Vytorin is a combination of simvastatin (Zocor) and ezetimibe (Zetia). Vytorin reduces the amount of cholesterol (a type of fat) absorbed by the body and block the production of cholesterol in the body.

In August 2008, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an Early Communication describing a possible association between the use of Vytorin and an increased risk of cancer and cancer-related death compared to placebo. The Early Communication was based on preliminary results from the Simvastatin and Ezetimibe in Aortic Stenosis (SEAS) trial. FDA has now completed its review of the data from the SEAS trial as well as a review of recent data from two large-scale ongoing cardiovascular trials with Vytorin. Based on the currently available information, FDA believes it is unlikely that Vytorin increases the risk of cancer or cancer-related death, but at this time an association cannot be definitively ruled out.

FDA is not advising healthcare professionals or consumers to stop using these medications, but to continue to evaluate the clinical benefits and potential risks of Vytorin or Zetia compared to other FDA-approved cholesterol lowering medications. Consumers should talk to their healthcare professional if they have any questions about Vytorin, Zetia, Zocor or the SEAS trial.

For more information about the FDA’s report, click here.

Labels: cancer, FDA, health care providers, Vytorin

A lawsuit has just been filed against A&A Contracting, a St. Louis based construction company, for firing a worker with a history of health problems. The lawsuit, filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), alleges that the company fired Rickie Wells because he had a history of liver and kidney problems as well as being diagnosed with cancer. At the time that Mr. Wells was terminated, he was in good health and was cleared to work by his doctor.

The EEOC says A&A Contracting became aware of Wells' health history when he applied for the company's health insurance coverage. Federal law bars discrimination against employees and applicants who are disabled or have a record of disability. The lawsuit seeks back pay for Wells and damages.

For more information, see the article from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch at:
http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/stlouiscitycounty/story/D648607E64C713EF862575ED003E5D6A?OpenDocument

Labels: AA Contracting, cancer, EEOC, kidney, St. louis

The FDA approved Alimta yesterday, the first maintenance therapy drug available to treat advanced lung cancer. Patients are often treated with maintenance therapy to prevent the cancer from spreading once the tumor itself is shrunk or has been responsive to chemotherapy. Alimta disrupts the production of B-vitamin folate in certain cells, a necessary ingredient for cell replication.

When asked on his thoughts about Alimta, Dr. Richard Pazdur, MD, and director of the FDA’s Drug Evaluation and Research Office of Oncology Drug Products stated, “This drug represents a new approach in the treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer. Typically, patients whose tumors respond to chemotherapy do not receive further treatment after four-to-six chemotherapy cycles. This study demonstrates an advantage in overall survival in certain patients who received Alimta for maintenance therapy.”

Alimta, manufactured by Eli Lily & Co. of Indianapolis, initially was approved in 2004 for the treatment of patients with mesothelioma, a cancer frequently related to asbestos exposure. The drug was later approved for the treatment of patients with non-small cell lung cancer whose disease worsened on prior chemotherapy drugs and also as an initial therapy for advanced non-small cell lung cancer.

For more information, see the FDA News Release at: http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm170515.htm

Labels: Alimta, cancer, chemotherapy, FDA, maintenance therapy, Mesothelioma

FDA acknowledges four recent studies that observed the use of the insulin, Lantus and possible risk for cancer. Three of the four studies suggest an increased risk for cancer associated with use of Lantus. See http://www.diabetologia-journal.org/cancer.html.

Currently, the FDA recommends that patients consult their doctor before stopping their insulin therapy. Patients should not stop their therapy on their own. Uncontrolled blood sugar levels can pose both immediate and long-term serious adverse effects.

Similar to human insulin, Lantus is used to control blood sugar in people with Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes. Lantus is a long-acting insulin that is only approved for once-a-day dosage delivered by under the skin injections.

In all four studies, the length of patient follow-up was shorter than what is necessary to evaluate for cancer risk from drug exposure. Further, the studies were inconsistent within themselves and with each other, which raises the question if there really is an association between Lantus and cancer. Additionally, differences in patient characteristics in the various treatment groups may have contributed to a finding of increased cancer risk.

Nonetheless, FDA is reviewing the safety data for Lantus to better understand the risk, if any, for cancer associated with use of Lantus. FDA is also communicating with Lantus if any additional studies are needed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of Latus.

FDA requests that any adverse events associated with Lantus be reported to their MedWatch program.

he FDA can be contacted via:
Online at www.fda.gov/medwatch/report.htm
Phone at 1-800-FDA-1088
Fax at 1-800-FDA-0178, using the MedWatch Form 3500
(available at www.fda.gov/medwatch/ getforms.htm)
Mail, using the postage-paid MedWatch Form 3500 (see above), to MedWatch, 5600
Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD 20852-9787

For more information please see: http://www.fda.gov/Drugs/DrugSafety/PostmarketDrugSafetyInformationforPatientsandProviders

Labels: cancer, diabetes, FDA, insulin, Lantus

A new method of attacking cancer cells, developed by researchers in Australia, has proved surprisingly effective in animal tests.The method is intended to sidestep two major drawbacks of standard chemotherapy: the treatment's lack of specificity and the fact that cancer cells often develop resistance to treatment.

The new method, called EnGeneIC, uses “minicells” to deliver a variety of agents to tumor cells, including both anti-cancer toxins and mechanisms for suppressing the genes that make tumors resistant to toxins.The “minicells” are generated from mutant bacteria which, each time they divide, pinch off small bubbles of cell membrane. The “minicells” can be loaded with chemicals and coated with antibodies that direct them toward tumor cells.No tumor cell, so far as is known, produces a specific surface molecule for toxins to act on. But 80 percent of solid tumors have their cell surfaces studded with extra-large amounts of the receptor for a particular hormone, known as epidermal growth factor.The “minicells” can be coated with an antibody that recognizes the receptor for epidermal growth factor, so they are more likely to attach themselves to tumors than to the normal cells of the body. The tumor cells engulf and destroy the “minicells”, a standard defense against bacteria, and in doing so are exposed to whatever cargo the “minicells” carry.

In one surprisingly effective test of the method, reported online Sunday in Nature Biotechnology, mice were implanted with a human uterine tumor that was highly aggressive and resistant to many drugs. All of the treated animals were free of tumor cells after 70 days of treatment; the untreated mice were dead after a month.

Dr. Robert M. Hoffman, of the University of California, San Diego, said that the “minicells” were "good strategy and good science" but that the researchers had implanted the human tumors under the mice's skin, a position from which they do not usually spread through the body. So the experiments do not answer the question of whether “minicells” can attack metastasized cancer, he said.

For more information, see the article in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch at:
http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/nation/story/06651E9B82F1DE8C862575E400075F53?OpenDocument

Labels: animal, cancer, chemotherapy, ENGENEIC, minicells, tumor

Fish oil and vitamin D will be studied to see if either or both lowers a healthy person's risk of developing cancer, heart disease or a stroke. Vitamin D deficiency is connected with higher rates of cancer, heart problems and/or stroke. Fish oil, or omega-3 fatty acid, are widely promoted for heart health.

The study will consist of 20,000 people with no history of heart attacks, stroke or a major cancer, women 65 or older and men 60 or older. Participants will be randomly assigned to take vitamin D, fish oil, both nutrients, or placebo pills for five years.

One quarter of the study participants will be African Americans. People with a dark complexion are unable to make much vitamin D from sunlight. A deficiency in vitamin D may help explain why African Americans have higher rates of cancer, stroke and heart disease. It may also explain why people from Northern regions, where the sunlight is weaker in the winter, are more likely to develop cancer.

The National Cancer Institute, along with other federal agencies, will sponsor the $20 million study. Pharmavite LLC of Northridge, Calif., will provide the vitamin D pills, and Ocean Nutrition Canada Ltd. of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, will provide the omega-3 fish oil capsules.

For more information please see: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31491531/ns/health-diet_and_nutrition/

Labels: cancer, Children Vitamins, Fish Oil, heart disease, sunlight, Vitamin D

A promising new melanoma liver cancer treatment directs therapy directly at the liver. The procedure, percutaneous hepatic perfusion, or PHP, targets tumors with a dose of chemotherapy 10 times stronger than patients could tolerate intravenously. Doctors use a specially designed system of catheters and filters to apply the cancer-fighting drug only to the liver, reducing the risk of damaging nearby organs and minimizing possible side effects.

The liver is resilient and unlike other organs can tolerate large amounts of chemotherapy. It is one of the largest organs in the body and is essential for general health. The liver removes harmful material from the blood, aids in digestion of food and converts food into nutrients for a healthy and active life. However, cancer can severely impair the liver's ability to perform these crucial functions, and often times when cancer originates in or spreads to the liver, the tumors in the liver can lead to death. When cancer originates in the liver it is called primary liver cancer. Cancer that has spread to the liver from other parts of the body is called secondary, or metastatic, cancer in the liver.

Doctors say PHP is an important step because people who have melanoma liver cancer usually don't live very long. Slightly fewer than 70,000 new cases of this type of cancer will be diagnosed this year in the United States, according to the American Cancer Society. Although it is not the most common of all skin cancers, it is the most deadly. Ocular melanoma is much rarer, with about 2,500 new cases detected each year. The cancer is often lethal if it spreads to the liver, which is the most common site for it to metastasize.

During the procedure, patients receive doses of a drug called melphalan for 30 minutes every four weeks. The treatment takes place in an operating room while the patient is under an anesthetic. The chemo drug is delivered by a catheter that is threaded up a major artery in the patient's groin into the main artery that goes into the liver. Another catheter is placed in the major vein behind the liver, and balloons on the catheter are inflated to direct all the blood flowing out of the liver into a filter outside the body. This filter system removes almost 90 percent of the chemotherapy from the blood, and the blood is then given back to the patient through a catheter placed in a large vein in the neck.

For more information on the clinical trial please see: http://www.livercancertrials.com/

Labels: cancer, clinical trials, Liver, melanoma, percutaneous, php

In a U.S. study released today, researchers found that a cream used to treat the early signs of skin cancer may erase wrinkles and leave behind younger- looking skin. Researchers say Valeant Pharmaceuticals’’ cream Efudex, which is used to treat actinic keratoses, a precancerous form of squamous cell carcinoma, improved the appearance of skin. Efudex apparently smoothes out rough spots and wrinkles, while improving skin color, and erasing brown spots. The cream appears to cause a wound healing response that leads to an increase in collagen production, which improves the appearance of wrinkles.

The study was performed on 21 individuals, aged 56 to 85, with actinic keratoses and sun damage. The volunteers used the cream twice daily on the face for two weeks Researchers measured changes in the skin by taking facial biopsies over a six-month period. The drug had a significant effect, causing people’s skin to be much softer. The researchers also noticed that skin appeared to be less yellow and more even toned with fewer brown spots.

However, treatment with Efudex, known as fluorouracil, is not trouble free. According to Dr. Dana Sachs of the University of Michigan, shortly after the cream is applied, the skin becomes red and inflamed. “Patients look really bad. Their skin is red. I’ve had people describe it as looking law raw hamburger meat.”

Labels: brown spots, cancer, cancer cream, Collagen, Efudex, zicam

Middle-aged adults who get too little sleep are more likely to develop high blood pressure. Missing just one hour of sleep a night over five years raises risk of high blood pressure by 37 percent.

"People who didn't sleep as much were at greater risk of developing hypertension over five years," Kristen Knutson of the University of Chicago reported in the Archives of Internal Medicine on Monday.

Adults typically should sleep between seven and nine hours a night, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Sleeping too little has different negative health affects depending on age. In children, lack of sleep has been shown to raise rates of obesity, depression and high blood pressure. In older adults, it increases the risk of falls. And in the middle-aged, it raises the risk of infections, heart disease, stroke, cancer and high blood pressure.

The team studied 578 adults with an average age of 40. They took blood pressure readings and measured how long each person slept. Only 1 percent slept eight hours or more.

The study participants on average slept six hours. Each hour of lost sleep raised the risk of high blood pressure.

"If you compare six hours of sleep to five hours of sleep, the five-hour sleepers will have 37 percent greater odds of developing hypertension," Knutson said.

Men, especially African American men, slept less then Caucasian women.

"These two observations suggested the intriguing possibility that the well-documented higher blood pressure in African Americans and men might be partly related to sleep duration," Knutson and colleagues wrote.

Please see: http://archinte.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/short/169/11/1055

Labels: 6 hours, cancer, despression, fungal infections, heart disease, high blook pressure, kate cooper, obesity, Sleep, snore, stroke

The FDA announced today that it has approved the first cancer drug specifically to be used for dogs. The drug is called Palladia and is manufactured by Pfizer. The drug is used to treat skin based mast tumors. This type of tumor accounts for 20% of all skin based cancers in dogs. While many mast tumors can appear to be small and benign, they can be a deadly form of cancer in dogs. Some mast tumors can be removed very easily, but some cannot and can cause serious problems. Palladia works in two ways to attack mast tumors: it cuts off the blood supply to the tumor and it kills the tumor.

Until the development and approval of Palladia, all cancer drugs used in veterinary medicine were developed for use in humans and were used in an “extra-label” manner to treat cancer in dogs. When asked for her reaction to the approval of Palladia, DVM and PhD Bernadette Dunham said, “This cancer drug approval for dogs is an important step forward for veterinary medicine. Prior to this approval, veterinarians had to rely on human oncology drugs, without knowledge of how safe or effective they would be for dogs. Today’s approval offers dog owners, in consultation with their veterinarian, an option for treatment of their dog’s cancer.” Some common side effects of Palladia are diarrhea, decrease in or loss of appetite, lameness, weight loss, and blood in the stool.

For more information on Palladia, see the approval summary at:
http://www.fda.gov/downloads/AnimalVeterinary/Products/ApprovedAnimalDrugProducts/FOIADrugSummaries/UCM164091.pdf

See the news article on the FDA website at:
http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm164118.htm

Labels: animal, cancer, dog, DVM, FDA, Palladia, Pfizer, tumor, vet

The Food and Drug Administration is weighing whether patients’ course of treatment for the widely used cancer drug Rituxan should be changed. Rituxan may pose less of a risk of developing progressive multifocal leukoencephalitis (PML) if it is used for a shorter period or with breaks, according the FDA and the Wall Street Journal.

The drug is co-marketed by biotechnology companies Genentech Inc. of California and Biogen Idec Inc. of Massachusetts. Rituxan, which is used to treat lymphoma, a cancer of immune-system cells, had $2.6 billion in U.S. sales in 2008.

PML is a viral infection that affects the white matter of the brain. PML is caused by reactivated JC virus. Latent JC virus is present in about 80 percent of adults. Patients with PML exhibit neurological symptoms like confusion, dizziness or loss of balance, difficulty talking or walking, and vision problems. PML gets worse over time, and is usually fatal. There is no treatment or cure for the disease. It is often associated with drugs that suppress the immune system.

A study released in March in the medical journal, Blood linked Rituxan to 57 cases of PML between 1997 and 2008. Of 57, 51 died. The median time between their diagnosis and death was about two months.

The study’s researcher commented: "The potential contribution of Rituxan to the development of PML is unknown; however, it cannot be excluded."

While Rituxan has been linked to a higher number of PML cases, some are not calling for a recall of Rituxan because it is frequently the best option for patients with life-threatening cancer. It is questionable whether the drug should be used in patients who do not have life-threatening diseases. There are typically more options for patients with rheumatoid arthritis, another ailment which Rituxan is approved to treat.

Doctors say Rituxan is also used "off label" for conditions not approved by the FDA, including lupus and psoriasis. FDA officials said they are aware of some off-label uses, which are legal so long as the drug maker does not promote them. Genentech said it doesn't promote off-label use of Rituxan.

Doctors at the FDA have been looking at the long-term uninterrupted use of Rituxan as a potential factor in PML. By suppressing the immune system, the drug may give free rein to the virus, normally under check, that causes the brain disease.

"We've had discussions at the FDA about whether drug holidays or limitations on the duration of therapy might reduce the risk of PML and other serious adverse effects of chronic immunosuppression," said John Jenkins, director of the FDA's drug approval section.

Drug holidays themselves can cause problems, though. "Sometimes [after a break from the drug], the disease recurs more severely and requires higher doses to bring the disease back under control," Dr. Jenkins said.

The FDA warned of the possible link between Rituxan and PML in 2006. Currently, Rituxan's label has a "black box" warning about PML, the strongest possible warning.



Reports of adverse events associated with Rituxan, including PML, should be reported to the FDA.



The FDA can be contacted via:
Online at www.fda.gov/medwatch/report.htm
Phone at 1-800-FDA-1088
Fax at 1-800-FDA-0178, using the MedWatch Form 3500
(available at www.fda.gov/medwatch/ getforms.htm)
Mail, using the postage-paid MedWatch Form 3500 (see above), to MedWatch, 5600
Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD 20852-9787



For more information please see:

http://www.fda.gov/Drugs/DrugSafety/PostmarketDrugSafetyInformationforPatientsandProviders/ucm109106.htm

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124381351149970563.html

Labels: Air France crash update, cancer, death, FDA, national running day, PML, rituxan, Wall Street Journal

A Singapore man undergoing treatment was detained by U.S. immigration officials after the drug he was taking caused his fingerprints to disappear. The man, identified as Mr. S, was eventually allowed to enter the United States after officials determined he did not pose a threat to security.

According to Mr. S’s oncologist, Eng-Huat Tan of the National Cancer Center in Singapore, the patient had neck and head cancer that spread. Although Mr. S responded well to chemotherapy, to prevent a recurrence doctors placed him on Capecitabine, a drug marketed in the United States as Xeloda. One of the side effects of the drug is hand-foot syndrome. It causes the skin o n the hands and feet to peel. Eventually over time, the drug erases fingerprints.

“It is uncertain when the onset of fingerprint loss will take place in susceptible patients who are taking Capecitabine”, Dr. Eng-Huat Tan wrote. “However, it is possible that there may be a growing number of such patients as Mr. S. These patients should prepare adequately before traveling to avert the inconvenience that Mr. S was put through.”

For more information see: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8064332.stm

Labels: cancer, chemotherapy, doctors, fingers, Singapore

The Illinois Senate passed Bill 1381 yesterday which would allow for the legalization of medicinal marijuana. The bill will now go to the House for a vote. In order for the bill to pass the Senate, it needed a yes vote from at least 30 senators. The bill passed with a 30-28 vote.
The bill would allow for marijuana to be prescribed by doctors for patients suffering from painful diseases such as HIV/AIDS, glaucoma, cancer, multiple sclerosis, or Crohn’s disease. Patients would only be able to receive a prescription for cannabis from a doctor with whom they have an established relationship with. Once a patient receives a prescription for marijuana, he/she or the primary caregiver would then be able to grow cannabis in their home or retrieve it from a licensed dispensary.
When asked about their motives for passing the bill, many senators expressed purposes for relieving pain and being compassionate. Many senators disapprove of the bill because of concerns about the lack of background checks in the bill. Senator Dale Righter called the bill “an invitation for trouble” because the bill does not require criminal background checks for patients or their caregivers before they are allowed to grow marijuana in their homes.
The bill is now en route to the Illinois House. It is questionable how far the bill will get in the house. This is only the second time that a bill legalizing marijuana has ever reached a vote in either Illinois chamber. As of now, only 13 states have legalized the use of medicinal marijuana, but many other states have proposals pending.

For more information, see:
The Springfield, Illinois newspaper, State Journal-Register, website:
http://www.sj-r.com/archive/x726816166/Medical-marijuana-bill-clears-Senate

And the Saint Louis Post-Dispatch website:
http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/illinoisnews/story/2151B842BA9B7B76862575C40007E895?OpenDocument

Labels: cancer, cannabis, glaucoma, HIV/AIDS, House, Illinois, marijuana, medicinal marijuana, Senate Judiciary Committee

Labels: baby, cancer, children, johnson, products, soap

A report issued by the National Institutes of Health found that those who work with formaldehyde may have a higher risk for certain cancers, particularly blood and lymphatic cancers. The report, issued online on May 12, 2009, is scheduled to be published in print on May 20, 2009 in the Journal of the National Caner Institute.

Formaldehyde is used in certain industries as a preservative and as a disinfectant. Many of these industries use formaldehyde to produce molded-plastic products, decorative laminates, photographic film, or plywood.

The study,which analyzed cancer deaths in over 25,000 industrial workers over 40 years , found a statistically significant association between death from blood and lymphatic cancers and formaldehyde exposure. The specific types of cancers that appear to be associated with formaldehyde exposure include Hodgkin’s lymphoma, multiple myeloma, and myeloid leukemia.

For more information, see http://www.nih.gov/news/health/may2009/nci-12.htm

Labels: cancer, film, formaldehyde, health, Hodgkin's, Hodgkins, institute, laminate, leukemia, lymphoma, myeloma, national, NCI, NIH, plastic

People who live near coal waste deposit sites may be at risk of suffering damaging health effects. This announcement was made recently by two environmental groups, the Environmental Integrity Project and Earthjustice, in a report which stated that coal waste has polluted water in at least 24 states and at more than 70 sites around the United States.

Coal waste, or coal ash, is a byproduct produced by coal-burning power plants, which constitute the majority of the power plants in the United States. These plants generally store coal waste in ponds or landfills. Often, the waste ponds and landfills have inadequate lining that allows chemicals from the waste to leach into drinking water.

Coal waste contains lead, arsenic, cadmium, cobalt and other harmful metals. These chemicals are known to cause cancer, liver damage, lung disease, gastrointestinal problems, birth defects, and a number of other serious injuries.

The highest risk of coal waste leaching into drinking water is near the sites of older coal waste storage facilities, as these landfills and ponds are more likely to lack liners or to have damaged liners.

Despite the toxic risks of coal combustion waste, there are no national standards for storing or disposing of it. Some states require companies that produce coal waste to obtain permits and other states monitor water for leached chemicals, however, regulations vary greatly from state to state. Even in states that do regulate coal waste, there is still a risk of leaching from older structures that have damaged liners or lack liners completely. A list of the 100 most polluting coal plants is available here.

In December, 2008, a dam at a coal plant in Harriman, Tennessee collapsed, releasing over one billion gallons of toxic coal waste over 300 acres of land, poisoning water with hazardous chemicals. While the risk of this type of disaster is serious, the risk of leaching from coal waste ponds and landfills is even more alarming, as it occurs constantly and is generally unmonitored.

Contaminated water has also been discovered recently in Crestwood, Illinois and Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, though the contaminated wells in those locations were polluted by sources other than coal waste storage sites.

See the following links for more information:

http://www.thesouthern.com/articles/2009/01/25/front_page/27857494.txt

https://www.istockanalyst.com/article/viewnewspaged/articleid/2980037/pageid/2

Labels: ameren, arsenic, cancer, coal, coal ash, coal plant, coal waste, combustion, hazardous, lead, poisoning, pollution, power plant, toxic, water