How Starvation (somewhat modified) can be an Effective Cancer Treatment

Prevention and Recurrence Prevention
All of us are creatures of habit. We tend to follow the cow path, doing what we always have done and eating what we learned to eat in our youth. Behavior change is difficult but by no means impossible

I’ve written before in this blog about T. Colin Campbell’s book, The China Study. If you are a prostate cancer survivor or a man concerned about prostate cancer risk, I believe that changing your eating behavior is the most effective lever to control available and it is entirely in your hands.

I just ran across the following article by Joel Nowak at Malecare and it is worth reading. Do you love hamburgers despite the recent revelations about the gift of ‘red slime’ from the meat industry? If your answer is yes, take a moment and read Joel’s article.

BEGIN QUOTE
What is the role of diet in the treatment of prostate cancer? We hear about changing our diet as a way to slow down prostate cancer progression and we hear about diet as a preventive measure against prostate cancer. It is possible that there could be a new twist on this story, in the future, physicians may treat prostate cancer with starvation!

This sounds like a treatment out of hell, maybe worse than some of the drugs we take. No, I don’t mean that men will be asked to starve, but their tumor cells might be able to be starved. New research showing that depriving prostate tumor cells of a critical nutrient could result in development of drugs that slow progression of the disease through tumor starvation.

At the Centenary Institute in Sydney, Australia, researchers discovered that prostate cancer cells have an excessive number of internal pumps through which the amino acid leucine enters the cancer cells. Prostate cancer cells need leucine to grow. The clear next step is to find out what would happen if these pumps cold be shut down, depriving the cancer of leucine?

Using human prostate cancer cells, Dr. Jeff Holst and his team “found that we could disrupt the uptake of leucine by reducing the expression of these protein pumps, and by introducing a drug that competes with leucine. Both approaches slowed cancer growth, in essence ‘starving’ the cancer cells.”
In some of their experiments, the scientists also found they could slow tumor growth in both early and late prostate cancer as much as 50%. First author Dr. Qian Wang noted that “if animal trials are successful over the next few years then clinical trials could start in as little as five years.”

Normally, I don’t write about early findings without near term potential for men currently dealing with advanced prostate cancer. However, in this case we don’t have to wait five years. We can take action now. Holst pointed out that their discovery provides a better understanding of the association between prostate cancer and eating foods high in leucine or foods that promote prostate cancer progression. What foods contain high levels of leucine? The simple answer is red meat (beef), processed meats (e.g., salami), fish, and soybeans.

Numerous studies have noted a relationship between consumption of red meat, including processed meats, and dairy products and a greater risk of prostate cancer. A recent study in Nutrition and Cancer, for example, reported on an increased risk of advanced prostate cancer in men who consumed processed meat, grilled red meat, hamburgers, and well-done red meat.

According to Dr. Holst “Diets high in red meat and dairy are correlated with prostate cancer but still no one really understands why.” This new discovery concerning the pumps in prostate cancer cells has prompted the scientists to determine “whether these pumps can explain the links between diet and prostate cancer.”

The new research from Centenary Institute suggests that starvation of prostate cancer tumor cells may be a new approach to cancer treatment. Until that day comes, men may want to heed the suggested nutritional spin-off information from this study and avoid or limit their consumption of red and processed meats.

SOURCES:
Centenary Institute news release
John EM et al. Meat consumption, cooking practices, meat mutagens, and risk of prostate cancer. Nutrition and Cancer 2011 May; 63(4): 525-37
National Cancer Institute
Joel T. Nowak, M.A., M.S.W.
END QUOTE

Make Your Prostate Cancer Risk Profile Visible
Free PSA Tracking service. Beginning June 17, 2012, the Prostate Cancer Awareness Project will begin providing a free online PSA tracking service for men. You can join the email notification list at ProstateTracker.org.

Circumcision May Prevent Prostate Cancer

Just how can circumcision prevent prostate Cancer?
As with many prostate cancer survivors, I spend a fair amount of time reading articles about what causes prostate cancer. I’m interesting in sharing that information with men who are not yet diagnosed as a prevention tool, and for use in my personal “recurrence prevention program.”

The Human Body -- Cancer (Photo credit: n0cturbulous)

What caught my attention in the this article was the role of inflammation in causing cancer. Specifically, this research note states that 17% of all cancer could be caused by infections. If true, this argues strongly for a healthy lifestyle that minimizes infections. I’ve also read a number of articles about “anti-inflammatory” eating programs, and I’ll take a look at those in future posts.

 

Read the full post about the JAMA report at the following link: http://newsatjama.jama.com/2012/03/12/circumcision-may-reduce-risk-of-prostate-cancer/

 

A Simple Anti-body for the CD47 Protein Showing Real Promise in Cancer Cure

I ran across two very interesting articles this morning. The first summarizes research being done at Stanford University’s Institute of Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine and the Ludwig Center for Cancer Stem Cell Research.

Invadopodium extension by a cancer cell (Photo credit: TheJCB)

In short, researchers have found the the CD47 protein acts to protect cancer cells from the body’s natural immune systems defenses. They have developed an antibody that “unmasks” the protective cloak the CD47 protein provides the cancer cells.

The result is that the body’s natural immense system recognizes cancer cells and deals with them naturally.

You reach the entire article at Health Newsrack.

Stanford University Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine.

This looks like a very interesting technology to watch.

Be sure and follow our 2012 Prostate Cancer Pony Express riders at See the Prostate Cancer Pony Express riders in real time at http://bit.ly/ProstateCancerPonyExpressLive.

Basic Information on Prostate Cancer

How to Make Sense of Prostate Cancer Terminology

This information comes from the prostate cancer listserv at ACOR.ORG. I would suggest that all prostate cancer survivors subscribe to this message board and follow the conversations of these survivors. Their information and insights are, I believe, invaluable.

From: Nancy Peress <nperess@CHARTER.NET>
Subject: Ron Koster’s “WELCOME NEWCOMER!” — new update — Part 1 of 2

Sent 7/1/2011

Several weeks before his death on August 11, 2005, Ron asked me to go
on sending out his weekly Welcome Newcomer message for him. It’s my
honor to continue posting his message each week as one small example
of his dedication to helping men with prostate cancer. As Ron often
signed his emails, “Sometimes, it takes just one person to work a
miracle.” Ron was one of the miracle workers.

Last revised and updated February 1, 2011 by Mike Scott of Prostate
Cancer International and The “New” Prostate Cancer InfoLink (with, we
very much hope, Ron’s complete approval).
=====

In spite of the fact that almost everything about prostate cancer
(PCa) is controversial, you’ve found an excellent source of
information. Be patient, and don’t give up just because this resource
may frequently be dominated by irrelevant, repetitious, or esoteric
notes which may not be particularly helpful to the newcomer!

Risk for PCa is assessed primarily through a combination of two widely
used tests: the prostate specific antigen (PSA) test and the digital
rectal exam (DRE).

A “normal” PSA for a 50-year-old man is usually less than 2.5 ng/ml,
but there is no specific PSA value that is predictive of risk for
prostate cancer. A higher PSA level by itself does not necessarily
mean that you have PCa, and a lower PSA level does not necessarily
mean that you don’t have PCa.

The DRE enables your doctor to feel the size, shape, and texture of
your prostate to determine if you have a clinically normal or abnormal
prostate. However, you can have PCa without having a palpable
(“feel able”) tumor, and palpable nodules or abnormalities are not always PCa.

Even though much of the testing is extremely controversial, most PCa
survivors prefer and recommend that all men of about 40 be tested
early and regularly in the hope that early diagnosis will give greater
choice of treatment and cure with fewer side or after effects. Men
with a family history of prostate cancer or other risk factors may
want to get a first (baseline) PSA test at an even younger age.

High PSA levels may be caused by PCa, by benign prostatic hyperplasia
(BPH), or by a urinary tract infection such as prostatitis. However,
NO PSA ASSAY IS PERFECT and no specific PSA level is diagnostic for
prostate cancer! At 58 years of age, when I was diagnosed, my own PSA
was 3.6 ng/ml, my Gleason score was 7, and I was subsequently shown to
be pathological stage T2a (after surgery).

Other tests which your doctor may want to perform on a blood or urine
sample (or which you can ask him to carry out) include the PSA II or
Free PSA test, which can be used to rule out prostatitis and/or benign
prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and the so-called PCA3 test, which can
help to predict risk for more aggressive forms of prostate cancer.
Older tests that are less commonly used today include the serum acid
phosphate test, the alkaline phosphatase test, and the prostatic acid
phosphatase (PAP) test.

The results of a PSA test and a DRE (and the PCA3 test) can be used,
in combination with information about your family history of PCa and
other medical information, to assess your risk for PCa using the “Risk
of Biopsy-Detectable Risk Calculator,” which you can find at
http://deb.uthscsa.edu/URORiskCalc/Pages/uroriskcalc.jsp

The results of these tests, including a suspicious DRE, may give you
and your doctor good cause to decide you need a prostate biopsy. An
initial biopsy, today, usually consists of the removal of 8 to 12
biopsy “cores” using a specialized procedure under transrectal
ultrasound imaging.

If PCa is found in the tissue removed at biopsy, the pathologist who
examines the biopsy cores will assign what is known as a “Gleason
score.” It will be someplace between 6 and 10, the higher number
indicating a more aggressive form of PCa. The Gleason score has two
components, the GRADE or PATTERN and the SUM or SCORE. The GRADE or
PATTERN is based on how the individual cells look under the
microscope. The Gleason grades range from 1 to 5, with 1 being the
closest to normal and 5 being bad. However, today, it is normal for
all biopsy-based Gleason grades to range only from 3 to 5 if cancer is
thought to be present because Gleason grades of 1 or 2 are considered
not to be cancer. There are both general and specific guidelines for
each grade, but examining prostate biopsy cores to establish the
presence of cancer and the Gleason grades of that cancer is difficult.
The experience of the pathologist is key — which is why a second
opinion on the biopsied tissue is often a good approach.

When the pathologist reads a specimen, s/he looks at it to determine
the most common grade of tumor seen: that is the first number of the
SUM or SCORE. Then the pathologist determines the next most common
tumor area and assigns a Gleason grade to it. This is the second
number of the Gleason SUM or SCORE. The two numbers, when added
together, give the final SCORE. Close reading of the pathology report,
will often indicate both the Gleason grades and the percentage of each
grade, which may make you feel better or worse than knowing the
Gleason SUM or SCORE) — but the Gleason SCORE is what is reported in
most of the medical literature and used for comparisons. So a Gleason
score of 3 + 4 = 7 means more grade 3 than grade 4 and a Gleason score
of 4 + 3 = 7 is just the opposite, meaning more grade 4 than grade 3.

It is VERY IMPORTANT, however, to understand that a“”clea”” or “”negativ”” pathology report of the prostatic tissue taken at a normal
8- or 12-core biopsy is no guarantee at all that PCa does’’t exist in
your prostate.

If you are diagnosed with prostate cancer, BEFORE treatment, your
doctor will also assign a CLINICAL STAGE for your cancer. This
clinical stage will normally be based on the so-called TNM staging
system, where T refers to the primary tumor (in your prostate), N
refers to the evidence that there may be cancer that has extended to
your lymph nodes, and M refers to the evidence that the cancer has
metastasized (spread) to other areas in your body (usually, at first,
bones like your hips and your spine).

The following is the standard (AJCC) CLINICAL staging nomenclature for
prostate cancer, last updated in 2002:

Primary Tumor (T)

TX Primary tumor cannot be assessed

T0 No evidence of primary tumor

T1 Clinically inapparent tumor not palpable nor visible by imaging

T1a Tumor incidental histologic finding in 5% or less of tissue
resected by TURP.

T1b Tumor incidental histologic finding in more than 5% of tissue
resected by TURP.

T1c Tumor identified by needle biopsy (e.g. because of elevated PSA)

T2 Palpable tumor but confined within the prostate

T2a Tumor involves one half of one lobe or less.

T2b Tumor involves more than half one lobe, but not both lobes.

T2c The tumor involves both lobes.

T3 Tumor extends through the prostatic capsule

T3a Extracapsular extension on one or both sides of the prostate

T3b Tumor invades one or both the seminal vesicles

T4 Tumor is fixed to or invades adjacent structures other than
seminal vesicles

Regional Lymph Nodes (N)

NX Regional lymph nodes cannot be assessed

N0 No regional lymph node metastasis

N1 Metastasis in a single lymph node, 2 cm or smaller

N2 Metastasis to one or more lymph nodes 2 cm or larger, but none
larger than 5 cm in greatest diameter

N3 Metastasis to a lymph node greater than 5 cm in greatest diameter.

Distant Metastasis (M)

MX Distant metastasis cannot be assessed

M0 No distant metastasis

M1 Distant metastasis to any site

M1a Distant metastasis to non-regional lymph nodes

M1b Distant metastasis to the bone(s)

You should know that if you decide to have a surgical treatment for
your prostate cancer, then it will be possible for your surgeon to
obtain a post-surgical PATHOLOGICAL stage for your prostate cancer
which will usually be slightly different that the CLINICAL stage.
Pathological staging is only possibly after surgical treatment.

If you are initially shown to have prostate cancer on a biopsy, your
doctor may want you to have one or more imaging tests to try to
identify whether your cancer has escaped from the prostate
(metastasized) to other parts of your pelvic region or even to other
organs. These imaging tests can include color Doppler ultrasound
scans, computerized tomography (CT) scans, magnetic resonance imaging
(MRI) scans, bone scans, and the ProstaScint test. Some of these tests
involve injecting a radioisotope into the blood-stream. Absolutely
none of these tests or procedures is 100% accurate.

(please see part 2)

Standing on a Corner In Winslow Arizona

The Prostate Cancer Pony Express is just about an hour east of Winslow, Arizona.

Watch for his ruby red motorcycle and say hello when he arrives.

Follow him live right here!

Standin'On The Corner Park Winslow, AZ (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Prostate Cancer Pony Express is headed to Sante Fe!

Here is our Pony 1 SPOT device this morning at the Texas State Capitol with Prostate Cancer Pony Express Rider George Catt. George is headed for Sante Fe, New Mexico.

2012 Prosate Cancer Pony Express visits Governor Perry's office in Austin,Texas

Follow George live on the Internet at http://bit.ly/ProstateCancerPonyExpressLive as he rides to Sante Fe. Why not drive out and cheer him on as he passes?

Even if you can’t ride, you can make a donation to support our free PSA testing that we do through our partner, the Prostate Conditions Education Council.

God Speed, George. And, as we used to say in the 14th Cavalry, Allons!

Remorseless In Los Angeles – How Carmax Raises Prostate Cancer Awareness

I’m having my beloved Honda Element wrapped for prostate cancer awareness to and to draw attention to our car donation program and our free Internet PSA tracking service at ProstateTracker.org.

Once the Element is wrapped, I’ll need a different car for work. I have a wonderful wife and “convinced” her that a convertible would be just the thing.

To shorten the story, I used Carmax’s website to research all sorts of vehicle options and then matched their prices against Kelly Blue Book used car price.

The car has to carry two sets of golf clubs to the list of possible cars got narrowed down (Consumer Reports played a role) to a Ford Mustang. It turned out that Carmax had a Mustang convertible that precisely fit the bill – year, color, equipment – sitting in San Diego.

Here are the three reasons I loved my Carmax experience:

1. They shipped the car to Los Angeles from San Diego for free. i had no commitment to purchase.
2. No pressure at all when I went to look at the car. No price haggling because the price was set. I did all of my price research prior to seeing the car. All I needed to do was to decide if it was what I wanted and in an acceptable condition.
3. The paperwork was a breeze and I could bring the car back within 5 days with no questions asked. Nice.

Well, the is a fourth and very important reason I love Carmax. When I test drove the car, it drifted slightly to the right. The Carmax service team did a four wheel alignment and got about 75% of the drift. With smiles on the faces they did a test ride with me when i told them there still was a bit of drift. The car went back in for one more alignment and came out perfect. I’m now a happy owner of a 2010 Mustang V-6 convertible.

Remorseless in Los Angeles
I’m not a natural haggler, so this was the first time in my life (I’m 60+) that I actually enjoyed a car buying experience. The car is sitting in the driveway waiting to earn it’s indian name and I have no second thoughts at all concerning the value of the transaction.

If you are thinking of purchasing a used car, I would encourage you to consider Carmax. Please note that I’m not an employee or shareholder:-).

If you live in the South Bay of Los Angeles, in about 4 weeks time, look for a Honda Element with a big prostate cancer awareness advon it advertisement on it give me a honk!

 

Carmax (Photo credit: Theron Trowbridge)