Santa Cruz County Prostate Cancer Support Group
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Serving all of SANTA CRUZ COUNTY Santa Cruz PROSTATE CANCER SUPPORT GROUP July 2005 NEWSLETTER Howard Waage (688-0423) -----Editor _____________________________________________________ _________________________________ When: Tuesday evening, July 26th starting at 7:00 p.m. (The July Steering committee meeting begins at 5:30 p.m., before the regular meeting) Where: Our meeting will be downstairs in two-story redwood Education Building behind Santa Cruz Dominican Hospital. We meet in the Bennett & Suzy Katz Cancer Resource Center on the 1st Floor.
Please feel free to contact any of the following steering committee members if you would like to volunteer or if you have any suggestions or questions.
Tony & Beverley Calvo 684-0940 Frank Schmetz 438 4781 Bill McDermott 423-8350 Howard Waage 688-0423 Richard & Tina Koch 761-3577 Julie Batz 724-2701 Lynn Dreeszen 439-8632 Tim Ryan 476-6550 Our website: http://www.scprostate.org Doug Thornton 724-6446 (Webmaster)
Relay For Life of Santa Cruz
When: July 16-17, 2005 Where: Cabrillo College Track
The American Cancer Society Relay For Life® is an overnight team event that raises awareness of cancer, celebrates survivors, remembers those lost to the disease, and raises funds to fight cancer through research, education, advocacy and patient services. Be part of the American Cancer Society Relay For Life! Together, we’ll honor the courageous spirit of people who have been touched by cancer.
Relay For Life provides hope that those lost to cancer will not be forgotten, that those who face cancer will get support, and that one day, cancer will be eliminated. Relay For Life is the American Cancer Society’s signature activity. It unites millions of people in thousands of communities nationwide each year to raise money to help prevent cancer, save lives, and diminish suffering from the disease.
Our support group will be having a table at this great event and we’d really appreciate if you can spend a couple of hours helping out. Please call anyone on the steering committee if you can help and we’d love to see you there.
SANTA CRUZ COUNTY PROSTATE CANCER SUPPORT GROUP SUB-GROUP FOR MEN WITH ADVANCED PROSTATE CANCER MEETINGS.
This group will be for men that have been diagnosed with prostate cancer which has spread outside the prostate or who have experienced a recurrence after primary treatment. Typically, these men are receiving hormone blockade, are participating in a clinical trial or are receiving some other form of advanced treatment.
The sub-Group will meet every TWO months at the Katz Cancer Resource Center of Dominican Hospital. The sub-group will meet on the SECOND MONDAY OF THE MONTH with the next meeting on August 8th, from 5:00 to 7:00 PM. The following meeting will be on MONDAY, October 8th at the same times.
The purpose of this group will be to better address the special problems and issues of men with advanced prostate cancer. In addition, at some meetings, we will invite local medical oncologists to discuss their approach and treatments Men with advanced prostate cancer will continue to be welcomed at the regular monthly meetings on the last Tuesday of the month. Tony Calvo has agreed to coordinate the sub-group. If you have any suggestions or questions, contact Tony at 684-0940.
Page 1 Sunlight Lowers Prostate Cancer Risk
WEDNESDAY, June 15 (HealthDay News) -- Spending lots of time in the sun seems to increase a man's vitamin D levels and lower his risk for prostate cancer, a new study finds. But because tanning and burning actually raise skin cancer risks, researchers suggest vitamin D in supplement form may be a safer option. The findings appear in the June 15 issue of the journal Cancer Research.
Researchers from three cancer centers compared 450 men with advanced prostate cancer with a control group of 455 men without the disease. They found that the men with high sun exposure were at half the prostate cancer risk of men with low sun exposure. The risk of prostate cancer was as much as 65 percent lower in men with certain gene variants plus high sun exposure. "We believe that sunlight helps to reduce the risk of prostate cancer because the body manufactures the active form of vitamin D from exposure to sunlight," research team leader Esther John, of the Northern California Cancer Center, said in a prepared statement.
According to previous research, the prostate uses vitamin D to promote the normal growth of prostate cells and to impede the invasiveness and spread of prostate cancer cells to other areas of the body, the researchers said. "The genes involved are those that determine the type of vitamin D receptors a person has," study co-author Gary G. Schwartz, of the Comprehensive Cancer Center at Wake Forest University, said in a prepared statement.
"These receptors, which function with vitamin D like a lock and key, vary in their ability to bind vitamin D and thus to influence cell behavior," Schwartz said. He and his colleagues emphasized that sunlight isn't the only source of vitamin D and that men shouldn't start sunbathing to reduce their risk of prostate cancer. Too much sun exposure increases the risk of skin cancer.
"If future studies continue to show reductions in prostate cancer risk associated with sun exposure, increasing vitamin D intake from diet and supplements may be the safest solution to achieve adequate levels of vitamin D," the researchers wrote.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/hsn/20050615/hl_hsn/sunlightlowersprostatecancerrisk
Radiation delay for prostate cancer has no affect on outcome
PHILADELPHIA – June 13, 2005 – Delaying radiation therapy had no harmful impact on clinical outcome or in tumor marker levels among men with low-, intermediate- and high-risk prostate cancer, a new study shows.
While radiation treatment delays in other cancers are associated with increased mortality, little is known about the effect of delaying treatment on the outcome of prostate cancer. Treatment delays of several months are quite common for men diagnosed with prostate cancer and can cause patients concern and anxiety.
The research team led by Dr. Stephen F. Andrews, from the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia published their findings online today on the web site of the journal Cancer ahead of print publication in July."Patients and physicians can use this information to alleviate concerns and anxiety regarding delaying treatment in order to make a well-informed treatment decision," the authors wrote.
The researchers reviewed the clinical trial data from almost 1,500 men treated for cancer confined to the prostate. They investigated the effect that delays of up to several months had on outcome among men treated with a type of radiation therapy, called 3D-conformal radiation therapy.
The researchers found that there was no difference in overall survival, disease specific survival, the incidence of distant metastases, and treatment failure for men who delayed radiation more than nine months. They also found no significant difference in outcome for men with low-, intermediate-, and high-risk tumors who delayed treatment less than 3 months compared to men treated after more than 3 months.
Prostate cancer is generally a slow-developing malignancy that affects older men. However, treatment is still important for survival and includes surgery and radiation. The forms of available radiotherapy include external beam radiation, 3D conformal radiation therapy, intensity modulated radiation therapy, and radioactive seed implants or brachytherapy. Source: (cancerfacts.com) http://www.cancerfacts.com/Home_News.asp?NewsId=1860&CB=14&CancerTypeId=4
Page 2 Estrogen patch for prostate cancer
Maureen’s Medical Moment 06/20/2005 -- Estrogen patches were originally designed to treat menopause in women. Now, new research shows they may help another group, men!
Tom Denhart has prostate cancer. For nine years, he received shots to suppress the male hormone testosterone and keep the cancer from growing. But those shots had side effects including fatigue and memory loss.
"For a while there, people were really starting to wonder about me because I would just totally space out. Things, you know, I'd say, 'I'll see you on Tuesday at 3:00' and forget," says Tom.
But then a new therapy -- estrogen patches -- changed all that. In a small study, the patches controlled the cancer, improved memory and more.
Dr. Tomasz Beer, M.D, a hematologist/oncologist, says, "Not only did cholesterol, overall, improve, but the bad cholesterol, LDL, went down substantially, while the good cholesterol went up."
Dr. Beer conducted the study and says the results are encouraging, but more research is needed. We really need to convince ourselves that the patch approach is safer, and larger studies are needed before we can recommend it for routine use."
The patches also have side effects including breast enlargement and weight gain, but tom says the trade-offs were worth it. Tom says, "Of the nine years, that was the one period where I feel like I suddenly realized what it was like to feel kind of normal, and I told the doctor, I said, 'You know, I can't believe how good I feel.'"
If the results are confirmed, there could be another advantage for patients. The patches cost less than the shots.
When taken by mouth, estrogen increases the risk for blood clots. Researchers say because the patch allows estrogen to be absorbed through the skin, they don't think it poses this same risk. Source: http://www.wndu.com/news/mommo/062005/mommo_42967.php
New Nutrition and Prostate Cancer Guide Issued by the Prostate Cancer Foundation
SANTA MONICA, Calif., June 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Since prostate cancer affects only men and is the second leading cause of death in men, the Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF) is announcing a comprehensive set of programs…… The programs are designed to help men make changes in their diets to reduce the risk of prostate cancer and its recurrence, highlight awareness of this deadly disease and raise needed funds for research to develop a cure.
The comprehensive Nutrition and Prostate Cancer guide presents current and emerging information on how nutrition can influence prostate cancer development and progression. The PCF's ongoing partnerships with Safeway grocery stores and Major League Baseball are being launched in June to raise money for prostate cancer research, as well as a brand-new partnership with The Republic of Tea.
The Nutrition and Prostate Cancer guide follows the PCF's issuance last September of its first Report to the Nation on Prostate Cancer, which offered a similarly comprehensive review of the state-of-the-art in prostate cancer prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and research.
"Roughly two million men in the U.S. are battling prostate cancer, and this number is expected to increase by more than 50% in the next 15 years," commented authors Edward L. Giovannucci, MD, ScD, Professor of Nutrition and Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, and Peter H. Gann, MD, ScD, Professor of Preventive Medicine, Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University. "We undertook creating this guide in order to provide men and their families a better understanding of the role of nutrition in preventing prostate cancer and its recurrence."
Although there is mounting evidence demonstrating the importance of certain foods in the fight against prostate cancer, the authors note that much more data is needed. Therefore, the PCF recommends that patients discuss all dietary and lifestyle changes with their doctors and adopt a balanced approach that can be easily incorporated into their daily lives.
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"We are proud of our role in supporting efforts to identify the links between nutrition and prostate cancer," said Leslie D. Michelson, chief executive officer of the PCF. "In the past five years, much progress has been made in identifying foods and nutrients that may help prevent or delay the development and progression of prostate cancer.
Select conclusions from the PCF's Nutrition and Prostate Cancer guide include:
-- Cooked tomato products can reduce prostate cancer development and progression. Large, long-term studies have shown that eating just a few servings a week of tomato sauce, rich in the antioxidant lycopene, can significantly lower the risk of prostate cancer. The PCF has provided funds and support for research on the benefits of lycopene and continues to encourage efforts to disseminate the latest results in this promising area.
-- Increase intake of fatty fish such as salmon and cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli. Men who have been paying attention to what makes for a heart-healthy diet will find much overlap with a prostate cancer-protective diet -- increasing fruit and vegetable consumption and replacing red meat with fish.
-- Vitamin and mineral supplements are not always helpful and can even be harmful in high doses. Several ongoing studies are currently evaluating the effect of the different supplement dosages on prostate cancer. The results will help to identify which supplements are best for reducing the risk of development and progression of prostate cancer. In the meantime, the PCF urges all men to discuss the use of supplements with their doctors, and to include a wide variety of healthful foods, particularly fruits and vegetables, in their diet.
-- Flipping meat on a grill more often can help minimize the intake of carcinogens. Charred meat contains a carcinogen, PhIP, which has been shown to cause cancer in laboratory animals. Research in humans is still underway, but early studies have shown that flipping the meat more often -- or even scraping off the char before eating -- can minimize the amount of PhIP ingested.
Which foods and nutrients have been shown to be beneficial for patients with prostate cancer? How reliable are the data for nutritional strategies in prostate cancer? Are there foods or nutrients that might prevent prostate cancer -- or even prevent or delay a recurrence of the disease? How do you get the most benefit from each vitamin and mineral? What should you do now?
The Nutrition and Prostate Cancer guide summarizes the “best of the best” data and information available in the research arena today, and is designed to help everyone affected by or at risk for prostate cancer understand how key nutritional strategies can be incorporated into everyday life.
To download a copy of the 36 page “Nutrition and Prostate Cancer”: visit http://www.prostatecancerfoundation.org.
The Santa Cruz County Prostate Cancer Support Group does not endorse any provider, organization, product or individual. All medical decisions should be made with the advice and consultation of medical professionals.
Our newsletter serves over 200 members. Many THANKS to the American Cancer Society for assisting with the printing and mailing of this newsletter and the Katz Cancer Resource Center for allowing us to use their facility.
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