What we're reading ... March 19, 2010

BY ELIZABETH WHITTINGTON | MARCH 19, 2010

Each week the staff of CURE shares some of what they've been reading the past week with our readers. Please let us know what you think and what you've been reading, too!

Oncology Nursing
Oncology nurse Theresa Brown, RN, is a regular contributor to The New York Times, and this week she writes about violence in the oncology ward in "Violence on the Oncology Ward." Violence against nurses is a huge issue. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates 48 percent of all non-fatal injuries from occupational assaults occur in the health care setting. And as Brown relates, oncology nurses are not immune.
Lena Huang
Fitness & Nutrition Editor

Marriage
In Marie Claire's "For Better, For Worse," Diane Reiners talks about how cancer has affected her marriage, for better and for worse. While her husband deals with a disfiguring, terminal diagnosis of tongue cancer, they try to make the best of it. "Cancer doesn't make it easier to love someone," she says. "Cancer is hard work; our marriage is easy. But taking care of him can leave me without much time to take care of myself--I don't go for checkups with my own doctors and I quit going to the gym. Still, there is nothing--nothing--I'd rather be doing than being there with him." It's a very powerful story, and unfortunately, one that doesn't have a happy ending. But knowing how much they loved each other, it does make you appreciate the journey.
Elizabeth Whittington
Managing Editor, curetoday.com

Teens and Cancer
"In Cancer Fight, Teens Don't Fit In" is about teenagers and how they have different struggles than children or adult cancer patients. They are in an in-between stage and generally lack the proper support they need and sort of fall into this "gap." It also talks a little bit about why teenagers generally have poorer cure rates than children or adults--from not being involved in clinical trials to just being more difficult to treat since they aren't children, and they aren't adults. You can read more about teen in our First Line Childhood Cancer section "Teens Helping Teens," which discusses a program called Teen Connector.
Bunmi Ishola
Editorial assistant

What we're reading ... March 12, 2010

BY ELIZABETH WHITTINGTON | MARCH 12, 2010

Each week the staff of CURE shares some of what they've been reading the past week with our readers. Please let us know what you think and what you've been reading, too!

How to Save a Life
I saw "How to Save a Friend from the Brink" on CNN Health the other day and it reminded me of a friend who had expressed suicidal thoughts during a long fight with cancer. In this article, people who have been there provide insight on what friends and family should say and do during critical moments.
Lena Huang
Fitness & Nutrition Editor

Prostate Cancer Screening
There's been a lot of prostate cancer in the news lately with the American Cancer Society's updated guidelines on prostate cancer screening and the recent Genitourinary Cancers Symposium. The New York Times published "The Great Prostate Mistake," a column on prostate cancer screening written by Richard J. Ablin, who discovered PSA (prostate-specific antigen). Yesterday, readers responded in "Should I Get the Prostate Cancer Test?" Both are a good read and are perfect examples of why this screening controversy is just that--which is why "Talk to your doctor" is more important now than ever.
Elizabeth Whittington
Managing Editor, curetoday.com

Your Job
I found this Cancer and Careers workbook, Living and Working with Cancer, while I was doing research for an upcoming article. It's an 81-page workbook that helps walk cancer patients through coordinating their jobs/careers after and during a cancer diagnosis. It summarizes the various laws and options that benefit patients, including ADA, FMLA, and disability, and also offers advice on how to deal with coworkers, manage work responsibilities, returning to work after taking time off, keeping a work diary, etc. The last 50 pages or so are worksheets patients and survivors can use create their own "cancer workbook."
Bunmi Ishola
Editorial assistant

What we're reading ... March 5, 2010

BY ELIZABETH WHITTINGTON | MARCH 5, 2010

Each week the staff of CURE shares some of what they've been reading the past week with our readers. Please let us know what you think and what you've been reading, too!

Infection
A story in The New York Times (Rising Threat of Infections Unfazed by Antibiotics) caught my eye as someone who has dealt with a MRSA staph infection. The story focuses on the new hospital-acquired infections that make MRSA look like the common cold. This is something every cancer patient needs to know about since hospitals are where we hang out way too much.
Kathy LaTour
Editor-at-Large & cancer survivor

Male infertility and cancer
An article in the Wall Street Journal examines if male infertility could be a sign of other diseases, such as cancer. Researchers from the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston have found that mutations in certain genes linked to male infertility may be related to colon and testicular cancers.
Lena Huang
Fitness & Nutrition Editor

Multiple myeloma
The MMRF (Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation) launched their new newsletter this month, MMRF FastFacts. It will replace their previous newsletter, SmartBrief. It includes clinical trials, events, breaking news in multiple myeloma research, and updates about MMRF. You can sign up for the next issue by signing up at www.themmrf.org.
Elizabeth Whittington
Managing Editor, curetoday.com

What we're reading ... February 26, 2010

BY ELIZABETH WHITTINGTON | FEBRUARY 26, 2010

Fertility
The first woman to give birth to a second baby after ovarian tissue transplant was featured in an Associated Press article I saw in the Washington Post: "Woman 1st giving birth twice with ovary transplant." Before receiving chemotherapy for bone cancer, Stinne Holm Bergholdt of Denmark had a portion of her ovary removed. Doctors transplanted a portion of that ovary after Bergholdt completed therapy a year later. The transplant took and Bergholdt now has two beautiful children. This is very encouraging news for women seeking to preserve fertility during cancer treatment.
Lena Huang
Fitness & Nutrition editor

Cancer Strategy
An interesting Forbes article "The Mathematics of Cancer," highlights how Larry Norton, a leading breast oncologist at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, and other scientists believe that by stopping cancer from spreading--instead of just multiplying--may lead to better and curative treatments. We touched on a similar topic in Heal with Mutations & Math. Both are worth a look!
Elizabeth Whittington
Managing editor, curetoday.com

Clinical Trials
This is a three-part series (Target Cancer) done by the New York Times looking at a clinical trial for a melanoma drug. It dives into the various aspects of being involved in a clinical trial--from the doctor and patient perspectives. I think it provided a great visual of the ups and downs of being involved in the clinical trials, the risk that everyone involved has to take, and the moments of despair when there's a failed outcome or the moment of triumph when the outcome is good. Each article is accompanied by a video, and there's a "Q&A on clinical trials" blog that the writer, Amy Harmon, moderates.
Bunmi Ishola
Editorial assistant

Updates
A great resource for those who want to keep up with the latest in cancer findings is to sign up for the National Cancer Institute Bulletin. Every issue has the latest findings from major scientific journals, in-depth articles, special reports, clinical trial information, legislative updates, and federal agency news. The latest bulletin includes research on hypofractionated radiation, kidney cancer, chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy, and more.
Kathy LaTour
Editor-at-Large

A nagging wife

BY ELIZABETH WHITTINGTON | FEBRUARY 23, 2010

I'm a nagging wife. After a year of telling my husband he needs to see a dermatologist to get a few moles looked at, he finally relented. I'm sure he thought I was just being overly cautious and a little paranoid. Granted, every three months, I wonder if I've developed the cancer featured in the latest CURE issue, but a good baseline body check can't hurt.

He grudgingly went, but I think in the long run, he was relieved to get it over with. The dermatologist scraped tissue from about three moles on his back and chest, and he was eventually diagnosed with dysplastic nevi, which are benign, but people who have them can be at a higher risk of developing melanoma later on.

The National Cancer Institute has a brief booklet on dysplastic nevi and melanoma. It also includes a checklist on how to perform your own body check and help for identifying suspicious moles and lesions. There is also an upcoming mobile application that may allow you to take a photograph of your mole and send it on for a risk assessment of melanoma and other skin cancers.

About a year after that initial visit, my husband went back to the dermatologist yesterday and had one of the moles surgically removed. We're waiting to see if he needs more tissue removed and to confirm that it's still benign. While it's probably nothing to worry about, I'm glad he went. Sometimes we all need a little push to get screenings or have something checked out by a health care professional. I do think I have my work cut out for me when he turns 50, though.

What we're reading ... February 19, 2010

BY ELIZABETH WHITTINGTON | FEBRUARY 19, 2010

Roger Ebert & Thyroid Cancer
This week, Esquire featured a powerful glimpse into the life of film critic Roger Ebert written eloquently by Chris Jones (Roger Ebert: The Essential Man). Diagnosed with thyroid cancer, Ebert has endured multiple surgeries that robbed him of his ability to speak, but through writing, this Pulitzer-prize winning critic has not lost his voice. To read more about Ebert's journey, look into his blog for the Chicago Sun-Times at http://blogs.suntimes.com/ebert/.
Lena Huang
Fitness & Nutrition Editor

Cancer Advances
The American Society of Clinical Oncology just put out its Clinical Cancer Advances 2009. The report gives an overview of the top advances in 2009, including drugs, standards of care, and prevention and screening. I was encouraged to see among the recommendations, enhanced coordination of care of cancer patients, including end-of-life care. The report also called for a strengthening of the nation's clinical research system.
Kathy LaTour
Editor-at-Large & cancer survivor

Colorectal Cancer Screening
While colonoscopies are the old standby when people think of colorectal cancer screening, there are actually several different types of tests people can use to screen for the cancer. Right now, only about 50 percent of people age 50 and older get annual screenings, and one reason, experts think, is because colonoscopies just aren't that fun. This article from the Associated Press (Millions missing out on colon cancer screening) talks about some of those barriers, but also how a simple in-home stool test could boost screening rates--and possibly save lives.
Elizabeth Whittington
Managing editor, curetoday.com

Congratulations, Drew Brees

BY ELIZABETH WHITTINGTON | FEBRUARY 15, 2010

Drew Brees, quarterback of the New Orleans Saints, has more than just a Superbowl ring to be proud of. Brees, who led the Saints to their first Superbowl win, also secured a $100,000 grant for the city's Patrick F. Taylor Hope Lodge, a place for out-of-town cancer patients and caregivers to stay for free while they undergo treatment.

The grant contest, which was sponsored by Pepsi's Refresh program, pitted Brees against two other NFL football stars raising money for their selected charities. More than half a million votes were cast by fans at www.nfl.com/partner?partnerType=refresh-project. While the other two charities received $25,000, the New Orleans Hope Lodge will be able to use the $100,000 first-place prize money to help fund ongoing services to patients and caregivers, including apartment-style housing complete with community-hosted dinners, laundry, library, and free transportation to local cancer centers. For more on ACS Hope Lodges and other accommodations for cancer patients, read CURE's Far From Home from the Fall 2008 issue.

Brees chose the American Cancer Society's Hope Lodge after touring the facility with his wife in November. (You can take a virtual tour here). The Superbowl champion also supports cancer research with his Brees Dream Foundation , an organization that works toward advancing cancer research and providing care, education, and opportunities for at-need children.

Brees is considered a hero in New Orleans to many--and not just to football fans. Congratulations, Drew!

What we're reading ... February 12, 2010

BY ELIZABETH WHITTINGTON | FEBRUARY 12, 2010

Each week the staff of CURE shares some of what they've been reading the past week with our readers. Please let us know what you think and what you've been reading, too!

Cancer Research
The New York Times book review on "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot caught my eye and made me want to buy the book. It tells the true story of Henrietta Lacks, a woman who died of cervical cancer in the 1950s and whose cells were taken without permission and eventually developed into drugs to treat numerous diseases, such as polio, leukemia, and the flu. Lacks left behind five children, and Skloot documents their story, which the reviewer describes as "the interplay of race, poverty, science and one of the most important medical discoveries of the last 100 years."
Lena Huang
Fitness & Nutrition Editor

Book Review
I just finished Glenn Rockowitz's book Rodeo in Joliet, his autobiographical romp through what should have been the last three months of his life. I didn't even care that he never told us what kind of cancer he had because his irreverence kept me gasping and laughing. Diagnosed at 28, two weeks before the birth of his son and one week before his dad is given an equally chilling diagnosis, Rockowitz grabs cancer by the udder. You have to read the book to see what I mean.
Kathy LaTour
Editor-at-Large & cancer survivor

Keeping Faith
"Suffering Well: Faith Tested by Pastor's Cancer" shares the story of Matt Chandler, a 35-year-old pastor with brain cancer. Clark, whose faith was shaken only once when he asked, "Why me?" uses his faith to get him and his family through a trying time--one that may not have a happy ending, in the traditional sense.

"Whatever happens, he says, is God's will, and God has his reasons. For Chandler, that does not mean waiting for his fate. It means fighting for his life."

He says he believes that, although his life is in God's hand, Chandler also has responsibilities--to use his brain, to take advantage of technology, to walk in faith and hope, and to pray for healing. It's only one look at how cancer survivors use faith and spirituality to get them through a life-threatening illness.

For more stories on how survivors' faith and spirituality, whether it comes from an organized religion or a belief that there is a higher power, helped them through cancer, look for CURE's upcoming article "Keeping the Faith," due out with the Spring issue next month.
Elizabeth Whittington
Managing editor, curetoday.com

No Smoking
A Seattle Times blog on philanthropies highlighted a huge grant to stem the number of lung cancer cases in Africa: Gates Foundation ramps up tobacco control efforts in Africa. According to the World Health Organization, tobacco will kill more than 8 million people in 20 years, with 80 percent in developing countries. However, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is working to lower that percentage with a $7 million grant to the American Cancer Society and a $10 million grant to the World Health Organization--both aimed at lowering tobacco-related cancer in Africa.
Bunmi Ishola
Editorial assistant

What we're reading ... January 29, 2010

BY ELIZABETH WHITTINGTON | JANUARY 29, 2010

Each week the staff of CURE shares some of what they've been reading the past week with our readers. Please let us know what you think and what you've been reading, too!

Radiation Therapy
This series in The New York Times addresses mistakes made with new radiation technology. It's hard to read, but patients need to be aware of such issues and advocate for their own care at facilities that understand the latest technology. I do need to point out that radiation has proven to be a great treatment for many cancer patients. You can read the first of the series at Radiation Offers New Cures, and Ways to Do Harm.
Kathy LaTour
Editor-at-Large & cancer survivor

Ovarian Cancer
Controversy has plagued a consensus statement issued in 2007 that identified a handful of symptoms that were meant to help diagnose ovarian cancer earlier. Now, research published online January 28 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute found that these symptoms result in a diagnosis only 1 percent of the time. An editorial, which accompanied the study, offers perspective on the research findings and the utility of the specific symptoms: Ovarian Cancer Symptoms Speak Out--But What Are They Really Saying?
Melissa Weber
Managing Editor, CURE

Prostate Cancer
If you haven't had a chance to read Dana Jennings' columns in The New York Times on life with prostate cancer, go back and read every one of them. Jennings' columns are eloquent, powerful, and thoughtful, and he writes from the heart about the impact cancer has on the patient, family, and friends. Here is his latest: Feeling Like Myself Again After Cancer.
Lena Huang
Fitness & Nutrition Editor

Cancer Research
Although it's rather technical, but along the lines of my research interest, an interesting journal article in The Journal of Clinical Investigation explores tumor heterogeneity, or differences between the cells within a tumor. We used to think of cancer cells as all identical to each other, or clones of each other, but now we are seeing them more as an ecosystem in evolution--with evolution that may have implications in metastasis and drug resistance.
The article abstract is at Cellular and genetic diversity in the progression of in situ human breast carcinomas to an invasive phenotype, but you can read a news article on the subject at Genetic Variability in a Tumor as an Indicator of Patient Risk.
Debu Tripathy, MD
Editor-in-Chief

Childhood Cancer
While I think cancer at any age is horrible, it seems especially sad for childhood patients. While I'm sure the project talked about in "Project seeks genetic basis of childhood cancer," is a long way from having decisive answers and results, it's nice to know that something is being done to provide better treatment (and maybe some day, definite prevention) for these cancer patients. (This also made me think of the CURE article "No Child Left Behind" and how pharmacuetical companies, and research in general, kind of tend to overlook the child patient.)
Bunmi Ishola
Editorial Assistant

Risk Factors
"Warning: Your Cell Phone May Be Hazardous to Your Health" ... I know we've all seen a sensational headline like this at some point in the last few years, but hear me out. While I don't think I'll be going cold turkey and completely cutting off my cell phone use any time soon, the article takes a very interesting look at the history leading up to the cell phone (and microwave)/cancer topic. Again, I know this is a controversial subject that has many sides and theories, but I thought this particular article was very interesting and provided a lot of information. I also thought it was worth reading the National Cancer Institute's information on the subject (Cellular Telephone Use and Cancer Risk).
Alexandra Hurd
Marketing and PR specialist

Patients want honesty, compassion from their doctor

BY ELIZABETH WHITTINGTON | NOVEMBER 4, 2009

Not exactly news to cancer patients, but results released today found that what patients want most out of their oncologist is honesty and compassion.

The study results were released at the annual meeting of ASTRO (American Society for Radiation Oncology), the professional organization of radiation oncologists (read abstract). And while most of the presentations during ASTRO focused on treatment, symptom management, and long-term effects, the study also showcased the medical community's desire to improve behavior and relationships to better impact treatment and quality of life.

The study involved more than 500 prostate, breast, and lung cancer patients at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute's Department of Radiation Oncology. Patients completed surveys about their preferences of their radiation oncologist--during the initial consultation, halfway during radiation treatment, and at the end of treatment.

After the initial consultation, half of the patients' doctors reviewed the first survey, and possibly adjusted their behavior to meet the needs and desires of their patients. So, what did patients want most from their radiation oncologist? Most wanted to be called by their first name. And almost all (95 percent) wanted their oncologist to just be honest with them. Another interesting finding was that more than a third of female patients want to have their hands held during important office visits.

Patients were asked to take a satisfaction survey after treatment was completed, which showed satisfaction was very high and not significantly affected by whether the physician knew the patient's preferences.

This study may reinforce what patients have known for years, but the medical community is just now addressing--the importance of a strong patient-doctor relationship. Researchers hope the study will encourage oncologists to work on their patient relationships, which will ultimately improve patient care.

To read more on patient-doctor relationships, read CURE's article, "Power to the Patient."