Nexus - 1705 - New Times Magazine-pages

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Large tumour relapses are mainly in the first peak, while to be a failure—and the least said about this sorry smaller tumour relapses are equal in both peaks. episode in the history of breast cancer treatment, the There is also a structure in the first peak. Relapses in __ better. the first 10 months are due to micrometastases that pre- e Analysis of pathology and autopsy studies suggests exist with the primary tumour and are stimulated to grow. _ that most of the occult tumours in breast (and prostate This mode is most common for premenopausal patients cancers may never reach clinical significance. with positive lymph nodes, over 20 per cent of whom ¢ Cancer cells and micrometastases remain in a state o relapse. The rest of the first peak is due to single cells | dormancy until some signal, perhaps the act of surgery or that are initially dormant but are induced to divide as a _ other adverse life event (emotional shock, according to Dr result of surgery. The second peak is then due to single © Hamer), stimulates them into fast growth. The act o cancer cells that have been seeded during surgery andare | wounding the patient creates a favourable environmen subsequently gradually developing into metastases. for the sudden transfer of a micrometastasis from a laten is dynamic also accounts for the excess mortality of _ to an active phase. premenopausal women in the third year of mammography ¢ A large primary tumour inhibits the development and screening trials: metastases appeared 10 months after growth of any distant metastases! Removal of the primary screening, and with the time between tumour results in the establishment and relapse and death in breast cancer rapid growth of large numbers of laten being approximately two years, it meant metastases, the majority of which would that death resulted about three years have remained dormant or would have after screening. | remember a young disappeared if the primary had not been and apparently healthy patient who had Removal of the removed. The postoperative growth- just had her breast removed after a primary tumour stimulating effects on pre-existing laten mammogram showed a tiny tumour. 9 metastases are due to removal of the She was confident that she had been results in the primary tumour. saved because it had been caught so establishment and ¢ Other cancers also need to be early, but three years later she was . carefully examined. There are data dead. rapid growth of showing indications of similar activity Other interesting evidence in this especially in melanoma and arge numbers 0 review is from a Danish report. Forensic ostoeosarcoma. autopsies showed that 39 per cent latent metastases, of women aged 40 to 49 had hidden a Inhibiting Metastasis and dormant breast cancers, while the majority The authors of this review suggest the lifetime risk of clinical breast of which would hat angiogenesis inhibitors given cancer in Denmark was only eight . at the time of first surgery could be per cent. This means that only have remained an answer to preventing metastasis. about 20 per cent of positive dormant... These drugs inhibit the mammograms were for real; the rest were either completely harmless and boosted the medical cure rate, or in other cases subsequent surgery triggered metastases and these women development of blood vessels— including inside tumours, so that hey cannot grow. But now it has been found that these drugs shrink umours only initially. The tumours hen have a growth surge, forming eventually died due to their treatment. local and distant metastases. One of the researchers Here are some more (paraphrased) highlights from this | commented: "A well vascularized tumor is well fed and review: happy. It has no driving force to become more invasive. ¢ Some organisations aim to get women screened with We hypothesize...that if you cut off the tumor's blood mammography, so they withhold this information about — supply this drives the cancer to become more invasive— possible harm because its release would be contrary to more metastatic—as it seeks more oxygen and achieving their goal. nutrients.""* ¢ During most of the 20th century, radical mastectomy Still, there is a way out. An increasing number of was the accepted therapy for breast cancer. Unfortunately, | natural methods are turning up that inhibit metastasis only 23 per cent of patients survived 10 years. The natural and keep tumours happy. Here are a few examples of response to this failure was for surgeons to undertake __ research that confirms holistic principles about the cause even more radical surgery. and cure of cancer: ¢ Medical oncologists’ next step was similar to that of ¢ Vitamin D improves surgery outcomes. Patients with surgeons: if a little doesn't work, then try a lot! High- the highest vitamin D intake who had surgery in the dose chemotherapy with bone marrow rescue was shown summer have a three-fold better disease-free survival rate primary tumour results in the large numbers of latent metastases, the majority of which would dormant... 22 * NEXUS Removal of the establishment and rapid growth of have remained AUGUST - SEPTEMBER 2010 www.nexusmagazine.com