The FDA has announced that Caldwell Foods is recalling raw alfalfa sprouts linked to an outbreak of salmonella in ten states.

The sprouts are sold under the brand names

• Caldwell Fresh Foods in 4-oz plastic cups, 1-lb plastic bags, 2- and 5-lb plastic bags in cardboard boxes with a Caldwell Fresh Foods sticker
• Nature’s Choice in 4-oz plastic cups
• California Exotics brands in 5-oz plastic clam-shell containers

FDA reminds the public that children, the elderly, pregnant women, and people with weakened immune systems should avoid all kinds of raw sprouts, even those grown at home. Read the rest of this entry »

When we see patients in our offices with metastatic colon cancer which is confined to the peritoneal cavity and the histology of the cancer shows mucinous carcinoma, we consider not only chemotherapy but also think about specialized surgery to remove the cancer in the abdomen and combine this with hyperthermia and chemotherapy given directly into the cavity during surgery.

Why is that? Read the rest of this entry »

Dying cancer patients had less fatigue and their physical symptoms improved when they had physical therapy three times a week.

Control group patients who were not included in the PT program had both physical symptoms and quality of life get worse, even over two weeks of observation.

Patients in the study were part of a hospice program in Poland.

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Colorectal cancer patients benefited when they continued to include Avastin® (bevacizumab) in their chemotherapy plan after their cancer got worse after initial treatment.

They lived longer after beginning a second round of chemotherapy with Avastin than did other patients who got chemo without Avastin or those who didn’t get any chemotherapy at all.

The results are based on the ARIES study which observed patients after cancer progressed after either first or second line chemotherapy with Avastin.  The analysis will be presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology in June. Read the rest of this entry »

Today, the House Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense held a public witness hearing about funding needs for the fiscal year 2011 defense appropriations bill.  C3′s President, Carlea Bauman, testified at the hearing about the urgent need for more funding for colorectal cancer research.

Ms. Bauman thanked the Subcommittee members for including $15 million for the Department of Defense (DoD)’s Peer Reviewed Cancer Research Program (PRCRP) in the fiscal year 2010 bill and urged them to increase the level of funding for the PRCRP to $50 million in fiscal year 2011. Read the rest of this entry »