Local scientists have uncovered a genetic link to mesothelioma, an aggressive cancer usually found in the lungs that kills 3,000 people in the U.S. each year.

Dr. Joseph Testa of Philly’s Fox Chase Cancer Center teamed up with a researcher at the University of Hawaii to lead a study on the mutation of a gene called BAP1. they found that carriers of the mutated gene are particularly susceptible to mesothelioma, as well as a rare melanoma of the eye.

Mesothelioma is usually associated with exposure to asbestos. the cancer’s symptoms are vague during its earliest stages, so cases often go undiagnosed until stage 3 or 4—far too late in the game to operate. Patients usually die within six to nine months of diagnosis.

The findings could help doctors screen for individuals who are at particularly high risk for mesothelioma. “a genetic test could help doctors catch the disease earlier on, when it might still be treatable,” says Testa. Understanding the BAP1 gene could also lead to more targeted therapies for treatment.

Researchers zeroed in on BAP1 by studying two families with particularly high mesothelioma rates; every family member who had developed mesothelioma or melanoma of the eye turned out to be carriers of the BAP1 mutation. they also did gene-sequencing studies of 26 individuals diagnosed with mesothelioma but with no family history of the disease, and found that 25 percent of tumors from those subjects carried mutations of the BAP1 gene.

Beyond mesothelioma, the study found evidence that the gene mutation may be linked to breast, ovarian, pancreatic and renal cancer—meaning that people with the mutation may be at a higher risk for those diseases, too.

The research was decades in the making, says Testa, who has worked with Philadelphia’s Local 14 union of insulators and asbestos workers for years. His team analyzed tissue samples from some Local 14 members as part of the study, as well as samples from partners at New York University.

“For me, this is really the first of what we hope are going to be a number of genes that might predict whether someone will be susceptible to certain cancers,” says Testa. “I’m hopeful that this research will open doors for more research and better treatments.”

my godfather has a freckle that he feels has grown it looks normal to me and its brownish in color and symetrical in shape , ovalish ,

Any change of color, shape, or size

My 23 year old daughter had a new mole that hurt.
It looked symmetrical and it was small.
It bothered her so we had it taken off. It was melanoma. We got it before it left the surface 2 years ago
If it bothers him…have it taken off.

The information below is the Melanoma Warning Sings found on Skin Cancer Net skincarephysicians.com/skinca…

"1. Asymmetry. if you could fold the lesion in two, the two halves would not match.
2. Border. Melanomas often have uneven or blurred borders.
3. Color. Melanoma typically is not one solid color; rather it contains mixed shades of tan, brown, and black. It can also show traces of red, blue or white.
4. Diameter. While melanomas are usually greater than 6 millimeters (about the size of a pencil eraser) when diagnosed, they can be smaller. if you notice a mole different from others, or which changes, itches, or bleeds even if it is smaller than 6 millimeters, you should see a dermatologist.
5. Evolving. a mole or skin lesion that looks different from the rest or is changing in size, shape or color.

Other warning signs of melanoma include:

* Change in the appearance of a mole, such as the spreading of the pigment from the border of the mole into the surrounding skin

* a mole that looks scaly, oozes, or bleeds

* Itching, tenderness, or pain in a mole or lesion

* Brown or black streak that appears underneath a nail or around the nail

* Bruise on the foot that does not heal"

Pictures of the four types of Melanoma can be found here: skincarephysicians.com/skinca…

By GORDON J. RAFOOL Gessler Clinic Published: Sunday, March 20, 2011 at 7:05 a.m. last Modified: Sunday, March 20, 2011 at 7:05 a.m.

the American Cancer Society has listed five most common causes of cancer in men and women. They do not take into consideration, though, that in both sexes skin cancer is the most common cancer.

Skin cancers are extremely prevalent in both sexes. It is known that sunlight will definitely contribute to skin cancers. Most skin cancers are easily treated and because they are on the skin, they are generally detected early. the only skin cancer that is much more aggressive and is the kind of cancer of the skin that no one wants is a melanoma. Melanoma is the kind of cancer that develops from a mole and changes rapidly and will spread in a much shorter time than any other type of skin cancer.

The five most common cancers in men are prostate, lung, colon and rectum, bladder cancer and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. For women, it is very similar, but instead of prostate, it is breast cancer, but both of these cancers, breast and prostate are in the same general class.

The majority of cancers are adenocarcinomas. the second most common in a woman is lung and, third, is colorectal, and the fourth is uterine cancer in a woman, but the fifth is the same as in a man and that is non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. For both men and women, the leading cause of hormonal-derived cancers, meaning that in the man it is the prostate and in the woman it is breast. In men, it is known that testosterone plays a role in prostate cancer, whereas in the woman, estrogen plays a role in breast cancer.

The second most common cancers in both men and women is lung cancer, and there is no question that the environment plays a significant role in this. the leading cause of lung cancer is cigarette smoke, either directly by the person or someone smoking around them.

Most people are familiar with colorectal, bladder, and uterine cancer. Cancers that most people do not recognize are those known as non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. This is a group of cancers that actually are approximately 20 different kind of diseases. It is a cancer that affects the blood system and its proteins. It is more common in older patients and in patients whose immune system is not functioning normally. It is seen in people who have had organ transplants and those people who are infected with HIV. This group of cancers shows strong evidence of some type of virus as a possible cause.

The first symptoms of this kind of cancer can be a painless enlargement of lymph nodes, primarily in the neck, arm or groin. That is why it is a good idea if a person is experiencing an enlargement of lymph nodes, they should see their doctor right away for an evaluation.

There are many treatments today for cancer. these treatments are effective in many cases. It is important for anyone 40 years and older to have a complete evaluation by their family doctor on a regular basis.

Dr. Gordon J. Rafool is a specialist in family practice and geriatrics at Gessler Clinic in Winter Haven.

is it just sores and scabs and stuff like that? or is it life threatenting and other things like that? links would be good if there are some

No sores, just a change in the colour or size of a skin blemish, mole etc., it could also be the sudden appearance of one and usually a very dark or blackish colour.
Four weeks ago I was checked by my skin specialist, a Dermatologist, and given the all clear. but just four days ago my doctor removed a suspected Melanoma from my neck after it appeared suddenly. I decided on complete removal rather than first having a biopsy as any delay could be fateful. Now awaiting biopsy report to confirm. better safe – than sorry!
Everyone should have a skin check at least once a year.

Newswise — “A woman’s life changes at every decade and so does her body,” says Therese Bevers, M.D., medical director of MD Anderson’s Cancer Prevention Center. “And, just as a woman sets personal and work-related milestones, she also should set health goals for every stage of life.”

MD Anderson experts have created a plan to help guide women along their way.

“Practicing the healthy behaviors in our guide is important for all women, regardless of age,” Bevers says. “So take note of all of these tips — even the ones directed toward women older or younger than you.”

Your 20s: Avoid Tanning and HPV

Say ‘no’ to tanning salons. Tanning bed use significantly ups a woman’s odds of getting melanoma (the deadliest form of skin cancer), according to research. Using tanning beds regularly before age 30 increases a woman’s risk of skin cancer by 75%.

Reduce exposure to HPV. the human papilloma virus, or HPV, is most common among young women in their late teens and early 20s. High-risk strains of HPV are present in more than 99% of cervical cancer cases.

A woman’s best bet to reduce the risk of HPV infection is to:o Limit her number of sexual partners o Consistently practice protected sex o Get the HPV vaccine if she’s younger than age 26

Your 30s: Add Weights and Relaxation Time

Lift some weights. Most women begin to lose muscle mass after age 30. Strength training can prevent muscle loss, build bone density and increase the rate at which the body burns calories. And, maintaining a healthy weight can help the body avoid diseases like cancer.

Take time to unwind. Juggling all the responsibilities of being a mom, wife, caretaker and employee often brings increased stress. Chronic stress affects almost every system in the body and wreaks havoc on their functioning, making it harder to fight off diseases like cancer. Curb stress by doing breathing exercises and other relaxation-type activities.

Your 40s: Stick to a Healthy Diet and Exercise

Maintain a healthy weight. as women get older, their metabolism decreases. This is especially true after age 40, when women may have a hard time maintaining the weight they had in their 20s and 30s.

Making healthy food choices and staying active every day can help jumpstart the body’s metabolism and keep off unwanted pounds.

Your 50s: Seek Healthy Hormone Options

Limit the use of hormone therapy. Taking hormones can increase a woman’s chances of developing uterine cancer, breast cancer, heart disease, blood clots and stroke. Women should talk to their doctor about hormone therapy and ask about healthier options to manage menopausal symptoms.

Your 60s and older: Stay Socially Active

Almost 10 million Americans older than age 65 live alone, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. for many, living alone can lead to loneliness and depression, which can harm a person’s overall health.

Get involved in your community. Bevers encourages women who are retired and lack social interaction to find volunteer opportunities in their communities and get involved. It’ll keep them active, engaged and sociable. even better: it offers a chance to help others.

“Whether you’re in your 20s, 40s or 60s, yearly check-ups are a must,” Bevers says. “With the help of your doctor, you can create a personalized health plan to help you stay healthy for many years to come.”

Bevers recommends women download the Screening Exams by Age checklist at mdanderson.org/focused and take it to their next doctor’s visit.

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at a time, sudden headaches that wake me up and cause nausea,and excessively drowsy?The arm tremble started a few months ago and happens more frequently now, the headaches started about a month ago and have also increased in frequency, the drowsiness just started this week. I have had melanoma and uterine cancer in the past. I have an appointment with the doctor but want some kind of idea at least as to what it might be? .

DOCTOR WOULD BE BEST ABLE TO ADVISE YOU.

consult a doctor. He would advise you better.

Lung expansion is the principal induce of neoplasm deaths in both women as well as organisation in the United States as well as around the world. Lung cancer has surpassed breast mildew as the heading ground of neoplasm deaths in women.

In the United States in 2007, 160,390 people were projected to die from lung melanoma, which is some-more than the series of deaths from colorectal, breast, as well as abase mildew mutual.

Only about 2% of those diagnosed with lung gash which has bloat to alternative areas of the physique have been respirating 5 life after the diagnosis, whilst the presence price tag for lung cancers diagnosed during the really early indicate have been senior, with about 49% ongoing for 5 years or longer.

Some lung tumors have been metastatic from cancers elsewhere in the body. The lungs have been the prevalent site for metastasis. If this is the instance, the mildew is not deliberate to be lung disease. for example, if abase pile spreads around the bloodstream to the lungs, it is metastatic abase flay (a subsequent plague) in the lung as well as is not called lung disease.

Cancer occurs when prevalent cells bear the mutation which causes them to grow as well as greaten not in the unreasoning reins. The cells form the throng or expansion which differs with the surrounding tissues from which it arises. Tumors have been dangerous since they take oxygen, nutrients, as well as stretch from rational cells.

About 90% of lung cancers aspect due to tobacco use. Cigarette smoking is the many critical drift of lung growth. Research as distant behind as the 1950s apparently determined this relationship. Cigarette smoked contains some-more than 4,000 chemicals, many of which have been identified as causing sarcoma. a purpose who smokes some-more than the single trek of cigarettes per day has an discredit of building lung mildew 20-25 time larger than somebody who has never smoked.

However, once the chairman quits smoking, his or her discredit for lung mildew continually decreases. about fifteen years after quitting, the display for lung harassment decreases to the next to of someone who never smoked. Cigar as well as channel smoking additionally increases the discredit of lung flay though not as many as smoking cigarettes. most lung tumors have been spiteful. This equates to which they wage war as well as finish the clever tissues around them as well as can dilate around the body.

The tumors can additionally operation to adjoining lymph nodes or by the bloodstream to alternative organs. This equates to is called metastasis. When lung cancer metastasizes, the pile in the lung is called the vital lump, as well as the tumors in alternative tools of the physique have been called teenager tumors or metastatic tumors.

Adenocarcinoma (a NSCLC) is the many unchanging accumulation of lung sarcoma, creation up 30%-40% of all luggage. a subtype of adenocarcinoma is called bronchoalveolar apartment carcinoma, which creates the pneumonia-like coming upon chest x-emission. Squamous territory carcinoma (a NSCLC) is the await many normal imitation of lung scourge, creation up about 30% of all lung cancers. Large territory cancer (another NSCLC) creates up 10% of all suitcases. SCLC creates up 20% of all suitcases. and lastly, Carcinoid tumors comment for usually 1% of all gear.

Lung cancers have been continually alienated in to dual top groups which comment for about 95% of all cases. The cove in to groups is formed upon the character of cells which have up the blight. about 5% of lung cancers have been of full of red red red red blood organisation types, together with carcinoid growth, lymphoma, as well as others.

The dual focal sorts of the counter characterized lung gash mass of the expansion when noticed underneath the microscope. they have been called tiny coterie lung expansion (SCLC) as well as non-small dungeon lung corrupt (NSCLC). NSCLC includes multiform subtypes of tumors. SCLCs have been incompatible communal, though they grow some-more quickly as well as have been some-more probable to metastasize than NSCLCs. often, SCLCs have already operation to alternative tools of the physique when the gash is diagnosed.

Up to one-fourth of all people with lung flay might have no symptoms when the threat is diagnosed. These cancers often have been identified in reality when the chest cat-scan is achieved for an additional reason. The adult life of people, however, take symptoms. The symptoms have been impost to discuss it things of the vital tumor, to things of metastatic tumors in alternative tools of the body, or to disturbances of hormones, blood, or alternative systems caused by the plague.

Symptoms of budding lung cancers harmonise cough, coughing up blood, chest bind, as well as dumpiness of breath. Symptoms of metastatic lung tumors rely upon the on all sides as well as mass. about 30%-40% of people with lung scandal have the little symptoms or naught of metastatic disease.

A cough which does not go divided or gets defective over time should be evaluated by the vigor-attention source. Also, Coughing up red blood (hemoptysis) occurs in the poignant series of people who have lung blight. Any sum of coughed-up red blood is begin for disturb. Chest harm is the sign in about one-fourth of people with lung melanoma. The connect is dull, aching, as well as determined as well as might regard alternative structures surrounding the lung.

Additionally, tininess of exhale typically fallout from an barrier to the upsurge of air in partial of the lung, pick up of liquid around the lung (pleural effusion), or the widespread of expansion around the lungs. Wheezing or hoarseness might gesticulate blockage or inflammation in the lungs which might go along with bane. Finally, Repeated respiratory infections, such as bronchitis or pneumonia, can be the uncover of lung cancer.

A cancer may start in a tissue, organ, or a cell, but it rarely ever stays therein for too long. Essentially, they are characterized by mutation of the cells of a certain organ, which soon begin to multiply uncontrollably such that other (healthy) cells around the malignancy begin to die off, and the melanoma begins to grow. Eventually, it breaks up and bits and pieces of it start to migrate through the bloodstream to various other parts of the body.

Professionals refer to localized prostate cancer as prostate cancer in which the cancer is confined to the cells within the prostate; when they make mention of a locally advanced prostate cancer, they are alluding to the fact that most of the cancer is confined within the prostate, although some bits and pieces of it have started to escape to immediately surrounding tissues.

When you have metastatic prostate cancer, you are looking at a melanoma of the prostate that is actively growing outside of the prostate organ and its immediate environs with little or no control. This means that the disease has spread, possibly to even more distant organs.

Basically, there is an absence of symptoms for early stage disease, but prostate enlargement soon ensues when the tumor starts to grow. the patient soon experiences increased pain in urination and ejaculation as the sarcoma begins to spread out of the prostate, including bleeding through the urinary tract. Bone pain is not far behind, especially in the proximal part of the bone, when the metastasis reaches the bones of the pelvis the ribs, the thighs, and the bones of the spine.

The symptoms metastatic prostate cancer in the lung are not too farfetched from the symptoms of lung cancer itself, which are a persistent cough, and chest pain, shortness of breath, hoarseness, bloody sputum, and bouts of bronchitis or pneumonia. However, the symptoms often do not appear in the same order with metastatic prostate cancer as they do with lung cancer itself. the fact that some other lung cancer symptoms are bone pain, headaches, dizziness, and a few other signs does not make things a lot easier, but still the disease has to be accorded it respective nomenclature.

Dealing with such a condition takes some ingenuity from the overseeing physician, but essentially, treatment will involve slowing the progression of the carcinoma, perhaps by hormonal therapy; killing as many of the metastatic cells by radiation; and perhaps surgery to remove the larger tumors; and chemotherapy to get rid of the rest of them. However, they will have to talk matters over with you before they commence on the treatment, and they will have to make clear what the implications are of whatever course of action they choose to take with you. before you settle in and make any decision, or even a self-diagnosis, be certain that you are fully informed.

Two are former Marines. others are a son, a daughter and a former spouse of Marines. The sixth is the daughter of a woman who worked as a nurse at the base hospital.

Five are coping with frightening illnesses ? male breast cancer, prostate cancer, kidney cancer, leukemia, late-stage kidney disease ? and the sixth lost her mother to gastric cancer.

Mike Partain, a former Winter Haven resident and a leading advocate on Camp Lejeune, got in touch with the others after they posted their stories on an activist website, “The few, The Proud, The Forgotten.”

Kim Ann Callan of Lakeland, the daughter of an ex-Marine, was treated for malignant melanoma a few years ago and was diagnosed in July with leukemia.

“I have experienced lifelong medical issues,” said Callan, 52. “All these things ? is this all coincidence … or is there some root? Frankly, I don’t think we’ll ever have an answer.”

Several other local residents are also seeking answers.

Andrew Przenkop of Polk City lived in barracks at Camp Lejeune as a Marine in the early 1980s. Przenkop, 48, began showing symptoms of diabetes in 2006, a surprise development for a man who prided himself on being fit. in 2009, he was diagnosed with kidney cancer, a disease linked to exposure to PCE and TCE. Przenkop said doctors have since detected a spot on his right lung that might be cancerous.

Przenkop left his job as a correctional officer in October and has applied for Veterans Administration benefits. he said the information discovered by Partain and others makes it clear the Marine Corps failed to respond properly to concerns about water contamination at Camp Lejeune. he accuses the Department of Defense of obstructing investigations and failing to take responsibility for the problem, comparing the government’s response to the way it handled claims about Agent Orange exposure for Vietnam War veterans.

“People need to know if their active-duty (military) members are subjected to unnecessary risks,” Przenkop said. “You have a known risk factor (as a Marine) and you’re told about that, but you’re not required to take unnecessary risks. You’re not supposed to be poisoned by the government that is supposed to ensure your safety.”

NEEDING KIDNEY TRANSPLANT

Ana Maria Frost of Poinciana resided at Camp Lejeune for about a year in the early 1970s, when she was married to a Marine Corps sergeant. Frost, 64, has been diagnosed with stage-4 kidney disease and is waiting to go on a kidney transplant list. She is on multiple medications and receives injections every two weeks to boost production of red blood cells.

Frost said the water at Camp Lejeune seems the likely source of her disease. She said her parents lived into their 90s and she knows of no serious health issues involving anyone in her extended family. The cause of her kidney failure is a rare condition called amyloidosis, and she said medical tests have determined her condition is not genetically based.

Frost said she isn’t likely to live more than a year or two unless she receives a kidney transplant.

“I did know about the water (problems) in Camp Lejeune many years ago, but I didn’t pay attention to it,” Frost said. “No doctor has been able to figure out why my kidneys stopped working. I am healthy otherwise. The doctor said, ?Anyone who sees you wouldn’t know you’re as sick as you are.’?”

Dave Evans of Winter Haven, a former Marine, was stationed at Camp Lejeune on two occasions in the 1960s. Evans, 66, is plagued by heart disease and prostate cancer and wonders whether the conditions are related to the water at the base, his Agent Orange exposure in the Vietnam War or both.

Evans said he knows of others with connections to Camp Lejeune who have had medical tragedies in their families, including a close friend whose grandson died of a brain tumor. Evans, 66, recently attended a reunion of Marines in Washington, D.C., and he said the water problems at Camp Lejeune were a primary topic of conversation.

Evans said he learned about the official Camp Lejeune registry through a notice in Leatherneck, the Marine Corps magazine. he added his name to the list and later got a call from Partain.

“I don’t necessarily harbor any ill will toward the Marine Corps,” he said. “It’s more toward the government and the way they go about looking into problems, and this is just a typical example of an ongoing problem for years and years and years. They have been paying no attention to the people who have been trying to tell them (about it). … I feel like my country has let me down in many ways.”

REVELATIONS SPARK ANGER

Carla Morris of Auburndale is convinced that impure water at Camp Lejeune is to blame for her mother’s death from a rare gastric cancer in 2006 at age 69. Morris’ mother, Cora Hoffman, worked as a labor and delivery nurse at Camp Lejeune’s Naval Hospital from 1966 through 1976 and again for a few years in the 1990s.

Morris, 45, said she has investigated her mother’s ancestry and found no other examples of cancer.

Morris, a para-educator for Polk County schools, said she first learned about the Camp Lejeune controversy a few years after her mother died. She said her husband was having a casual conversation with a retired military man when he mentioned that his mother-in-law had worked at Camp Lejeune. The man immediately asked whether she was still alive and then offered the address for the “Forgotten” website.

“I went on the computer as soon as I got off work that day,” Morris said. “The more I looked, the madder I got. I probably spent two or three hours on the computer that night and e-mailed Mike (Partain) and he called me.”

Since news emerged about the water contamination, those who formerly lived or worked at Camp Lejeune have been forced to consider all of the ways they could have been exposed to the harmful compounds.

Partain has a photo of himself as a newborn in the arms of his mother, Lisette Partain, taken at Camp Lejeune Naval Hospital. Visible on a table is a bottle of premixed formula dissolved in tap water.

Frost recalled feeding her infant daughter formula made with tap water while she lived at Camp Lejeune.

Polluted water is a health threat not only to those who drink it. Volatile organic compounds in water are readily inhaled during a shower, according to a 1997 health assessment by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.

Frost said she has agonized memories of her son, then 2 years old, playing in a kiddie pool filled with water from a hose. She said her son and daughter, both now grown, have no apparent serious health problems, yet she can’t help worrying.

Posted on: Wednesday, 1 December 2010, 08:18 CST

(Ivanhoe Newswire) — Nonmelanoma skin cancers are some of the most commonly diagnosed in the U.S. A new study found a possible preventative treatment in the nonsteroidal, anti-inflammatory drug Celecoxib.

Celecoxib is typically used to inhibit the enzyme cyclooxygenase 2, which has been associated with the onset of UV ray-caused nonmelanoma skin cancers.  Since sunscreen has only shown mediocre results in protecting reducing these cancers, researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham looked at Celecoxib as an additional preventative measure by testing it on patients with precancerous symptoms.

Lead researcher Craig A. Elmets, M.D. and his associates created a randomized, double-blind trial in which 240 participants with actinic keratoses or precancerous lesions were given either Celecoxib or a placebo.  Results were gathered first during the third, sixth and ninth months of therapy, and then two months after the therapy was completed.

The results showed that the Celecoxib group and the placebo group yielded the same number of precancerous lesions.  by the end of the study, however, the participants in the former group had developed less non-melanoma skin cancers than those in the latter group.

"The findings in the study, which showed that the celecoxib-treated individuals developed fewer nonmelanoma skin cancers than placebo-treated individuals, suggest that cyclooxygenase inhibitors may provide an additional benefit to sunscreens in the prevention of nonmelanoma skin cancers," the researchers wrote.

The FDA shut the study down after a similar study of another cyclooxygenase 2 inhibitor found that the treatment increased the risk of adverse cardiovascular events.  such events were not found in the University of Alabama study, but the researchers believe that the nine month treatment period could have been too short for them to occur.  for example, another cyclooxygenase inhibitor called rofecoxib showed adverse events after a one year trial.

University of California, Irvine editorialists Frank L. Meyskens Jr. M.D. and Christine E. McLaren M.D. recommend that future researchers lower either the dosage or frequency of Celecoxib administration to lessen the adverse cardiovascular events.  They point out that efficacy of Celoxib in reducing the likelihood of nonmelonoma skin cancers, and its failure to reduce the number of precancerous legions, could indicate a difference in the pathways of carcinogens between early and late-stage tumor growth.

SOURCE: Journal of the National Cancer Institute, November 2010

Source: Ivanhoe Newswire

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