Mesothelioma Treatment Trial Enters Phase II For Patients At Columbia University

According to news reports, Columbia University has just entered Phase II of its mesothelioma clinical trial in which two chemotherapy drugs are being tested. The trial is aimed at treating malignant pleural mesothelioma and peritoneal mesothelioma, which are two of the more deadly types of mesothelioma.

The trial will involve approximately 29 individuals and will last nearly six months.

Two of the drugs that will be tested include oxaliplatin and gemcitabine. According to TransWorldNews, oxaliplatin is "a platinum-containing organic compound which targets cancer cells by inhibiting or specifically preventing replication and repair of the cancer cells‚ DNA." Oxaliplatin is from Sanofi Aventis and is manufactured as Eloxatin.

The drug is commonly used in the treatment of colon and colorectal cancers, according to news reports. Gemcitabine, which is from Eli Lilly and Company is manufactured as Gemzar. The drug, according to TransWorldNews is "a cancer drug which similarly targets the replication processes of cancer cells‚ DNA by inhibiting the production of the cellular material which is necessary for DNA synthesis." Gemzar alone is used to treat patients of ovarian, lung, pancreatic and breast cancer. Combined, researchers are hoping the drugs will effectively treat and decrease mesothelioma symptoms. Recently a study from the Respiratory Disease Clinic Heckeshorn in Berlin from December 2008 found that, "a therapy of oxaliplatin and gemcitabine applied every 21 days in mesothelioma patients resulted in an increased rate of control for the disease‚ progression."

Developing Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma is a deadly form of lung cancer that has been linked to the inhalation of asbestos fibers and asbestos dust. Asbestos is part of a mineral known as vermiculite that was heavily mined during the late 19th century and the early 20th century. It was mined across the country until the 1970s and 1980s when health and governmental regulators discovered the potential risks involved in inhaling the deadly fiber.

However, asbestos can still be found in a number of products today, approximately 3,000 applications, according to the U.S. government. Some of the following are potential uses including:

* thermal, electrical and sound insulation
* cement
* plastic
* resins
* filtration and liquid sterilization
* friction materials
* asbestos textiles
* paper fabrication
* flooring felts
* roofing products
* pipeline wrapping
* brake and clutch pads

Garnering Mesothelioma Assistance

It is imperative for individuals who suffer from mesothelioma to receive both legal and medical assistance from knowledgeable professionals. In order to prolong signs and symptoms of the disease, individuals must seek immediate medical attention.

Also, further discussing the medical issues and legalities surrounding a mesothelioma case will improve the outcome of a mesothelioma victim. Because of the extreme dangers associated with the disease, it may be possible for a victim to receive monetary compensation. Speaking with a mesothelioma attorney will provide increased knowledge of a mesothelioma case.

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Things That Can Cause Lung Cancer

Author: Jon Simms

Lung scourged is not just one disease but instead a group of diseases. All forms of bane start cells in the body to change and grow out of power. Most types of growth cells form a lump or bulk called a growth. Cells from the swelling can decipher away and voyage to other parts of the body where they can persist to grow.

This dispersal coursed is called metastasis. When sarcoma spreads, it is still named after the part of the body where it ongoing. For example, if breast growth spreads to the lungs, it is still breast evil, not lung disease.

Another word for cancerous is cruel, so a cancerous growth is termed wicked. Nevertheless not all tumors plague. A melanoma that is not evil is called gentle. Benign tumors do not grow and division the way evil does. They are generally not an attempt to life.

A few cancers, such as blood cancers (leukemia), do not form a tumor. Most cancers are named after the part of the body where the plague starts. Lung scourge begins in the lungs. The lungs are twos clean-like organs in the chest. The right lung has three sections, called lobes. The left lung has two lobes. It is slighter because the sympathy takes up more area on that trait of the body.

The lungs transport air in and out of the body, pleasing in oxygen and getting rid of carbon dioxide gas, a weaken outcome. The lining around the lungs, called the pleura, helps to shelter the lungs and allows them to move during breathing. The windpipe (trachea) brings air down into the lungs. It divides into tubes called bronchi, which split into minor kindling called bronchioles. At the end of the small brushwood are tiny air sacs known as alveoli.

Most cancers of the lungs start in the lining of the bronchi but they can also begin in other areas such as the trachea, bronchioles, or alveoli. Lung melanoma often takes many years to expound. Once the plague occurs, menace cells can crush away and allot to other parts of the body.

Cancer of the lung is a life- threatening disease because it often spreads in this way before it is found. It is the foremost root of tumor loss for both men and women. During the year 2000 there will be about 164,100 new cases of lung sarcoma in this country. About 156,900 people will die of this disease: about 89,300 men and 67,600 women.

More people die of plague of the lung than of colon, breast, and prostrate cancers mutual. Lung disease is somewhat underdone in people under the age of 40. The normal aged of people found to have canker of the lungs is 60. If the disease is found and treated by surgery early, before it has reach to lymph nodes or other organs, the five-year survival tariff is about 42%.

However, few cancers of the lung are found at this early perform. The five-year survival measure for all stages of lung tumor shared was 14% in 1995, the last year for which we have subject numbers. A venture reason is something that increases a someone's unplanned of getting a disease. Some gamble factors, like smoking, can be controlled. Others, such as an anyone's age, can't be misused.

Smoking is by far the important gamble feature for lung canker. More than 8 out of 10 diagnosed cancers of the lungs are thought to significance from smoking. The longer a role has been smoking, and the more packs per day smoked, the superior the imperil. If an anyone stops smoking before cancer develops, the lung tissue leisurely returns to normal. Stopping smoking at any age lowers the risk of lung cancer.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/cancer-articles/things-that-can-cause-lung-cancer-557021.html

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Information on lung cancer symptoms can be found at the Lung Cancer Facts site.

Learn About Lung Health

Health is always on the minds of Canadian women and Lung Cancer Canada wants to make lung health a priority. Lung cancer kills more women in Canada every year than any other cancer. It's estimated that this year alone, more than 10-thousand women will be

Lung Cancer – Causes, Symptoms and Treatment

Author: peterhutch

Lung cancer is a disease of uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. This growth may lead to metastasis, invasion of adjacent tissue and infiltration beyond the lungs. The vast majority of primary lung cancers are carcinomas of the lung, derived from epithelial cells. Lung cancer, the most common cause of cancer-related death in men and the second most common in women,[1][2] is responsible for 1.3 million deaths worldwide annually.

What causes lung cancer?

Smoking

The incidence of lung cancer is strongly correlated with cigarette smoking, with about 90% of lung cancers arising as a result of tobacco use. The risk of lung cancer increases with the number of cigarettes smoked over time; doctors refer to this risk in terms of pack-years of smoking history (the number of packs of cigarettes smoked per day multiplied by the number of years smoked).

Lung cancer most commonly begins in the cells that line your lungs. Smoking causes the majority of lung cancers — both in smokers and in people exposed to secondhand smoke. But lung cancer also occurs in people who never smoked. In these cases, there may be no clear cause of lung cancer. Doctors have identified factors that may increase the risk.

Cancer that originates from lung cells is called a primary lung cancer. Primary lung cancer can start in the airways that branch off the trachea to supply the lungs (the bronchi) or in the small air sacs of the lung (the alveoli). Cancer may also spread (metastasize) to the lung from other parts of the body (most commonly from the breasts, colon, prostate, kidneys, thyroid gland, stomach, cervix, rectum, testes, bone, or skin).

Lung Cancer Symptoms

Lung cancer symptoms are commonly not experienced until the disease had advanced, sometimes delaying diagnosis. The symptoms of lung cancer also mimic the symptoms of other benign illnesses.

The most common lung cancer symptoms experienced are :

Onset of wheezing

Recurrent pneumonia or bronchitis

A persistent cough that does not go away

A sign is also an indication that something is not right in the body. But signs are defined as things that can be seen by a doctor, nurse, or other health care professional. Fever, rapid breathing rate, and abnormal breathing sounds heard through a stethoscope may be signs of pneumonia.

Lung Cancer Diagnosis

To help find the cause of symptoms, your doctor will evaluate your medical history, smoking history, exposure to environmental and occupational substances, and family history of cancer. Your doctor also will perform a physical exam and may recommend a chest X-ray and other tests. If lung cancer is suspected, sputum cytology — the microscopic examination of cells obtained from a deep-cough sample of mucus in the lungs — is a simple test that may be useful in detecting lung cancer. To confirm the presence of lung cancer, your doctor must examine tissue.

How can I prevent lung cancer?

The best way to prevent lung cancer is to quit smoking, or to never start in the first place. You should try and avoid being around people who are smoking; and also avoid pipes, cigars, and marijuana. If you live in an area with radon, you should make sure there is adequate ventilation in your basement to get rid of it. Use a detector to make sure the radon levels are low.

Treatment Of Lung Cancer

Many factors must be taken into account to determine the best treatment for an individual diagnosed with lung cancer. The specific type of cell, the location of the lung tumor, the stage of the disease with possible metastasis (spread to other parts of the body), and the general health of the individual must be considered. Various treatment plans may include radiation therapy, chemotherapy, and/or surgery.

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Lycopene Lung Cancer Treatment

By Randolph Meresmaa

Lycopene is what gives tomatoes, and several other fruits, their deep red color. But lycopene is also a powerful antioxidant that has shown remarkable effect on degenerative diseases. Tomatoes are the only major dietary source of lycopene. According to a study presented at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), tomatoes may help reduce the risk of certain types of cancer.

Lycopene is present naturally in human plasma in greater amounts than beta carotene and other essential dietary carotenoids. This may indicates its greater biological significance in the human defense system. The researchers in P&S and Harlem Hospital evaluated the association between lung cancer and lycopene.

Investigators collected blood samples from 93 individuals with non-small cell lung cancer and also from 102 matched controls, in a case-control study. They tested tested the samples for levels of certain micronutrients, including retinol, lycopene and beta-carotene.

The researchers found no significant differences between control subjects and subjects with lung cancer. in most of the micronutrients for which they did the tests. But they did find that lung cancer patients had significantly lower concentrations of lycopene.

After adjusting for age, race, sex, drinking, smoking, vitamin supplements, occupational exposure and season, the investigators found that the group with the lowest levels of lycopene, had almost a three-fold increased risk for cancer compared with the group with the highest lycopene levels.

When the investigators evaluated current smokers, they found that the group with the lowest lycopene blood levels had four times the risk of cancer than the group with the highest lycopene levels. According to Dr. Jean G. Ford, assistant professor of medicine and principal investigator:

"We concluded from our findings that low intake of lycopene may be a risk factor for lung cancer, especially for smokers. Even though our findings are preliminary, they add to the growing body of evidence that diets rich in tomatoes and tomato products are strongly linked to a reduced risk of certain types of cancer."

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General Facts on Lung Cancer: Causes, Symptoms and Treatment For Lung Cancer

by Michael Lee

Educating yourself about the general facts on lung cancer is essential to help prevent acquiring the disease. As the number one cause of death among men in America and one of the major causes of death cases throughout the world, health experts are furthering their efforts in trying to unearth general facts on lung cancer, and how this disease can be so deadly.

Among the various type of cancer deaths, lung cancer is responsible for 29 percent of that. In fact, there are more death cases for lung cancer as compared to the data of deaths for prostate, breast, and colon cancers combined. Hence, you can begin protecting yourself now by arming yourself with the general facts on lung cancer before it's too late.

Causes Of Lung Cancer

When people think of lung cancer, they often associate it with cigarette smoking. Indeed, this is one of the leading causes of the disease. But it is not the only factor.

One of the major focus of research for health experts regarding lung cancer is the genetic factor. Most cancerous cells develop when there is an error in the mutation of DNA cells. That error in itself can be affected by other environmental factors as well, which has led health experts to go back to examining external factors that can contribute to the formation of cancerous cells.

Too much exposure to asbestos has been cited as one crucial environmental factor causing lung cancer. Asbestos is a kind of mineral that is made up of bundled up fibers and naturally occurs in the environment. These fibers, when inhaled by a person exposed to them, can be trapped in one's lungs and accumulate until it causes an inflammation on the lungs.

Another crucial factor that could elicit the development of lung cancer is inhaling secondhand smoke. Although cigarette smoking can increase your chances of acquiring lung cancer, those who inhale it are at a higher risk. Secondhand smoke consists of two types of smoke: those that are produced by the burning of the tobacco product and those exhaled by the smoker.

Please pay very close attention to these general facts on lung cancer, so you can avoid the factors that could put you at risk in acquiring the disease.

Symptoms Of Lung Cancer

Since it affects your respiratory system, common symptoms associated with lung cancer are related to such conditions affecting the respiratory illness.

It is a rare case for lung cancer to be diagnosed early, which is why awareness of the general facts on lung cancer is of extreme importance for early diagnosis.

• Prolonged cases of cough.
• Uncharacteristic wheezing.
• Pain on the back, chest, or shoulder.
• Coughing blood or mucus.
• Constant shortness of breath.
• Swollen neck or face.
• Pneumonia or other respiratory infections, etc

Treatment For Lung Cancer

Before a treatment option is to be determined for lung cancer patients, it is important to diagnose its type and stage first. Here are some of the more common types of treatment:

1) Surgery This method of treatment is best only for patients who are diagnosed early due to the possibility of the cancer cells spreading to other parts of the body despite inability to detect it via scan.

2) Chemotherapy This treatment is best used for individuals with small cell lung cancer. Oftentimes, this treatment is accompanied by radiotherapy. This treatment is known as chemoradiation.

3) Radiotherapy This treatment is directed on the patient's head, in order to prevent the cancer cells from spreading to the brain. It is recommended only for individuals with small cell lung cancer and those who had their tumor removed via surgery.

Equipping yourself with general facts on lung cancer is your best weapon against the disease.

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