Mesothelioma Help Cancer News
Nurse Explains the Immune System and Mesothelioma
This winter the flu has been prevalent, and has affected a record number of people. The flu vaccine can help prevent people from getting a particular strain of the flu, and if they do get it, it may be less severe. Why do the flu and other common ailments affect people so differently? How does our body protect us against diseases? Do products that claim to “boost” our immune system work?
The key system that the body uses to defend against diseases is the immune system. The immune system is a complicated system that works as a balanced network all over our body to protect us against disease.
There are a lot of statements claiming that by taking a certain supplement, living a certain way, following a specific diet, or even drinking a certain shake, you can “boost” your immune system. Is that even scientifically possible?
At present there are no scientifically proven direct links between lifestyle and enhanced immune function. There is evidence, however, that every part of our body functions better when following a healthy living lifestyle. This includes getting enough sleep, reducing stress, not smoking, eating a healthy diet high in vegetables, exercising regularly, drinking alcohol only in moderation, maintaining a healthy weight, and washing your hands frequently.
The cancer community and the mesothelioma community have been hearing a good deal about research into the immune system. Immunotherapy is a treatment that uses certain specific parts of the immune system to fight disease. Immunotherapy works in a variety of ways by stimulating the immune system to work harder, or by giving the immune system man-made proteins to fight the cancer cells. Immunotherapy can work with existing therapies to fight cancer or it can be the principal treatment depending on the patient‘s cancer. Targeted therapies involving activating and harnessing targeted cells in the immune system have shown promise for some patients with malignant mesothelioma.
People diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, or any other cancer, and their caregivers, need to take care of themselves. A healthy lifestyle is a positive way to help your overall health. Malignant mesothelioma is a complicated disease, there are no easy answers, or instant cures, but the immune system is proving to be a key component in the search for a cure. Until the researchers unharness the workings of the immune system, it is in everybody’s best interest that we all adopt a healthy lifestyle! Take care of yourself!
Mesothelioma Patients Leave Lasting Gifts For Loved Ones Left in the Wake of the Disease
Facing death is probably is one of the most difficult issues that we have to deal with as humans. For some, there is warning and time to plan, for others though, death comes unexpectedly. The courage of people to think of others as they face their own mortality is something that is awe-inspiring.
As nurses we hear many stories and perspectives. Two women recently have done unselfish, thoughtful, amazing things for their husbands to help deal with their deaths when it happens.
Mrs. A is in her late 50’s, has been married for many years, has adult children, and is very social. She also has advanced, recurrent cancer and does not know how much time she has left. She has always been in charge of her and her husband’s social life. She was worried he might become reclusive when she dies. So she set up a social club for him and five other men who are friends and part of their social group. Now, the men meet once a week, socialize, watch a game, have a drink, and support each other. At first her husband was reluctant, but now calls them “his play dates.” The other men in the group also enjoy their “playdates” and rarely do any of them miss a week. Mrs. A now has peace of mind that her husband will have support when she dies; whenever that might be.
Mrs. B is in her mid 60’s, she has been married for a number of years. She and her husband are both professionals with busy careers. She has metastatic cancer and is facing her death. They have welcomed a kitten into their home. Mrs. B. feels that will help make her absence a little less lonely for her husband. A kitten will not replace her, of course, but it can represent life and love and responsibility. Sometimes knowing our loved one will not be alone is comforting to the dying person.
In the face of their own mortality, both women have found comfort in thinking of their husbands. Both show courage and compassion.
Many people diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma are like these two women. I have seen many people more concerned about the effects of their diagnosis on their families, and how they would cope when they die, than on themselves and what they are going through.
Facing death takes courage. Reach out, talk about your fears, anxiety, or whatever is concerning you. We all know death is uncertain, but providing our loved ones with tangible support may help the dying, and provide some relief in the future for their loved ones.
Loneliness and Mesothelioma Is A Challenging Combination
Recently, the Prime Minister of England announced a new cabinet level position: Minister of Loneliness. When announcing the appointment, Prime Minister Theresa May called loneliness a “sad reality of modern life.” The campaign is being led by Tracey Crouch, undersecretary of sports and civil society in the culture ministry. They have started to work on an “England-wide strategy to tackle loneliness.” England is a country of 60 million people, and more than nine million residents say they often, or always feel lonely.
In the United States, the former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy has been bringing attention to the data that “are telling us that loneliness kills.” A report published in 2013 found that loneliness can impair health by raising levels of stress hormones and inflammation, which can then lead to increased risk for heart disease, arthritis, Type 2 diabetes, dementia and suicide attempts.
“Loneliness is the state of feeling sad or dejected as a result of lack of companionship or being separated from others,” according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine. There are multiple factors that can cause people to feel lonely. Social interactions are difficult for some and our busy society makes it difficult for some to form relationships and interact with others.
At the mesothelioma center, we are too familiar with loneliness. It is strongly suggested that you have someone with you to support you through your journey. A friend, relative, someone who can support you along the way. A few years ago at an orientation meeting for new mesothelioma patients, a quiet man sat among patients and families. He introduced himself and said he was alone through his journey. His few words left a lasting impression on many of us. Not only was he fighting a rare, aggressive cancer, he was doing it alone.
There is no doubt some people prefer solitude and have limited social interactions and relationships by choice. It is also true that you can feel lonely in a relationship or with a crowd of people that you know. The important thing is that we all recognize social connections are a fundamental human need.
We need each other. In the words of the song, ”Reach out and touch somebody’s hand, make this world a better place if you can.”
Using Epigenetics To Understand Metastasis May Lead to Novel Mesothelioma Treatment
Researchers know that the best way to increase survival in cancer patients is to keep the disease from spreading to other areas. For aggressive cancers like pleural mesothelioma, cancer cells can outfox even the strongest treatments and metastasize, leaving patients with poor survival. Now, researchers report that through epigenetics they discovered a novel way to inhibit the spread of cancer that could lead to a new treatment that ends cancer growth.
In a break from traditional research looking into gene mutations, a team of researchers from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine of Cleveland, Ohio, used epigenetics, the study of how genes are turned on and off, as a way to distinguish the differences in primary tumors and metastatic tumors. The team knew that “enhancer activity,” or the genes’ ability to turn switches on or off, “lend cells their unique characteristics” and contribute to normal development.
However, faulty activity within the cells can lead to tumor development and the spread of cancer. Upon further inspection of the metastasized tumors, the researchers discovered the on-off switches were “in different positions than in the cells of the source tumor.”
“Metastasis results from a complex set of traits acquired by tumor cells, distinct from those necessary for tumors to form in the first place,” said the study’s lead author, James J. Morrow, PhD, a medical student in the Medical Scientist Training Program at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. “So based on the knowledge that enhancers drive both normal cell development and tumor-formation, we hypothesized that they may play a similar role in the transition of cancer cells from one developmentally distinct tissue to another during metastatic progression.”
Metastasis, according to researchers, is the cause of nearly 90 percent of cancer deaths. Researchers agree that understanding how to stop metastasis is critical for increasing survival in mesothelioma, an asbestos-caused cancer, and other cancers.
Using mouse models of bone cancer (osteosarcoma) cells, the team wanted to find a way to halt the spread of the cancer to the lungs. Through epigenomic profiling, the team found “bunched clusters of enhancers,” metastatic variant enhancer loci (Met-VELs), near the cancer cells that had metastasized to the lungs. Turning to BET inhibitors, a promising class of anti-cancer drugs now in clinical trials, to interrupt the Met-VELs, the researchers were able to inhibit the cancer growth in the lungs.
Based on the success, the researchesr concluded Met-VELs “may be suitable targets” for treatments targeting metastasis.
Using epigenetics as a new approach for finding an effective treatment could bring the breakthrough needed for halting cancer growth and for increasing survival in the nearly 3,000 Americans diagnosed with mesothelioma each year.
The study was published Jan. 15 online in Nature Medicine.
Mesothelioma Treatment Breakthrough May Come From Another Rare Disease
Mesothelioma patients may someday benefit from research into Huntington’s Disease, another rare disease. Researchers discovered that patients with Huntington’s Disease have a significantly less chance than the general population of getting cancer. Now, the researchers report that better understanding what it is about the disease that can kill off cancer cells could lead them to a breakthrough treatment for all types of cancer.
A team of researchers from Northwestern University found that the gene that drives the progression of Huntington’s Disease, a rare neurodegenerative disorder, is also highly toxic to cancer cells. The huntingtin gene, that plays an important role in neurons in the brain, can become mutated by an over abundance of repeating RNA sequences, leading to the rare disorder. The nerve cells of the brain are vulnerable to these deadly genes, and, according to the researchers, cancer cells are even more susceptible to the genes. In fact, the scientists have dubbed it the “super assassin gene” due to the fact that it is so toxic that it kills off cancer cells.
“This molecule is a super assassin against all tumor cells,” said senior author Marcus Peter, the Tom D. Spies Professor of Cancer Metabolism at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. “We’ve never seen anything this powerful.”
https://news.northwestern.edu/stories/2018/february/huntingtons-disease-provides-new-cancer-weapon/
In the United States, a rare disease status is assigned to a disease or disorder if it affects fewer than 200,000 Americans at any given time. There are approximately 30,000 cases of Huntington’s Disease in the U.S. An estimated 3,000 Americans are diagnosed with mesothelioma each year.
Huntington’s Disease deteriorates a person’s physical and mental abilities, most often affecting adults between the ages of 30 and 50. There is no cure for the fatal genetic disorder. Mesothelioma, an asbestos-caused cancer, typically affects men in their 60’s or older who worked around asbestos decades earlier. Mesothelioma is also an incurable, fatal condition.
The researchers found a way to deliver the molecule as a treatment compound via a nanoparticle, a microscopic drug delivery system, to mice models with human ovarian cancer tumors. The team reported three key results:
- The tumor growth was “significantly reduced;”
- There was no toxicity to the mice; and
- The tumors did not build up resistance to the drug.
Pleased with the results, the team will begin to explore using the molecule as a novel form of anticancer reagents. There is much more research to be done, however, the team is hopeful that this breakthrough will be useful on all types of cancer, possibly even mesothelioma.
The study was published in the Feb. 12 issue of the journal EMBO Reports.
http://embor.embopress.org/content/early/2018/02/07/embr.201745336
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