On the pulse


Cancerkin’s news…


Hyde Park Walk update...

We are still taking entries for the Hyde Park Walk on Sunday 19th June so if you have not yet registered for the walk, there is still time to do so – just send in your registration form as soon as you can. To download an entry form, please visit our website, or you can request for a form to be sent to you in the post.

If you have already registered and you are thinking about setting up an online Justgiving page, now is the time to do so! Justgiving is a quick and easy way to collect sponsorship and takes just a few moments to set up. Click here to go to their website and here to read some tips on how to make the most of your page.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at anytime on l.smith@cancerkin.org.uk.



News from East London...

This week eight wonderful volunteers from East London began their training to become ‘Experienced Patients’. Cancerkin’s existing team of Experienced Patients are trained volunteers who have been through breast cancer themselves and now offer one-to-one support to patients and their families. Cancerkin has been offering this hand-holding service at the Royal Free since the charity was founded in 1987 and we are now making exciting progress in establishing a similar network in East London. All those who attended on Tuesday at St Joseph’s Hospice in Hackney found the session very interesting and enjoyable. We wish them all the best of luck as they progress in their training.

Today we returned to St Joseph’s as part of Cancerkin’s continuing programme of complementary therapy sessions in the area. Over 30 women attended, benefiting from a range of Cancerkin’s individual and group therapies. On 13 May, we held a further session at new East London venue the Bromley by Bow centre. Nearly 20 women participated in the session and breast awareness talks were held throughout the day for those visiting the centre. Feedback continues to be overwhelmingly positive from sessions at both venues. We would like to thank the wonderful staff at both the Bromley by Bow Centre and St Joseph’s Hospice for their continued support and help in making the sessions a success.


Waitrose’s community matters scheme...

We are pleased to announce that Cancerkin has been selected as one of three charities to take part in the Waitrose ‘Community Matters’ giving initiative at their John Barnes Store on Finchley Road throughout June. Using tokens provided at the till, customers decide how much of a £1,000 total is given to three different charities which have been nominated by their own customers. If you happen to be in the store during June, please put your token in the Cancerkin box!


In the news…


New research into drug resistance in breast cancer…

Tamoxifen is one of the most widely prescribed drugs used to treat women whose breast tumours require the hormone oestrogen to grow. Drugs like Tamoxifen work by blocking oestrogen, but over time cancers can become resistant to this kind of treatment. Research published this week in the Nature Medicine journal had identified a protein found in breast cancer cells that may play a part in the development of this drug resistance. Although research is in its early stage, the protein could provide an important target for the development of new therapies.

A team of scientists at the Imperial College London undertook a series of tests into the protein known as LMTK3. They found that LMTK3 can help to ‘switch on’ response to oestrogen in tamoxifen resistant cells, making the drug less effective. By blocking LMTK3, this response was ‘switched off’, making cells more sensitive to the treatment. Using an experimental genetic technique on mice carrying tamoxifen-resistant breast tumours, researchers were able to block LMTK3 and successfully shrink the tumours. The team also examined different levels of LMTK3 found in samples of breast cancer tissue. They found that women with higher levels of LMTK3 in their cancer cells generally had a shorter life expectancy and were less likely to benefit from hormone therapy. They also found links between faults in the gene for the protein and how long an individual survived.

Senior author Professor Justin Stebbing, from Imperial College London's Department of Surgery and Cancer, said of the research: "Anti-oestrogen drugs have been very successful at allowing women with breast cancer to live longer, but resistance to these drugs is a common problem. Our results suggest that the action of LMTK3 on the oestrogen receptor has a crucial role in the development of drug resistance. We're now looking for drugs that can block the effect of LMTK3, which we could hopefully give to patients to prevent them from becoming resistant to hormone therapy. It will probably take at least five to ten years to develop new treatments that are safe to be used in humans."

To read the article in full, please click here.


Laura Smith 28th May 2011
l.smith@cancerkin.org.uk

On the pulse

Cancerkin’s news…

Still time to bid in our luxury villa auction...

There are just a few days left to bid in our eBay auction for a fabulous week long holiday in a Portuguese villa! The use of the villa has been generously donated by one of our supporters and all proceeds from the auction will go to Cancerkin.

Located near Porto in the North of Portugal, the stunning villa sleeps up to 10 and has its own swimming pool, outdoor seating and dining area and lots of outdoor space. If you have not yet booked your family summer holiday, this is a perfect opportunity to secure a stay in a fabulous location and to support Cancerkin at the same time. If you are not bidding yourself, please help us spread the word and tell everyone you know about the auction!

Bids will be taken until 8pm on Sunday 22nd May 2011. Click here to find out more and to place your bid. Good luck!

...and still time to register for the Hyde Park Walk!

We are still taking entries for the Hyde Park Walk on Sunday 19th June. If you have not yet registered for the walk, there is still plenty of time to do so – we will be taking entries right up to the day. To download an entry form, please visit our website

This week’s fundraising tip for our wonderful walkers is to encourage others to join the walk too! Collecting sponsorship and walking as a group is fantastic fun and can make fundraising much easier. We already have quite a few teams signed up so see if you can get your friends, family and colleagues involved too.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at anytime on l.smith@cancerkin.org.uk.

In the News.....

Yoga can help women with breast cancer…

Cancerkin has been offering yoga classes to its patients for many years and it is one of our most popular activities. We have even started up a new class in Kundalini Yoga, a different variety of the practice. For those interested in the potential impact of yoga, fascinating new research published this week by the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Centre in the US has shown that women with breast cancer who are undergoing radiotherapy can benefit from regular yoga sessions. Results indicate that while patients doing only simple stretching exercises experience improved fatigue, those who take part in yoga classes involving yogic breathing, postures, meditation and relaxation techniques experience improved physical functioning, better general health and lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol.

For the study, 163 women with breast cancer at stages 0 to 3 and of an average age of 52 were randomly placed into three groups: group one participated in sessions of yoga; group two undertook simple stretches; group three were given no instruction in yoga or stretching. Groups one and two participated in 3 one hour sessions of yoga or stretching throughout the six weeks of their radiotherapy. At the beginning and end of treatment, and one, three and six months after treatment, saliva samples and electrocardiogram tests were taken from all participants.

The study found that after completing their treatment, both the yoga and stretching groups reported reduced fatigue. However, women in the yoga group reported the greatest benefits to physical functioning and general health at their one, three and six month post treatments checks. This group was also most likely to perceive positive life changes from their cancer experience. Most interestingly, this group reported the steepest decline in cortisol levels across the day, suggesting that yoga helps to regulate the stress hormone. This is of particular significance as higher levels of the hormone have been linked with worse outcomes in breast cancer.

Lorenzo Cohen, Ph.D., professor and director of the Integrative Medicine Programme at MD Anderson said of the study: “the combination of mind and body practices that are part of yoga clearly have tremendous potential to help patients manage the psychosocial and physical distress associated with treatment and life after cancer, beyond the benefits of simple stretching. The transition from active therapy back to everyday life can be very stressful as patients no longer receive the same level of medical care and attention. Teaching patients a mind-body technique like yoga as a coping skill can make the transition less difficult.”

To read the MD Anderson Cancer Centre press release in full, please click here.. Please note that Cancerkin’s yoga classes take place every week at 1pm on Wednesday and 2.45pm on Friday.

Can coffee really help prevent breast cancer?

Results from a new study into the relationship between coffee consumption and breast cancer, published last week in BioMed Centrals online Breast Cancer Research journal, suggest that the beverage can help protect against the risk of developing the disease. The Karolinska Institute in Sweden examined the coffee drinking habits of just under 6,000 women and results suggest that more that five cups a day can cut a woman’s risk of breast cancer. However, cancer experts say this is not proof enough and that the findings need confirmation.

The ‘case-control’ study compared results acquired from 2,800 women with breast cancer, the ‘case’ group, with those taken from 3,100 who did not, the ‘control’ group. They were asked to remember their coffee drinking habits and lifestyle factors in the past. In comparing the groups, researchers found that those who drank 5 cups of coffee a day were 20 percent less likely to have the disease than those who did not. When focussing on a specific type of breast cancer, ER-negative breast cancer, the team found that those drinking their five a day of coffee were 57 percent less likely to have breast cancer than those who did not.

Experts have been quick to point out that the study’s results are not conclusive. As Cancer Research UK’s science blog highlights, this kind of study can be flawed. When asked about their habits from years ago, people may remember incorrectly. Important factors such as age, alcohol consumption and exercise for example must also be taken consideration and may explain difference in risk between those who drank coffee and those who did not.

The blog also stresses that in a different case-control study conducted in Germany and examining 3464 women with breast cancer and 6657 without, no significant correlation was found between coffee and breast cancer, suggesting the Swedish study’s results were ‘a fluke’. Past research into the drink has also produced varying results, with one study suggesting women with the most caffeine in their diets actually have an increased risk of breast cancer.

Yinka Ebo of Cancer Research UK said: "This study does not provide firm evidence that drinking lots of coffee can help reduce the risk of breast cancer as it relied on people with cancer remembering how much coffee they drank years ago. Previous research on coffee consumption and breast cancer risk has produced mixed results, and the authors of this new study acknowledge that further work will be needed to confirm the findings."

To read a BBC news report on the subject, please click here.. To read CRUK’s science blog in full, click here.

Laura Smith

______________________________

On the pulse

Cancerkin’s news…

Holiday villa auction now live on eBay!

Yesterday, we launched our second ever eBay auction in which we are selling off a fabulous week long holiday in a Portuguese villa. The use of the villa has been generously donated by one of our supporters and all proceeds from the auction will go to Cancerkin.

Located near Porto in the North of Portugal, the stunning villa sleeps up to 10 and has its own swimming pool, outdoor seating and dining area and lots of outdoor space. If you have not yet booked your family summer holiday, this is a perfect opportunity to secure a stay in a fabulous location and to support Cancerkin at the same time. If you are not bidding yourself, please help us spread the word and tell everyone you know about the auction!

Bids will be taken until 8pm on Sunday 22nd May 2011. Click here to find out more and to place your bid. Good luck!

Important Hyde Park Walk news...

Due to the high levels of interest shown in our biggest event of the year, we have extended the closing date for entries for the Hyde Park Walk on 19th June. If you have not yet registered for the walk, there is still plenty of time to do so – we will be taking entries right up to the day. To download an entry form, please visit our website.

We are currently recruiting volunteers to our team of marshals for the big day. The team will have the important job of directing our walkers around the course and making sure everything runs smoothly. If you are interested in getting involved, I would love to hear from you – please email l.smith@cancerkin.org.uk.

To all registered walker: Last week, we recommended that you set up a sponsorship page on the Just Giving website.. This week, our top tip to boost your fundraising is to ask your sponsors to Gift Aid it – this means we get an extra £28 for every £100 you raise. As long as your sponsors are UK tax payers and tell us their full name and full home address, we can claim back the tax they have already paid on their sponsorship from the Inland Revenue. We will not use your sponsors names and addresses for anything other than Gift Aid.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at anytime on l.smith@cancerkin.org.uk.

In the News.....

Healthy lifestyle 'could prevent half of breast cancer cases'

The benefits of maintaining a healthy and active lifestyle have been well researched and documented, and a recent report generated by the World Cancer Research Fund has found that about 20 000 cases of breast cancer in the UK could be prevented each year by increasing physical activity, reducing alcohol consumption and maintaining a healthy weight. The figures suggested that of the 47 600 women that developed breast cancer in 2008, 42 percent of these cases (approximately 20 000) would be preventable if women developed healthier lifestyles.

Dr Rachel Thompson, Deputy Head of Science at the World Cancer Research Fund, reported on the figures, which she believes show “that we have a long way to go to raise awareness about what women can do to prevent breast cancer”, estimating that “about a third of the most common cancers could be prevented through a healthy diet, being physically active and maintaining a healthy weight”.

Whilst these findings don’t take into account genetic and environmental factors that can also play a part in the development of breast cancer, they show the potential benefit a healthy lifestyle can have in minimising the risk of developing breast cancer. The World Cancer Research Fund have listed recommendations for cancer prevention, some of which include being physically active for at least 30 minutes a day, being as lean as possible (without becoming underweight), limiting consumption of fatty, salty and sugary food and drink and eating fruit, vegetables and pulses. They also recommend eating less red meat and processed meat and if not abstaining from alcohol altogether, limiting alcoholic drinks to two a day for men and one a day for women and choosing a balanced diet rather than vitamin supplements.

To read further information, please click here and to read the World Cancer Research Fund’s press release click here.

Aromatase inhibitors could reduce mastectomy rates

Aromatase inhibitors are oestrogen lowering drugs that halt the supply of the female hormone oestrogen which fuels most breast cancers. The drugs only work in post-menopausal women where the oestrogen hormone is produced using the aromatase enzyme rather the ovaries.

A study led by Dr Matthew Ellis from Washington University School of Medicine in St Louis randomly assigned one of three approved aromatase inhibitors to 352 women with stage two to three breast cancer. From this group, 159 women had been told that they required a mastectomy but after 16 weeks of treatment, 81 were able to have breast conserving surgery instead. Furthermore, another 189 women were originally considered “marginal” for breast conservation due to the high likelihood of disfigurement. However, 83% saw enough tumour shrinkage to avoid a mastectomy.

Dr Ellis stressed that not all women respond well to aromatase inhibitors, he said “the biggest question in my mind is how best to treat the aromatase inhibitor-resistant patients. These patients have poor outcomes and currently there is no known targeted therapy for them.”

The above findings were published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology on 9th May 2011. To read the original article from The Telegraph, please click here.

The Cancerkin Team

On the pulse

Cancerkin’s news…


New arrivals at Cancerkin

This week we are thrilled to welcome Una Reynolds, our new patient service co-ordinator, and Misako Ishii, our new reflexologist, to the Cancerkin team.

Una will be here to help with all enquiries about our services, making and changing appointments and information on new therapies. If you have any questions for Una, you can contact her on 0207 830 2323 or at u.reynolds@cancerkin.org.uk.


Portugal Villa up for auction on eBay

As you may know, Cancerkin will be once again be auctioning off a Holiday in a luxury villa in Portugal, the use of which has been generously donated by one of our supporters. A week’s stay in the villa will be auctioned off on eBay from Thursday 12th May 2011 at 8pm until Sunday 22nd May 2011 at 8pm. Please help us spread the word and tell everyone you know about the auction!

Located near Porto in the North of Portugal, the stunning villa sleeps up to 10 and has its own swimming pool, outdoor seating and dining area and lots of outdoor space. If you have not yet booked your family summer holiday, this is a perfect opportunity to secure a stay in a fabulous location and to support Cancerkin at the same time. Click here for more details and pictures.


Hyde Park Walk update...

We are currently recruiting volunteers to our team of marshals for the big day on Sunday 19th June 2011. The team will have the important job of directing our walkers around the course and making sure every thing runs smoothly. If you are interested in getting involved, I would love to hear from you – please email l.smith@cancerkin.org.uk or call 0207 830 2323.

Fundraising packs are now being sent out to our Hyde Park Walkers. If you are wondering how to kick off your fundraising efforts, we recommend that you set up a JustGiving page. Creating your page is a quick and easy process, and you can then email the link to friends, family and colleagues. You can also put it on your Facebook or Twitter page and use your status to tell people about how to donate. Don’t forget to enter your page under the Royal Free Cancerkin Breast Cancer Trust. Your sponsors will then be able to donate directly online. Click here to setup your page.

If you have not yet registered for the walk, there is still plenty of time to do so – we will be taking entries right up to the day. To download an entry form, please visit our website.


In news…


Discovery of new genes linked to ER positive breast cancer

Scientists at the Breakthrough Breast Cancer Research Centre at the Institute of Cancer Research in London have this week announced the discovery of three new genes linked to the most common form of the disease, oestrogen receptor (ER) positive breast cancer. Their research, published in the online journal PloS Genetics, looked at 104 patients with this type of breast cancer, in order to find which genes were most closely linked to the oestrogen receptor, the main driver of hormonal breast cancer. They found that three genes, known as C6ORF96, C6ORF97 and C6ORF211, were linked to but worked separately from the oestrogen receptor. For this reason, treatments such as tamoxifen, which target the oestrogen receptor, were unlikely to affect the activities of the three newly discovered genes.

The team of researches found that gene C6ORF211 was shown to drive the growth of tumours. They see this gene as the most likely target for new treatments. C6ORF97 was shown to be an indicator of a tumour not coming back, and also a good predictor of response to tamoxifen. Less is known about C6ORF96 but more research is being done. The genes’ discovery was a surprising find for the team as they are located directly next to the oestrogen receptor gene, one of the most well studied areas of the human genome. A member of the research team Dr Anita Dunbier said of this: “We found these genes in a place we thought we knew a lot about - it is like finding gold in Trafalgar Square.”

37,000 women are diagnosed with hormonal, or ER positive, breast cancer in the UK every year. This accounts for four in every five cases of the disease. It is thought that understanding these genes could lead to the development of new ways to treat and prevent hormonal breast cancer. Professor Mitch Dowsett, who led the Breakthrough Breast Cancer team, said: “This research is exciting because it shows that while the oestrogen receptor is the main driver of hormonal breast cancer, there are others next door to it that also appear to influence breast cancer behaviour. We now need to better understand how they work together and how we can utilise them to save lives of women with breast cancer.”

To read the announcement made by Breakthrough Breast Cancer in full, please click here.


Tamoxifen as a preventative medicine for high risk women

At the beginning of April, On the pulse discussed a new report into recent developments in breast cancer prevention. Results of a large international study into Tamoxifen indicated that the drug could be prescribed to high risk women as a method of prevention. The results of the IBIS1 study, published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, suggested that the risk of oestrogen receptor positive breast cancer was reduced by around a third in women at an increased risk of the disease. Professor Jack Cuzick, a Cancer Research UK epidemiologist at Queen Mary University of London said that up to 10 per cent of all women could benefit from taking such drugs before the first signs of breast cancer even develop, in a similar way to how those at risk of heart disease are prescribed statins.

New analysis of the same research, which looked at 1,000 women at high risk of developing breast cancer, has revealed however that only half of the women given the hormone therapy appeared to benefit from taking it as a preventative medicine. Of those taking Tamoxifen, 46 percent saw their breast density drop by 10 per cent or more over a 12 to 18 month period, a sign that risk has decreased. The remaining 54 per cent whose breast density did not fall by 10 percent in the same period did not see a decrease in risk.

In response to this, Prof Cuzick said that tamoxifen should be not be written off as a preventative drug. If women showed no reduction in breast density after 12 to 18 months, they should switch to another drug rather than "hoping for the best". Tamoxifen is not currently licensed to be used as a preventative medicine in the UK but the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence will discuss widening its use later in the year.

To read the full article from The Telegraph, please click here.

Laura Smith 6th May 2011