On the pulse - 3rd February 2012

On the pulse...


Cancerkin's News Update.....


Farewells at Cancerkin...

It has been an eventful week for the Cancerkin Team. On Tuesday we said goodbye to East London Project Manager Asini Wijiwardane. Asini joined Cancerkin as our first intern in 2009 and has been working on the project ever since, setting up complementary therapy sessions at St Josephs and then Bromley By Bow, recruiting Experienced Patients and training breast awareness ambassadors. It is thanks to her hard work and dedication that the project has made such encouraging progress. She leaves us to become Health Campaigns Project Officer at Breakthrough Breast Cancer, while the project is left in the very capable hands of our new Project Manager, Cherry Cheung.

On Thursday, Cancerkin said farewell once more to Finance and Research Officer Guy Mollett. Guy has been working at Cancerkin during his gap year and is about to head off on his travels around the Galapagos Islands and Central America. He will then go on to study Medicine at Peninsula College of Medicine and Dentistry at the Universities of Exeter and Plymouth. Our new Finance Officer Shushan Tewolde-Berhan will be taking over the role.


Cancerkin annual lecture: ‘The Elephant in the Room’

Cancerkin’s annual lecture will be given this year by Professor Jonathan Waxman, MD FRCP Professor of Oncology and Consultant Physician at Imperial College London, in the Atrium at the Royal Free Hospital on Tuesday 27 March 2012. The lecture is being held this year in celebration of our 25th anniversary.

Professor Waxman is a clinician who has helped develop new treatments for cancer that are now part of standard practice. He is the founder and Life President of The Prostate Cancer Charity, and has published a huge number of research papers, chapters and books on cancer, as well as a novel and a law book. He is also a prominent campaigner and fundraiser for work into cancer research and care.

His lecture will be based around his new book 'The Elephant in the Room', a collection of stories about cancer patients and their doctors, which provides an insight into how cancer is cared for. The lecture will begin at 6.30pm and admission is free of charge. If you would like to attend, please contact Laura on l.smith@cancerkin.org.uk.


Thank you...

This week, Katie Walker, lead clinical dietician at the Royal Free Hospital, gave a fascinating talk at our patient support group. Katie discussed research into how diet and nutrition may affect our health and highlighted the importance of maintaining a healthy and balanced diet. We thank Katie for sharing her expertise with us in what was a hugely informative session.


In the News.....


Possible vaccine to treat breast cancer...

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania in the US have developed a vaccine, made up of a patients own cells, that could be used to treat breast cancer. In a small initial trial of the vaccine, scientists enrolled 27 women with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), the most common form of non-invasive breast cancer. Using a technique similar to blood donation, specialised white blood cells were taken from each patient. They were then manipulated in a laboratory so that the immune system would recognise cancer cells as foreign and would therefore attack them. Patients were then injected with the personalised vaccine in four weekly doses, followed by surgery to remove the remaining cancer cells.


The study, published in the Journal of Immunotherapy, compared pre- and post-vaccination samples to monitor the effect of the vaccine. Researchers found that after treatment, twenty percent (five) patients had no disease visible. This suggested that their immune system had killed the cancer. They found that damaging proteins were eliminated in eleven patients and reduced by twenty percent or more in another two. They also found that certain patients maintained their immune responses for over four years, indicating a degree of protection from recurrence.


Study leader Dr Brian Czerniecki said: "Here we are going after HER2/neu, which is critical for survival of early breast cancers. If we knock it out with the immune response, we cripple the tumour cells. […] We are continuing to see this pattern in our second, ongoing trial." The team is continuing to enroll patients into a larger study and is designing another study to test the approach in women with early invasive breast cancer.


To read more, please click here.


Benefits of exercise confirmed...

Much has been written about the benefits of exercise for cancer patients and it is a topic we frequently discuss here in On the pulse. New analysis of 34 different studies on exercise and cancer patients has found that, when appropriate, physical activity can improve a patient’s health and quality of life after they finish their treatment.

The report, published by scientists at the University of Hong Kong, looked at data from trials investigating the effects of exercise on adults who had been treated for breast, prostate, gynaecological, bowel, gastric or lung cancer. The studies looked at the effects of different kinds of physical activity – aerobic exercise like walking or jogging, resistance training such as using elastic resistance bands and strength training, such as weights. In women who had undergone breast cancer treatment, scientists found an improvement in body mass index, body weight, physical functions, psychological outcomes like fatigue and depression and quality of life. They also found that doing different kinds of exercise, such as aerobic and resistance activities, was significantly more effective than doing aerobic exercise alone.

Martin Ledwick, head information nurse at Cancer Research UK, said of the results: "This study provides us with further evidence that exercise may help to improve the quality of life of some cancer patients. But it's important to remember that cancer can be diagnosed at any stage and there are many different types of cancer. Each patient's individual condition, state of health and needs should be taken into account before prescribing exercise and many patients will need to seek advice from their doctor, physiotherapist or specialist nurse before embarking on an exercise programme.”

To read more about the report, please click here.

Laura Smith

On the pulse - 27th January 2012

On the pulse...


Cancerkin's News Update.....


Cancerkin Volunteers

Cancerkin would like to thank all those who have been helping out this week. Your support is invaluable to us and we very much appreciate you giving up your time. We will continue to need help over the next few weeks folding letter and stuffing envelopes. If you have some spare time and would like to help out, please do get in touch. As ever, lots of tea and biscuits will be provided. Please contact Laura on l.smith@cancerkin.org.uk.


Item for sale – Gold Plated Cutlery Canteen

We have received a generous donation of a 44 piece Viner’s gold plated cutlery canteen to sell as part of our fundraising efforts. The canteen is brand new and still in its wrapping. The item is for sale at £150 or nearest offer. Funds raised through the sale of the item will contribute to our programme of support for young women with breast cancer, which provides groups, talks and activities tailored specifically to patients under 45.

To view pictures of the canteen, please visit our website here. If you or someone you know would be interested in the item, please contact Laura on 0207 830 2323 or l.smith@cancerkin.org.uk.


In the News.....


Breast screening debate continues

The ongoing debate about the pros and cons of breast screening has once again been brought to the forefront by a controversial book which claims screening is not justified. The book’s author Peter Gøtzsche, director of the independent Nordic Cochrane Collaboration, claims that the harm done to women by breast cancer screening through unnecessary diagnosis and over treatment outweighs the small number of lives saved by programmes such as the NHS’s in the UK.

Mr Gøtzsche has spent over 10 years investigating and analysing data from the trials of breast screening that were run before countries such as the UK introduced their national programmes. He maintains that the results do not support mass screening as a preventive measure and claims screening saves one life for every 2,000 women who go for a mammogram but that it harms 10 others though over diagnosis and treatment for cancerous cells that would not have progressed or would have gone away on their own.

In the UK, women aged between 50 and 70 are invited by the NHS to have a mammogram every three years. Debate over the NHS’s programme began in July 2011, when research published by the Nordic Cochrane Collaboration suggested that there was no difference in breast cancer death rates between countries who had and who did not have national screening programmes. The NHS has consistently disputed these claims. Professor Julietta Patnick, director of the NHS cancer screening programmes, said in 2011: "We can't comment on screening programmes in other countries but here in England we do know that the best evidence available shows that women aged 50-69 who are regularly screened are less likely to die from breast cancer" She cited World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that show screening reduces mortality by 35%. The controversy led UK cancer tsar Professor Sir Mike Richards to call for an independent review of the data in October. Now underway, the review’s findings will inform future decisions on screening in the UK.

To read more on this topic, you can click here.


Statins and breast cancer risk

A new study at Columbia University in the US has found that statins, a group of drugs widely used to reduce the risk of heart disease, could possibly be used in the future to treat women with breast cancer carrying a particular gene mutation. Writing in the journal Cell, the study authors say the research is at a much too early stage to give definitive conclusions but that the results show potential and warrant further investigation through clinical trials.

The study focussed on the gene P53, which usually works to suppress cancer cells. When the gene mutates, its function changes and it begins to promote cancer growth. The faulty p53 gene is found in more than half of all cancers. Laboratory studies at Colombia University treated breast cancer cells containing the mutation with statins and found that the growth of cells was slowed or that the cells died.

Carol Prives, professor of biology at Columbia University, said of the results: "The data raises the possibility that we might identify subsets of patients whose tumors may respond to statins. Of course we can't make any definitive conclusions until we know more. There are great implications, but nothing clinical yet." Dr Caitlin Palframan from Breakthrough Breast Cancer, said: “We’re excited that existing drugs, like statins, are showing potential in the fight against breast cancer.”

To read more about the study, please click here. If you are interested in finding out a separate study published in 2011, which examined the potential of statins to lower the risk of breast cancer recurrence in women who had already had the disease, please click here.

Laura Smith 27th January 2012

On the pulse - 20th January 2012

On the pulse...


Cancerkin's News Update.....


Cancerkin annual lecture: ‘The Elephant in the Room’

Cancerkin’s annual lecture will be given this year by Professor Jonathan Waxman, MD FRCP Professor of Oncology and Consultant Physician at Imperial College London, in the Atrium at the Royal Free Hospital on Tuesday 27 March 2012. The lecture is being held this year in celebration of our 25th anniversary.Professor Waxman is a clinician who has helped develop new treatments for cancer that are now part of standard practice. He is the founder and Life President of The Prostate Cancer Charity, and has published a huge number of research papers, chapters and books on cancer, as well as a novel and a law book. He is also a prominent campaigner and fundraiser for work into cancer research and care.

His lecture will be based around his new book 'The Elephant in the Room', a collection of stories about cancer patients and their doctors, which provides an insight into how cancer is cared for. The lecture will begin at 6.30pm. If you would like to attend, please contact Laura on l.smith@cancerkin.org.uk.


Volunteering opportunities

We are still recruiting volunteers to help over the next few weeks with envelope stuffing for our upcoming events. If you have some spare time and would like to help out, please do get in touch. As ever, lots of tea and biscuits will be provided. Please contact Laura on l.smith@cancerkin.org.uk.


Welcome to new art therapist

This month we welcome Catarina Vasconcelos, an Art Psychotherapy trainee at the University of Roehampton, to the Cancerkin team. Catarina will be holding individual and group sessions of Art Therapy, which aim to effect change and growth on a personal level through the use of art materials in a safe and facilitating environment. She has a Masters in Clinical Psychology and has worked as a psychologist in private practice with adults and facilitated group workshops focused on creative expression with children.

The group session will take place on Wednesdays from 3:00 pm to 4:00 pm, and individual Sessions will be on Thursdays from 11:30 am to 12:30pm and 3:30pm to 4:30pm. You do not need to have previous experience or skill in art. If you are interested in taking part, please contact Una on u.reynolds@cancerkin.org.uk.



In the News.....


HRT and breast cancer risk

A story has appeared in the press this week questioning the link between hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and breast cancer risk. Researchers at the University of Cape Town, South Africa and at UK universities including University of Surrey and Imperial College London have reanalysed three major studies conducted over the past two decades that claimed HRT increased the risk of developing breast cancer. The original research suggested that women who took HRT were twice as likely to get breast cancer and were more likely to die, causing a huge loss of confidence in the treatment and the number of users to fall by half. New analysis of the research suggests that the studies do not in fact prove that HRT causes breast cancer.

There are three studies in question: the 1997 Collaborative Reanalysis, which pooled data of 51 studies examining HRT and breast cancer risk; the 2002 Women’s Health Initiative, two randomised controlled trials in which women were assigned either HRT treatment or a placebo; and the 2003 Million Women Study, a prospective cohort study which followed over a million UK women over the age of 50 from the point when they were invited for breast screening between 1996 and 2001. Each study concluded that HRT increased breast cancer risk.

Researchers lead by Professor Samuel Shapiro of the University of Cape Town Medical School, have since examined whether each study meets a list of nine criteria required to demonstrate causality i.e. that HRT causes breast cancer. These include factors such as time order (whether women developed breast cancer after they had HRT), information bias (whether anxiety about the possibility HRT could cause breast cancer could influence women’s responses) and confounding (whether those who took HRT were affected by any other factors influencing breast cancer risk). They found that all three failed to adequately fulfil the majority of the causality criteria. From this, they concluded that HRT may or may not increase the risk of breast cancer but that none of the three studies is able to establish that it does. Further studies are required to determine this.

Cancer Research UK, who helped fund the Million Women Study, has defended the original findings of the study, stating that numerous analyses of the results have concluded that HRT does cause breast cancer and that around 20 further independent studies have also reached the same verdict. It also highlighted that the authors of this latest critique all act or have acted as consultants for pharmaceutical companies that make HRT.

To read more about the story, please click here or here.


Laura Smith 20th January 2012

On the pulse - 13th January 2012

On the pulse...


Cancerkin's News Update.....


News from East London

As part of our ongoing outreach project in East London, we held fortnightly complementary therapy sessions at St Josephs Hospice in Hackney and the Bromley by Bow Community Centre throughout 2011. We have had an overwhelmingly positive response to the sessions, our therapies and therapists and we now have dates at both venues planned throughout the year.

The project team is also working to raise awareness about breast cancer in East London, an area with one of the highest breast cancer mortality rates in the country. Last year we recruited and trained a group of local ‘Awareness Ambassador’ volunteers from the University of East London, who will work to encourage women in the area to become more breast aware. They are now undergoing shadowing sessions here at the Cancerkin Centre and will be on hand to give information and answer questions at future awareness events alongside our East London complementary therapy sessions.

To find out more about the project, please contact Asini on a.wijewardane@cancerkin.org.uk.


Support for young women

We are pleased to report that our monthly support groups for women under 45 are now up and running once again here at the Cancerkin Centre. We held our first session in December and we welcomed Senior Clinical Nurse Specialist Tina Kelleher from the Royal Free Hospital breast unit, who answered questions on a range of topics. The second session took place yesterday and again we were grateful for Tina Kelleher’s contribution. Judy Sanitt, one of our experienced patients who herself has recovered from breast cancer also participated. Feedback from the group has been very positive and we would like to thank our speakers for sharing their experiences and expertise.


We are planning future groups with a variety of speakers on topics such as genetics and fertility. If you would like to find our more or if there is a topic you would like to hear discussed at the group, please contact Una on u.reynolds@cancerkin.org.uk.


Volunteering opportunities

Over the next few weeks will we need some help folding letters and stuffing envelopes for our upcoming events. If you have a few spare hours and would like to volunteer, we would love to hear from you. As ever, lots of tea and biscuits will be provided. Please contact Laura on l.smith@cancerkin.org.uk.



In the News.....


New research into treatment for inherited breast and ovarian cancers...

Around five percent of all breast cancer cases are caused by faults in the BRAC1 and BRCA2 genes. Cancer Research UK has this week re-launched a trial into a new drug named Rucaparib, which may represent a new treatment option for women with advanced breast or ovarian cancer and who have faults in these high-risk genes.

Rucaparib belongs to a group of drugs called PARP Inhibitors, which work by blocking the way DNA damage is repaired, causing cancer cells to die. Research is currently being done into how the group of drugs can treat patients with breast, ovarian and prostate cancers. In this latest trial, advanced breast and ovarian cancer patients with faulty BRAC genes will take rucaparib as a daily tablet over 21 days, replacing a previous trial where the drug was administered intravenously. This is a much more convenient and comfortable way for patients to have treatment as they do not have to go to hospital to receive it.

Dr Nigel Blackburn, director of drug development at Cancer Research UK’s Drug Development Office, said: “It’s incredibly encouraging to launch a trial of this promising drug which is personalised to target the different genetic make-up of patients with breast and ovarian cancer. Providing the drug as a tablet will give patients a much improved quality of life. […] We hope that this new treatment approach will help extend the lives of women with breast and ovarian cancer. We look forward to the results with great interest.”

To read more about the trial, please clickhere.


Laura Smith 13th January 2012

On the pulse - 6th January 2012

On the pulse

Cancerkin's News Update.....


Happy New Year!

We hope you have all had a restful Christmas. The Cancerkin Centre is open again and is now preparing itself for a busy 2012 full of landmark events – the Diamond Jubilee, the London Olympics and, of course, Cancerkin’s 25th Anniversary. We are proud to celebrate 25 years of providing support and care to women with breast cancer and have planned a year of festivities to mark the occasion.


Annual Lecture on Tuesday 27th March 2012

We will begin our series of celebratory events with Cancerkin’s second Annual Lecture on Tuesday 27th March. We are thrilled to be welcoming Professor Jonathan Waxman, MD FRCP Professor of Oncology and Consultant Physician at Imperial College London, to give the lecture. Professor Waxman is a clinician who has helped develop new treatments for cancer that are now part of standard practice. He has published a huge number of research papers, chapters and books on cancer, as well as a novel and a law book. He is also a prominent campaigner and fundraiser for work into cancer research and care. We very much look forward to hearing his lecture, more details on which will follow soon.


Hyde Park Walk on Sunday 17th June 2012

Continuing in our series of celebrations, our biggest and best Hyde Park Walk yet will take place on Sunday 17th June. As always, we will be taking in the delights of the beautiful Hyde Park on a 10k route twice around the Serpentine Lake. We plan to make this an extra special event for our walkers – more to be revealed later!

We have more planned for later in the year and we will keep you posted on this. We hope you will be able to join us at some (or all!) of our upcoming events, so that we can celebrate this special year together. We are looking forward to seeing you all there. For more information on any of our events, please contact l.smith@cancerkin.org.uk or call 0207 830 2323.


In the News.....


Breast implants controversy: A summary

As I am sure you will all be aware, there is currently much controversy surrounding the use of substandard silicone breast implants in women who have had breast augmentation or who have had reconstructive surgery after breast cancer treatment. More than 40,000 women in the UK have been given implants produced by the now defunct French company Poly Implant Prothese (PIP) which were filled with industrial grade silicone that is not intended for medical use. Many women are now anxious about the implications their implants may have for their health and whilst the government is not currently recommending the routine removal of the implants, it launched an investigation this Wednesday, 4th January so that it can fully understand the risks posed by the implants. The results of the investigation are expected today, 6th January.

The controversy began in 2010 when implant manufacturer PIP was found to be cutting costs by filling its devices with industrial silicone and was subsequently closed down. However, by that time, the implants had been supplied to 65 countries worldwide and had been used in somewhere between 300,000 and 400,000 operations. Amid fears that the implants were at an increased risk of rupturing and leaking, the French government announced in December 2011 that it would be funding the routine removal of all PIP implants fitted in women in France, estimated at around 30,000. No other country that has used the implants has followed suit yet. Speaking straight after the announcement, Dame Sally Davies, the chief medical officer for England said:"We have no evidence of a link to cancer or an increased risk of rupture. While we respect the French decision, no other country is taking similar steps. Because of this, and because removing these implants carries risk in itself, we are not advising routine removal."

Official advice since this time has been for any woman concerned about their implants to contact her GP or the implanting surgeon. The government working group leading the investigation is in the process of collecting data on rupture rates of the PIP implants from both NHS and private clinics, which has in itself uncovered problems with quality of data supplied by the private sector and the possible need for a register of breast implants. It is hoped that the results of the investigation will help to reassure women about the government’s advice.

To read in more detail about the government investigation and the background of the controversy, you might like to read The Guardian and The Telegraph's take on the topic, or you can visit the UK Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency’s website for more information. Writing in a blog in the Guardian, journalist Rebecca Smithers gives her point of view here as a woman who has had reconstruction after breast cancer.


Laura Smith