Archive for November, 2011

Melanoma of the Eye

Monday, November 28th, 2011

When most people think of melanoma, they think of the skin. Moles or other marks which prove to be cancerous come to mind. What many people neglect to think of, or are unaware that they should even be thinking of, are our eyes. Eyes are capable of developing melanoma.

Ocular melanoma develops because our eyes have melanin. Melanin is what produces pigment, and the cells that produce melanin can become cancerous. The Mayo Clinic points out that, “Most eye melanomas form in the part of the eye you can’t see when looking in a mirror. This makes eye melanoma difficult to detect. In addition, eye melanoma typically doesn’t cause early signs or symptoms”.

An article on Just Cancer describes the stages of the cancer. In the first stage, the melanomas have, “…approximate thickness of 1 to 2.5 mm and maximum width of 10mm”. They are small, and generally do not spread to other areas. Luckily, the chance of survival is at 84%.

In stage two the melanoma increases in size. The chance of survival also remains relatively high at 68%. What changes in this stage however, is that symptoms can begin to appear. Loss of vision, seeing spots, and seeing flashes of light are all possible.

In stage three the cancer can spread beyond the eye, but not to the lymph nodes. The symptoms are similar to those in stage 2, but the tumor is much larger at 10mm thick and 16mm in diameter. The survival rate at this stage is 47%.

At stage four, the melanoma begins to spread to other organs and the lymph nodes. There is generally appetite loss and malaise accompanied with possible loss of vision. The survival rate at this stage drops dramatically to only 15%.

So, as we can see, melanoma of the eye is very serious. As we apply our sunscreen we must also remember our sunglasses. Those with UV protection are what we at MoleSafe recommend. You can find a wide variety of shapes and colors to match your every mood!

 

 

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Americans Get On Board With Melanoma Gene Research

Wednesday, November 16th, 2011

Harvard Science  is reporting that a new gene mutation has been found that increses a person’s risk for malignant melanoma. As we reported back in October, groups of researchers in Australia and the UK were looking into this, and it seems as though American researchers have come to the same conclusion.

The identified mutation occurs in the gene encoding MITF, a transcription factor that induces the production of several important proteins in melanocytes, the cells in which melanoma originates.  While previous research has suggested that MITF may act as a melanoma oncogene, the current study identifies a mechanism by which MITF mutation could increase melanoma risk.

Researchers knew that MITF regulated the production of melanin, and what they found, was that this gene mutation would block the chemical change, sumoylation, which slows MITF activity. This causes MITF to overact, hence the risk for melanoma. David Fisher, the Wigglesworth Professor of Dermatology at Harvard Medical School , says that:

We now need to better understand exactly how this mutation causes melanocytes to 
become cancerous.  That information might help us discover other oncogenes as well as find treatment strategies to block the cancer-promoting activity and kill melanoma cells.

What is important to remember however, is that while 10 percent of melanoma patients report a history of the cancer in their familiy, the truly hereditary form of the cancer most likely occurs in 1 percent or less of all cases.  Hensin Tsao, of MGH Dermatology and the Wellman Center for Photomedicine, reminds us that, “most cutaneous melanomas arise as a result of interaction between environmental factors such as excessive sun exposure and more common, inherited low- to moderate-risk gene variants”.

The American study was done by sequencing the genome of a melanoma patient with a history of the cancer in their family. Melanoma was reported across three generations. The American researchers then looked into the research done by the Australians and those in the UK. What they found is that the mutation, named E318K, occurred frequently in individuals with melanoma.

Tsao says, “This MITF variant doubles the background risk for melanoma, which is approximately the same risk increase conferred by severe sunburns”. He also reminds us that what this study truly displays is the amount of collaboration researchers are willing to do in order to find an answer. Here at MoleSafe, we hope they find one soon!

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Is Viagra the New Key to Combating Melanoma?

Wednesday, November 9th, 2011

Scientists at the German Cancer Research Center and Medical Facility Mannheim at Heidelberg University have looked into the affects of Viagra on mice with melanoma. The researchers are actually studying sildenafil, which is the active ingredient in the famous little blue pill. It was found that, “cancerous mice treated with the drug  survived more than twice as long as untreated fellow animals”, as reported by insciences.org.

This sounds like great news, but as Dr. Viktor Umansky points out:

On the one hand, cells of  the immune system specifically attack tumor cells. On the other,  however, almost every tumor causes in its microenvironment a chronic  inflammatory immune response which suppresses the specific antitumor  immunity.

So, Umansky claims, that they are trying to reduce the chronic inflamations and through that support the immune system as it attempts to fight the cancer cells.

 For their research, they used  genetically-modified (transgenic) mice that spontaneously develop a type  of skin cancer which is very similar to human melanoma. In the tumor  environment and in metastatic lymph nodes of the animals, the  investigators detected inflammatory mediators such interleukin-1-β and  interferon-γ. These immune mediators attract what are called  myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSC). These immune cells are known to  inhibit the immune system’s most important tumor-specific fighters, the  T cells.

Under the influence of MDSC, it appears as though the T cells stopped rapidly reproducing. This means that sildenafil is capable of neutralizing the chronic inflammation caused by melanoma. The researchers claim that melanoma in mice acts very similarly to how it does in humans. Umansky said that, “it is very well possible that sildenafil can also inhibit the immunosuppressive  effects of inflammation and thus improve antitumor immunity in people  with melanoma”. This could cause much better treatment results for melanoma patients. Here at MoleSafe, we certainly hope they’re on to something!

 

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Melanoma Survivors More Likely To Develop Other Forms Of Cancer

Wednesday, November 2nd, 2011

Startling new research was published in the Journal of American Academy of Dermatology this month, says Newswise. The research, conducted by the University of Arkansas Medical Sciences’ Appathurai Balamurugan, M.D., M.P.H., stated that survivors of melanoma were more likely to contract melanoma again, as well as other forms of cancer, than other members of the general public.

The study was the first of its kind to estimate the risk of new cancers among people with in situ (noninvasive) melanoma using such a large sample size: 40,881 people. It found that even when diagnosed early, women melanoma survivors were 12 times more likely to develop invasive melanoma, and men survivors were eight times more likely.

People were studied between 1992 and 2006 for this study. The data for the study came from the National Cancer Institute Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results Program. Balamurugan points out that, “the higher incidence for women… is probably a result of increased time spent outdoors and the use of tanning beds”. He also says that why the average age for woman contracting melanoma is currently in the 50s, the age is rapidly dropping into the 40s, and even 30s.

The article points out that, “the stakes are high… because an estimated 70,230 people in the United States will be diagnosed with melanoma, and an estimated 8,760 people will die due to melanoma in 2011″.  As for other forms of cancer, the percentages of melanoma survivors contracting these forms were also shockingly high.

For survivors of an in situ (noninvasive early stage) melanoma, their risk of getting lymphocytic leukemia was 44 percent higher for men and 79 percent for women. Men and women survivors of an invasive melanoma also were at higher risk for thyroid cancer (about twice as likely), non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (about 50 percent more likely) and chronic lymphocytic leukemia (about 60 percent).

The article states that researchers hope that these findings force physicians to become more aggressive in their screening for melanoma. They also hope that doctors will be better at educating their patients about the dangers of this cancer. All it takes is a simple shift in behavior to prevent melanoma. If the public can make this more apparent, we would see a fall in the cases of this cancer. MoleSafe is trying to do just this!

 

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