New hopes for Breast Cancer Vaccine

from the BBC news service
American scientists say they have developed a vaccine which has prevented breast cancer from developing in mice.

The researchers - whose findings are published in the journal, Nature Medicine - are now planning to conduct trials of the drug in humans.

But they warn that it could be some years before the vaccine is widely available.

The immunologist who led the research says the vaccine targets a protein found in most breast tumours.

Vincent Tuohy, from the Cleveland Clinic Lerner Research Institute, said: "We believe that this vaccine will someday be used to prevent breast cancer in adult women in the same way that vaccines have prevented many childhood diseases.

Unique challenge

"If it works in humans the way it works in mice, this will be monumental. We could eliminate breast cancer."

In the study, genetically cancer-prone mice were vaccinated - half with a vaccine containing á-lactalbumin and half with a vaccine that did not contain the antigen.

None of the mice vaccinated with á-lactalbumin developed breast cancer, while all of the other mice did.

The US has approved two cancer-prevention vaccines, one against cervical cancer and one against liver cancer.

However, these vaccines target viruses - the human papillomavirus (HPV) and the Hepatitis B virus (HBV) - not cancer formation itself.



We look forward to seeing the results of large-scale clinical trials to find out if this vaccine would be safe



Caitlin Palframan, Breakthrough Breast Cancer


In terms of developing a preventive vaccine, cancer presents problems not posed by viruses - while viruses are recognised as foreign invaders by the immune system, cancer is not.

Cancer is an over-development of the body's own cells. Trying to vaccinate against this cell over-growth would effectively be vaccinating against the recipient's own body, destroying healthy tissue.

Caitlin Palframan, of charity Breakthrough Breast Cancer, said: "This research could have important implications for how we might prevent breast cancer in the future.

"However, this is an early stage study, and we look forward to seeing the results of large-scale clinical trials to find out if this vaccine would be safe and effective in humans."

She added there were already steps women could take to reduce the risk of breast cancer, including reducing alcohol consumption, maintaining a healthy weight and taking regular exercise.

Cancer Research UK's professor of oncology, Robert Hawkins, said: "This very early study describes an interesting approach to the prevention of breast cancer.

"It will be several years before this vaccine can be tested fully to assess its safety and effectiveness as a way to stop the disease developing in women."

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in the UK, affecting more than 45,500 women every year.

Thermography or Mammography?

LINK:
http://www.facebook.com/l/35120;www.breastthermography.com/breast_thermography_mf.htm

"While mammography, ultrasound, MRI, and other structural imaging tools rely primarily on finding the physical tumor, DII (thermography) is based on detecting the heat produced by increased blood vessel circulation and metabolic changes associated with a tumor’s genesis and growth. By detecting minute variations in normal blood vessel activity, infrared imaging may find thermal signs suggesting a pre-cancerous state of the breast or the presence an early tumor that is not yet large enough to be detected by physical examination, mammography, or other types of structural imaging (3,6,7,8,9).

Certain types of cancers will not be detected (approximately 20%) by mammography for various reasons(10), but some of these cancers will be discovered by DII (3,6,7,8,9).

Difficulties in reading mammograms can occur in women who are on hormone replacement, nursing or have fibrocystic, large, dense, or enhanced breasts (6,8). These types of breast differences do not cause difficulties in reading digital infrared scans."
LINK:
http://www.facebook.com/l/35120;www.breastthermography.com/breast_thermography_mf.htm

Breast Cancer and Music Therapy: What happens?

Music therapy is the use of live or recorded music to help provide distraction from symptoms and side effects and to promote relaxation. Using music in a therapeutic way can also ease communication for people who don't always feel comfortable expressing feelings.

Studies have shown that music therapy can help to:

increase feelings of well-being
reduce anxiety
reduce physical symptoms such as pain and nausea
What to expect in a typical music therapy session
A music therapy session can happen in a variety of settings, including hospitals, clinics, cancer centers, and in a person's home. No musical ability is required in order to experience a benefit.

A music therapist will ask questions about your unique situation and tailor the therapy to your emotional and physical needs. Sessions might involve:

playing music
listening to music
performing movements to music
writing songs
discussing what lyrics mean to you

If you've received a diagnosis of cancer, please consider using music therapy. It is a powerful intervention that can bring not only comfort but also healing.

Songs for Cancer Survival

Cancer of any kind is a frightening and potentially life-threatening diagnosis. Many people have written songs about breast cancer survival. This song was actually written by someone who had dignosed with lung cancer but I thought it was particularly beautiful. What do you think?

Excellent Resources for Breast Cancer Treatment

This National Cancer Institute (NCI) booklet (NIH Publication No. 05-1556) has important information about breast cancer.* Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer among women in this country (other than skin cancer). Each year, more than 211,000 American women learn they have this disease.

You will read about possible causes, screening, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, and supportive care. You will also find ideas about how to cope with the disease.

Breast Cancer in Men

Each year, about 1,700 men in this country learn they have breast cancer. Most information in this booklet applies to men with breast cancer. However, more specific information about breast cancer in men is available on NCI's Web site at http://www.cancer.gov and from NCI's Cancer Information Service at 1-800-4-CANCER.


Scientists are studying breast cancer to find out more about its causes. And they are looking for better ways to prevent, find, and treat it.

NCI provides information about cancer, including the publications mentioned in this booklet. You can order these materials by telephone or on the Internet. You can also read them online and print your own copy.

Telephone (1-800-4-CANCER): Information Specialists at NCI's Cancer Information Service can answer your questions about cancer. They also can send NCI booklets, fact sheets, and other materials.
Internet (http://www.cancer.gov): You can use NCI's Web site to find a wide range of up-to-date information. For example, you can find many NCI booklets and fact sheets at http://www.cancer.gov/publications. People in the United States and its territories may use this Web site to order printed copies. This Web site also explains how people outside the United States can mail or fax their requests for NCI booklets.
You can ask questions online and get help right away from Information Specialists through LiveHelp at http://www.cancer.gov/cis.

Sonique and Breast Cancer

Singer and DJ Sonique will have months of chemotherapy to treat her breast cancer, her spokesman has said.

Sonique has undergone two operations
The singer, whose real name is Sonia Clarke, was diagnosed with the disease earlier this month and underwent two operations last week.
Her spokesman, Stuart Watts, said: "Sonique's second operation has been successful and five months of chemotherapy will now follow."
The music star underwent surgery last Monday but doctors found the cancer had spread.
She went back into the operating theatre on Saturday.
The singer turned 41 yesterday and was said to be spending the day with her family.
Her new single, World Of Change, was due to be released next month and she had planned to Europe this summer.
Whether these will still go ahead will depend on her health.
Sonique, who was born in Crouch End, London, started her music career as a teenager with a reggae band Fari.

Kylie also battled breast cancer
In 2000 she hit the big time when her song It Feels So Good stayed at the top of the charts for three weeks.
She follows a list of famous women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer in recent years.
Kylie Minogue, Anastacia, Cynthia Nixon, Sheryl Crow and Olivia Newton-John are just some of the women who have fought public battles against the disease.

Music Therapy for Breast Cancer Patients

Research on music therapy in people with cancer

There have been studies showing that music therapy can help people who've had cancer to feel less anxious, more relaxed, and to feel less pain.

In a very preliminary 2001 British study of music therapy in 29 cancer patients, participants felt a higher sense of well-being and less tension during one session. Researchers measured improvements in immune function and decreases in the amount of the stress hormone cortisol.

A 2001 study of 20 patients awaiting breast biopsy showed that, when some of the patients had a 20-minute music therapy session while in the pre-operative waiting room, their anxiety and respiratory rates were much lower than those of the patients who did not have a music therapy session.

In a small 1991 study in Utah, 15 cancer patients taking pain-relieving medicines were assigned to receive different kinds of music therapy for 6 days to find out if music could help to further reduce their pain. Results showed pain decreases in 47% of the patients.