Filed under: Breast Cancer , Research , Daily news Researchers are reporting that a new vaccine designed to treat breast cancer appears to be safe in women with advanced disease. It showed signs of slowing down tumor growth too. The Neuvenge vaccine, made by Dendreon Corporation -- maker of the Provenge prostate cancer vaccine -- targets the aggressive Her-2 positive form of breast cancer, which affects 20 to 30 percent of breast cancer patients. Using immune cells from a cancer patient's own body, Neuvenge is a tailor-made therapy. Reports about Neuvenge, published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, indicate the vaccine did not cause any serious side effects and of the 18 women who participated in the Phase I study, there was a reduction in the size of a tumor in one patient. In three other women, the disease seemed to stabilize for as long as a year. Although Neuvenge may not be given the go-ahead for Phase II study for some time, researchers believe their initial findings are promising.

Filed under: Drug , Ovarian Cancer , Clinical Trials Ovarian cancer clinical trial to test the drug Phenoxodiol was a post I did back in November of 2006.

Filed under: All Cancers , Diets , Daily news I have never completely cut a certain food from my diet just because of speculation that it may cause cancer. Because I eat most everything in moderation, I have felt that anything I am ingesting is too small an amount to make any real difference. I have heard recommendations about nixing preserved foods and anything treated with hormones and refined sugar and while I try to eat a balanced, healthy diet -- with a bit of sweet stuff thrown in -- I do sometimes indulge my cravings for foods that are not very healthy. Like chips -- which writer Robert L. Wolke says he is definitely eliminating from his diet. The chemical acrylamide -- a probable carcinogen -- has been found in fried starchy foods, especially potato chips and French fries. This chemical is not a contaminant that somehow appears in our food but is created by chemical reactions that take place during cooking at high temperatures. It's a chemical that has been used in industry and has been known to damage the central nervous system, the immune system, and the reproductive system. And it may cause cancer. Recently, acrylamide was discovered in foods at hundreds of times the .5-parts-per-billion level that is considered safe in drinking water. Authorities in Germany have already begun enforcing regulations to minimize the amounts of acrylamide in foods. But the United States has been criticized for dragging its feet on this issue. In fact, the National Uniformity for Food Act (H.R. 4167) recently passed the U.S. House of Representatives, with 94 percent of Republicans supporting it and 64 percent of Democrats opposing. It has gone to the Senate, where it was the subject of a hearing on July 27. The act would prohibit states or local governments from setting more stringent limits on toxic substances. Each of us can still take personal action with regard to the foods we eat -- despite what the government dictates. We can decide what to eat and what not to eat. In the interest of our health. And our future. For information on acrylamide levels in hundreds of different foods, click here . Read     Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Breast Cancer , Chemotherapy , Radiation , Cancer Survivors I don't take for granted that I am alive. I am fully aware of it, consciously grateful for it, continually amazed by it. Before I was confronted with breast cancer, I still knew I could die -- in a car accident maybe -- but I thought chances were pretty good that I would make it to a ripe old age. Death was never at the forefront of my mind. I had no reason to believe that life could be snatched from me. And because of this, I am sure some pretty important moments slipped by me, virtually unnoticed. But now -- after a breast cancer diagnosis, surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and then more therapy, I realize life is not a guarantee for anyone. Me included. Even at age 36, I am not safe. I feel confident about my future -- and I believe cancer has left my body -- but my life has been threatened like never before. And that makes me wake up and take notice -- really notice -- the moments that are too important to take for granted. My first baby boy starts kindergarten today. Before cancer, this still would have been a monumental day for us both. But now, after cancer, it's even bigger. Because I know of several moms who did not survive cancer long enough to see their children walk through their first classroom doors -- moms who thought, like me, that they would surely beat cancer and would see their kids off for every first day of school. So I am lucky to have made it to this day -- to witness the wonder of my sweet, shy, sensitive, challenging, demanding, loving boy as he leaves the comfort of home for the real world. Two days ago, my littlest guy said, "Mommy, I love you and want to keep you forever." Joey -- the boy whose wisdom should guide him right through his first day of school -- said, "Danny, you can't have mommy forever. One day she will die, and you will never see her again." Fortunately, his harsh meaning was lost on three-year-old Danny who kept playing with whatever toy was occupying him at the time. But his meaning was not lost on me. He spoke the truth. And so I plan to soak up the kindergarten moment this morning -- and photograph it and write about it and cherish it for my days to come. And in two years, I hope to do it again with Danny as he starts off on the same path. With me by his side. Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Breast Cancer , Research , Products NIRScanner is a battery-operated hand-held infrared-based optical scanning device that the developers claim is both affordable and safe and could be used by women as an at-home personal health care solution to the early detection of breast cancer. However, Drexel University and the University of Pennsylvania scientists state the device is not designed to replace mammography, ultrasound, or other methods of screening for breast cancer, only that it offers an additional method of detection, much the same as monthly self-exams, only far more accurate at early detection. The simple device surpasses self-exam by touch in that it can detect changes in the breast that traditional self-exam could not, and the developers state that it would alert women to seek medical attention should the device detect a problem in the breast. The NIRScanner makes steady low beeps as it moves over the breast. Using a type of near-infrared light that travels deep into breast tissue, if the hand-held device detects a tumor the beep tone gets higher. A microchip stores the information on the size and location of the tumor as the patient performs the self-examination and the information can be taken to be analyzed on a computer by a physician. Although the researchers state that the device proved to be accurate over 90 percent of the time, it is still being tested, and needs funding to be brought to market. To read more about the NIRScanner, they have made an illustrated brochure available as a PDF document. Read     Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Chemotherapy , All Cancers , Blogs , Daily news I never colored my hair -- until after cancer, when my once-blond hair lost to chemotherapy grew in mousy brown with touches of gray. I thought it needed some spark and dazzle so I doused my head -- and my bathroom counter and walls too -- with hair dye in an effort to brighten up my look. It worked. And I like it. But I don't like what I've now heard about a possible link between hair dye and cancer. And this is what I told a reporter from the New York Times who called me the other day. She had read my post here on the Cancer Blog about this news story -- about hair dye and cancer -- and she wanted to know more about my personal feelings as a cancer survivor and as a person with colored hair. I told this reporter that it's a bit ironic that in 36 years, I had never applied hair dye to my hair and that only after cancer did I take the plunge -- only to learn that hair dye may be cancer causing. I told her that I wouldn't do it again -- dye my hair -- although I don't think one application of coloring chemicals will really affect me when research indicates a risk only when women use hair dye 12 or more times. But still, I don't choose to take even the smallest of risks when it comes to my health -- which has already been compromised once. I told the reporter that I have not witnessed any widespread panic among the public about this issue. And I think the people I know who color their hair will continue to do so. That's okay with me. Because when it comes down to it, I am responsible for my hair only, my health only, my life only. That's really all I can manage. And once my colored hair grows out -- the colored hair that was photographed today for the story this reporter is writing -- I'll manage to live on with my mousy brown hair with natural gray highlights. It won't have much spark or dazzle. But it will be safe. Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Drug , Chemotherapy , All Cancers Several boxes containing injections of Neulasta have lined the bottom of my refrigerator for more than a year. They are left-overs from chemotherapy -- from a time when one needle pierced the skin on my arm after each chemo treatment to keep my blood counts in a safe range. I've looked at them day after day after day, and I've allowed them to sit in the same exact spot for all this time. But today, they are in the trash -- not because I made a conscious choice to throw them away but because water spilled all over the inside of my refrigerator and left them soggy and damaged. Surely I would not have used them in this condition, I thought -- so I tossed them. But really, I would not have used them anyway. They were old -- probably past their expiration date -- and I am not receiving chemotherapy anymore. I had absolutely no use for them. But I kept them for safety or comfort or some other impractical reason -- for the same reason I keep a basket full of old medication in my kitchen cupboard. It's all cancer-related -- most of it never touched because I don't really like taking medication, even when necessary. So this stock-piling tendency defies all logic for me. Until today -- when part of my past sits in a white trash bag, ready for the curb, and the rest of it is soon to be trashed. So I can continue moving forward. Away from cancer. For good. Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Breast Cancer , All Cancers , Blogs , Sunday Seven I've been keeping a journal ever since I was first diagnosed with breast cancer. I first wrote by hand in a pink fabric-covered book, sprinkled with multi-colored polka dots. It looked feminine -- which is why I bought it -- and it's vibrance made me feel inspired, motivated, eager to write down the dreaded details of the beginning of my journey. Then I stopped writing in this book and began typing my words in an on-line journal -- a blog. My husband designed the presentation of it, with a pink banner that serves as the backdrop for the title -- my Breast Cancer blog . My first entry was completed on December 21, 2004 and I am still chronicling my journey here. I am also writing for this site -- the Cancer Blog -- and I write whenever and wherever else I can record my words. I do it because it helps me process information in a quiet, calming, introspective way. It soothes me, helps me work through panic and anxiety, helps me heal, and helps me chart my progress. When I look back at what I've written, I realize how far I've come -- or haven't come -- and it helps me move forward. I recommend journaling for everyone, and I recommend these seven simple suggestions for getting started. Style. Your journal can be all-emcompassing and can cover all aspects of life. Or it can be specific. My journal began because of cancer and mostly focuses on this topic. But sometimes I write about parenting and other side issues too. You might keep a food journal, an exercise journal, a memory journal, or a dream journal. Just choose your style and proceed. Format. Any format will do -- writing in a book made specifically for journaling, jotting down thoughts and notes on loose paper, typing an on-going collection of entries, even recording your voice will do just fine. Whatever the mode of expression, the point is creating a record of what is going on in your mind. Rules. There are no rules. You can write every day or you can write once a month. You can use words or drawings or charts and graphs to depict your inner thoughts. Regardless of how you journal -- or how often you journal -- you will accomplish the goal of getting closer to the real you. Censoring. Make sure you record your exact emotions -- no matter how scary or frightening. Don't shelter your thoughts. Don't feel embarrased. And don't worry about spelling and grammar and punctuation. Journaling should not be purposely crafted or manipulated -- it should be real. No one is grading or evaluating or judging you. Privacy. If you are worried that someone will one day read your memoirs, consider a safe hiding place for your journal. Carry it with you at all times. Type an entry and e-mail it to yourself. Or write an entry and then dispose of it. It's the act of writing that is beneficial -- if you are okay with not having a permanent record of what you wrote, then this might be the best route. There are no rules for journaling, after all. Sharing. You might choose to share your journal -- l like I do. My blog is available to anyone who finds me on the internet. I like it this way because I want people to gain insight from my journey, to learn from my experience. Keeping my words private helps me -- but it does no good to anyone else who might benefit from where I've already traveled. In addition to on-line sharing, journals can be saved and passed on to family members. My family has several journals that my grandmother kept before she passed away. Looking back at them allows us to keep her memory fresh in our minds. It reminds us of her unique handwriting. And we learn a lot from her notes too -- she wrote her own life story, for example, that has been copied and distributed to her children and grandchildren. Her legacy lives on through her written words. Reflecting. Permanent journaling is valuable for the purpose of reflection. I often look back on what I've written and mostly feel accomplished for making progress both physically and emotionally. On February 23, 2005, in the midst of chemotherapy, I wrote on my blog: I am still making it through each day without too much difficulty. I am still positive and hopeful. But while I once felt completely motivated and somewhat unphased by breast cancer and its implications, I now feel sickened and a bit angry. I am sure I will someday turn towards acceptance and will one day think of this journey as a life-changing gift. But for now, I just feel sick. Reading this -- and realizing that I have accepted this disease and that I do think of it as a life-changing gift reminds me that I have evolved and changed and emerged from a tunnel of darkness. Journaling has been critical in my recovery and healing. And I intend to continue writing and sharing. For me. For others. Because my life -- for now -- is an open book. Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Breast Cancer , Prevention , Environment , Non-toxic alternatives , Products When Robin Levin's healthy and athletic sister whose diet consisted of organic food loaded with good nutrition was diagnosed with breast cancer, Levin wondered how that was possible when they had no family history or lifestyle risks for breast cancer. Levin began to do research and found evidence that environmental pollutants and chemical toxins in the home can increase a woman's risk for breast cancer. Based in part on Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) studies that have found the air in homes is two to five times more chemically polluted than outdoor air, and The Breast Cancer Fund report that stated 50 percent of breast cancer cases are the result of pollutants in the environment, Levin set out to find safer chemical-free products. The search was not as simple as Levin might have thought, as she found many of the natural cleaners on the market still use synthetic chemicals for colorants and small amounts of ammonia and harsh additives. She came to the conclusion the only way to be certain of the ingredients in a product is to make them yourself from scratch. ECO-Me is Levine's company, and Eco-Me Home Cleaning Starter Kit is the product she is hoping will make a difference in reducing cancer risks. Levin donates part of the profits from the sale of her kits to The Breast Cancer Fund and Cancer 101. To learn more about Eco-Me, read information in Eco-tips and Eco-news, the company has a website here . Read     Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Breast Cancer , All Cancers I can't decide what to do about my port now that my breast cancer treatment is over. It's been an on-going internal battle. I don't know whether I should leave it in place -- tunneled underneath the skin on my collarbone where it is available and accessible should I ever need further infusions of cancer-fighting drugs -- or whether I should have it removed since there is no real purpose for it right now. There is the issue of superstition and safety -- leaving it right where it is allows for easy use if cancer returns and prevents another surgery to implant a new one. But there is also the issue of moving on -- and removing it because I don't need it, because I may never need it. One doctor told me recently that it should come out because if it remains in my body, I risk infection. And anything foreign in my body for an extended period of time is not completely safe. But a cancer survivor told me that she had hers removed immediately after treatment and had to get a new one because her cancer recurred three months later.