Tag Archives: Cancer Treatment

Cancer Research, Cancer Survivors, Cancer Treatment, Immuno-Oncology, Immunotherapy, Immunotherapy for Cancer, Uncategorized

Focusing on a Cancer’s Host Tissue May Bring a Prognosis into Better Focus

State of the Art Treatment with Cancer Immunotherapy
State of the Art Treatment with Cancer Immunotherapy

Thanks to innovations in testing methods and proactive awareness campaigns, doctors are able to diagnose cancer earlier then ever, increasing the chances of successful cancer immunotherapy. The second part of the equation, predicting the degree of malignancy, is a puzzle that remains to be solved.

When Is a Patient Truly Free of Cancer?

After treatment, a patient who shows no signs of cancer cells is classified as “no evidence of disease.” While the patient may display no visible tumors, doctors have no way of knowing if the cells have metastasized to other areas of the body where they may later resurface.

Chemotherapy and other treatments are often prescribed to decrease the chance of metastasis. Doctors tend to err on the side of caution, assuming that all patients are vulnerable, so many endure grueling rounds of treatment that end up being unnecessary.

“Focus on the Soil, Not the Seed”

For the most part, researchers have concentrated on unraveling the mysteries of cancer cells themselves to understand how they grow and spread. In keeping with that approach, scientists believed that metastasis was caused by cells spreading outward from their original location.

Based on that theory, all cancer patients would be expected to have metastasis. Many researchers are now shifting to a view that the spread of cancer cells is caused by a pathological relationship between the diseased cells and the host environment.

State-of-the-Art Cancer Immunotherapy from Issels®

Cancer immunotherapy at Issels® is directed at the cancer cells along with the underlying causes for the development of tumors. Contact us to learn more about how Issels® has helped patients achieve long-term remission.

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Cancer Research, Cancer Treatment, Uncategorized

New Test Could Find Esophageal Cancer Up to 8 Years Earlier

There is New Hope to Find Esophageal Cancer Early
There is New Hope to Find Esophageal Cancer Early

Patients with esophageal cancer are often diagnosed in the later stages of the disease, presenting a challenge for cancer immunotherapy and other treatments. Researchers in the U.K. have developed a genetic test for esophageal cancer that could help identify the disease up to eight years before symptoms are presented.

Are There Early Signs of Esophageal Cancer Risk?

A team of scientists at the University of Cambridge conducted a study of tissue samples from 90 patients with Barrett’s esophagus. Approximately five percent of people with this condition go on to develop esophageal cancer.

Since there has been no way to predict which cases of Barrett’s esophagus would progress to cancer, routine endoscopies have been standard treatment. Samples included in the study came from endoscopies performed over a period of 15 years. Half of the patients involved eventually developed esophageal cancer.

The researchers were able to identify predictive gene markers in 94 percent of the patients who ultimately showed signs of esophageal cancer. Even more promising is the fact that they could spot the markers in samples that predated the symptoms by several years.

Applications for Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment

According to Professor Rebecca Fitzgerald, lead researcher of the study, the next step is to conduct clinical trials using the genetic test. If the approach proves successful, it could make early diagnosis and treatment more effective and reduce the number of people who undergo unnecessary endoscopies.

Issels®: The Leader in Cancer Immunotherapy Treatment

We have helped patients with advanced esophageal cancer and other forms of the disease achieve long-term remission. Contact us for more information about our personally developed cancer immunotherapy programs.

Cancer Research

New Findings Show Men with Abnormally Low Testosterone Levels Will Rarely Develop Prostate Cancer

Research Shows Some Men Have A Lower Risk of Prostate Cancer
Research Shows Some Men Have A Lower Risk of Prostate Cancer

Each year more than 170,000 men in the United States are affected by prostate cancer. While the causes remain unknown, studies have found that hormone levels could be a key to prostate cancer treatment.

The Role of Testosterone in Prostate Cancer

Age, ethnicity and genetic mutations are some of the common risk factors for prostate cancer. The male hormone testosterone is known to facilitate cell growth in prostate tumors.

Based on the androgen saturation model, scientists believe that an increase in testosterone levels beyond the saturation point does not cause a corresponding increase in benign or malignant prostate tissue. Until recently, there wasn’t enough evidence to confirm or refute the model.

Putting Theory to the Test

Researchers at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom reviewed data obtained from more than 19,000 men, of whom approximately one-third had prostate cancer. Subjects were grouped into 10 categories ranging from lowest to highest levels of testosterone.

When prostate cancer risk was calculated based on conditional logistic regression methods, men in the lowest group were determined to be 20 percent less likely to develop the disease. Subjects in the other nine groups showed no link to prostate cancer risk.

According to Prof. Tim Key, co-author of the study, this is the first population study to support the commonly-held theory regarding testosterone and prostate cancer. Experts believe it could be a significant step toward more efficient diagnosis and treatment.

Issels: A Leader in Effective Prostate Cancer Treatment

Our non-toxic immunotherapy programs have helped patients with prostate cancer and other forms that have been unresponsive to other cancer treatment. Contact us to learn more.

Cancer Research, Cancer Treatment, Uncategorized

New Device Helps to Accurately Detect Cancer in Tissue Biopsies

New Advances in Early Cancer Detection
New Advances in Early Cancer Detection

One of the biggest roadblocks to successful cancer treatment is the difficulty of differentiating between healthy and diseased tissue. Cancer immunotherapy helps to address this problem, and researchers have announced development of a new device that may also improve outcomes.

Removing Cancer While Sparing Healthy Tissue

Surgery is a primary tool in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer, but there’s a risk that some of the cancerous tissue may be left behind. Surgeons sometimes use cryosection, in which a frozen tissue sample is evaluated by a pathologist, but the method is time-consuming and not always accurate.

A study published in Science Translational Medicine reveals how a team of researchers in Texas created the MasSpec Pen to detect cancer in human tissue. This device uses the dysfunctional metabolism of cancer cells to differentiate them from normal cells.

Identifying Cancerous Cells Within Seconds

Once a molecular fingerprint has been drawn, the cells are analyzed using software that has been “trained” by processing hundreds of healthy and cancerous human tissue samples. Within 10 seconds, the sample is flagged as “Normal” or “Cancer.”

The research team tested 253 samples of both normal and cancerous tissue with an accuracy rate of more than 96 percent. When the device was tested on mice, it again proved accurate without causing damage to healthy tissue. Testing in human cancer surgeries is expected to begin in 2018.

Cancer Immunotherapy at Issels®: A Personalized Treatment Program

No two cases of cancer are identical. At Issels®, we create a cancer immunotherapy program based on your specific needs. Contact us for more information.

Cancer Research, Cancer Treatment, Uncategorized

Smoking May Actually Prime Lung Cells for Cancer

Cancer Research News
Cancer Research News

The link between cigarette smoking and increased risk of lung cancer is well-established. Recent studies are giving researchers more insight into the causes of the connection as well as possible methods of treatment.

What Causes Genetic Abnormalities?

Gene behavior is driven by DNA code, but it can also be affected by other external factors. These events, such as those brought on by exposure to cigarette smoke, are known as epigenetic changes.

Researchers at Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center in Baltimore grew human bronchial cells, the same type that line airways in the lungs, and bathed them daily with a liquid form of cigarette smoke. This procedure went on for 15 months, making it the equivalent of smoking one to two packs of cigarettes a day for 20 to 30 years.

How Smoking “Primes” Cells for DNA Damage

After only 10 days, the smoke-exposed cells sustained more DNA damage than unexposed cells. Over the next three months, the exposed cells showed a significant increase in EZH2, which is a hormone that silences genes.

EZH2 is also a precursor to methylation, in which tiny methyl groups are added to the start of a gene’s DNA code. As a result, tumor suppression genes are silenced and thereby unable to prevent the uncontrolled cell growth of cancer. Smokers who quit show a lower level of methylation, which can decrease their risk of cancer.

Integrative Cancer Immunotherapy Treatment at Issels®

Our cancer immunotherapy programs incorporate gene-targeted therapies based on a patient’s individual needs. Contact us for more information about our decades of success initiating long-term remission with our innovative cancer immunotherapy treatments.

 

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Cancer Treatment, Immuno-Oncology, Immunotherapy, Uncategorized

Is the Cost of R&D for Cancer Medications Overstated?

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Are Costs Overstated for Cancer Research?
Are Costs Overstated for Cancer Medication Research?

Significant research and development (R&D) costs are often the main reason cited for steep prices on cancer treatments. Surprisingly, a study centered on 10 new cancer drugs suggests that these costs may have been greatly overstated.

The True Costs of Cancer Treatment R&D?

Results of the study, which was recently published in JAMA Internal Medicine, determined that the R&D process for a new cancer drug usually spans seven years, with an average total cost between $648 million and $794 million.

On its face, the numbers are huge, but relatively small compared to the yardstick used by pharmaceutical companies. Their measure is the staggering figure of $2.7 billion per drug, which was determined by a Tufts University study in 2016.

Cost vs. Benefit

Even more revealing was the assessment of sales generated by the 10 drugs evaluated in the study. After an average of four years on the market, the drugs had a combined total of $67 billion in revenue, which is seven times more than the aggregate of the R&D costs.

As expected, members of the pharmaceutical industry are taking exception with the report. Dr. J. Leonard Lichtenfeld, deputy chief medical officer of the American Cancer Society, took no official position but felt that the study would prompt wider discussion on the issue.

Integrative Cancer Immunotherapy Programs from Issels®

While cancer immunotherapy is a hot topic in the medical community, Issels® has been successfully using non-toxic treatments such as cancer vaccines for decades. Contact us for more information about our cancer centers in Santa Barbara, CA and Tijuana, Mexico.