Free Republic

Reform: If the world's most famous physicist, Stephen Hawking, is a shining example of British health care, how is it that others in the U.K. are repeatedly denied critical care and medicine?In commenting on efforts to overhaul American's health care system, we have tried to pull back the curtain and pay attention to those trying to clone the systems of Canada and Britain. But supporters of government-run health care frequently ignore some of the less-pleasant facts. Much has been made of this statement in one of our Aug. 3 editorials: "People such as scientist Stephen Hawking wouldn't have a chance...

Why do the British lag behind American survival rates? Screening standards are different. In the United States, internists recommend that men 50 and older get screened for colon cancer; in the National Health Service in the United Kingdom, screening begins at 75. And British patients wait much longer to see specialists. A Clinical Oncology study of British lung cancer treatment found in 2000 that 20% "of potentially curable patients became incurable on the waiting list." Novel drugs offered here often aren't available there; for instance, Avastin, a drug for advanced colon cancer, is prescribed more often in the U.S. than...

Please pray for my brother-in-law who has Colon Cancer, Stage 4 It is inoperable because it is Stage 4, so he will have chemo treatments. They will put a port in his stomack.

In a move that could lead to significant changes in medical care for older men, a national task force on Monday recommended that doctors stop screening men ages 75 and older for prostate cancer because the search for the disease in this group was causing more harm than good. The guidelines, issued by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, represent an abrupt policy change by an influential panel that had withheld any advice regarding screening for prostate cancer, citing a lack of reliable evidence. Though the task force still has not taken a stand on the value of screening in...

Fox News is announcing that Tony Snow has died. Heartbreaking news.

An easily overlooked type of abnormality in the colon is the most likely type to turn cancerous, and is more common in this country than previously thought, researchers are reporting. The findings come from a study of colonoscopy, in which a camera-tipped tube is used to examine the lining of the intestine. Generally, doctors search for polyps, abnormal growths that stick out from the lining and can turn into cancer. But another type of growth is much more dangerous, and harder to see because it is flat or depressed and similar in color to healthy tissue. Japanese researchers became concerned...

Dave Barry: A journey into my colon -- and yours OK. You turned 50. You know you're supposed to get a colonoscopy. But you haven't. Here are your reasons: 1. You've been busy. 2. You don't have a history of cancer in your family. 3. You haven't noticed any problems. 4. You don't want a doctor to stick a tube 17,000 feet up your butt. Let's examine these reasons one at a time. No, wait, let's not. Because you and I both know that the only real reason is No. 4. This is natural. The idea of having another human,...

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - An extract of green tea wards off colorectal cancer, animal experiments show. According to research reported at the Sixth International Conference on Frontiers in Cancer Prevention, sponsored by the American Association for Cancer Research, a standardized green tea polyphenol preparation (Polyphenon E) limits the growth of colorectal tumors in rats treated with a substance that causes the cancer. "Our findings show that rats fed a diet containing Polyphenon E are less than half as likely to develop colon cancer," Dr. Hang Xiao, from the Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy at Rutgers University, Piscataway, New Jersey,...

Dr. R. Scott Hitt, an AIDS specialist and the first openly gay person to head a presidential advisory board, has died. He was 49. Hitt died Thursday of colon cancer at his home in West Hollywood, according to John Duran, the city's mayor and a longtime friend. Hitt was chairman of the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV and AIDS during President Clinton's administration in the 1990s. "I think Scott's legacy was drawing AIDS to the attention of the president. He was uncompromising," Duran said. "He was not afraid of challenging the president about what would make good public policy." When...

Longtime KTLA Channel 5 anchor Hal Fishman has been diagnosed with colon cancer, which has spread to his liver, the station said Friday. Fishman was hospitalized after collapsing at his home on Wednesday, the station announced during its Thursday 10 p.m. newscast. Doctors discovered the cancer while treating him for an infection, said Rich Goldner, KTLA's interim news director. "Hal is awake and thanks everyone for their well wishes, and says he's going to fight this illness," Goldner said. "He is looking forward to coming back when he gets better." Fishman has anchored the station's 10 p.m. newscast since 1975....

Turning Stem Cells Taken From Fat Tissue Into Personalized, Cancer-targeted Therapeutics Researchers in Slovakia have been able to derive mesenchymal stem cells from human adipose, or fat, tissue and engineer them into "suicide genes" that seek out and destroy tumors like tiny homing missiles. This gene therapy approach is a novel way to attack small tumor metastases that evade current detection techniques and treatments, the researchers conclude in the July 1 issue of Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research. "These fat-derived stem cells could be exploited for personalized cell-based therapeutics," said the study's lead investigator,...

AP) BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. Edward Yang, who won best director in 2000 at the Cannes Film Festival and was known for his realistic portrayals of modern Taiwan, has died of complications from colon cancer, a film industry consultant said Sunday. He was 59. Yang died at his home in Beverly Hills, Calif. on Friday, Norman Wang told The Associated Press. Wang said Yang's family asked him to release the information to the media. Yang had been battling colon cancer for seven years, Wang said. The director studied engineering in Taiwan and obtained a master's degree at the University of Florida....

Chemicals found in grape seeds significantly inhibited growth of colorectal tumors in both cell cultures and in mice, according to researchers who have already demonstrated the extract's anti-cancer effects in other tumor types. Their study, published in the October 18 issue of Clinical Cancer Research, documented a 44 percent reduction of advanced colorectal tumors in the animals, and also revealed, for the first time, the molecular mechanism by which grape seed extract works to inhibit cancer growth. The authors found that it increases availability of a critical protein, Cip1/p21, in tumors that effectively freezes the cell cycle, and often pushes...

For years, patients and many doctors assumed that a colonoscopy was a colonoscopy. Patients who had one seldom questioned how well it was done. The expectation was that the doctor conducting the exam would find and cut out any polyps, which are the source of most colon cancer. But a new study, published today in The New England Journal of Medicine, provides a graphic illustration of how wrong that assumption can be, gastroenterologists say. The study, of 12 highly experienced board-certified gastroenterologists in private practice, found some were 10 times better than others at finding adenomas, the polyps that can...

LOS ANGELES - "Dynasty" star John Forsythe has been treated for colon cancer and he's recovering at an area hospital, his spokesman said Thursday. Forsythe, 88, was diagnosed with colon cancer Sept. 28 and was taken to a hospital where he underwent treatment over the past week, Harlan Boll said. "He seems to be in good spirits," Boll said. "They hope to have him home this weekend." Forsythe is best known for playing Blake Carrington on the hit TV soap "Dynasty" and being the voice of Charlie in both the TV and film versions of "Charlie's Angels."

WASHINGTON - White House Press Secretary Tony Snow became emotional during his first on-camera press briefing Tuesday when the topic turned to his battle with colon cancer, which also claimed his mother's life. "I had cancer last year," Snow said when asked why he was wearing a yellow bracelet from fellow cancer survivor Lance Armstrong's LiveStrong Foundation. "It's going to sound stupid and I'll be personal here, but having gone through this last year was the best thing that ever happened to me." The former Fox News anchor choked up and fell silent in the James S. Brady Press Briefing...

Lawrence Lader, a writer who so successfully marshaled his literary and political efforts in support of abortion rights that Betty Friedan, the feminist author, called him the father of the movement, died on Sunday at his home in Manhattan. He was 86. The cause was colon cancer, his wife, Joan Summers Lader, said. Mr. Lader was a major voice in the abortion debate for four decades, becoming a lightning rod for its critics as well as a beacon for its proponents. He wrote influential books and articles on the subject, organized ministers to refer women wanting abortions to doctors as...

Associated Press WASHINGTON — Is a drug that might lower the risk of colon cancer worth taking if it also raises the risk of heart problems? That's a question people most likely to develop the deadly bowel disease may be asking after the latest research on the popular arthritis drug Celebrex. Two studies found the drug cut the chances of developing precancerous growths called polyps by 33 percent to 45 percent in people who already had had such growths removed. However, experts said the extra heart problems seen in those taking the drug mean it can't be recommended for preventing...

Gov. George Pataki remained hospitalized Monday nearly a week after undergoing a surgery to correct a postoperative complication related to an emergency appendectomy. Pataki, 60, continued eating some food Monday but also remained on intravenous nutrition and antibiotics to reduce the risk of an abscess... `The governor's doctors have indicated that there has been a slow return of normal digestive function because of the ruptured appendix,'' ... Pataki was originally to be released two days after the Feb. 16 appendectomy. ``The governor continues to be in good spirits and is reading, walking around and conducting state business,'' ...

Gov. George Pataki, showing no improvement five days after surgeons removed his appendix, was transferred Tuesday to a New York City hospital and underwent another operation. Doctors operated to alleviate a blockage in Pataki's digestive system, said his spokesman, David Catalfamo. Afterward, the governor was "awake, alert and resting comfortably," ... A blockage following abdominal surgery is relatively rare, said Daniel Herron, an assistant professor of surgery at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Manhattan.

A joint US-Israeli research project has discovered that the drug L-thyroxin, most commonly used for the treatment of an underactive thyroid, can halve the risk of colorectal cancer (CRC). Scientists from the two countries announced at the current meeting of the American Association Cancer Research - Prevention Branch in Baltimore. "The effect was pretty dramatic," Professor Gad Rennert of the Rappaport Faculty of Medicine at the Technion Institute of Science, the head of the team, said at the conference. However, he added, "we have yet to understand the mechanisms. The literature on the subject is very minimal, but the finding...

...FDA oncology drugs chief Richard Pazdur is the most important person in the U.S. government when it comes to cancer drugs, and he has never made a secret that he dislikes the accelerated approval process under which Iressa got the green light. Nor has he been shy about suggesting that the agency was railroaded in this drug's case. The truth is that Iressa-maker AstraZeneca simply refused to play by Dr. Pazdur's rules. In 2002 -- knowing it had plenty of data to qualify for accelerated approval -- the company rebuffed his requests for more trials and appealed directly to something...

High daily levels of vitamin B6 may reduce the risk of getting colon cancer by 58 percent, claims a new study from Harvard Medical School. The research, published in the May 4 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, builds on other studies that have already indicated a strong preventive effect from the vitamin. "There are several smaller studies that have found a protective effect from dietary intakes of B6," said lead researcher Esther K. Wei, an instructor in medicine at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital. However, "this is the first large study of women...

We've just gotten word that Tony Snow's cancer surgery has been a complete success and he is on the road to recovery.Tony said last week that he could actually feel your prayers and it made him feel better.

I just heard Tony Snow say he has colon cancer.

Potentially cancerous growths missed 95 percent of the timePHILADELPHIA - A common screening test failed to detect potentially cancerous colon growths 95 percent of the time, falsely reassuring patients and doctors, according to a new study.Researchers found that the digital, in-office test on stool samples was not as reliable as a six-sample test given to patients to do on their own at home — although even that test detected potentially cancerous growths less than 24 percent of the time."What we found is that it was pretty worthless," Dr. David Lieberman, one of the study's authors, said of the in-office test....

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Two new tests may predict who is most at risk of two top cancer killers, colon and prostate cancer, U.S researchers said on Tuesday. One test can show which men might be most at risk of colon cancer while the other points to who is most likely to die from prostate cancer if surgery or radiation fails. Both studies, done at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston, are published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute). Dr. Jiang Ma and colleagues found that men with longtime high levels of C-peptide -- an...

<p>Diets filled with certain high-carbohydrate foods may increase the risk of colorectal cancer in women, according to a study published today in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Cakes, cookies and other quickly digested foods score high on the "glycemic index," a measure of the rate at which carbohydrates are processed into sugar.</p>

JERUSALEM (AFP) - Researchers at Israel's Weizmann Institute said Tuesday they have managed for the first time to halt the spread of colon cancer cells in laboratory tests. Scientists at the center near Tel Aviv believe that their breakthrough could help pharmaccologists develop drugs to prevent or reverse colon cancer, which is the second most common form of cancer in men and third with women. The researchers found that the metastatic, or migrating nature of colon cancer cells, results from the malfunctioning of "cell-gluing" molecules including beta-catenin, which can lead to cells breaking loose from tissue and migrating to form...

Entertainment Industry Foundation Mourns Death of Famed TV and Radio Announcer Rod Roddy; Memorial Fund Established in Roddy's Honor Statement From Katie Couric Expresses Gratitude for Roddy's Efforts to Raise Colon Cancer Awareness LOS ANGELES, Oct. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- The Entertainment Industry Foundation's National Colorectal Cancer Research Alliance (EIF's NCCRA) joins the world in mourning the passing of famed "Price Is Right" announcer Rod Roddy. Roddy has been an EIF's NCCRA Ambassador for the last two years, participating in TV, radio and print Public Service Announcements urging people to "Come On Down and Get a Colonoscopy." EIF's NCCRA Co-founder Katie...

Anthrax altered to fight cancer Friday, July 04, 2003By Kathleen LongcoreThe Grand Rapids Press Researchers in Grand Rapids say an anthrax-based drug is showing promise in treating the deadly skin cancer melanoma -- and possibly other life-threatening cancers. The researchers at the Van Andel Research Institute are partnering with Wake Forest University Health Sciences in North Carolina to produce a drug called tumor lethal factor (TLF) in preparation for clinical trials. The drug, a component of a nonvirulent anthrax toxin, will be tested on animals first and is several years from reaching cancer patients. But laboratory success in killing melanoma...

  Top Stories By Loretta Rodgers 04/23/2003 Aston resident Kelly Hough and her sister Greta, a teacher at St. Jude the Apostle School in Atlanta, Georgia Aston resident Kelly Hough entered Cocco's Pizza and left in tears.

Crawl-through colon helps spread the word on colon cancer 2-17-03 By ERIN CUNNINGHAM, Staff Writer News & Record Eat a nice, hearty breakfast, run a few errands, then go to UNC-Chapel Hill and follow the path of your bacon and eggs. A 40-foot-long, crawl-through colon is on a 20-city tour throughout the U.S., spreading the word about colon cancer. Wednesday it arrives in Chapel Hill, where the public is invited to spend some time in the large intestine. The Colossal Colon Tour, featuring local speakers, hands-on exhibits and the guest of honor, "Colossal" itself, will help kick off National Colorectal...

DALLAS, May 16 (UPI) -- Scientists believe they have discovered precisely how a high-fat diet can lead to the development of colon cancer. Reporting in Friday's issue of the journal Science, researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center said the vitamin D receptor, which is found on the surface of cells in the colon and normally binds vitamin D, also binds with and neutralizes a toxic chemical known to cause colon cancer. David Mangelsdorf, principal investigator of the study and a pharmacologist at UT's Howard Hughes Medical Institute, told United Press International the toxic chemical is called lithocholic...