Santa Cruz County Prostate Cancer Support Group
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Serving all of SANTA CRUZ COUNTY Santa Cruz PROSTATE CANCER SUPPORT GROUP October 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. Joe Ferrara 426-7724 ¥ Frank and Janet Schmetz 438 4781 ¥ Bill McDermott 423-8350 ¥ Howard Waage 688-0423 ...PROSTATE CANCER IN THE NEWS... Joe Ferrara Raises Voice, Prostate Cancer Awareness with 12-Hour Sing-a-Thon 59-year-old Joe Ferrara, owner of Santa Cruz, CA's Atlantis Fantasyworld, is not only a 32-year veteran of the comic industry, he's also a life-long musician and a cancer survivor. On Sunday, September 14, Ferrara put his many talents to good use to raise awareness for the benefit of prostate cancer screenings - and possibly broke a world record in the process!In March of 2005, two of Ferrara's longtime friends and customers stopped in Atlantis Fantasyworld. The two men came in separately, about a week apart, and each told Ferrara they had just been diagnosed with prostate cancer. Neither of them showed any symptoms. Ferrara was struck by their stories and decided it was time to get his own check-up. He too, had no symptoms, and was also diagnosed with prostate cancer. The early diagnosis gave Ferrara many treatment options. He chose surgery and is now cancer free and leading a normal life. He credits his two longtime friends - one of whom succumbed to the disease - with saving his life. Ferrara wants to do the same for other men. For the last two years, Ferrara has attended monthly meetings of the Santa Cruz Prostate Cancer Support Group, where they acquired not only a wealth of information about the disease but also a new, extended family. "September is National Prostate Cancer Awareness month, but nobody knows it," said Ferrara. "I sell books about superheroes, but these men and women are my real life heroes. Longtime members and the newly diagnosed come together once a month in a confidential, nurturing environment to share information about treatments, diet, resources and other topics. These are people of great character and dignity and I am very proud to be associated with them." Working with the Support Group and the Shadowbrook Restaurant in Capitola, CA, Ferrara launched a unique prostate cancer awareness campaign. On Sunday, September 14 in the Rock Room Lounge of the Shadowbrook Restaurant, Ferrara sang and played his guitar "continuously" from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. The 12-hour marathon was free to the public. "I began the marathon at 10:15 a.m. by playing the song 'Longer' in honor of Dan Fogelberg, who passed away at the age of 57 after a three-year battle with advanced prostate cancer," said Ferrara. "I finished the marathon at 10:28:17 p.m., playing a total of 12 hours, 13 minutes and 17 seconds. I played 182 different songs and was only off-stage a total of 37 minutes and 12 seconds! The room was packed all day with the greatest audience an entertainer could ask for. " Ferrara's feat may just set a world record for a solo performance by an individual in a club setting without repeating a song or using sheet music or lyric sheets. More important to the prostate cancer survivor, the event opened the eyes of the public to the need for screenings and early detection. "Everyone, men and women alike, need to know the basic facts about prostate cancer. I was the one diagnosed with prostate cancer, but my whole family had to live with the effects of the disease," said Ferrara, father of four and grandfather of seven. "My thanks to all of you who were there and to all of you who called and sent your best wishes. It was a night I'll never forget." - Diamond Comic Distributors Changing Diet, Exercise Found To Extend Lives David Perlman, Chronicle Science Editor September 16, 2008 -- A carefully limited pilot study of 30 prostate cancer patients by scientists and doctors at UCSF and a Sausalito research institute indicates for the first time that major lifestyle changes may prevent early cell death and lengthen human life. The study was led by Dr. Elizabeth Blackburn, the UCSF biochemist famed for discovering the mysterious proteins called telomeres that cap the ends of chromosomes and control the longevity of dividing cells. Her principal colleague is Dr. Dean Ornish, the San Francisco cardiologist and widely publicized advocate of diet control, exercise and stress reduction to prevent heart disease deaths - a doctrine that was controversial many years ago when Ornish first proposed it but is now widely accepted. In their report, published today in the British journal Lancet Oncology, the researchers caution that with such a limited number of patients their study is only preliminary, and they call for a much larger and strictly controlled research project. But if these early findings are confirmed, they say, "this might be a powerful motivator for many people to beneficially change their diet and lifestyle." The research team studied the levels of an enzyme called telomerase in the prostate tissue of the 30 cancer patients who had volunteered to follow a low-fat diet, exercise moderately and reduce their stress. After only three months, 24 patients showed a highly significant increase in their telomerase levels - an indication that the cell-protecting telomeres in their cells were being restored. The telomerase enzyme was discovered by Blackburn and her colleagues in 1984, and is considered crucial because it repairs telomeres that are in the process of dying and thus prevents the death of many human cells. Telomerase has often been hailed as the "immortalizing enzyme." The long telomere proteins protect the ends of chromosomes in the body, but they shorten naturally and ultimately die unless the telomerase enzyme acts to repair them and increase their length. Shortened telomeres, in fact, are often an indicator of disease risk and premature death in many types of cancer. In June, Ornish, the director of the Preventive Medicine Research Institute in Sausalito, and Dr. Peter Carroll, a UCSF prostate cancer specialist, reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that after only three months of living by Ornish's strict diet and stress-control regimen, they observed significant changes in the cancer-causing genes within the prostate tissue of the same 30 cancer patients used in the Blackburn study. Blackburn was in Australia on Monday, but her principal associate, Dr. Jue Lin, a molecular biologist in her lab, said that team had already been looking at the relationship between human stress and cellular aging as telomeres die. The volunteer patients in the separate prostate cancer study led by Ornish seemed appropriate for Blackburn's team to learn what was happening to the telomerase they were studying, Jue said. So even with only 30 patients, Jue said, the association between their extremely healthy habits and the increased amount of telomerase proved highly significant."But at this point one can only speculate that the change in lifestyle is a cause of the increase in telomerase levels," she said. The patients at Ornish's research institute spent three days in a residential retreat where they learned stress-reduction techniques and undertook to follow a diet that included only 10 percent caloric content from fat and was low in refined sugars and rich in fruits, vegetables and natural foods, plus vitamin supplements and fish oil. They also did moderate aerobic exercises and learned relaxation techniques. Source: http://www.sfgate.com The Wrong Call on Prostate Cancer Screening By Dr. William J. Catalona, MD, Professor of Urology August 26, 2008 - Numerous media reports followed a federal task force's announcement this month that there is insufficient medical evidence to assess the risks and benefits of prostate cancer screening in men younger than 75 and that doctors should stop testing men over age 75 [" U.S. Panel Questions Prostate Screening; 'Dramatic' Risks for Older Men Cited," front page, Aug. 5]. It's important to note that consideration was not given to the overwhelming body of emerging evidence that screening with PSA tests and digital rectal exams saves lives. Rates of death from prostate cancer and rates of diagnosis at advanced stages have decreased markedly since testing became widespread. As a physician and a researcher specializing in prostate cancer, I worry that this recommendation will result in delays in potentially lifesaving treatment and possibly the unnecessary loss of life. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force did not even recommend screening for men at higher risk because of race or family history. The task force reasoned that screening might harm more men than it helps and that in men over 75 there was moderate certainty that the harm outweighs the benefits. Physicians and patients who are concerned about preventing prostate cancer deaths choose to screen with prostate-specific antigen (PSA) tests because an inconclusive but increasingly compelling body of evidence shows that the screening reduces suffering and death from prostate cancer -- the second-leading cause of cancer death among men in the United States. Numerous studies have shown that PSA-based tests, such as those that detect increases in PSA over time and the percentage of PSA floating free in the blood, help to decrease unnecessary biopsies and also identify men with the most aggressive tumors so that they can receive timely treatment. Eliminating screening also eliminates the possibility for early diagnosis and curative treatment in healthy men. Until we can prevent prostate cancer or cure patients at advanced stages of the disease, the only practical strategy for reducing death rates is early diagnosis and effective treatment. Because this tumor arises silently and often passes into an incurable stage before symptoms occur, the only way to detect it early is through screening. Both the American Urological Association and the American Cancer Society recommend offering screening beginning at age 50 in men with a life expectancy of 10 years. High-risk men, such as African Americans and those with a strong family history of prostate cancer, are urged to consider screening at an earlier age. The National Comprehensive Cancer Network's guidelines recommend that screening begin at age 40. These guidelines include emerging evidence to help guide physicians and patients in their diagnostic and treatment decisions. These organizations, unlike the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, have urologists on their panels who see firsthand the ravages of prostate cancer. Consider that in the United States alone, the rate of advanced cancer at the time of diagnosis has fallen 75 percent since the PSA screening era began, and age-adjusted prostate cancer death rates have declined 35 percent. Statistical studies suggest that 45 to 70 percent of this decrease is due to PSA screening. Evidence from U.S. cancer registries shows less advanced cancer and lower prostate cancer death rates in regions where PSA testing is more prevalent. On a global scale, prostate cancer death rates have decreased in countries where PSA screening and active treatment are typically practiced and have remained stable or increased in countries where screening and active treatment are not practiced. PSA tests are a powerful marker for the risk of developing prostate cancer and dying from it. Reports of over diagnosis and over-treatment are exaggerated. More often, prostate cancer is diagnosed too late rather than "too early." If screening detected only harmless cancers, treating them could not produce the striking decline in prostate cancer death rates that has occurred. We should combat the risk of over-diagnosis through continued research for improving the accuracy of screening and high-quality treatment. This misguided recommendation, and the resulting media coverage, could give reluctant men an excuse to postpone or forgo screening. The consequence might be that many men die of prostate cancer unnecessarily. Men should follow the recommendations of the American Urological Association, the American Cancer Society and the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, all of which recommend screening for early detection and treatment of prostate cancer. Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/25/AR2008082502335_pf.html Women Secret Weapon in Prostate Cancer Fight September 14, 2008 - The Prostate Cancer Research Foundation of Canada is putting a call out to women to help get more men to the doctor this year for their annual physical. According to a written statement (issued in the lead-up to Prostate Cancer Awareness Week being held September 15-21) survey results released Sept. 9 show that approximately half of Canadian men don't make a point of booking an annual doctor's appointment. The survey also found that a similar proportion of men admit that they have been reminded by a woman to visit a doctor. According to representatives of the foundation, these findings are of concern, particularly for men aged 45 or older who should be screened annually for prostate cancer -- the No. 1 cancer threat among Canadian men. While half of Canadian men say that women have reminded them about medical appointments, an overwhelming 85.3 percent of females report they've reminded men to get their annual physical. According to the statement, these findings reinforce the need to not only educate men about prostate health and the importance of regular screening, but to also initiate public education programs specifically aimed at women. Source: http://www.fightprostatecancer.org Alternative vaccine strategy shows promise in prostate cancer patients New research indicates that giving patients a continuous low dose of an immune system booster, a method known as metronomic dosing, as part of a therapeutic prostate cancer vaccine strategy is safe and produces similar immune responses and fewer side effects than the more common dosing method, which is not well tolerated by many patients. This study, led by researchers at that National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, was published in the Aug. 15, 2008, issue of Clinical Cancer Research. The vaccine used in this study is designed to stimulate an immune response against prostate-specific antigen (PSA), a protein produced by the prostate that is often found at elevated levels in the blood of men who have prostate cancer and some non-cancerous prostate conditions. In the study, researchers examined the side effects and immune responses of patients treated with a three-pronged approach: the vaccine, radiation therapy, and an alternative dosing regimen of an immune system booster, interleukin-2 (IL-2). The patients all had localized prostate cancer, had not undergone surgery to remove the prostate, and were candidates for radiation therapy as their primary form of treatment. "Developing an alternative method of administering vaccine therapy that is well tolerated by most patients and produces similar immune responses to standard methods may help further the development of vaccine therapies for prostate cancer," said James L. Gulley, M.D., Ph.D., of NCI's Center for Cancer Research. Therapeutic cancer vaccines are designed to treat cancer by stimulating the immune system to attack tumor cells without harming normal cells. Several proteins, including PSA, are overexpressed, or produced in excess amounts, by cancer cells and have shown potential to serve as triggers in initiating immune responses. These findings have led to the development of cancer vaccines that target these proteins. The proteins are also known as tumor-associated antigens. To heighten the body's natural defenses, immune system boosters, such as IL-2, are often given with the vaccines. IL-2 administration, however, is frequently associated with substantial side effects, including fatigue and high blood sugar. In a previous study involving the same prostate cancer vaccine, IL-2 was given to 19 patients daily for five days during each 28-day vaccine treatment cycle, and a large majority of the patients had to have the dose of IL-2 reduced or discontinued, primarily because of fatigue. In this new study, the researchers sought to decrease the side effects associated with IL-2. To do this, the team treated 18 patients with the vaccine and radiation therapy, but with lower doses of IL-2 given over a longer period of time. The patients received the same total amount of IL-2 as in the previous study, but it was administered in smaller daily doses for 14 days of each 28-day treatment cycle. With metronomic dosing, less than a quarter of the patients had side effects that required their dose of IL-2 to be reduced. The research team also found that metronomic dosing of IL-2 produced effects on immune cell populations and immune responses that were similar to those observed previously with the standard dosing method. Five of eight evaluated patients had at least a three-fold increase in immune cells that were directed against PSA. The researchers also noted that, similar to the standard dosing method, metronomic dosing of IL-2 induced immune responses against other prostate cancer antigens in some patients. "Based on safety and feasibility, metronomic dosing appears to be superior to standard dosing and administration," said Gulley. "More research is needed to evaluate the efficacy of this dosing method in treating prostate cancer." For more information on Dr. Gulley's research, please go to: http://bethesdatrials.cancer.gov/investigator-profiles/gulley/default.aspx Source: http://www.news-medical.net/?id=40747 Fair Use Notice: This newsletter may contain copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owners. We believe that this not-for-profit, educational use constitutes a fair use of the copyrighted material (as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law). If you wish to use any copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond fair use, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. +++++ 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. 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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