How is lung cancer diagnosed?

Doctors use a wide range of diagnostic procedures and tests to diagnose lung cancer. These include:

The history and physical examination may reveal the presence of symptoms or signs that are suspicious for lung cancer. In addition to asking about symptoms and risk factors for cancer development, doctors may detect signs of breathing difficulties, airway obstruction, or infections in the lungs. Cyanosis, a bluish color of the skin and the mucous membranes due to insufficient oxygen in the blood, suggests compromised function of the lung. Likewise, changes in the tissue of the nail beds, known as clubbing, may also indicate lung disease.

The chest x-ray is the most common first diagnostic step when any new symptoms of lung cancer are present. The chest x-ray procedure often involves a view from the back to the front of the chest as well as a view from the side. Like any x-ray procedure, chest x-rays expose the patient briefly to a minimum amount of radiation. Chest x-rays may reveal suspicious areas in the lungs but are unable to determine if these areas are cancerous. In particular, calcified nodules in the lungs or benign tumors called hamartomas may be identified on a chest x-ray and simulate lung cancer.

CT (computerized axial tomography scan, or CAT scan) scans may be performed on the chest, abdomen, and/or brain to examine for both metastatic and primary tumor. A CT scan of the chest may be ordered when x-rays are negative or do not yield sufficient information about the extent or location of a tumor. CT scans are x-ray procedures that combine multiple images with the aid of a computer to generate cross-sectional views of the body. The images are taken by a large donut-shaped x-ray machine at different angles around the body. One advantage of CT scans is that they are more sensitive than standard chest x-rays in the detection of lung nodules. Sometimes intravenous contrast material is given prior to the procedure to help delineate the organs and their positions. A CT scan exposes the patient to a minimal amount of radiation. The most common side effect is an adverse reaction to intravenous contrast material that may have been given prior to the procedure. There may be resulting itching, a rash, or hives that generally disappear rather quickly. Severe anaphylactic reactions (life-threatening allergic reactions with breathing difficulties) to contrast material are rare. CT scans of the abdomen may identify metastatic cancer in the liver or adrenal glands, and CT scans of the head may be ordered to reveal the presence and extent of metastatic cancer in the brain.

A technique called a low-dose helical CT scan (or spiral CT scan) is sometimes used in screening for lung cancers. This procedure requires a special type of CAT scanner and has been shown to be an effective tool for the identification of small lung cancers in smokers and former smokers. However, it has not yet been proven whether the use of this technique actually saves lives or lowers the risk of death from lung cancer. The heightened sensitivity of this method is actually one of the sources of its drawbacks, since lung nodules requiring further evaluation will be seen in approximately 20% of people with this technique. Of the nodules identified by low-dose helical screening CTs, 90% are not cancerous but require up to two years of costly and often uncomfortable follow-up and testing. Trials are underway to further determine the utility of spiral CT scans in screening for lung cancer.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans may be indicated when precise detail about a tumor's location is required. The MRI technique uses magnetism, radio waves, and a computer to produce images of body structures. As with CT scanning, the patient is placed on a moveable bed which is inserted into the MRI scanner. There are no known side effects of MRI scanning, and there is no exposure to radiation. The image and resolution produced by MRI is quite detailed and can detect tiny changes of structures within the body. People with heart pacemakers, metal implants, artificial heart valves, and other surgically implanted structures cannot be scanned with an MRI because of the risk that the magnet may move the metal parts of these structures.

Positron emission tomography (PET) scanning is a specialized imaging technique that uses short-lived radioactive substances to produce three-dimensional colored images of those substances functioning within the body. While CT scans and MRI scans look at anatomical structures, PET scans measure metabolic activity and functioning of tissue. PET scans can determine whether a tumor tissue is actively growing and can aid in determining the type of cells within a particular tumor. In PET scanning, the patient receives a short half-lived radioactive drug and receives approximately the amount of radiation exposure as with two chest x-rays. The drug discharges positrons from wherever they are used in the body. As the positrons encounter electrons within the body, a reaction producing gamma rays occurs. A scanner records these gamma rays and maps the area where the drug is located. For example, combining glucose (a common energy source in the body) with a radioactive substance will show where glucose is being used in a growing tumor.

Bone scans are used to create images of bones on a computer screen or on film. Doctors may order a bone scan to determine whether a lung cancer has metastasized to the bones. In a bone scan, a small amount of radioactive material is injected into the bloodstream and collects in the bones, especially in abnormal areas such as those involved by metastatic tumors. The radioactive material is detected by a scanner, and the image of the bones is recorded on a special film for permanent viewing.

Sputum cytology: The diagnosis of lung cancer always requires confirmation of malignant cells by a pathologist, even when symptoms and x-ray studies are suspicious for lung cancer. The simplest method to establish the diagnosis is the examination of sputum under a microscope. If a tumor is centrally located and has invaded the airways, this procedure, known as a sputum cytology examination, may allow visualization of tumor cells for diagnosis. This is the most risk-free and inexpensive tissue diagnostic procedure, but its value is limited since tumor cells will not always be present in sputum even if a cancer is present. Also, noncancerous cells may occasionally undergo changes in reaction to inflammation or injury that makes them look like cancer cells.

Bronchoscopy: Examination of the airways by bronchoscopy (visualizing the airways through a thin probe inserted in a tube through the nose or mouth) may reveal areas of tumor that can be sampled for pathologic diagnosis. A tumor in the central areas of the lung or arising from the larger airways is accessible to sampling using this technique. Bronchoscopy may be performed using a rigid or a flexible, fiberoptic bronchoscope and can be performed in a same-day outpatient bronchoscopy suite, an operating room, or on a hospital ward. The procedure can be uncomfortable and require sedation or anesthesia. While the procedure is relatively safe, the procedure must be carried out by a lung specialist (pulmonologist or surgeon) experienced in the procedure. When a tumor is visualized and adequately sampled, an accurate cancer diagnosis is generally possible. Some patients may cough up dark-brown blood for one to two days after the procedure. More serious, and rare, complications include a greater amount of bleeding, decreased levels of oxygen in the blood, and heart arrhythmias as well as complications from sedative medications and anesthesia.

Needle biopsy: Fine needle aspiration (FNA) through the skin, most commonly performed with radiological imaging for guidance, may be useful in retrieving cells for diagnosis from tumor nodules in the lungs. Needle biopsies are particularly useful when the lung tumor is peripherally located in the lung and not accessible to sampling by bronchoscopy. A small amount of local anesthetic is given prior to insertion of a thin needle through the chest wall into the abnormal area in the lung. Cells are suctioned into the syringe and are examined under the microscope for tumor cells. This procedure is generally accurate when the tissue from the affected area is adequately sampled, but in some cases, adjacent or uninvolved areas of the lung may be mistakenly sampled. A small risk (3%-5%) of an air leak from the lungs (called a pneumothorax, which can easily be treated) accompanies the procedure.

Thoracentesis: Sometimes lung cancers involve the lining tissue of the lungs (pleura) and lead to an accumulation of fluid in the space between the lungs and chest wall (called a pleural effusion). Aspiration of a sample of this fluid with a thin needle (thoracentesis) may reveal the cancer cells and establish the diagnosis. As with the needle biopsy, a small risk of a pneumothorax is associated with this procedure.

Major surgical procedures: If none of the aforementioned methods yields a diagnosis, surgical methods must be employed to obtain tumor tissue for diagnosis. These can include mediastinoscopy (examining the chest cavity between the lungs through a surgically inserted probe with biopsy of tumor masses or lymph nodes) or thoracotomy (surgical opening of the chest wall with removal of as much tumor as possible). Thoracotomy is rarely able to completely remove a lung cancer, and both mediastinoscopy and thoracotomy carry the risks of major surgical procedures (complications such as bleeding, infection, and risks from anesthesia and medications). These procedures are performed in an operating room, and the patient must be hospitalized.

Blood tests: While routine blood tests alone cannot diagnose lung cancer, they may reveal biochemical or metabolic abnormalities in the body that accompany cancer. For example, elevated levels of calcium or of the enzyme alkaline phosphatase may accompany cancer that is metastatic to the bones. Likewise, elevated levels of certain enzymes normally present within liver cells, including aspartate aminotransferase (AST or SGOT) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT or SGPT), signal liver damage, possibly through the presence of metastatic tumor

What are the signs and symptoms of lung cancer?

Symptoms of lung cancer are varied dependent upon where and how widespread the tumor is. Warning signs of lung cancer are not always present or easy to identify. A person with lung cancer may have the following kinds of symptoms:

No symptoms:
In up to 25% of people who get lung cancer, the cancer is first discovered on a routine chest x-ray or CT scan as a solitary small mass sometimes called a coin lesion. These patients with small single masses often report no symptoms of lung cancer at the time it is discovered.

Symptoms related to the cancer:
The growth of the cancer and invasion of lung tissues and surroundings may interfere with breathing, leading to symptoms such as cough, shortness of breath, wheezing, chest pain, and coughing up blood (hemoptysis). If the cancer has invaded nerves, for example, it may cause shoulder pain that travels down the outside of the arm (called Pancoast's Syndrome) or paralysis of the vocal cords leading to hoarseness. Invasion of the esophagus may lead to difficulty swallowing (dysphagia). If a large airway is obstructed, collapse of a portion of the lung may occur and cause infections (abscesses, pneumonia) in the obstructed area.

Symptoms related to metastasis:
Lung cancer that has spread to the bones may produce excruciating pain at the sites of bone involvement. Cancer that has spread to the brain may cause a number of neurologic symptoms that may include blurred vision, headaches, seizures, or symptoms of stroke such as weakness or loss of sensation in parts of the body.

Paraneoplastic symptoms:
Lung cancers frequently are accompanied by so-called paraneoplastic syndromes that result from production of hormone-like substances by the tumor cells. Paraneoplastic syndromes occur most commonly with SCLC but may be seen with any tumor type. A common paraneoplastic syndrome associated with SCLC is the production of a hormone called adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) by the cancer cells, leading to oversecretion of the hormone cortisol by the adrenal glands (Cushing's syndrome). The most frequent paraneoplastic syndrome seen with NSCLC is the production of a substance similar to parathyroid hormone, resulting in elevated levels of calcium in the bloodstream.

Nonspecific symptoms:
Nonspecific symptoms seen with many cancers including lung cancers include weight loss, weakness, and fatigue. Psychological symptoms such as depression and mood changes are also common.

When should one consult a doctor?
One should consult a health care provider if they develop the symptoms associated with lung cancer, in particular, if they have
a new persistent cough or worsening of an existing chronic cough,
blood in the sputum,
persistent bronchitis or repeated respiratory infections,
chest pain,
unexplained weight loss and/or fatigue, and/or
breathing difficulties such as shortness of breath or wheezing

WHAT CAUSES LUNG CANCER

1. Smoking
The incidence of lung cancer is strongly correlated with cigarette smoking, with about 90% of lung cancers arising as a result of tobacco use. The risk of lung cancer increases with the number of cigarettes smoked over time; doctors refer to this risk in terms of pack-years of smoking history (the number of packs of cigarettes smoked per day multiplied by the number of years smoked). For example, a person who has smoked two packs of cigarettes per day for 10 years has a 20 pack-year smoking history. While the risk of lung cancer is increased with even a 10 pack-year smoking history, those with 30 pack-year histories or more are considered to have the greatest risk for the development of lung cancer. Among those who smoke two or more packs of cigarettes per day, one in seven will die of lung cancer.
Pipe and cigar smoking can also cause lung cancer, although the risk is not as high as with cigarette smoking. While someone who smokes one pack of cigarettes per day has a risk for the development of lung cancer that is 25 times higher than a nonsmoker, pipe and cigar smokers have a risk of lung cancer that is about five times that of a nonsmoker.
Tobacco smoke contains over 4,000 chemical compounds, many of which have been shown to be cancer-causing, or carcinogenic. The two primary carcinogens in tobacco smoke are chemicals known as nitrosamines and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. The risk of developing lung cancer decreases each year following smoking cessation as normal cells grow and replace damaged cells in the lung. In former smokers, the risk of developing lung cancer begins to approach that of a nonsmoker about 15 years after cessation of smoking. For more, please read the Smoking and Quitting Smoking article.

2. Passive smoking
Passive smoking, or the inhalation of tobacco smoke from other smokers sharing living or working quarters, is also an established risk factor for the development of lung cancer. Research has shown that nonsmokers who reside with a smoker have a 24% increase in risk for developing lung cancer when compared with other nonsmokers. An estimated 3,000 lung cancer deaths occur each year in the U.S. that are attributable to passive smoking.

3. Asbestos fibers
Asbestos fibers are silicate fibers that can persist for a lifetime in lung tissue following exposure to asbestos. The workplace is a common source of exposure to asbestos fibers, as asbestos was widely used in the past for both thermal and acoustic insulation materials. Today, asbestos use is limited or banned in many countries, including the Unites States. Both lung cancer and mesothelioma (a type of cancer of the pleura or of the lining of the abdominal cavity called the peritoneum) are associated with exposure to asbestos. Cigarette smoking drastically increases the chance of developing an asbestos-related lung cancer in exposed workers. Asbestos workers who do not smoke have a fivefold greater risk of developing lung cancer than nonsmokers, and those asbestos workers who smoke have a risk that is 50 to 90 times greater than nonsmokers.

4. Radon gas
Radon gas is a natural, chemically inert gas that is a natural decay product of uranium. It decays to form products that emit a type of ionizing radiation. Radon gas is a known cause of lung cancer, with an estimated 12% of lung cancer deaths attributable to radon gas, or 15,000 to 22,000 lung cancer-related deaths annually in the U.S., making radon the second leading cause of lung cancer in the U.S. As with asbestos exposure, concomitant smoking greatly increases the risk of lung cancer with radon exposure. Radon gas can travel up through soil and enter homes through gaps in the foundation, pipes, drains, or other openings. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that one out of every 15 homes in the U.S. contains dangerous levels of radon gas. Radon gas is invisible and odorless, but it can be detected with simple test kits.

5. Familial predisposition
While the majority of lung cancers are associated with tobacco smoking, the fact that not all smokers eventually develop lung cancer suggests that other factors, such as individual genetic susceptibility, may play a role in the causation of lung cancer. Numerous studies have shown that lung cancer is more likely to occur in both smoking and nonsmoking relatives of those who have had lung cancer than in the general population. Recent research has localized a region on the long (q) arm of the human chromosome number 6 that is likely to contain a gene that confers an increased susceptibility to the development of lung cancer in smokers.

6. Lung diseases
The presence of certain diseases of the lung, notably chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), is associated with a slightly increased risk (four to six times the risk of a nonsmoker) for the development of lung cancer even after the effects of concomitant cigarette smoking are excluded.

7. Prior history of lung cancer
Survivors of lung cancer have a greater risk than the general population of developing a second lung cancer. Survivors of non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLCs, see below) have an additive risk of 1%-2% per year for developing a second lung cancer. In survivors of small cell lung cancers (SCLCs), the risk for development of second cancers approaches 6% per year.

8. Air pollution
Air pollution from vehicles, industry, and power plants can raise the likelihood of developing lung cancer in exposed individuals. Up to 1% of lung cancer deaths are attributable to breathing polluted air, and experts believe that prolonged exposure to highly polluted air can carry a risk similar to that of passive smoking for the development of lung cancer.

Lack of Sunlight Found to Greatly Increase Risk of Lung Cancer

A new study has found a correlation between higher rates of lung cancer and less exposure to sunlight.The study was conducted by researchers from the University of California at San Diego and published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.

Researchers examined data from national and international databases, including those from the World Health Organization, to compare lung cancer rates in 111 different countries. The researchers searched for correlations with national rates of smoking, as well as latitude, high cloud cover and levels of airborne aerosols.

A lower latitude indicates more sunlight and hence more exposure to the UVB radiation that causes the body to synthesize vitamin D. UVB is blocked by high cloud cover and airborne aerosols, so those factors indicate lower exposure.The researchers found that the strongest correlation with lung cancer rates came from smoking, which was responsible for between 75 and 85 percent of all cases. But they also found a significant correlation with lower UVB exposure.Among men, cancer rates were higher the farther a man lived from the equator.

Among women, cancer rates increased with distance from the equator, high cloud cover and airborne aerosols. These correlations remained even after adjusting for the effects of smoking.Lung cancer is one of the three most common cancers among men and women in developed countries. It kills more than one million people each year.Researchers believe that sunlight helps protect against cancer by stimulating the production of vitamin D. Lead researcher Cedric Garland said that vitamin D is believed to cause the body to release chemicals that combine with calcium to cause the cells in organ linings to stick more closely together. This prevents these cells, which appear to be most vulnerable to cancer, from dividing uncontrollably.

While the current study looked only at lung cancer, prior studies have found that living far from the equator results in a higher risk of other internal organ cancers, such as colon cancer and breast cancer. One study found that people who live north of the Mason-Dixon Line in the United States died of colon cancer at twice the rate of those living south of it. Another study looked at vitamin D directly and found that lower blood levels of vitamin D metabolites correlated with a higher risk of colon cancer."The problem is that people might over-interpret this and stay in the sun for hours," Garland said. Moderation, he emphasized, is the way to go. "It would be false prudence to stay out of the sun to prevent skin cancer and not get enough vitamin D."Kat Arney of Cancer Research U.K. agreed. "The time in the sun needed to get enough vitamin D is much less than the time it takes to tan or burn."Garland recommends spending five to 15 minutes in the sun every day that weather permits. This presumes that this takes place on a mostly clear day, approximately 40 percent of skin area is exposed and that exposure takes place within two hours of midday.

Having more skin covered, being out at a different time or a less clear day would increase the time needed. People should wear wide-brimmed hats if exposure will be longer than a few minutes, but should not use sunscreen, which blocks vitamin D synthesis.Garland emphasized that moderate sunlight exposure does not significantly raise a person's risk of melanoma, the most dangerous form of skin cancer. "There's plenty of potential to make vitamin D," Garland said. "Even in Helsinki, people can take advantage of the sun in summer months." Vitamin D produced by the body during the summer can be stored until the winter.

CANCER OF THE LUNGS

Cancer of the lung, like all cancers, results from an abnormality in the body's basic unit of life, the cell. Normally, the body maintains a system of checks and balances on cell growth so that cells divide to produce new cells only when needed. Disruption of this system of checks and balances on cell growth results in an uncontrolled division and proliferation of cells that eventually forms a mass known as a tumor.

Tumors can be benign or malignant; when we speak of "cancer," we refer to those tumors that are considered malignant. Benign tumors can usually be removed and do not spread to other parts of the body. Malignant tumors, on the other hand, grow aggressively and invade other tissues of the body, allowing entry of tumor cells into the bloodstream or lymphatic system which spread the tumor to other sites in the body. This process of spread is termed metastasis; the areas of tumor growth at these distant sites are called metastases. Since lung cancer tends to spread, or metastasize, very early in its course, it is a very life-threatening cancer and one of the most difficult cancers to treat. While lung cancer can spread to any organ in the body, certain organs—particularly the adrenal glands, liver, brain, and bone—are the most common sites for lung cancer metastasis.

The lung is also a very common site for metastasis from tumors in other parts of the body. Tumor metastases are made up of the same type of cells as the original, or primary, tumor. For example, if prostate cancer spreads via the bloodstream to the lungs, it is metastatic prostate cancer in the lung and is not lung cancer.

The principal function of the lungs is the exchange of gases between the air we breathe and the blood. Through the lung, carbon dioxide is removed from the body and oxygen from inspired air enters the bloodstream. The right lung has three lobes, while the left lung is divided into two lobes and a small structure called the lingula that is the equivalent of the middle lobe. The major airways entering the lungs are the bronchi, which arise from the trachea. The bronchi branch into progressively smaller airways called bronchioles that end in tiny sacs known as alveoli, where gas exchange occurs. The lungs and chest wall are covered with a thin layer of tissue called the pleura.

Lung cancers can arise in any part of the lung, and 90%-95% of cancers of the lung are thought to arise from the epithelial, or lining cells of the larger and smaller airways (bronchi and bronchioles); for this reason, lung cancers are sometimes called bronchogenic carcinomas or bronchogenic cancers. Cancers can also arise from the pleura (the thin layer of tissue that surrounds the lungs), called mesotheliomas, or rarely from supporting tissues within the lungs, for example, blood vessels.

You should know: Asbestos causes cancer

More and more, it’s becoming clear that lifestyle and environmental factors play a role in the development of cancer. That’s why I’m doing my best to eat right, exercise right, and stress less—research says these practices can keep me healthy and just might prevent breast cancer from paying me a return visit.

I’d be wise to avoid contact with asbestos for the rest of my days too, because according to The Asbestos and Mesothelioma Center, the stuff is deadly.

Asbestos is a hazardous material, used in the insulation of homes and buildings until the 1980s and still existing in countless products and homes across the country. Contrary to popular belief, asbestos is not a banned material, and a frightening number of manufacturers still use it—a CSI: Fingerprint Investigation Kit toy purchased at Toys “R” Us was recalled earlier this year for exceeding dangerous levels of asbestos. Sadly, there is a 15-60 year latency period from exposure to diagnoses, which means it takes more than a decade before we can realize the effects of such products on our health.

What can you do? Take proper precautions when performing DIY renovations on older homes, for one. And check the materials used in the products that you buy, especially cosmetics and toys.
Here’s why you should pay attention to asbestos: The inhalation of its fibers can lead to asbestosis, lung cancer, and mesothelioma—a terminal cancer only proven to be caused by asbestos exposure. For more about mesothelioma, hop on over here.

Enter The Asbestos and Mesothelioma Center—created to promote education and awareness for those suffering from asbestos-related illnesses. Check out their website here. It features more than 2,000 articles covering the latest news on asbestos-related cancers, as well as breakthrough medical procedures, alternative healing methods, and medical directories that can benefit individuals affected by all forms of cancer. Need free services and counseling? This is your place. Want information about products that may contain asbestos and safety information for properly discovering and removing asbestos in your home? Also your place.

Yes, what we do in our lives and how we do it can affect our risk for developing cancer. Smoking might do it. Lugging around a heavy body might do it. And buying contaminated toys might do it. That’s why I’m doing my best to avoid all risk. I hope you are too.

Scientists Identify Genetic Contributor to Colorectal Cancer Risk

Researchers at Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center and Northwestern University's Cancer Genetics Program have found a definitive link between an inherited genetic variation and colorectal cancer risk. The variation, which occurs on a gene known as TGFBR1, significantly increases a person's lifetime risk of getting the disease.

"This is a very exciting study," said Durado Brooks, MD, American Cancer Society Director of Prostate and Colorectal Cancer. "This represents a tremendous opportunity to intervene with intensive colorectal cancer screening and could also have near-term implications for developing new approaches to prevention and treatment."

The variation in question affects the receptor for TGF-beta, a protein that slows cell growth. The researchers found that this genetic variant makes the cell less sensitive to TGF-beta, so the cell doesn't get the signal to stop growth. If a person had colon cancer, those cells could proliferate more easily.

Researchers analyzed genetic samples and clinical data from 242 colorectal cancer patients (90 had a family history of the disease), and 195 cancer-free people who agreed to participate in the trial. All of the participants were white, and the average age fell in the mid-50s.

Ten percent to 20% of cancer patients showed a decreased production of a receptor for TGF-beta. Only 1% to 3% of healthy participants showed lowered numbers. The lifetime colon cancer risk of the patients with the genetic variation could be as much as 9 times that of those without the variation.

"This probably accounts for more colorectal cancers than all other gene mutations discovered thus far," said Boris Pasche, MD, one of the study's authors and Director of the Cancer Genetics Program at the Feinberg School and The Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center at Northwestern University.

While their findings still need to be tested in larger groups and in other racial and ethnic groups, the researchers hope to soon develop a clinical test that can be used to identify people who have the gene variant.

"We will be able to identify a large number of individuals that are at risk of colorectal cancer and in the long term, maybe decrease the cases of colorectal cancer and of people dying from it by being able to screen them more frequently," said Pasche.

While most colorectal cancer occurs in people who don't have a family member with the disease, up to 20% of people who get the disease have a family member who is affected. If you have a family history of colorectal cancer, you should talk to your doctor about colorectal screening before age 50, especially if you have a first-degree relative (parent, sibling, child) with the disease.

Cancer and Common Questions about Lymphoma

If you or a family member has just been diagnosed with lymphoma, there probably are many questions you have. You will get all those answered eventually, however you first should know a little bit about cancer itself. Here we answer some of the questions to help you understand better what is going on inside your body.

What is a Cancer? Cancer is a condition in which certain of your bodys cells become abnormal and grow uncontrollably, beyond the ability of your body to destroy these rogue cells. Your natural body defenses become insufficient to fight off this rapid growth of cells. Typically these cells then group together in a mass form called a tumor.

Your body is comprised of millions of cells, all working together in balance within your body for its proper function. Blood cells, for example function in homeostasis; your body must have red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets for you to live and breathe.

These cells each have a life span and age in your body. When they near the end of their life span they are destroyed, and new cells form to replace the lost ones. The process takes place continually, but for some this process doesn’t work properly.

Cells may be formed too soon and not reach maturity, or be destroyed prematurely. When this happens cancer can be the root cause of the process not functioning as it should.

What is Lymphoma? Lymphoma is cancer of the lymphatic system. What occurs is that lymphocytes are not maturing as they should, and are not becoming normal white blood cells. When such abnormal cells start taking over they will replicate faster than normal white blood cells and live longer than normal lymphocytes. They are able develop in many parts of your body, such as the spleen, lymph nodes, bone marrow, and blood. There are two major types of cancer of the lymphatic system; Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, others exists as well but these are the main two.

What is a Lymphocyte? White blood cells which help the body fight off infections and other foreign entities in your body. Lymphocytes are manufactured in the bone marrow, spleen, and lymph nodes, and flow through your body in the lymph system. You have two main types of lymphocytes.

Scientists to test if cancer cure can work in humans

American researchers will soon start a human trial to determine whether a treatment that can eradicate cancer in mice will do the same in people.

The treatment will transfuse specific white blood cells, called granulocytes, into patients with advanced forms of cancer. The granulocytes will come from healthy young people with immune systems that produce cells that have high levels of anti-cancer activity.

In the animal studies, white blood cells from cancer-resistant mice cured all lab mice who had malignant tumours. The cells have also been able to kill cervical, prostate and breast cancer tumour cells in Petri dish tests.

"All the mice we treated were 100 per cent cured," lead researcher Dr. Zheng Cui told CTV News. "So that was very surprising for us."

Cui, an associate professor of pathology at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in North Carolina, will announce the study Saturday at the Understanding Aging conference in Los Angeles.

Granulocytes account for about 60 per cent of all white blood cells in the human body. The scientists already know, via a small study of human volunteers, that granulocytes from people under the age of 50 are most effective at killing cancer cells.

The study will begin with 22 cancer patients for whom conventional treatment has been unsuccessful. The researchers say that they will know within three months if the treatment will work in humans.

Cancer researchers worldwide will be watching the tests closely.

"Certainly in the mouse, being able to do these things is quite remarkable and very exciting," said Dr. Ronan Foley of the Juravinski Cancer Centre in Hamilton, Ont. "Oftentimes when it is translated into the human situation it doesn't work as well. But that doesn't mean it isn't going to work."

Scientists cure cancer, but no one takes notice

Since the original publication of this article we have been inundated with responses from the public at all walks of life. It is important to note that research is ongoing with DCA, and not everyone is convinced it will turn out to be a miracle drug. There have been many therapies that were promising in vitro and in animal models that did not work for one reason or another in humans. To provide false hope is not our intention. There is a lot of information on DCA available on the web, and this column is but one opinion on the topic. We hope you will do your own research into the situation. So, we have added links to resources at the end of this column. If you are arriving here form a linking website like Fark, then those links will not appear because they tend to grab only the text. For those visitors, here is a link to the original research: www.depmed.ualberta.ca/dca

END NOTE
Scientists may have cured cancer last week.

Yep.

So, why haven't the media picked up on it?

Here's the deal. Researchers at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada found a cheap and easy to produce drug that kills almost all cancers. The drug is dichloroacetate, and since it is already used to treat metabolic disorders, we know it should be no problem to use it for other purposes.

Doesn't this sound like the kind of news you see on the front page of every paper?

The drug also has no patent, which means it could be produced for bargain basement prices in comparison to what drug companies research and develop.

Scientists tested DCA on human cells cultured outside the body where it killed lung, breast and brain cancer cells, but left healthy cells alone. Rats plump with tumors shrank when they were fed water supplemented with DCA.

Again, this seems like it should be at the top of the nightly news, right?

Cancer cells don't use the little power stations found in most human cells - the mitochondria. Instead, they use glycolysis, which is less effective and more wasteful.

Doctors have long believed the reason for this is because the mitochondria were damaged somehow. But, it turns out the mitochondria were just dormant, and DCA starts them back up again.

The side effect of this is it also reactivates a process called apoptosis. You see, mitochondria contain an all-too-important self-destruct button that can't be pressed in cancer cells. Without it, tumors grow larger as cells refuse to be extinguished. Fully functioning mitochondria, thanks to DCA, can once again die.

With glycolysis turned off, the body produces less lactic acid, so the bad tissue around cancer cells doesn't break down and seed new tumors.

Here's the big catch. Pharmaceutical companies probably won't invest in research into DCA because they won't profit from it. It's easy to make, unpatented and could be added to drinking water. Imagine, Gatorade with cancer control.

So, the groundwork will have to be done at universities and independently funded laboratories.

But, how are they supposed to drum up support if the media aren't even talking about it?

All I can do is write this and hope Google News picks it up. In the meantime, tell everyone you know and do your own research.

Acupuncture to Reduce the Side-Effects of Chemotherapy

This article focuses on acupuncture and how it helps to reduce the side-effects of chemotherapy.
In a review published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, certain types of acupuncture-point stimulation may relieve chemotherapy-induced nausea or vomiting.

Last year the Journal of the American Medical Association also published a study which reported: patients receiving high-dose chemotherapy found that electro-acupuncture treatments combined with anti-nausea medication were more effective than medication alone in controlling their chemo-related vomiting.

According to cancer experts, this particular study adds to the evidence that non-traditional therapies can be helpful to patients suffering side-effects of chemotherapy. As a result, an increasing number of well-designed studies are now focusing on complementary and alternative therapies.

Additional support for acupuncture to assist in alleviating the side-effects of chemotherapy was also offered at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium in December 2000.

David Rosenthal, MD, Chair of the American Cancer Society's national advisory committee on complementary and alternative medicine says that 'patients are finding that acupuncture can sometimes be effective in dealing with pain, nausea and treatment of mucositis'. He adds that acupuncture treatment is being provided at many cancer centres in the US, including the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston where appointments are totally booked up.

Cancer Killer Found In The Ocean

It's estimated that over 1.4 million Americans will be diagnosed with cancer this year, and for more than 500,000 it will be fatal. But now, scientists have found a new weapon against it. The ocean! You run in it ... play in it ... splash in it ... but what’s found at the bottom of it can kill cancer!
"This bacteria makes a really potent anti cancer agent," Bradley Moore, Ph.D., marine biochemist at Scripps Institution of Oceanography in San Diego, Calf., told Ivanhoe.
The bacterium was discovered in 1991, but just recently researchers at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography unlocked the genomic sequence, revealing this bacteria's cancer fighting potential.
"That’s how new drugs are discovered. We really have to go out there and grow bacteria, look at the genomes," Dr. Moore said. "What we've recently been able to do is take the enzymes out of the cell, put them in a test tube, and then play God and manipulate these enzymes and make new chemistry."
And make new drugs. "There's a major search underway for better drugs to treat cancer and one way to find these new medicines is to look to nature," Paul Jensen, Ph.D., associate research scientist at Scipps Institution of Oceanography, told Ivanhoe.
And unlike most of the drugs used to fight cancer today -- this bacterium is not found on land.
"When you look at a globe ... there's more blue than there is land," said Dr. Moore.
Revealing that our oceans maybe an even more valuable resource than we realize. A clinical trial is already underway. A San Diego pharmaceutical company is using it to treat patients that have a form of bone marrow cancer -- and it could soon be tested to treat other cancers.

New Reasons To Avoid Grapefruit And Other Juices When Taking Certain Drugs

Scientists and consumers have known for years that grapefruit juice can increase the absorption of certain drugs — with the potential for turning normal doses into toxic overdoses. Now, the researcher who first identified this interaction is reporting new evidence that grapefruit and other common fruit juices, including orange and apple, can do the opposite effect by substantially decreasing the absorption of other drugs, potentially wiping out their beneficial effects.

The study provides a new reason to avoid drinking grapefruit juice and these other juices when taking certain drugs, including some that are prescribed for fighting life-threatening conditions such as heart disease, cancer, organ-transplant rejection, and infection, the researcher says. These findings — representing the first controlled human studies of this type of drug-lowering interaction — were described today at the 236th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society.

"Recently, we discovered that grapefruit and these other fruit juices substantially decrease the oral absorption of certain drugs undergoing intestinal uptake transport," says study leader David G. Bailey, Ph.D., a professor of clinical pharmacology with the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario. "The concern is loss of benefit of medications essential for the treatment of serious medical conditions."

Bailey and colleagues announced almost 20 years ago the unexpected finding that grapefruit juice can dramatically boost the body's levels of the high-blood-pressure drug felodipine, causing potentially dangerous effects from excessive drug concentrations in the blood. Since then, other researchers have identified nearly 50 medications that carry the risk of grapefruit-induced drug-overdose interactions. As a result of the so-called "Grapefruit Juice Effect," some prescription drugs now carry warning labels against taking grapefruit juice or fresh grapefruit during drug consumption.

In the most recent research, Bailey's group had healthy volunteers take fexofenadine, an antihistamine used to fight allergies. The volunteers consumed the drug with either a single glass of grapefruit juice, water containing only naringin (substance in grapefruit juice that gives the juice its bitter taste), or water. When fexofenadine was taken with grapefruit juice, only half of the drug was absorbed compared to taking the drug with water alone, Bailey says. Loosing half of the amount of drugs taken into the body can be critical for the performance certain drugs, he points out.

They also showed that the active ingredient of grapefruit juice, naringin, appears to block a key drug uptake transporter, called OATP1A2, involved in shuttling drugs from the small intestine to the bloodstream. Blocking this transporter reduces drug absorption and neutralizes their potential benefits, the researchers say. By contrast, drugs whose levels are boosted in the presence of grapefruit juice appear to block an important drug metabolizing enzyme, called CYP3A4, that normally breaks down drugs.
"This is just the tip of the iceberg," Bailey says. "I'm sure we'll find more and more drugs that are affected this way."

To date, grapefruit, orange and apple juices have been shown to lower the absorption of etoposide, an anticancer agent; certain beta blockers (atenolol, celiprolol, talinolol) used to treat high blood pressure and prevent heart attacks; cyclosporine, a drug taken to prevent rejection of transplanted organs; and certain antibiotics (ciprofloxacin, levofloxacin, itraconazole). But additional drugs are likely to be added to the list as physicians become more aware of this drug-lowering interaction, Bailey says.

Orange and apple juices also appear to contain naringin-like substances that inhibit OATP1A2, Bailey says. The chemical in oranges appears to be hesperidin, but the chemical in apples has not yet been identified, the researchers notes.
Bailey advises patients to consult with their doctor or pharmacist before taking any medications with grapefruit juice or other fruits and juices. Unless it is known to be a problem, he recommends taking most medications only with water. This research was funded by grants from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the United States Public Health Service

CANCER: A DISEASE OR SURVIVAL MECHANISM

What you are about to read may rock or even dismantle the very foundation of your beliefs about your body, health and healing. The title, “Cancer Is Not a Disease” may be unsettling for many, provocative to some, but encouraging for all. This book will serve as a revelation for those who are sufficiently open-minded to consider the possibility that cancer and other debilitating illnesses are not actual diseases, but desperate and final attempts by the body to stay alive for as long as circumstances permit.It will perhaps astound you to learn that a person who is afflicted with the main causes of cancer (which constitute the real illness) would most likely die quickly unless he actually grew cancer cells. In this work, I provide evidence to this effect.I further claim that cancer will only occur after all other defense or healing mechanisms in the body have failed. In extreme circumstances, exposure to large amounts of cancer-producing agents (carcinogens) can bring about a collapse of the body’s defenses within several weeks or months and allow for rapid and aggressive growth of a cancerous tumor. Usually, though, it takes many years, or even decades, for these so-called “malignant” tumors to form.Unfortunately, basic misconceptions or complete lack of knowledge about the reasons behind tumor growth have turned “malignant” tumors into vicious monsters that have no other purpose but to kill us in retaliation for our sins or abusing the body. However, as you are about to find out, cancer is on our side, not against us. Unless we change our perception of what cancer really is, it will continue to resist treatment, particularly the most “advanced” methods. If you have cancer, and cancer is indeed part of the body’s complex survival responses and not a disease, as I suggest it is, you must find answers to the following pressing questions:* What reasons coerce your body into developing cancer cells?* Once you have identified these reasons, will you be able to change them? What determines the type and severity of cancer with which you are afflicted?* If cancer is a survival mechanism, what needs to be done to prevent the body from taking recourse to such drastic defense measures?* Since the body’s original genetic design always favors the preservation of life and protection against adversities of any kind, why would the body permit self-destruction?* Why do almost all cancers disappear by themselves, without medical intervention?* Do radiation, chemotherapy and surgery actually cure cancer, or do cancer survivors heal due to other reasons, despite these radical, side-effect-loaded treatments?* What roles do fear, frustration, low self-worth and repressed anger play in the origination and outcome of cancer?* What is the spiritual growth lesson behind cancer?To deal with the root causes of cancer, you must find satisfying and practical answers to the above questions. If you feel the inner urge to make sense of this life-changing event, (cancer that is), you most likely will recover from it. Cancer can be your greatest opportunity to help restore balance to all aspects of your life, but it can also be the harbinger of severe trauma and suffering. Either way you are always in control of your body.To live in a human body, you must have access to a certain amount of life-sustaining energy. You may either use this inherent energy in a nourishing and self-sustaining or in a destructive and debilitating way. In case you consciously or unconsciously choose negligence or self-abuse over loving attention and self-respect, your body will likely end up having to fight for its life.Cancer is but one of the many ways the body tries to change the way you see and treat yourself, including your body. This inevitably brings up the subject of spiritual health, which plays at least as important a role in cancer as physical and emotional reasons do.Cancer appears to be a highly confusing and unpredictable disorder. It seems to strike the very happy and the very sad, the rich and the poor, the smokers and the non-smokers, the very healthy and the not so healthy. People from all backgrounds and occupations can have cancer. However, if you dare look behind the mask of its physical symptoms, such as the type, appearance and behavior of cancer cells, you will find that cancer is not as coincidental or unpredictable as it seems to be.What makes 50% of the American population so prone to developing cancer, when the other half has no risk at all? Blaming the genes for that is but an excuse to cover up ignorance of the real causes. Besides, any good genetic researcher would tell you that such a belief is void of any logic and outright unscientific (as explained in the book).Cancer has always been an extremely rare illness, except in industrialized nations during the past 40-50 years. Human genes have not significantly changed for thousands of years. Why would they change so drastically now, and suddenly decide to kill scores of people? The answer to this question is amazingly simple: Damaged or faulty genes do not kill anyone. Cancer does not kill a person afflicted with it! What kills a cancer patient is not the tumor, but the numerous reasons behind cell mutation and tumor growth. These root causes should be the focus of every cancer treatment, yet most oncologists typically ignore them. Constant conflicts, guilt and shame, for example, can easily paralyze the body’s most basic functions, and lead to the growth of a cancerous tumor.After having seen thousands of cancer patients over a period of three decades, I began to recognize a certain pattern of thinking, believing and feeling that was common to most of them. To be more specific, I have yet to meet a cancer patient who does not feel burdened by some poor self-image, unresolved conflict and worries, or past emotional trauma that still lingers in his/her subconscious. Cancer, the physical disease, cannot occur unless there is a strong undercurrent of emotional uneasiness and deep-seated frustration.Cancer patients typically suffer from lack of self-respect or worthiness, and often have what I call an “unfinished business” in their life. Cancer can actually be a way of revealing the source of such inner conflict. Furthermore, cancer can help them come to terms with such a conflict, and even heal it altogether. The way to take out weeds is to pull them out along with their roots. This is how we must treat cancer; otherwise, it may recur eventually.The following statement is very important in the consideration of cancer: “Cancer does not cause a person to be sick; it is the sickness of the person that causes the cancer.” To treat cancer successfully requires the patient to become whole again on all levels of his body, mind and spirit. Once the cancer causes have been properly identified, it will become apparent what needs to be done to achieve complete recovery.It is a medical fact that every person has cancer cells in the body all the time. These cancer cells remain undetectable through standard tests until they have multiplied to several billion. When doctors announce to their cancer patients that the treatments they prescribed had successfully eliminated all cancer cells, they merely refer to tests that are able to identify the detectable number of cancerous cells. Standard cancer treatments may lower the number of cancer cells to an undetectable level, but this certainly cannot eradicate all cancer cells. As long as the causes of tumor growth remain intact, cancer may redevelop at any time and at any rate.Curing cancer has little to do with getting rid of a group of detectable cancer cells. Treatments like chemotherapy and radiation are certainly capable of poisoning or burning many cancer cells, but they also destroy healthy cells in the bone marrow, gastrointestinal tract, liver, kidneys, heart, lungs, etc., which often leads to permanent irreparable damage of entire organs and systems in the body. A real cure of cancer does not occur at the expense of destroying other vital parts of the body.Each year, hundreds of thousands of people who were once “successfully” treated for cancer die from infections, heart attacks, liver failure, kidney failure and other illnesses because the cancer treatments generate a massive amount of inflammation and destruction in the organs and systems of the body. Of course, these causes of death are not being attributed to cancer. This statistical omission makes it appear we are making progress in the war against cancer. However, many more people are dying from the treatment of cancer than from cancer. A real cure or cancer is achievable only when the causes of excessive growth of cancer cells have been removed or stopped.