis raised the endowment, enrollment and profile of Drexel, a onetime commuter school.
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