Finding may spark cancer treatments

From Channel 4

New cancer treatments could emerge from a key discovery about the way tumours escape the immune system, scientists have said.

A mechanism which normally stops the body defences over-reacting allows cancer cells to fall under the immune system radar. As a result, tumours are left alone and allowed to proliferate.

Understanding the process may lead to more effective cancer therapies, said the scientists from King's College London.

Under normal circumstances the immune system induces inflammation around a dangerous invader or injury which tells the body there is a problem.

Regulatory T cells, a type of white blood cell, have the job of deciding if the emergency is warranted. If it is not, they cause other cells called macrophages to dampen down the inflammatory response.

The King's College team found that in some cancers, regulatory T cells wrongly perceive the threat to be harmless and send out a "false alarm" signal to the macrophages.

Research leader Dr Leonie Taams said: "Neutralising an inflammatory response in this scenario can cause the tumour to fall under the radar of the body's immune system and 'trick' it into believing that there is no problem.

"We hope to be able to use this new knowledge about the relationship between regulatory T cells and macrophages to find more effective treatments for tumours.

"Interestingly, we also hope to use the same knowledge to achieve the opposite result and block chronic inflammation such as that which occurs in rheumatoid arthritis."

The research is published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

New hope for women made infertile by cancer treatment

From the Hindustan Times

The first human embryo to be created after an ovarian tissue transplant may signal hope for hundreds of thousands of women made infertile by cancer treatment.

Researchers have been attempting to transplant ovarian tissue in humans for many years but this is the first time that they have obtained good quality eggs from a transplant and a viable embryo.

Kutluk Oktay, at Cornell University in New York, and colleagues took a strip of ovarian tissue from a 30-year-old woman with breast cancer before chemotherapy made her infertile. They froze the tissue and six years later transplanted it beneath the skin of her abdomen.

After three months, the tissue started functioning normally and produced eggs. Those that were viable were fertilised in the test tube, resulting in one promising embryo.

"This research represents a potentially significant reproductive advancement in two respects: first, women can preserve their fertility by freezing their ovarian tissue, and second, pregnancy may be possible even after the tissue remains frozen for a long time," said Oktay.

Oktay told 'New Scientist' that the method might also help children with cancer, offering hope to girls who are too young to have In-Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) before undergoing cancer treatment.

The American Society for Reproductive Medicine welcomed the research as an important advance. Johan Smitz, research director of follicle biology at the University Hospital of the Vrije Universiteit, Brussels, Belgium agrees. He said, "This is a step forward. For a lot of cancer patients this is good news."

Oktay and colleagues have transplanted human ovarian tissue before, but the primordial follicles that contain the undeveloped egg had been at a very early stage. This means that the eggs harvested had not been sufficiently developed for IVF.

However, improvements to the way in which the eggs are harvested enabled the team to obtain 20 eggs in their latest attempt, eight of which were suitable for IVF.

Smitz, however, cautions that transplanting ovarian tissue could also pose risks. "We have to be very careful that by replacing this tissue back into the body of cured cancer patients, we also don't reintroduce cancer cells," said Smitz.

Scientists monitor fire fallout for asbestos

From The Telegraph.co.uk

Health officials were last night monitoring the fallout from the giant plume of smoke after police confirmed that materials containing asbestos were found at the scene.

Residents living near to the site were told to keep their windows closed and people with respiratory conditions were advised to stay indoors.

	Firefighters tackle the last of the blaze in east London

Asbestos causes a number of diseases and, in particular, is linked to the development of mesothelioma and lung cancer.

The Health Protection Agency said it had dispatched chemical experts to the scene and weathermen were assessing if the smoke would fall to ground level in other parts of London.

A spokesman for the London Air Quality Network said: "It depends a lot on weather conditions whether the smoke comes down to ground level.

"We are going to keep a close eye on it for the near future.

"In some case like Buncefield we didn't see a lot of pollution because it stayed up high in the atmosphere. With this one we're not sure, it's quite hard to predict."

WIDOW FIGHTS ON FOR HUSBAND'S PAYOUT

From DERBYTELEGRAPH.CO.UK

A Widow who lost her husband to an asbestos-related disease has been thrown a lifeline in her fight for compensation.

In February, Angela Cox was awarded a six-figure sum by the courts against one of her late husband Derek's previous employers.

Rolls-Royce Industrial Power (India) Ltd was ordered to pay the money within a month.

But Mrs Cox is still waiting for the cash because the company, previously called International Combustion Ltd, is appealing against the ruling.

The insurance company which covered her lawyers' costs for the original hearing was not prepared to cover the appeal, which is due next month at the High Court

But now she has found a new insurance company to take up her case.

She said: "So many times over the past five years I have been close to giving up. But Derek's last words to our daughter Deborah before he died were to make sure we fought this all the way."

Mr Cox was diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma in August 2001 and was nursed at home by his wife until he died, aged 63, in February 2002.

Along with daughter Deborah, 37, he left three other children, Melanie, 39, Michael, 33 and Maria , 29.

A trained welder, Mr Cox worked for several companies at coal-fired power stations where he was exposed to asbestos. After his death, Mrs Cox tried to seek compensation but discovered many of these companies had gone out of business or could not be traced.

However, the 61-year-old, of Springfield Road, Swadlincote, was able to successfully sue Rolls-Royce even though the company argued that Mr Cox had not worked for them long enough for any asbestos exposure to have caused his illness.

Mrs Cox's solicitor, Isobel Lovett, of Sheffield-based Ashton Morton Slack, said it was a real shame the original insurers had decided to withdraw.

She said: "However, we are now very fortunate that we have found a new company, Lamp Services Ltd who are prepared to take this on. It would have been a gross travesty of justice had she been denied that opportunity simply because an insurer was unwilling to back her case further."

Mrs Cox expressed her relief that Lamp Services, based in West Sussex, had stepped in to help.

Rolls-Royce said that it would be inappropriate to comment while the case was on-going.

Food habits to reduce Cancer

from newindpress

The most important cause for the development of carcinoma oesophagus is consumption of alcohol and smoking for long time. This will irritate the oesophageal mucosa and initiate the development of food pipe cancer. Other important nutritional causes are deficient Vitamin A, C, E, Selenium, Carotinoids and fibres also leads to the development of food pipe cancer.

Consumption of hot beverages for long time also promotes the development of cancer of food pipe. Individuals with iron deficiency anaemia are also at risk of developing cancer.

Individual with occupation in printing, exposure to metal dust and asbestos are also at risk of food pipe cancer. Obesity and persistent gastro oesophageal reflux are also at high risk of food pipe cancer.

Individual with cancer of the food pipe will have sticking of food in the food pipe followed by difficulty in taking solid foods then liquids gradually.

Cancer of stomach is again one of the common cancers of south India. The important cause will be high salt consumption, low Vitamin A, C, D, E, Smoked food, lack of refrigeration, poor quality of drinking water, excessive cigarette smoking, rubber workers, coal workers and also Epstein Barr virus infection. Prior gastric surgery, pernicious anaemia and family history of stomach cancer also will have impact on the development of cancer of stomach.

Adenomatous polyps of the stomach are also important cause for gastric cancer.

Persistent cigarette smoking is also precursor for liver cancer. Exposure to thoro trast and aflatoxins from mushrooms are also at risk of developing cancer of the liver. There are lot of metabolic diseases like Haemochromatosis are also at risk of developing cirrhosis liver and liver cancer. The common presentations are abdominal pain, loss of appetite and indigestion. Sometime with jaundice, Vomiting and ascites. The usual screening tract is ultrasound abdomen and CT scan is more useful for the confirmation of the cancer, any patient with cirrhosis should have regular follow up with ultrasound abdominal also with serum Alfa fetoprotein.

The gall bladder and bile duct will get affected by cancer in case of presence of large stones for longer duration, presence of polyp of more than 10 mm, multiple polyps with stones and also persistence chronic infection like typhoid.

Presence of cancer in the bile duct manifest as jaundice, itching and lay coloured stools. The investigations are ultrasound scan and Magnetic Renosance Cholangio Pancreatography (MRCP).

Louisiana Court Rules on "Loss of Enjoyment" in Mesothelioma Lawsuit

From PR-GB

"Loss of enjoyment of life" is one of the damages for which plaintiffs can recover compensation from a defendant in personal injury cases. Generally, courts hold that loss of enjoyment of life is part of general damages, since it's difficult to put a monetary value on such an intangible asset. However, in 2006 the Louisiana Supreme Court made a ruling in a mesothelioma lawsuit that may make a difference to that. In the case McGee vs. A C and S, Inc, the Louisiana Supreme Court ruled that "loss of enjoyment of life is recoverable as a separate element of general damages that may be included as a separate item on a jury verdict form".

Mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer that has only one known cause - exposure to asbestos. The history of asbestos in the United States is a tragic and sordid one that highlights the greed of the corporate world and its disregard for the health and safety of its customers and employees. In one mesothelioma lawsuit after another, juries and judges heard how the defendants - which included some of the wealthiest and most successful companies in the country - conspired to cover up the dangers of asbestos and hide it even from the workers who were in contact with the deadly substance on a daily basis.

In more than one case, companies hired consultants or researchers to study the prevalence of lung diseases and cancer in employees, then ignored the conclusions and recommendations made by their own experts. Many companies employed their own company doctors to do physicals and examinations, and at least one instructed those doctors to conceal medical problems related to asbestos, even from those patients who showed symptoms.

It was that blatant disregard for the public and employees that has justified the large awards made by juries in mesothelioma lawsuits. The large awards are further justified by the simple fact that treating mesothelioma takes an enormous toll, financially, physically and in ways that are not so easy to define monetarily, on the entire family of the victim.

The subject of compensation for mesothelioma victims has been a hotly debated one for years, and is at the basis of the disputes about national reforms and funds that would make "fair" payments to those who suffered losses because of their exposure to asbestos. Many of the proposals aim not to compensate the victims but to protect the villains. The per person award suggested by the latest Congressional bill for asbestos litigation reform, for instance, may not even be sufficient to cover medical expenses incurred by those with active mesothelioma.

Under the current system, compensation for losses due to asbestos exposure is decided on a case by case basis, either by a judge or jury, or by negotiations between the lawyers for the plaintiffs and defendants before trial. Many of the proposed "solutions" would eliminate the option for individuals to be awarded compensation based on their actual losses and expected expenses, relying instead on a "schedule of awards" that would pay out a flat amount to claimants based on their diagnosis.

Factors that may be considered when compensation is considered in mesothelioma lawsuits include medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering and loss of consort. For a parent, they may include loss of support to the minor children and loss of moral support. Each of these items can be listed separately as a line item in a jury ballot so that juries may vote on whether it has been proven that the loss was suffered and was the fault of the defendant and at what level it should be compensated.

It is these minute distinctions that have become a large part of mesothelioma lawsuits, because every little detail has the potential for becoming a new flood of litigation for the defendants. If one plaintiff is awarded loss of enjoyment of life damages, it sets a precedent for cases further down the road.

In Louisiana, those precedents will be tested still further in the coming years. It is strongly suspected that the destruction caused by Katrina, and the resulting demolition and clean-up efforts, will expose thousands more to friable asbestos - the single known cause of mesothelioma. Will it result in an upsurge of mesothelioma cases in a decade or twenty years? Only time will tell.

In the meantime, Louisiana already has one of the highest rates of mesothelioma diagnoses in the nation, in large part because of the oil and shipping industries. The two industries were among the largest users of asbestos in daily maintenance, and exposure to asbestos was high for many of those in both industries. If you worked in the oil or shipping industry, or in a power plant, factory or mine of any type, or if you believe you were exposed to asbestos, contact a top Louisiana mesothelioma lawyer to find out what your rights are in regards to compensation for your injuries.