February, 2007
ArchivesSCOPE Fun Run will raise money for colorectal cancer prevention at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center
SCOPE Fun Run for Colorectal Cancer
- To Raise Awareness of Colorectal Cancer
- Texas Medical Center, Houston TX
- Saturday, March 24, 2007 at 8:00 a.m.
M.D. Anderson’s Gastrointestinal Center will hold its second annual SCOPE 5K Fun Run and 1K Kids Run during Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month in March. SCOPE is the Sprint for Colorectal Oncology Prevention and Education.
C3 Colorectal Cancer Coalition Grassroots Coordinator Dusty Weaver will be at the race with information about C3 and colorectal cancer. He’ll also distribute Blue Star colorectal cancer awareness pins and blue Preventable, Treatable Beatable bracelets.
Posted by Kate Murphy on February 22nd, 2007
Posted in: Research & Treatment News | No Comments »
Diane Keaton featured in CDC Screen for Life PSA’s
Diane Keaton is featured in the 
latest public service announcements from the Centers for Disease Control Screen for Life National Colorectal Cancer Action Campaign.
The goal of Screen for Life is to increase colorectal screening rates among men and women over the age of 50, the group with 90% of colorectal cancer.
Screen for Life
- Increases awareness of the benefits of being screened for colorectal cancer
- Increases awareness among adults aged 50 or older that colorectal cancer is the second leading cancer killer
- Helps to motivate patients to talk to their doctor and get screened for colorectal cancer
Remembering her grandmother, who died of colon cancer, Keaton urges screening to prevent the disease:
It’s impossible to replace anybody that you love. She was my great role model, my Grammy Keaton. It was pretty much of a shock for us when she got colon cancer. We were… none of us were prepared for that. Here’s the deal, and this is the bottom line here: colorectal cancer is the second leading cancer killer of men and women over the age of 50. And you know what? This is one that you can prevent! Just get screened, okay? I know how precious life is right now. We can all do this. You can do it, I can do it. If I can do it, you can do it, okay? How’s that for a deal?
Screen for Life was launched by the CDC in 1999 to increase public awareness of colorectal cancer and its prevention. In addition to radio and TV public service announcements, the campaign has produced brochures, fact sheets, and posters, all designed to encourage screening to prevent colorectal cancer.
Posted by Kate Murphy on February 21st, 2007
Posted in: Research & Treatment News | 2 Comments »
Pilot study of SIR-Spheres microspheres in combination with chemotherapy for newly diagnosed patients with liver mets
The FAST clinical trial is now available for the initial treatment of colorectal cancer that has spread to the liver. Patients in the trial will receive chemotherapy along with Selective Internal Radiation Therapy (SIRT) using SIR-Spheres® microspheres.
Trial chemotherapy will be either FOLFOX or FOLFIRI with Avastin® (bevacizumab), which is a current standard first-line chemotherapy treatment for metastatic colorectal cancer.
SIR-Spheres® delivers radiation treatment directly to liver tumors. Millions of tiny beads are injected into the hepatic artery, source of blood for liver tumors. The microspheres travel through the hepatic artery into the blood vessels in cancerous tumors where they are trapped and deliver powerful beta radiation from the radioisotope Yttrium90 to destroy tumor tissue.
Because normal liver tissue receives its blood supply from another source and the beta radiation from the microspheres has a very limited reach, SIR-Spheres® therapy is able to destroy cancerous tissue while not harming the normal liver.
SIR-Spheres® was approved in 2002 by the FDA to treat metastatic liver tumors from colorectal cancer.
The FAST trial is being conducted in five centers across the nation.
- Wake Radiology Oncology in Cary, NC
- Skyridge Medical Center in Lone Tree, CO
- Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane, WA
- Brown University, Rhode Island Hospital in Providence, RI
- William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, MI
Andrew Kennedy, M.D. from Wake Radiation Oncology is the principal investigator for the trial. He writes,
The evaluation of SIR-Spheres microspheres with bevacizumab in combination with newer chemotherapy agents marks a major step in the treatment of advanced liver tumors. This trial is the first to incorporate a central review of radiation dosimetry which means we will be able to carefully determine the amount of radiation delivered to the liver for each participant. Also, since bevacizumab is an anti-angiogenic and inhibits blood flow to tumors, this trial will analyze the vascular effects of bevacizumab with chemotherapy. All of these elements make the trial pivotal as we work to advance the treatment of colorectal liver metastases.
SIR-Spheres® are marketed by Sirtex Medical, who is supporting the trial.
Posted by Kate Murphy on February 20th, 2007
Posted in: Research & Treatment News | 2 Comments »
Show Us the Money
In 2003 I participated in my first One Voice Against Cancer Lobby Day. One of the speakers told us of the following statement made by President Bush: “In order to win the war on cancer we must fund the war on cancer.”
Shortly before his 2007 State of the Union Address in January, the President made an appearance at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and said that cancer deaths are declining because of advances made in research and education. An article in the New York Times about this visit quoted the President as saying “The NIH is one of America’s greatest assets, and it needs to be nourished. It makes sense to spend taxpayers’ money on cancer research.”
On Monday, February 5 the President released his fiscal year 2008 budget and the same New York Times article said NIH funding is “basically flat”. Actually, they’re wrong. It’s a cut of about $300 million, or more than 1%. For the National Cancer Institute the President requested $4.782 billion, approximately $11 million less than this year’s appropriated level.
This makes me wonder just how serious the President is when it comes to funding the war on cancer. Inadequate funding in recent years will hurt. Basic research will not be done. Potential treatments will be delayed. Young researchers will leave the field for other areas.
We can not let the President, or Congress for that matter, simply say “I’m against cancer,” without also making them back up their stated commitment with the necessary dollars. It is past time for them to make cancer a higher priority in the appropriations process and give it adequate funding.
Sympathy is fine but it does not pay the bill. The President and Congress must give us deeds and not words; they must put their money where their mouths are. It is up to us, citizens of this country living with colon and rectal cancer, to tell them “Show us the money!”
Posted by Dusty Weaver on February 14th, 2007
Posted in: Policy & Advocacy News | No Comments »
Nancy Roach, President of C3:Colorectal Cancer Coalition, to be part of the Group Room broadcast
The Vital Options Group Room broadcast on February 25th from 4 to 6 PM (Eastern) at will feature Nancy Roach, President of C3: Colorectal Cancer Coalition as part of an international perspective on Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month.
Nancy will be joined by Heinz-Josef Lenz, MD, Director of the GI Oncology Program at the University of Southern California/Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center in Los Angeles. Professor Peter Hohenberger, MD, Head of Division of Surgical Oncology & Thoracic Surgery at the Klinikum Mannheim, University of Heidelberg in Germany will discuss the European perspective.
The Group Room can be heard on:
- Local radio stations in the United States and Canada: Find a station on the Vital Options site
- XM Radio Channel 164
- Streaming webcast from the Vital Options Group Room web site.
- iTunes podcast
People with questions or comments can call into the live broadcast toll-free
- 1-800-GRP-ROOM (1-800-477-7666)
- Internationally via ATT&T Access Codes and 800 477 7666. International access codes are on the Vital Options site.
The Group Room is hosted by Selma Schimmel, CEO & Founder of Vital Options. It is the only national call-in radio show devoted exclusively to discussions of cancer.
March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month
Posted by Kate Murphy on February 9th, 2007
Posted in: Research & Treatment News | 1 Comment »
