Cancer CarePoint Blog

The Lowdown on Aspartame

The New York Times describes the latest research on aspartame, which suggests that the common sweetener may cause cancer. Excerpts below.

Link: The Lowdown on Sweet? - New York Times

Aspartame is sold under the brand names Nutra-Sweet and Equal and is found in such popular products as Diet Coke, Diet Pepsi, Diet Snapple and Sugar Free Kool-Aid. Hundreds of millions of people consume it worldwide. And Dr. Soffritti's study concluded that aspartame may cause the dreaded "c" word: cancer.

The research found that the sweetener was associated with unusually high rates of lymphomas, leukemias and other cancers in rats that had been given doses of it starting at what would be equivalent to four to five 20-ounce bottles of diet soda a day for a 150-pound person. The study, which involved 1,900 laboratory rats and cost $1 million, was conducted at the European Ramazzini Foundation of Oncology and Environmental Sciences, a nonprofit organization that studies cancer-causing substances; Dr. Soffritti is its scientific director.

The findings, first released last July, prompted a flurry of criticism from the Calorie Control Council, a trade group for makers of artificial sweeteners that has spent the last 25 years trying to quell fears about aspartame. It said Dr. Soffritti's study flew in the face of four earlier cancer studies that aspartame's creator, G. D. Searle & Company, had underwritten and used to persuade the Food and Drug Administration to approve it for human consumption.

At the same time, Dr. Soffritti's findings have energized a vociferous group of researchers, health advocates and others who say they are convinced that aspartame is a toxin associated with a variety of health troubles, including headaches, dizziness, blindness and seizures.

In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration says it has also taken note of the study, which is available online (http://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/docs/2005/8711/abstract.html) and is scheduled to be published next month in a medical journal financed by the National Institutes of Health. F.D.A. officials say that they, too, intend to conduct a thorough review.

But both the F.D.A. and the European Commission have cautioned that there is no need for people to avoid aspartame. "We don't see any concerns at this stage," said George H. Pauli, associate director for science policy in the F.D.A.'s Office of Food Additive Safety. "We've gone through a humongous amount of data on aspartame over the years."

Higher cancer risk from air pollution

IndyStar.com describes the results of an EPA study of air pollution and health. Excerpts below.

Link: Higher cancer risk: It's in our air | IndyStar.com.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's National Air Toxics Assessment -- the most ambitious attempt yet to look at cancer risks from breathing chemicals -- outlines lifetime cancer risks in states, counties and census tracts. It is based on 133 chemicals emitted in 1999 by businesses and traffic.

The EPA determines risk by calculating how many additional cancer cases could result if a million people in a particular area were exposed equally to the same level of air pollution 24 hours a day for 70 years. The agency says any lifetime risk greater than 1 in a million could be cause for concern.

The analysis shows that risks in many areas are being driven not so much by big industrial sources as much as smaller factories and commercial businesses, such as dry cleaners and gas stations.

"The EPA data (show) we are exposing a large fraction of the American population to levels of various pollutants that exceed acceptable thresholds, and re-emphasizes that there really needs to be careful public discussion and debate on this issue," said Dr. Stephen Jay, chairman of the Indiana University School of Medicine's department of public health.

The risk "comes down to a question of human health on the one hand and the cost and trouble" of controlling pollution, Jay said. "It's a trade-off here."

Skin Cancer and Tanning

USNews.com describes a study published by the AMA showing that cosmetic tanning can increase skin cancer risks. Excerpts below.

Link: USNews.com: Though you haven't spent a lifetime outdoors, you can still get skin cancer.

A recent study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that the incidence of basal cell carcinoma (a slow-growing tumor of the basal cells at the bottom of the epidermis) among women under the age of 40 more than doubled between 1976 and 2003, to 31.6 per 100,000. The rate for men increased only slightly during that time. The study also found that both women and men showed significant increases in squamous cell cancer, which occurs in the middle layer of the epidermis. Like basal cell cancer, squamous cell cancer typically doesn't metastasize and is rarely ever fatal.

The reasons for the rise in skin cancer are clear, say doctors. "Either they're getting lots of chronic sun exposure because they're out all the time or using tanning beds, or it's these intense burns that they're getting," says Leslie Christenson, a dermatologic surgeon at the Mayo Clinic and one of the study's authors. Stepped-up screening for skin cancer and the thinning ozone layer, which allows more of the sun's ultraviolet rays in, may also play a role. The Indoor Tanning Association notes that the study didn't address whether the women tanned indoors or outdoors.

The nonprofit Skin Cancer Foundation (skincancer.org) recommends that people who go out in the sun wear a broad-spectrum sunscreen with a sun protection factor, or SPF, of at least 15. This will block 93 percent of the sun's ultraviolet type B rays, which are primarily responsible for skin cancers. Sunscreen should be reapplied every two hours and right after swimming. In addition, sunbathers should wear fairly tight-knit clothing, sunglasses, and a hat. Try to stay in the shade between the hours of 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., when the sun is hottest.

via The Skin Cancer Blog

High stress promotes skin cancer

News Target reports on a study by Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center showing how stress increase the risk of skin cancer. Summary below.

Link: High stress promotes skin cancer

It's not just sunburn that causes skin cancer: stress is also a major contributing factor according to new research. Reduce the levels of stress in your life, and your resistance to skin cancer more than doubles.

...stress is also caused by dietary factors such as the consumption of nutrient depleting foods and ingredients: white flour, processed grains, added sugars, hydrogenated oils, fast foods and so on.

Scientists at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center say that chronic stress may speed up the process in those at high-risk for the disease.

Their new study, published in the December issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, shows that mice exposed to stressful conditions and cancer-causing UV light develop skin cancers in less than half the time it took for non-stressed mice to grow tumors.

The Hopkins investigators say that if what they are seeing in mice has relevance in man, stress-reducing programs like yoga and meditation may help those at high risk for skin cancer stay healthy longer.

via The Cancer Blog via The Skin Cancer Blog

Curry and Cauliflower Could Halt Prostate Cancer

Link: Rutgers Media Relations - Curry and Cauliflower Could Halt Prostate Cancer

Rutgers researchers have found that the curry spice turmeric holds real potential for the treatment and prevention of prostate cancer, particularly when combined with certain vegetables.

The scientists tested turmeric, also known as curcumin, along with phenethyl isothiocyanate (PEITC), a naturally occurring substance particularly abundant in a group of vegetables that includes watercress, cabbage, winter cress, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, kale, cauliflower, kohlrabi and turnips. “The bottom line is that PEITC and curcumin, alone or in combination, demonstrate significant cancer-preventive qualities in laboratory mice, and the combination of PEITC and curcumin could be effective in treating established prostate cancers,” said Ah-Ng Tony Kong, a professor of pharmaceutics at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.

The discovery was announced in the Jan. 15 issue of the journal Cancer Research by Kong and his colleagues at Rutgers’ Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy.

Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in men in the United States, with a half-million new cases appearing each year. The incidence and mortality of prostate cancer have not decreased in past decades despite tremendous efforts and resources devoted to treatment. This is because advanced prostate cancer cells are barely responsive even to high concentrations of chemotherapeutic agents or radiotherapy.

The authors noted that in contrast to the high incidence of prostate cancer in the United States, the incidence of this disease is very low in India. This has been attributed to the dietary consumption of large amounts of plant-based foods rich in phytochemicals – nonnutritive plant chemicals that have protective or disease-preventive properties.

Teflon Chemical a Likely Carcinogen

Dr. Mercola cites an article about a chemical used in the manufacture of Teflon and other nonstick and stain-resistant products that should be considered a "likely" carcinogen, according to an independent scientific review panel advising the EPA.

Link: Panel: Teflon Chemical a Likely Carcinogen - Yahoo! News.

A chemical used in the manufacture of Teflon and other nonstick and stain-resistant products should be considered a "likely" carcinogen, according to an independent scientific review panel advising the Environmental Protection Agency.

The recommendation included in the panel's final draft report is consistent with its preliminary finding, which went beyond the EPA's own determination that there was only "suggestive evidence" from animal studies that perfluorooctanoic acid and its salts are potential human carcinogens.

Officials with Wilmington, Del.-based DuPont Co., the sole North American producer of PFOA, took issue with the panel's conclusions.

Research Reveals Secrets of Cancer's Spread

In a news release on Jan. 9, 2006, the Washington University School of Medicine released results of a study that shows how cancer spreads.

Link: CancerSourceRN.com News

THURSDAY, Jan. 12 (HealthDay News) -- New research suggests that the most dangerous part of any cancer is the thin, single-cell boundary where a tumor meets healthy tissue.

Tumor cells that border normal tissue receive signals that instruct them to leave the tumor and travel through the body, resulting in the formation of deadly metastatic tumors in other locations, report researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

The findings, which appear in the Jan. 10 issue of the journal Developmental Cell, demonstrate the importance of a tumor's environment. They also provide more information about the metastatic process and how it might be halted, the researchers said.

The researchers are now investigating ways of preventing metastatic behavior in these tumor boundary cells.

More information

The U.S. National Cancer Institute has more about metastatic cancer.

SOURCE: Washington University School of Medicine, news release, Jan. 9, 2006

The science and politics of colorectal cancer screening

Gary Schwitzer, of the University of Minnesota School of Journalism & Mass Communication, describes a policy study of the different approaches to colorectal cancer screening.

Link: Schwitzer health news blog: The science and politics of colorectal cancer screening.

Two Norwegian researchers, in an essay in PLoS Medicine, describe different countries' differing policies on colorectal cancer screening -- from simply screening everyone or none at all. For example:

"The people behind the Finnish strategy deserve credit for persuading their politicians to choose this cautious, stepwise model, and the politicians and health authorities deserve credit for listening."

They are critical of celebrity campaigns: "Health policymakers must also remain sceptical of the role of celebrity endorsements. Communication on complex decisions such as cancer screening, with an aim to inform rather than persuade, is not an obvious task for celebrities."

Skin Cancer Foundation Launches PSA

Steve Rubel at The Skin Cancer Blog likes the new public service campaign by the Skin Cancer Foundation to raise awareness.

Link: The Skin Cancer Blog: Skin Cancer Foundation Launches PSA

The Skin Cancer Foundation, who's mission is to decrease the incidence of disease by means of public and professional education, medical training, and research, has launched a compelling public service campaign on the issue.

Melanoma Kills More Young Women Than Any Other Cancer.
Protect Yourself.

Genetics, Molecular Biomarkers Form Molecular Basis for Cancer Prevention

Source: Genetics, Molecular Biomarkers Form Molecular Basis for Cancer Prevention#38

Category: Cancer/Oncology News
Article Date: 07 Nov 2005

One of the goals for cancer prevention is to identify, as early as possible, molecular changes in the body that signal the onset of disease. Such "biomarkers" may be isolated from subtle biological changes in an individual's cells, proteins or genetic makeup.

Useful biomarkers to help prevent, diagnose and monitor treatment for cancer must share two essential characteristics: they must be consistently reliable, and they must display significant difference in expression between normal tissue and the various stages of cancer progression.

Three studies presented at the 2005 American Association for Cancer Research Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research meeting in Baltimore discuss molecules that scientists have identified as markers for skin, endometrial or breast cancer. The results suggest how these biomarkers may help monitor early onset malignancies that can be prevented from advancing to life-threatening conditions.

Blood levels of C-reactive proteins indicative of increased risk for endometrial, colorectal cancers (Abstract # 3701)

People with elevated concentrations of a protein associated with chronic low- grade inflammation are at higher risk for developing endometrial cancer, according to a new study.

C-reactive protein is a highly sensitive indicator of inflammation, and is associated with diabetes, metabolic syndrome and hyperandrogenic states. The protein is made by liver cells in response to several pro-inflammation signaling molecules known as cytokines.