March as been designated National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month. Although it's an uncomfortable subject for most, the procedure itself really isn't. And colon cancer is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer and the second leading cause of cancer death in the U.S.

A recent study published in the New England Journal of Medicine shows that early detection is key, and a big reason for the dramatic decline in the nation's colon cancer death rate.  Here's the New York Times story.

Report Affirms Lifesaving Role of Colonoscopy

By DENISE GRADY

A new study provides what independent researchers call the best evidence yet that colonoscopy — perhaps the most unloved cancer screening test — prevents deaths. Although many people have assumed that colonoscopy must save lives because it is so often recommended, strong evidence has been lacking until now.

In patients tracked for as long as 20 years, the death rate from colorectal cancer was cut by 53 percent in those who had the test and whose doctors removed precancerous growths, known as adenomatous polyps, researchers reported on Wednesday in The New England Journal of Medicine. The test examines the inside of the intestine with a camera-tipped tube.

“For any cancer screening test, reduction of cancer-related mortality is the holy grail,” said Dr. Gina Vaccaro, a gastrointestinal oncologist at the Knight Cancer Institute at Oregon Health and Science University who was not involved in the research. “This study does show that mortality is reduced if polyps are removed, and 53 percent is a very robust reduction.”

Colorectal tumors are a major cause of cancer death in the United States and one of the few cancers that can be prevented with screening. This year, more than 143,000 new cases and 51,000 deaths are expected. Incidence and death rates have been declining for about 20 years, probably because of increased use of screening tests and better treatments. But only about 6 in 10 adults are up to date on getting screened for colorectal cancer, according to federal estimates.

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While more than a million people are diagnosed each year with cancer, the survival rates continue increase as well. One key reason: better treatment and earlier detection. More and more resources are available to help patients understand the basics of their diagnosis and tips for living life during treatment. Knowledge is power, and the more you know about what is happening, the better prepared you will be for the journey ahead.

The American Cancer Society's I Can Cope Classes are an excellent resource to learn everything from the basics about cancer to tips for talking to your doctors, friends and family. The I Can Cope classes can help dismiss myths and provide straightforward information and answers to your questions. Free community classes are available across the country without a doctor's referral. You can learn more about these classes by calling 800-227-2345 or visit carcer.org.  

In addition, the American Cancer Society has made cancer education even more accessible to patients and their families. The I Can Cope Online is free interactive program that allows you to set your own pace and grants you access to important facts when i'ts most convenient for you.  For more information about I Can Cope Online visit cancer.org/onlineclasses.

Click Here to check out this class focused on cancer basics.

We wrote recently about the CyberKnife and its ability to provide pinpoint treatment of tumors and lesions. Now, there's a new appliciation for the CyberKnife radiosurgery system. A small-but-promising study shows the system can also treat facial nerve pain successfully.

Trigeminal neuralgia (TN) is described as one of the most painful conditions known. Also called tic douloureux,  TN causes extreme, sporadic, sudden burning or shock-like face pain, often along one side of the jaw or cheek, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. The intensity of pain can be physically and mentally incapacitating. TN affects one in 15,000 people, and it seems to predominantly plague women over 50 years of age.

Using superimposed CT cisternogram and MR images, doctors were able to direct the CyberKnife to deliver a doze of radiation to a tiny (6mm) section of the trigeminal nerve.

The results, published by the Journal of NeuroInterventional Surgery, showed that 14 of 16 patients (88 percent) treated with the CyberKnife responded favorably with either partial or complete relief of symptoms. Eleven were free of all pain at some point in their post-treatment period, and seven patients were still pain free by the time the study was published five months later.

The study's conclusion: "Cyberknife radiosurgery is a viable treatment alternative in patients with TN with competitive efficacy demonstrated in our group of patients while minimizing adverse effects."

The Novalis TX is the latest and most sophisticated tool available to deliver Stereotactic Radiosurgery. Located at Baptist Cancer Institute, it provides precise focus and delivery without damage. It's one of the most advanced cancer treatment options available and has helped thousands of people keep a normal life while fighting cancer.

Not only is it precise, but i'ts fast too. Treatment is delivered in as little as 15 to 20 minutes, making treatment much more comfortable then ever before.

Novalis TX is one of the 3 latest radiosurgery treatments offered by FROG network. To find out more about this groundbreaking tool, visit novalis-radiosurgery.com. To contact FROG networks about Novalis TX or any of the other radiosurgery treatments offered visit frogdocs.com/radiosurgery.

A new breath test that detects lung cancer at an early, treatable stage, has us excited at FROG. We will be the lead U.S. participant in a new multinational trial evaluating this "artificial nose."

Preliminary data show that this new test -- called the artificial olfactory system -- is a promising, non-invasive tool that can discriminate between benign and malignant nodules with 80 to 90 percent accuracy.

A big part of the potential value for this test could be its ability to weed out false-positive results from CT scans. CT scanning is a proven way to reduce the mortality from lung cancer, but the process can also produce a significant number of false positives.

This artificial olfactory system, which detects cancer-associated volatile organic compounds exhaled from the lungs, could reduce the need for invasive follow-up procedures such as biopsies.  Here's the whole story, published in MedPage Today:

By Charles Bankhead, Staff Writer, MedPage Today

Published: January 10, 2012

Reviewed by Zalman S. Agus, MD; Emeritus Professor

University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and

Dorothy Caputo, MA, RN, BC-ADM, CDE, Nurse Planner

SAN DIEGO -- Assessment of chemicals in exhaled breath distinguished between benign and malignant pulmonary nodules with 80 to 90% accuracy, results of a small clinical study showed. The breath test also demonstrated 90% accuracy for distinguishing between small-cell and non-small cell lung cancer and early cancer from more advanced disease.

The test might help reduce the high false-positive rate associated with screening CT and possibly has a role as the initial screening test in high-risk patients, Nir Peled, MD, PhD, reported here at the Joint Conference on the Molecular Origins of Lung Cancer.

"The test works like an artificial nose that can distinguish signatures of exhaled volatile organic compounds [VOCs] associated with cancer from those that are not associated with cancer," Peled, of Sheba Medical Center in Tel Aviv, Israel, told MedPage Today.  "Use of the test for patients who have positive CT scans might help reduce the unnecessary biopsies and costs associated with false-positive scans."

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The American Cancer Society released good news this week in its report, "Cancer Statistics, 2012."  Each year, the organization  predicts the number of new cancer cases and deaths due to cancer expected in the United States. For 2012,  new cases and death rates will continue to decline, according to the report. Read the full article by Stacy Simon of the American Cancer Society.

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Newly published statistics from the American Cancer Society show that cancer death rates in the U.S. continue to decrease. Death rates continue to decline for lung, colon, breast and prostate cancers, which are responsible for the most cancer deaths. However, there has been an increase in the past decade of people developing some less common cancers, including pancreas, liver, thyroid, and kidney cancer.

The annual report, “Cancer Statistics, 2012,” published in the American Cancer Society’s journal CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, and its companion piece “Cancer Facts & Figures 2012,” estimates the numbers of new cancer cases and deaths expected in the U.S. this year. The estimates are some of the most widely quoted cancer statistics in the world.

A total of 1,638,910 new cancer cases and 577,190 deaths from cancer are projected to occur in the U.S. in 2012. Between 1990/1991 and 2008, the most recent year for which data is available, overall death rates decreased by about 23% in men and 15% in women. This translates to more than 1 million deaths from cancer that were avoided.

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