Tumors Archives - Amazing Health Advances

6 Ways to Defuse your ‘Cancer Time Bomb’

The AHA! Team — Mon, 10 Feb 2025 06:49:02 +0000

Dr. Veronique Desaulniers via NaturalHealth365 – According to estimates by the American Cancer Society, in 2024, over 2 million new cancer cases and over 600,000 cancer deaths are projected to occur in the United States. Fifty-two years ago, a “war on cancer” was pronounced by President Nixon. Since that declaration, the United States government alone has spent well over $100 billion on cancer research in the hopes of removing the threat of this ticking ‘time bomb.’ But instead, countless lives have been lost as a result of toxic therapies and “experimental drugs” offering false hope. According to estimates by the American Cancer Society, in 2024, over 2 million new cancer cases and over 600,000 cancer deaths are projected to occur in the United States. So, how do we STOP this madness? Christopher Wild, the former director of the International Agency for Research on Cancer, clearly understands the solution to the cancer epidemic. “We cannot treat our way out of the cancer problem. More commitment to prevention and early detection is desperately needed in order to complement improved treatments and address the alarming rise in cancer burden globally.” One out of 3 women and one out of 2 men are destined to develop some form of cancer in their lifetime. So, how do we solve the problem? The answer lies in prevention through education and early detection. Scientists now recognize that we have enormous control over our health by using specific nutrients that can turn our “good genes on” and our “bad genes off.” Six ways that nature can help us diffuse our ‘cancer time bomb’ 1. Decrease cancer-promoting inflammation: Cox-2 is an enzyme responsible for increasing inflammation and promoting cancer. Choosing anti-inflammatory foods and supplements may have a significant impact on reducing inflammation in your body. A few examples are curcumin, clean fish oils, and an extract of cruciferous vegetables called DIM I3C. 2. Prevent DNA damage: Most cancers, including breast cancer, begin with some functional or structural DNA damage, which can trigger a cell to become cancerous. Sometimes a tumor-suppressor gene becomes silenced, or a tumor-promoter gene gets turned on. These nutrients have proven anti-breast cancer effects. Sulforaphane from broccoli sprouts The trace mineral selenium Genistein from fermented (organic, non-GMO) soy Curcumin EGCG found in green tea 3. Block abnormal estrogen production: Toxic aromatase inhibitors block the body’s estrogen production and have serious side effects. If you are concerned with estrogen overload, nature has provided us with natural estrogen regulators that have a protective effect. Lignans from flax seeds bind excess aggressive estrogens and expel them from the body. Melatonin is a cytotoxic hormone that literally puts breast cancer cells to sleep. Pomegranate-derived compounds exhibit anti-proliferative and anti-aromatase activity in breast cancer cells. 4. Trigger cancer cell death: Our normal healthy cells eventually go through a process called ‘apoptosis’ or cell death. Cancer cells turn a deaf ear to the signals that promote cell death. Thus, they keep replicating. Nutrients like curcumin and DIM I3C – from cruciferous vegetables – cause breast cancer cells to self-destruct. 5. Stop the growth of blood vessels that feed tumors: Once tumors develop, they create their own blood supply to feed the tumor. This process is called angiogenesis. Many nutrients can be found in a healthy diet that block this process and cause the cancer cells to “starve.” EGCG from green tea, curcumin, and omega-3 fatty acids from fish and flax are a few examples. 6. Prevent metastasis or spreading of breast cancer: Breast cancer is often associated with metastasis or spread to other organs such as the lungs, liver, and brain. Specific nutrients can actually impair the tumor’s ability to spread by blocking the enzymes that cause the “seeding” of the cancer. Here are a few examples: Sulforaphane from cruciferous vegetables and Broccoli sprouts Curcumin Green tea polyphenols Melatonin The foods and supplements mentioned here are simply the tip of the iceberg. Organic, fresh food, herbs, and spices contain a plethora of anticancer properties. Although Hippocrates had no scientific “proof” that food could heal the body, he innately knew that food was a prescription for health when he stated, “Let food be your medicine.” You CAN defuse your cancer time bomb by being proactive and by making conscious, informed decisions about your health. Editor’s note: Find out how to stop cancer cell growth naturally, own the Stop Cancer Docu-Class created by NaturalHealth365 Programs. Sources for this article include: Wiley.com NIH.gov NIH.gov NIH.gov NIH.gov NIH.gov NIH.gov NIH.gov To read the original article click here.

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5 Things to Know About Acoustic Neuroma Surgery

The AHA! Team — Fri, 24 Jan 2025 08:33:14 +0000

Duke Health – Acoustic neuromas (also known as vestibular schwannomas) are a noncancerous type of skull base tumor, which grow just below the brain. Acoustic neuromas (also known as vestibular schwannomas) are a noncancerous type of skull base tumor, which grow just below the brain. More specifically, acoustic neuromas form on the vestibulocochlear nerve that controls balance and hearing. While removing these tumors can completely cure symptoms, their location is highly sensitive and requires an expert surgical approach. Here, Duke Health specialists discuss what you should expect if you need acoustic neuroma surgery. 1. Acoustic Neuroma Surgery Can Be Risky Removing acoustic neuromas is challenging because of their location. “The nerves that help move the eyes, the nerves that allow you to feel your face, move your face, chew food, taste food, hear — all of those are packed into a very small space at the base of the skull” said Duke neurosurgeon Ali Zomorodi, MD. “To treat a tumor in this area, you need to be able to work very delicately and precisely around some very sensitive neurological and vascular structures.” 2. When to Choose Acoustic Neuroma Surgery While you may be eager to be rid of your acoustic neuroma, your age, the tumor’s size and location, as well as the severity of your symptoms will help determine whether surgery is your best option. You may be better off waiting and watching. 3. There Are Three Main Approaches to Acoustic Neuroma Surgery There are three main approaches to surgically removing acoustic neuromas that grow within the skull base (doctors call this lateral skull base tumor surgery). The surgical approach that is recommended for you will depend on the size of your tumor, its location within the skull base, and the status of your hearing. The middle fossa approach accesses the tumor from above the ear. This option is best for smaller tumors, and it is used to try to preserve hearing. The retrosigmoid approach accesses the tumor from behind the ear. This option can be used for tumors of any size, and it may also help preserve hearing. The translabyrinthine approach accesses the tumor through the temporal bone behind the ear. It is considered when tumors are very large or when significant hearing loss has already occurred because it leaves little or no chance of hearing preservation. 4. What to Expect Before, During, and After Acoustic Neuroma Surgery Before surgery, your first stop is a pre-operative check where your vitals will be monitored. You’ll also speak with an anesthesiologist and your surgeon. Assuming everything looks good, you’ll be transferred to the operating room. The surgery usually lasts between six and eight hours. Your Duke Health surgical team will include a neurosurgeon and a neurotologist, which is a specialized ear, nose, and throat (ENT) surgeon who treats complex ear and hearing issues and neurological-related inner ear concerns. The role of the neurotologist is to surgically expose the tumor and assist in its removal, according to Duke’s Calhoun Cunningham, MD. The neurosurgeon’s role is to remove the tumor, dissecting it “away from important nerve structures as well as from the brain itself,” Dr. Cunningham said. Finally, the ENT surgeon/neurotologist closes everything back up. After surgery, you’ll recover in a special neurosurgery intensive care unit (ICU) before moving to a step-down unit, usually the next day. Most people return home after about five days in the hospital, but full recovery takes up to eight weeks. 5. Choosing a Hospital for Acoustic Neuroma Surgery If you need acoustic neuroma surgery, keep these considerations in mind, said Drs. Zomorodi and Cunningham. Find a center that routinely performs complex skull base tumor surgery. Also, look for a specialized team approach to care, meaning you’ll have access to an ENT, a neurosurgeon, and other specialists, including radiation oncologists, neuroradiologists, audiologists, physical therapists, and speech pathologists. “If we do everything we can and do a great job, the patient can be healed,” said Dr. Zomorodi. “They don’t have to worry about this tumor anymore. They can carry on with their lives, and this will become a distant memory. Our goal is to minimize the impact that the tumor and its treatment will have on their quality of life.” To read the original article click here.

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What You Need to Know About Pituitary Tumors

The AHA! Team — Mon, 16 Dec 2024 06:33:20 +0000

Morgan deBlecourt via Duke Health – Pituitary tumors are abnormal growths in the pituitary gland, a pea-sized organ at the base of the brain that regulates hormones. Fortunately, these tumors are usually treatable and non-cancerous. Duke Health neurosurgeon Jordan Komisarow, MD, is part of a team of doctors who specialize in diagnosing and treating pituitary tumors. Here he answers frequently asked questions to help you decide where you should seek care. How serious is a pituitary tumor? Pituitary tumors are slow-growing and rarely life-threatening. According to Dr. Komisarow, many people find out they have a pituitary tumor accidentally, after undergoing an imaging scan for an unrelated problem. They often have no symptoms. On the other hand, pituitary tumors that are large can affect your vision. A subset of tumors produce harmful hormones and can significantly impact your quality of life. Regardless, all pituitary tumors should be managed by an experienced team of specialists to avoid serious complications. How can a pituitary tumor affect the rest of my body? Since the pituitary gland produces hormones, a pituitary tumor can affect any body system that involves hormones, including growth, metabolism, and reproduction. Symptoms can vary widely from fatigue to weight gain, infertility, sexual dysfunction, breast discharge, uncontrolled diabetes and blood pressure, and more. Large pituitary tumors can crowd nearby brain structures like the optic nerves, which can cause symptoms such as vision loss. What are the most common treatments for a pituitary tumor? If your pituitary tumor is low-risk and causing few or no symptoms, your best option may be to monitor the tumor with regular imaging and hormone testing, said Dr. Komisarow. Medications can help treat hormone imbalances. Surgery to remove the tumor is usually reserved for people experiencing significant symptoms or complications related to the tumor. What doctors treat pituitary tumors? Many types of doctors treat pituitary tumors since they can affect so many body functions. Even if you’re not a candidate for surgery, a neurosurgeon often serves as the point person for pituitary tumor care. Endocrinologists manage hormones and treat any resulting pituitary disorders. Neuro-ophthalmologists, eye doctors who specialize in treating vision problems caused by neurological conditions, treat vision loss. Other specialists who may be involved in your care include ear, nose, and throat (ENT) doctors, radiation oncologists, and plastic surgeons. Where should I go for pituitary tumor treatment? Dr. Komisarow recommends seeking treatment at a center like Duke, which offers an all-in-one pituitary clinic. This means you’ll see a neurosurgeon, endocrinologist, and neuro-ophthalmologist, all in one day and in one location. They offer comprehensive testing, review your test results, and discuss next steps. “You want to find doctors who specialize in treating pituitary tumors, meaning it’s not just a component of their practice, but it’s the center of their practice,” Dr. Komosarow said. “Especially if you need surgery, our team at Duke has the experience and technology to safely care for people that other institutions turn away due to risk of anesthesia or nerve damage. We want to help every patient we can.” To read the original article click here.

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Cabbage Juice Outperforms Standard Medical Treatment for Healing Peptic Ulcers

The AHA! Team — Fri, 22 Nov 2024 06:33:25 +0000

Lori Alton via NaturalHealth365 – In the United States, a whopping 4.5 million Americans (per year) are affected by peptic ulcers – lesions that develop in the stomach lining or small intestine. In the United States, a whopping 4.5 million Americans (per year) are affected by peptic ulcers – lesions that develop in the stomach lining or small intestine. And, while Western medicine tends to treat peptic ulcers with an array of drugs – including antibiotics and antacids – these drugs can cause serious side effects. So, what does cabbage juice have to do with all of this? You may be surprised to discover a natural therapy – from nearly 70 years ago – that can offer a drug-free solution for those suffering. In fact, as early as 1950, a professor at Stanford University School of Medicine was conducting studies supporting the ability of cabbage juice to heal peptic ulcers naturally and safely. The physician, Dr. Garnett Cheney, had discovered that fresh cabbage juice contains a potent anti-ulcer factor – which he dubbed “vitamin U” (for “ulcer”). Now, recent research has shed new light on the humble cabbage’s impressive arsenal of disease-fighting phytochemicals – and on the identity of “vitamin U.” Fascinating study shows cabbage juice helps to speed up the healing process By 1950, Dr. Cheney was aware of research showing that cabbage juice could prevent the development of laboratory-induced ulcers in animals. But, he wondered, could it promote healing existing ulcers in humans? He found that it could. In Dr. Cheney’s small but impressive study, cabbage juice emphatically outperformed the standard medical treatment of the time. Thirteen peptic ulcer patients – seven with duodenal ulcers and six with gastric ulcers – were treated with a quart of fresh cabbage juice a day. Duodenal ulcers are located in the upper portion of the small intestine, while gastric ulcers form in the stomach. The healing time for duodenal ulcer craters in the cabbage juice group averaged ten days – while published literature on duodenal patients treated with standard therapy recorded healing time at an average of 37 days. The healing time for gastric ulcer patients in the cabbage juice group was seven days – compared to 42 days for patients treated with standard medical therapy (consisting of a bland diet, antispasmodics, and sedation). In other words, the cabbage juice promoted the healing of ulcer lesions within a week to a week-and-a-half, while healing time in conventional treatment averaged five to six weeks. So, you can easily see why Dr. Cheney was so heartened by the results! Important to note: A second clinical study involving 100 patients published in the Journal of the California Medical Association also showed accelerated healing of ulcers – as did a third, placebo-controlled study conducted at San Quentin Prison. But why was this simple remedy so effective? Cabbage compounds constitute a “dream team” of stomach-soothing, ulcer-healing compounds One secret of cabbage juice’s healing powers is its content of a pair of amino acids, glutamine, and methionine. A form of methionine called methionine S-methyl sulfonium, or MMS, is believed to be the “vitamin U” of which Dr. Cheney spoke. MMS has been shown to stimulate the production of protective mucous – and has potent antioxidant abilities that allow it to ward off tissue-damaging oxidative stress. Studies have shown that MMS supports stomach healing after exposure to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) – which are notoriously damaging to the stomach lining. As for glutamine, it is a natural antacid strong enough to rival the effect of commercial acid-reducing medications. Allantoin, another cabbage constituent, has stomach-soothing effects as well. But cabbage juice’s “master stroke” against ulcers is probably its high levels of glucosinolates – which suppresses the H. pylori bacterium. Significantly, scientists report that this common bacterium is responsible for 70 to 90 percent of all ulcers. The remainder of peptic ulcers is believed to be caused by exposure to medications – particularly NSAIDs. Cabbage juice offers a wide range of important micronutrients and disease-fighting benefits Cabbage, scientifically known as Brassica oleracea, is a true superfood – chock full of beneficial plant compounds. Its juice is rich in vitamin K, needed for normal blood clotting and efficient wound healing. Cabbage juice is also a good source of magnesium and potassium and is surprisingly high in antioxidant vitamin C. A single cup of shredded cabbage provides up to a third of the RDA (recommended daily allowance). In addition, fresh cabbage and cabbage juice are also excellent sources of lutein and zeaxanthin, a pair of carotenoids that help to protect against macular degeneration. Cabbage juice is also high in manganese, a mineral needed for proper nervous system function. Yet a cup of cabbage juice contains a modest 22 calories – and virtually no fat. Bonus benefit: Research reveals an ever-growing roster of benefits from the phytochemicals in cabbage In addition to its antibacterial effects, sulforaphane in cabbage has been shown to protect against cancer – and to help alleviate damage from radiation therapy. Researchers at the University of Missouri found that apigenin – a cabbage flavonoid also found in celery – slowed the growth of breast cancer tumors. To further ramp up disease-fighting benefits, experts advise opting for juice from red cabbages. These contain anthocyanins, natural plant pigments with potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties that help to protect against cancer and heart disease. Note: if you think cabbage juice is for you, check with your holistic doctor before using it. And, naturally, don’t attempt to treat peptic ulcers – or any other medical condition – unless supervised by a doctor. When implementing the cabbage juice remedy, things couldn’t be much simpler. Natural health experts advise sipping the fresh juice from one-half to one head of fresh, raw organic cabbage several times a day before meals. Remember: you can “spike” your cabbage juice with carrot or apple juice to add flavor and color. Of course, cabbage supplements are available in tablet form if the taste is still a dealbreaker. Just remember: As Dr. Cheney demonstrated seven decades ago, cabbage juice is a powerful (natural) therapy worth adding to your routine. Sources for this article include: NIH.gov NIH.gov Medscape.com MedicalNewsToday.com NIH.gov NIH.gov LifeExtension.com To read the original article click here.

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Study Reveals Higher Breast Cancer Mortality Risk for Black Women Across All Tumor Types

The AHA! Team — Fri, 25 Oct 2024 08:15:48 +0000

Mass General Brigham via News-Medical – Breast cancer is the most diagnosed cancer among U.S. women and the second leading cause of cancer death. Black women who develop breast cancer are around 40% more likely to die of the disease than white women, but it was unclear until now whether this disparity exists across all types of breast cancer. Now, a meta-analysis led by Mass General Brigham researchers shows that Black women have a higher risk of dying from breast cancer for all tumor subtypes, and the size of this disparity varies from 17-50% depending on the type of breast cancer. These findings, published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, demonstrate that higher mortality rates among Black women with breast cancer are at least partially attributable to factors that are independent of tumor biology-;for example, socioeconomic inequality, delays in diagnosis, and inadequate access to timely quality cancer treatment resulting from systemic racism. “Our findings demonstrate that multiple, interacting factors contribute to disparities in breast cancer survival between Black and white women. To achieve equity, intervention is necessary at multiple levels-;from community to healthcare systems and individual healthcare providers, to patients themselves learning about their disease and what their expectations should be for their care.” Erica Warner, ScD, MPH, senior author, cancer epidemiologist at Massachusetts General Hospital, founding member of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system Though it is often discussed as a single disease, breast cancer has multiple subtypes that differ in risk factors, treatment, and prognosis. These subtypes are defined based on whether the cancer cells carry hormone receptors for estrogen or progesterone, which can be targeted for treatment, and whether they carry HER2 (human epidermal growth receptor 2), a protein associated with cancer aggressiveness and another potential treatment target. Breast cancer has multiple subtypes that differ in risk factors, treatment, and prognosis “There had been an anecdotal sense in the research community that differences in survival between Black and white women were greater for the most treatable forms of the disease-;tumors that carry hormone receptors-;and smaller for the historically less-treatable, hormone-negative tumors,” said Warner. To investigate whether these anecdotes were supported by the evidence, Warner’s team combined data from 18 studies that were published between 2009 and 2022. Altogether, these studies analyzed 228,885 breast cancer cases, 34,262 of which were in Black women. They found that survival was worse for Black women for all breast cancer subtypes, though the size of these disparities varied between breast cancer subtypes. There was a larger racial disparity for hormone-positive tumors, which were associated with a 34-50% higher risk of death for Black women, compared to hormone-negative tumors, which were associated with a 17-20% higher risk of death for Black women. “These findings underscore a stark reality in our healthcare system: Black women are facing higher risks of death from breast cancer compared to their white counterparts, across all types of the disease. This disparity isn’t just about biology,” said co-author Paulette Chandler, MD, MPH, associate epidemiologist in the Division of Preventive Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a founding member of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system. “It’s a call to action for healthcare providers, policymakers, and communities alike to confront these inequities head-on and strive for meaningful change in breast cancer outcomes.” Because hormone-negative tumors are less common, Warner says that racial disparities in breast cancer survival for hormone-negative subtypes were likely not observed previously because individual studies lacked statistical power due to the small number of cases. “There may also be differences in the biological characteristics of some tumor subtypes between racial groups that our therapies are not attuned to, potentially because of underrepresentation of Black women in clinical trials,” said Warner. The researchers point to several existing multilevel intervention programs However, these racial disparities are not inevitable, and the researchers point to several existing multilevel intervention programs that have successfully reduced disparities in cancer survival. These programs leverage multiple strategies, including helping patients navigate the healthcare system, proactively identifying social needs and connecting patients with resources to address those needs, and by implementing systems that alert healthcare workers of missed appointments or unmet care milestones. At the national level, interventions like ACCURE and Equal Hope aim to close gaps in mortality and survival between Black and white women. Locally, MGH is collaborating with Boston Medical Center on a virtual Equity Hub for Cancer Treatment with the goal of enhancing partnerships and improving cancer care for underserved patients at community-based mental health centers. Source: Mass General Brigham Journal reference: Torres, J. M., et al. (2024) Racial Differences in Breast Cancer Survival Between Black and White Women According to Tumor Subtype: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Journal of Clinical Oncology. doi.org/10.1200/JCO.23.02311. To read the original article click here.

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New Study Examines if ‘Inoperable’ Pancreatic Tumors Can Be Safely Removed

The AHA! Team — Wed, 31 Jul 2024 08:06:36 +0000

University of Utah Health via Newswise – A clinical trial from Keck Medicine of USC aims to provide a surgical solution for patients with a form of advanced pancreatic cancer previously considered inoperable. The study will investigate if chemotherapy followed by a novel type of surgery to remove the cancer is a safe and effective option for patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer, meaning that the cancer has not spread to other organs, but has grown into or close to nearby blood vessels that surround the pancreas. “Usually, these types of tumors cannot be safely removed with surgery because of the risk of damaging the blood vessels, which supply blood to the stomach, liver and other abdominal organs. However, due to recent advancements by Keck Medicine surgeons, we believe that patients with locally advanced cancer can be candidates for successful surgery, which could significantly improve outcomes,” said Steven Grossman, MD, PhD, co-lead investigator of the study. Grossman is a medical oncologist with Keck Medicine and deputy director for cancer services at USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of Keck Medicine. The challenge of treating pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer accounts for only about 3% of cancers in the United States, but it is one of the deadliest. People usually have no symptoms until the cancer has become very large or metastasized throughout the body, so the cancer is caught late, and patients have poor prognoses. Only 13% of pancreatic cancer patients survive five or more years after diagnosis. The life expectancy of patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer, which accounts for one third of all pancreatic cancer cases, has historically been about one year. For most forms of cancer, surgery is considered the most effective treatment for localized tumors that have not spread to other areas of the body. However, surgery has traditionally not been offered for tumors involving the blood vessels near the pancreas because if the blood vessels were to become damaged during the procedure, and the blood flow to organs interrupted, it could result in serious side effects or death. Therefore, typically the only treatment option for patients with locally advanced cancer is chemotherapy and/or radiation, both of which have limited effectiveness killing pancreatic cancer cells. “The situation is frustrating because research shows that in the rare cases where locally advanced tumors were safely removed, the progression of the disease was slowed and the patient’s length of survival on average increased from one year to 28 months, more than doubling life expectancy,” said Sandra Algaze, MD, a medical oncologist with Keck Medicine, a member of USC Norris and one of the study’s investigators. “Surgery, therefore, appears to strongly benefit a patient’s survival rate, which is why the medical field has been eager for a surgical solution.” How new surgical advances can benefit patients The clinical trial will use surgical protocols pioneered by Keck Medicine surgeons to safely remove locally advanced pancreatic tumors attached to arteries. The surgical team will be led by study co-lead investigator Yuri Genyk, MD, a hepatobiliary and pancreatic surgeon with Keck Medicine who is an expert in vascular reconstruction, which is the removal and reconstruction of blood vessels. Genyk has already successfully removed about 30 pancreatic tumors that were attached to adjacent arteries. “While this surgery is very complex, we have the skills and expertise to execute it and train other skilled surgeons in the procedure. If the trial results are positive, we envision that the technique could become the gold standard for how this stage of pancreatic cancer is treated in the future,” said Genyk. Patients in the clinical trial will first undergo chemotherapy to attempt to shrink the tumor. Two to eight weeks after completing chemotherapy, they will undergo a laparoscopic evaluation to determine the position and size of the tumor before the tumor is surgically removed and involved blood vessels are removed and reconstructed. Patients will be followed every three months for the first year post-surgery and then every six months for two years after that. The clinical trial will also examine if certain biomarkers, such as the tumor’s DNA, as well as a patient’s demographic factors such as age and gender, play a role in patient outcomes. The study hopes to enroll 20 patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer who have evidence of arterial involvement by their tumors. The surgeries will be performed at Keck Hospital of USC. “Pancreatic cancer is a devastating diagnosis, and Keck Medicine is committed to finding better solutions for the disease,” said Grossman. “Anything we can do to improve patients’ quality of life and extend life expectancy will be a huge milestone that could benefit countless patients and their loved ones.” Those interested in participating in the study can contact: Charlean Ketchens, RN, at (323) 865-3035 or ketchensc@med.usc.edu. For more information about Keck Medicine of USC, please visit news.KeckMedicine.org. To read the original article click here.

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Researchers Engineer Cells to Destroy Malignant Tumor Cells but Leave the Rest Alone

AHA Publisher — Fri, 09 Jul 2021 07:00:04 +0000

McMaster University via EurekAlert – Researchers at McMaster University have developed a promising new cancer immunotherapy that uses cancer-killing cells genetically engineered outside the body to find and destroy malignant tumors. The modified “natural killer” cells can differentiate between cancer cells and healthy cells that are often intermingled in and around tumors, destroying only the targeted cells. The natural killer cells’ ability to distinguish the target cells, even from healthy cells that bear similar markers, brings new promise to this branch of immunotherapy, say members of the research team behind a paper published in the current issue of the journal iScience, newly posted on the PubMed database. The experimental treatment is an alternative to chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy, or CAR-T, which received FDA approval in 2017. The engineered T-cells used in CAR-T therapy are highly effective against some blood-borne cancers but cannot distinguish between cancerous and non-cancerous cells, so while they offer important benefits, they are not uniformly applicable to all forms of cancer. In patients with solid tumors, the T-cells can cause devastating, even lethal side effects. The team behind the research wanted a treatment with the same power as CAR-T, but which could be used safely against solid-tumor cancers. They first propagated natural killer cells taken from the blood of patients with breast cancer. Such cells perform a similar function to T-cells in the immune system. The researchers then genetically modified them to target specific receptors on cancer cells, successfully testing the CAR-NK cells in the laboratory on tumor cells derived from breast cancer patients “We want to be able to attack these malignancies that have been so resistant to other treatments,” says lead author Ana Portillo, a PhD candidate in the Department of Medicine. “The efficacy we see with CAR-NK cells in the laboratory is very promising and seeing that this technology is feasible is very important. Now, we have much better and safer options for solid tumors.” “These CAR-NK cells are a little bit smarter, in a way, in that they only kill the enemy cells and not good cells that happen to have the same marker,” says Ashkar, Portillo’s supervisor and a Professor of Medicine at McMaster. “These cells have a sober second thought that says, ‘I recognize this target, but is this target part of a healthy cell or a cancer cell?’ They are able to leave the healthy cells alone and kill the cancer cells.” Portillo and Ashkar’s 12 co-authors, most associated with McMaster’s Department of Medicine and its Immunology Research Centre, include McMaster’s Bindi Dhesy-Thind (Associate Professor, Oncology), who provided blood samples from patients being treated for breast cancer in her clinical practice at Hamilton Health Sciences’ Juravinski Cancer Centre. “These are very exciting results, as to date the benefits of immunotherapy in breast cancer have lagged behind that of other malignancies,” she said. “These engineered CAR-NK cells are an important step towards having a viable immunotherapy option in this large group of patients.” Ashkar says there is good reason to believe the technology would have a similar effect on solid tumors associated with lung, ovarian and other cancers. The next step in moving the therapy toward clinical use is to conduct human trials, which the researchers are now arranging. To read the original article click here.

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Researchers to Develop New Technology to Detect and Remove Cancer Tumors

AHA Publisher — Wed, 09 Jun 2021 07:00:21 +0000

University of Warwick via News-Medical – New technology that will marry probes that can detect cancer tumors through the skin with high-precision robotic surgery is to be developed for use in hospital settings for the first time in a project led by the University of Warwick. The Terabotics project will use probes that use terahertz radiation, or T-rays, to scan for tumors under the skin while medical-grade surgical robots will be adapted to use these scans to guide them in removing tumors in skin and colorectal cancer patients more precisely. If successful, the researchers hope it could lead to real-time diagnosis for cancer patients, shorter waiting periods for cancer surgery, and more comprehensive removal of tumors with reduced need for follow-up surgery. The project, which has received funding of £8 million from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, part of UK Research and Innovation, is a collaboration between the University of Warwick, University Hospitals of Coventry and Warwickshire, University of Leeds and the University of Exeter. The five-year project starting in September 2021 aims to eventually trial the technology with patients attending cancer services at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire and Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust. Terabotics will use research from the University of Warwick into terahertz (THz) radiation, or T-rays, which sit in-between infrared and WiFi on the electromagnetic spectrum. Previous work from the University of Warwick’s Department of Physics has shown that these can be used to detect very subtle changes in the outermost layers of skin, and the technique has already been demonstrated on healthy volunteers. This will be the first time that it will be studied in patients within an active cancer process. As well as assessing how effective T-ray technology is in diagnosing cancers compared to standard care, the project aims to incorporate the technology into surgical robots to guide them more accurately when detecting tumors during colonoscopy and removing them during surgery. “What we will be testing is our hypothesis that we are able to detect a buried or hidden tumor. We think our terahertz probe will be able to detect those through looking at the transient response of the skin.” Emma Pickwell-MacPherson, Professor and Principal Investigator, Department of Physics, University of Warwick “Somebody might already be diagnosed with cancer but the actual extent of that cancer may not be known. For example, in skin cancer patients, the THz probe will image the visible tumor and the surrounding area to better determine the extent of the tumor that is beneath the surface. This will enable the whole tumor to be removed in one go, rather than incrementally. In turn, this enables better planning for reconstruction and speeds up the procedure.” Initially, the researchers will focus on adapting the T-ray probes to work with the surgical robots, miniaturisation of the technology and refining the design to provide more diagnostic parameters. Later stages of the project will involve trialling the technology with patients with a known or suspected cancer. Those attending cancer services at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire will be offered the opportunity to participate alongside their routine care. Colorectal cancer patients will be seen at the University of Leeds, where an endoscopic probe is being developed specifically to examine the colon. Just like our skin, the colon is an epithelial lining and could potentially be scanned by T-rays in the same way. At present, diagnosis of skin cancer relies upon a visual inspection by a clinician and a biopsy. There are over 150,000 new cases of skin cancer in the UK each year (1) and two to three million globally (2), numbers which are set to rise due to increased life expectancy. 1 in 15 UK males and 1 in 18 UK females will be diagnosed with bowel cancer in their lifetime and it is the second most common cause of cancer death in the UK. (2) Professor Joseph Hardwicke, Medical Lead for the project at University Hospitals of Coventry and Warwickshire, said: “This technique is a way to examine the skin at a deeper and more technical level than what we are able to at the moment. The main hope, especially for skin cancer, is to determine the extent of the spread locally and also to potentially diagnose these cancers without the need for a biopsy in future. “This is a whole new area of diagnostics, like how MRI in the 1980s revolutionised medical imaging. I think this is a chance for terahertz combined with robotics to give us that greater accuracy. Even though we are still building evidence, there seems to be a lot of pieces of the jigsaw that make logical sense.” Professor Pickwell-MacPherson adds: “If we can give a quantitative answer using our technology that would be great, and ultimately that will speed up the throughput of patients. That in turn will reduce waiting times and costs, it will mean that the surgical procedures can be better planned and done more efficiently, the number of follow-up procedures can be reduced, then that has implications financially to the NHS. “This area is up and coming and terahertz robotics is becoming a hot topic. It has long been suggested that THz technology could be used for cancer detection and this project will push the technology forward to make it a reality. We hope that by demonstrating its application to skin and colon cancers we will open up the door to applying the technology to benefit other cancers too and transform cancer treatment protocols.” Professor Pietro Valdastri of the University of Leeds said: “Robotics is increasingly used in the operating theatre as it brings superior accuracy and unload some of the burden of the procedure from the surgeon. At Leeds, we are developing the next generation of surgical robots to detect colorectal cancer earlier and remove it more effectively. Adding THz perception capabilities to our robots is a new exciting avenue of research that has the potential to improve cancer patient quality of life in the next 5 to 10 years.” The project is among 20 innovative projects announced to revolutionise healthcare, improve treatments for millions of people with a wide range of conditions and save the NHS money. The projects are supported by £30.8 million of funding by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). Four projects were co-funded by UKRI’s Medical Research Council (MRC). EPSRC Executive Chair Professor Dame Lynn Gladden said: “Technologies and approaches pioneered by UK researchers have the potential to revolutionise treatment for a wide range of conditions, from bowel cancer to diabetes. “The projects announced today exemplify this potential and may play a key role in improving the lives of millions of people.” To read the original article click here.

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Natural Dietary Treatments for Fibroids

AHA Publisher — Thu, 13 May 2021 07:00:09 +0000

Michael Greger M.D. FACLM via Nutrition Facts – The same diet that helps regulate hormones in women may also reduce exposure to endocrine-disrupting pollutants. Fibroids are the most common benign tumors in women. They can grow to a foot in diameter and affect the majority of women before they hit menopause. Although fibroids tend to be asymptomatic, when symptoms do occur, they tend to manifest as heavy menstrual bleeding—so much so that women may get anemic and experience a lot of pain. So, what can women do? I discuss this in my video The Best Diet for Fibroids. Up to half go into surgery and get their entire uterus removed. “Although hysterectomy is generally considered a safe operation, complications occur in a significant proportion of patients” and, obviously, you can’t have kids any more. The alternative is a variety of hormone-modulating drugs, which can shrink the fibroids and provide relief, but many of these drugs have significant side effects, like bone loss, so you really don’t want to be taking them for more than a few months. What’s the bottom line? “There is currently no evidence to support the routine use of medical treatment in women with uterine fibroids.” No wonder many women turn to “complementary and alternative treatments…including exercise, diet, herbs, and acupuncture.” Women who exercise seven or more hours a week do seem to have lower risk of having fibroids than women who exercise less than around 20 minutes a day, but exercise has never been put to the test for treating fibroids. Likewise, to date, there isn’t a single randomized controlled trial of acupuncture for the treatment of fibroids to help guide us. In terms of herbs, there are two Asian herbal preparations that show promise—a five-herb combo called Guizhi Fuling and a Malaysian ten-herb formula that contains “secret ingredients” that must not be that secret since they’re just listed in the study, as you can see at 1:50 in my video—and they seemed to work as well as a leading drug. The problem is that traditional Asian herbal remedies may contain a few extra ingredients, like arsenic, mercury, and lead, which have been detected in most of the samples tested from Asian market and health food store shelves, and not just a little. Some, apparently, had really toxic amounts. So, these two Asian herbal preparations “may reduce fibroid size, but there is insufficient evidence to support the efficacy or safety of these treatments.” And, certainly, don’t try to apply caustic herbs internally, as this can lead to scarring, stenosis, and ulceration. Well, what about diet? In one of the largest studies of diet and fibroids, fibroid tumors were “associated with beef and ham consumption, whereas high intake of green vegetables seems to have a protective effect.” The researchers figured that the “association between levels of estrogen, diet, and breast and endometrial [uterine lining] cancers also may help us understand” why. Indeed, “[f]or breast and endometrial cancers, a direct association with the frequency of consumption of meat and ham was observed…whereas protection was conferred by high intake of vegetables and fruits.” Thus, there may be these shared risk factors between estrogen-responsive malignant tumors, like breast cancer, and estrogen-responsive benign tumors, like fibroids. We know the presence of fibroids seems to correlate with an increase in the amount of estrogens flowing through your body, for example, and that women eating vegetarian diets have significantly lower levels of excess estrogen. Researchers are using this knowledge to try to explain why there are lower rates of endometrial cancer—that is, lining-of-the-uterus cancer—and possibly breast cancer among vegetarian women, but it could also help explain the fibroid findings. “The incidence of breast cancer among vegetarian American women (Seventh Day Adventists) is 60 to 80 per cent of the incidence among American women in general, and the incidence among women in Africa and Asia is even lower.” Why might vegetarian women have lower estrogen levels? A famous study in the New England Journal of Medicine concluded that it was their “increased fecal output, which leads to increased fecal excretion of estrogen,” resulting in lower blood levels. Double the fecal output, in fact, as you can see at 4:07 in my video. And, you can put it to the test. Maybe the same reason African-American women have more fibroids is the same reason they have worse breast cancer survival: too much estrogen in their bloodstream due to a less than optimal diet. So, researchers designed a study to see what would happen if they were switched to a more plant-based, higher fiber diet. Compared with the Caucasian women, the African-American women started out with much higher estrogen levels, again helping to explain their increased mortality from breast cancer. But, after they were put on a healthier diet, all of their levels came down, “suggest[ing] that a substantial reduction in breast cancer risk can be achieved” by adopting a diet centered around more whole plant foods. The same also appears to be true for fibroids, especially eating lots of cruciferous vegetables—broccoli, cabbage, and Chinese cabbage—as well as tomatoes and apples. Women who underwent premature puberty, starting their periods before age 11, may also be at increased risk of fibroids later in life, and we know that higher childhood red meat intake is associated with earlier age of starting one’s period, though total protein and animal protein in general may contribute. For example, girls who eat meat tend to start their periods about six months earlier than vegetarian girls. Those who eat meat analogues like veggie burgers and veggie dogs start their periods nine months later on average, and a similar puberty normalizing influence was found with consumption of whole plants foods, such as beans. It could also be the endocrine-disrupting pollutants that build up the food chain. Researchers tooksamples of internal abdominal fat from women and found there appeared to be a correlation between the presence of fibroids with the levels of a number of PCBs in their fat. So, does that mean fish-eaters have higher risk of fibroids? Researchers did find a small increase in risk associated with the intake of long-chain omega-3 fats, mostly from “dark-meat fish consumption,” by which they meant fish like sardines and salmon. This could be because of “the endocrine-disrupting chemicals commonly shown in fish,” or it could just be a statistical fluke. It would be consistent with the increased risk seen among “sport-fish consumers.” Recognizing that diet and endocrine-disrupting persistent organic pollutants have been associated with a variety of gynecologic conditions, including fibroids, researchers looked at consumers of fish fished out of the Great Lakes and found a 20 percent increased risk for every ten years they had been eating the fish. In the most comprehensive study to date, researchers compared pollutant levels in fat samples from women with fibroids to fat liposuctioned out of women without fibroids. They didn’t just find higher levels of PCBs in fibroid sufferers, but also long-banned pesticides, like DDT and hexachlorocyclohexane, PAHs, which are polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons formed when coal is burned, tobacco is smoked, and meat is grilled, as well as heavy metals, arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury. These levels correlated not only to fibroids, but also to seafood consumption or excess body fat. So, the researchers determined that “shedding excess weight and limiting seafood consumption would confer a protective effect” on fibroid tumor development by minimizing exposure to environmental pollutants as much as possible. Okay, so a plant-based diet may be best, but is there a plant in particular that has been shown to be particularly powerful? Plant-based compounds with disease-preventive properties, dietary phytochemicals are found in whole grains, fruits, vegetables, beans, split peas, chickpeas, and lentils, herbs, spices, nuts, and certain beverages. As I discuss in my video The Best Food for Fibroids, we know they can help regulate the initiation, promotion, and spread of cancerous tumors, so what about benign tumors like fibroids? Most anti-cancer drugs on the market now were originally derived from plants or plant products, so why not try to use plants to target the inflammation or blood supply of fibroids? Might fibroids be a consequence of chronic inflammation within the body? We know that women with fibroids are more likely to eat more beef and ham, and fewer fruits and green vegetables, but whole plant foods don’t just have anti-inflammatory effects but antioxidant effects as well. “If the generation of free radicals exceeds the protective effects of antioxidants, oxidative damage will occur,” which has been implicated in a variety of disease states, including gynecological conditions such as fibroids. If you collect fresh fibroids, as well as normal uterine tissue from hysterectomy surgeries, the fibroid cells have significantly fewer antioxidant enzymes, as you can see at 1:20 in my video, so might antioxidant-rich foods help? Well, if you drip some strawberries onto cells in a petri dish, you can apparently kill of some fibroid tumor cells, while leaving normal uterus cells alone. But, what good does that do us? That’s only relevant if we can show those strawberry compounds get absorbed through our gut and achieve high enough concentrations in uterine tissue. The same with curcumin, the component of the spice turmeric. One of its so-called “miraculous” properties is suppressing the growth of uterine fibroid cells, but, again, that was just in vitro. Yes, an inhibitory effect was found and at concentrations that don’t compromise the growth of normal, regular uterine tissue, but my patients are people, not petri dishes. It’s pretty neat to find out what happens to human fibroid cells as you drip higher and higher concentrations of green tea compounds on them in a test tube, as you can see for yourself at 2:19 in my video, but I care less about what happens in vitro or in mice, whether or not they have any clothes on—one study looked at “a nude mice model”—but there were no randomized, controlled clinical studies until 2013. Subjects were randomized to green tea extract or placebo for four months. In the placebo group, fibroid volume increased by 24 percent. That’s what fibroids do; they continue to grow. However, those randomized to the green tea group showed a reduction in total fibroid volume—and not just by a little. There was a dramatic decrease, shrinking by almost a third, which is a highly significant difference, as you can see at 3:02 in my video. Okay, but did the women feel any better? Yes, they experienced a dramatic decrease in symptom severity, as well. Month after month, nothing much happened in the placebo group, but those taking the pills that looked the same but happened to contain green tea compounds had consistent improvement and felt lessening symptoms, each month better than the last, as well as an improved health-related quality of life, month after month, that was significantly better than control. What’s more, their blood counts got better too. With all that continued excess blood loss every month, the blood levels kept decreasing in the placebo group, but they reversed in the green tea group. So, anemia also significantly improved, because average blood flow significantly diminished. And, all this—the fibroid shrinkage, less pain, better periods—was achieved with “no adverse effects.” So, not only were the results comparable to those for the drugs that are commonly used—again, without the side effects—but the results were also comparable to uterine artery embolization, where they try to cut the blood supply to the fibroid, which is great—unless they accidentally cut the blood supply to the rest of the uterus and cause uterine necrosis, one of many reported major complications. Others include death, not only of the fibroid, but also of the patient, along with other potential complications that may arise from accidentally clogging off non-target arteries. In my book, a side-effect-free solution as good as a more invasive procedure is potentially better than. The researchers conclude that green tea compounds show “promise as a safe and effective therapeutic agent for women with symptomatic UFs [uterine fibroids]. Such a simple, inexpensive, and orally administered therapy...

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