Tag Archives: cancer research

Cancer Research, Immuno-Oncology, Uncategorized

Why Is It Taking So Long to Find a Cure for Cancer?

Ideas on finding a cure for cancer.
Ideas on finding a cure for cancer.

At Issels®, we know that many of our readers wonder about research being done to find a cure for cancer. Many impatiently wait for progress as cancer leaves an indelible mark on anyone who has ever had cancer or known and/or loved someone who has had cancer.

Why is a cure taking so long?

Scientists are still trying to understand all of the complex processes that turn cells into the many types of cancers that exist.

How Does Cancer Form?

As Dr. Craig Thompson, CEO of the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, pointed out in a recent article about this topic, family genetic inheritance, the formation site, immune system responses and cellular changes all factor into the complex puzzle that is cancer. We know that the last two items have the most influence:

  • The immune system isn’t perfect. Severe allergies and asthma are conditions that often happen when the immune system becomes confused about what it should or should not fight off to protect the body. Cancer is another example.
  • Many cells mutate into cancer because of natural aging changes we don’t yet completely understand. Sometimes there are errors during growth that repeat when new cells form. Lastly, cells can experience DNA damage from microorganisms, radiation, toxins and poor habits like smoking and tanning.

As Thompson noted, the key is to understand the “biology of cancer” and then use that knowledge to prevent it in those who don’t have it and create new treatments that precisely deal with causation in those who do.

At Issels® Immuno-Oncology, we have integrated many of the most recent precision techniques into our non-toxic, customized cancer treatment plans. For more information, contact us today.

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Cancer Research

Popular Men’s Supplements Tied to Testicular Cancer

Illustration depicting a screen shot of an internet search bar containing a cancer treatment concept.
Popular Men’s Supplements Tied to Testicular Cancer

Men who try to improve their bodies using muscle-building supplements may ultimately cause the opposite effect. Research shows that the consumption of popular supplements like creatine and androstenedione can increase the risk of testicular cancer.

A team of scientists at Yale University conducted a series of interviews with more than 900 men regarding their workout programs and history of supplement use. They were also asked to give details of smoking and drinking habits, family history of testicular cancer and their own incidents of groin injury. More than 350 of the respondents had been previously diagnosed with testicular germ cell cancer.

Data indicated that weekly supplement use for a minimum of four consecutive weeks resulted in a 65 percent greater likelihood of having received a diagnosis of testicular cancer. Use of more than one supplement raised the risk of developing testicular cancer by 177 percent, while use for three or more years resulted in a 156 percent increase.

According to study leader Tongzhang Zheng, risks were increased by factors such as use at a younger age, use over a longer time period, and use of multiple supplements. While the study confirms the correlation between supplement use and testicular cancer, it will take more research to determine if there is an actual cause-and-effect relationship and if so, what drives it.

At Issels®, we also conduct a careful analysis of your personal lifestyle, environment and genetic background in order to develop a cancer treatment program that addresses your specific needs. Visit our website to learn more about our non-toxic integrative immuno-oncology protocols. 

 

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Cancer Research, News

Bayer Give $1 Million to Aid in Cancer Information Technology Platform

Stack of Money
Big Donations

Here at Issels® whenever we hear a great piece of cancer news, we’re always excited to share it. According to a recent news article, Bayer HealthCare, one of the giants in the world of healthcare, has contributed one million dollars toward funding for CancerLinQ.

Advances in technology have paved the way for improved cancer treatments in recent years, and CancerLinQ is no exception. Experts believe that this technological platforms is going to be very instrumental in unlocking information about patients who are living with cancer. This information can then be used to alter the quality of care cancer patients receive, as well as work towards developing more personalized treatments for them.

Once data has been captured from current cancer patients, as well as from their caregivers, CancerLinQ goes to work on their individual needs and experiences. This is a revolutionary concept that has the ability to improve care for everyone who is affected by a cancer diagnosis.

Bayer Healthcare has been committed to cancer research for years. Their oncology franchise includes three products and many compounds that are currently being developed. It is exciting to see that they have partnered with the Conquer Cancer Foundation and the American Society of Clinical Oncology, and it will be even more exciting to see how CancerLinQ changes the quality of care for cancer patients in the years ahead.

A cancer diagnosis can change so many parts of your life, but your road to remission doesn’t have to be paved with uncertainty and pain. Here at Issels®, we view cancer treatment and patients very differently. We would love to talk to you about alternative treatment options. Please contact us.

Cancer Research, News

Team Finds New Treatment for Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML)

Cancer Research
Cancer Research Finds New Treatment for Blood Cancer

Australian researchers have found that a drug called Imetelstat has the potential to fight and sometimes defeat blood cancer. Following the recent trials in Brisbane, the FDA has recently cleared the way for clinical trials in the United States.

How Does Imetelstat Kill Cancer Cells?

The medication works by manipulating a particular protein of the blood. Imetelstat effectively “turns off” a certain gene to prevent the formation of a protein called telomerase. Without that protein, the stem cells that become leukemia cells cannot be formed. Existing cancer cells begin to disappear.

The news is especially exciting because chemotherapy has its lowest success rates with acute myeloid leukemia, or AML.

Patients who have undergone unsuccessful chemotherapy for AML can potentially use Imetelstat to prolong life or possibly enter remission. For all AML patients, Imetelstat could be used as a follow-up treatment after chemotherapy to help prevent the cancer from returning.

What’s Next for Blood Cancer Medicine?

After the Australian team recently published their findings and made a presentation to the American Society of Hematology, interest in the treatment has further increased.

The FDA had previously been concerned by a possible connection between Imetelstat and liver problems, but that issue has been ruled out. With that hurdle cleared, optimism is building for the breakthrough drug to succeed in human trials and find approval for all patients with AML.

Many alternative treatments are currently available for patients with cancer resistant to standard therapies. Contact Issels® Integrative Immuno-Oncology for information about our innovative cancer treatments.

Cancer Research

Will Your Low Fat Diet Help You Beat Breast Cancer?

Woman with Basket of Food
A Low Fat Diet May Help You Beat Breast Cancer.

A study by Dr. Rowan Chlebowski, a medical oncologist at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center’s Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute, shows that some women diagnosed with breast cancer who maintain a low-fat diet may reduce their risk of early death.

Research for women in the early stages of breast cancer specific to estrogen receptor-negative (ER-negative) cancer showed positive results. For this group, Dr. Chlebowski’s study showed a reduced risk of death factor of 36 percent over a 15-year study for patients who maintained a diet of low-fat food for five years after being diagnosed.

For women diagnosed with both ER-negative and progesterone-receptor negative (PR-negative) cancer, the results were even higher. Following the same five year low-fat diet regimen after initial diagnosis, patients experienced a 56 percent reduction in risk of death due to any cause.

The study included over 2,400 women ranging in age from 48 to 79 in the early stages of breast cancer. Of the 2,400 women, approximately 1,600 were diagnosed with ER-positive cancer while the remaining 800 were diagnosed with ER-negative or both ER and PR-negative cancer.

During the study, low-fat diets for half of the women was a requirement. Unannounced checks were made throughout the study. The other group was not required to maintain a low-fat diet. The study showed a lower death rate in the low-fat diet research group.

The study is the first where a low-fat diet over an extended period for cancer patients has been researched.

For information about how integrative immuno-oncology works in the treatment of breast cancer, contact Issels®. Established in 1951, Issels® has made a name for itself internationally for its success in the long-term remission of advanced tumors.

 

Immunotherapy, News

Immunotherapy In The News

In The News
In The News

Immunotherapy for cancer – the use of a patient’s own antibodies to create cancer-blocking properties – has been called everything from the disease’s potential “off-switch” to the “beginning of the end of chemotherapy.”

In recent immunotherapy news, Israel-based Compugen announced in July what it calls a milestone in cancer immunotherapy collaboration. Working with Bayer HealthCare, Compugen aims to develop and commercialize “therapeutic antibodies against two checkpoint protein candidates discovered by Compugen,” as the company’s website puts it.

“We are very pleased by the achievement of this initial drug development milestone for one of the two programs in our collaboration with Bayer,” said Compugen President and CEO Dr. Anat Cohen Dayag. “After investing more than a decade of extensive multidisciplinary research in establishing our broadly applicable predictive discovery infrastructure, we selected the area of checkpoint-based cancer immunotherapy as our first focused discovery effort.  Therefore, it is extremely satisfying to see our growing competitive position, in terms of both advancement of our therapeutic programs in immuno-oncology and continuing discoveries of novel targets in this exciting area, which is increasingly being viewed as a potential major breakthrough in cancer treatment.”

More immunotherapy news
On July 13, Business Standard reported that an immunotherapy treatment had been developed to treat cancer in dogs. “Scientists at the inter-university Messerli Research Institute of the Vetmeduni Vienna, the Medical University of Vienna, and the University of Vienna discovered that a receptor frequently found on human tumour cells (epidermal growth factor receptor or EGFR) is nearly 100 per cent identical with the EGF receptor in dogs,” as the Press Trust noted. Scientists noted that “due to the high similarity of the receptor in humans and dogs, this type of therapy should work well in dogs too.”