[ RadSafe ] Radiation exposure poses similar risk of first and second cancers

Thu Sep 16 02:27:09 CDT 2010

I would not agree with the prostatectomy vs. RT. It is my experience
(although no formal study has been made here yet) that many patients present
secondary tumors, mostly bone metastases, within a few years after the
operation. I would even go as far as suggesting that biopsy should also be
avoided since multiple piercing of the colon to get to the prostate has been
shown to cause severe infection if not some dissemination of cancer cells.
In addition to all this, complete excision of the prostate is very difficult
because of the gland's shape and position. So there is always the chance
that some small part has remained and will cause recurrence. Excision will
also ruin our chances of monitoring any possible such cancer recurrence with
PSA tests.

So my suggestion is a) monitor, watch and see and b) have RT if needed.
After all there is a greater chance that most men will die with their
prostate cancer rather that because of it.

D.Okkalides
"THEAGENEION" Anticancer Hospital
Thessaloniki
Greece

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Alston, Chris" <ALSTONCJ at gunet.georgetown.edu>
To: <radsafe at agni.phys.iit.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, September 15, 2010 8:36 PM
Subject: Re: [ RadSafe ] Radiation exposure poses similar risk of first and
second cancers

> Folks
>
> I guess that it is a good datum to have, in following the A-bomb
> survivors, but, contrary to the implications of the report, I am not sure
> that much which is new is suggested in regard to, e.g., people who have
> had radiotherapy.  We already expect at least 1/100 people in that group
> to develop another primary tumor as a result of the RT.  I would bet that
> percentage will increase as RT is more curative, and people live longer
> for other reasons, and that we will see second primaries there as well.
> It is part of the cost/benefit of that tx, and is why I would prefer to
> have, for instance, a prostatectomy, instead of RT.
>
> Those pts are already followed with that in mind.  I wonder about people
> who have had big doses in interventional radiology, cardiology, and some
> applications of CT, though.  Please note that cardiologic pts may need
> also need following for cardiac disease secondary to irradiation, but I
> think that the data are not conclusive yet.
>
> Cheers
> cja
>
> P.S.  I wonder how they corrected for the fact that 1/10 people diagnosed
> with a neoplastic disease already harbors another tumor.   Subtraction of
> the background controls, I guess, but the signal must be really strong.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: ROY HERREN [mailto:royherren2005 at yahoo.com]
> Sent: Wednesday, September 15, 2010 1:45 AM
> To: radsafe at agni.phys.iit.edu
> Subject: [ RadSafe ] Radiation exposure poses similar risk of first and
> second cancers in atomic bomb survivors
>
> Public release date: 15-Sep-2010
> Contact: Kristen Woodward
> kwoodwar at fhcrc.org
> 206-667-5095
> Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center
>
> Radiation exposure poses similar risk of first and second cancers in
> atomic bomb
> survivors
> First large-scale study to assess how radiation influences risk of
> multiple
> cancers
> SEATTLE – It is well known that exposure to radiation has multiple harmful
> effects – including causing cancer – but until now, it has been unclear to
> what
> extent such exposure increases a person's risk of developing more than one
> cancer.
> The first large-scale study of the relationship between radiation dose and
> risk
> of multiple cancers among atomic bomb survivors in Hiroshima and Nagasaki,
> Japan
> reveals a similar risk in the development of first and second subsequent
> cancers.
> Christopher I. Li, M.D., Ph.D., and colleagues at Fred Hutchinson Cancer
> Research Center led the study in collaboration with investigators at the
> Radiation Effects Research Foundation in Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the
> National
> Cancer Institute. The results appear in the Sept. 15 issue of Cancer
> Research.
> "We found that radiation exposure increased the risks of first and second
> cancers to a similar degree," said first author Li, a breast cancer
> epidemiologist and member of the Public Health Sciences Division at the
> Hutchinson Center. "People exposed to radiation who developed cancer also
> had a
> high risk of developing a second cancer, and the risk was similar for both
> solid
> tumors and leukemias in both men and women, regardless of age at exposure
> or
> duration between first and second primary cancers," he said.
>
> The association between radiation exposure and risk of second cancers was
> particularly significant for radiation-sensitive cancers, such as those of
> the
> lung, colon, breast, thyroid and bladder, as well as leukemia.
> For the study, the researchers analyzed data from participants in the Life
> Span
> Study, a group of atomic bomb survivors in Hiroshima and Nagasaki who were
> followed from 1950, five years after the bombings, to 2002, the most
> recent year
> through which Hiroshima and Nagasaki cancer registry data were complete.
> The
> study followed 10,031 primary cancer survivors, among whom 1,088 went on
> to
> develop second primary cancers.
> Stomach, lung, liver and female breast cancers were the most commonly
> diagnosed
> first and second primary cancers.
> "Our findings suggest that cancer survivors with a history of radiation
> exposure
> should continue to be carefully monitored for second cancers," Li said.
>
> In addition to clinical implications for cancer patients and others
> exposed to
> significant amounts of radiation, such research is essential to developing
> radiation protection limits and standards for occupational exposures, as
> well as
> planning for the consequences of widespread radiation exposure in the
> general
> population in the event of a nuclear accident, nuclear war or "dirty bomb"
> terrorist attack.
> "We greatly appreciate having the opportunity to conduct this unique
> research
> with our Japanese colleagues who, through innumerable publications, have
> truly
> transformed the tragedy of the atomic bombings to fundamental scientific
> advancements that have impacted radiation protection standards and
> policies
> worldwide," Li said.
> ###
> The Radiation Effects Research Foundation (RERF) in Japan is a private,
> nonprofit foundation funded by the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and
> Welfare and the U.S. Department of Energy through the National Academy of
> Sciences. RERF funded this research along with the National Cancer
> Institute and
> the National Institutes of Health Division of Cancer Epidemiology and
> Genetics.
> At Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, our interdisciplinary teams of
> world-renowned scientists and humanitarians work together to prevent,
> diagnose
> and treat cancer, HIV/AIDS and other diseases. Our researchers, including
> three
> Nobel laureates, bring a relentless pursuit and passion for health,
> knowledge
> and hope to their work and to the world. www.fhcrc.org
>
> ________________________________
>
>
>
>
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