10 Cancer Treatments Breakthroughs

February 16, 2014 Blog

Medicine has made leaps and bounds in recent history. With more and more scientists and researchers pouring time and energy into new health discoveries, it is no wonder that humans are living longer and healthier than ever. Unfortunately, there are still many people that suffer from cancer all over the world. While battling cancer can seem like an uphill struggle, it is encouraging to remember that the medical research community has been making new cancer breakthroughs every year! The past 10 years have been a very exciting time in the world of cancer treatment and prevention. Instead of letting the disease win, thousands of researchers, patients, and doctors have been fighting back with great results.

We want to give you hope and keep you positive by sharing these 10 great cancer advancements with you.

1. Targeted Cancer Therapy

One of the biggest breakthroughs in cancer treatment has been the development of targeted cancer therapy. This method works by giving the patient doses of specialized medication that interferes with certain molecules necessary for tumor growth and cancer cell reproduction. This approach is more focused than traditional chemotherapy and is not as harmful to the surrounding normal cells. Over time researchers have continued to fine tune the drugs and make them even more effective. Several types of cancer can be treated this way including prostate cancer, melanoma, multiple myeloma, breast cancer, lymphoma, and more. In 2004 the FDA approved a slew of cancer targeting medications produced by companies like Novartis, Genetech, ImClone Systems, and Biogen Idec Since then manufacturers and researchers have continued to improve their formulas and create highly effective ways to treat various forms of cancer. Some of these are even used as first choice drugs to help prevent recurrences in breast cancer patients. Others are particularly good at stopping new blood vessels from forming and depriving tumors of nourishment.

2. Adjuvant Therapy

Adjuvant therapy is a general term for an additional or secondary treatment that is administered with or after the primary treatment. Most commonly it refers to further therapies following a surgery. Many studies have given solid direction for adjuvant strategies to help decrease the risk of recurrences especially in lung, breast, and colon cancers. Often times after surgery adjuvant and radio therapy are given in order to deal with any cancer cells not already removed. While it is more of a preventative measure, adjuvant therapies like this have seriously put a damper on recurring tumors. Each year the cancer community gathers more information about how to best use adjuvant therapy and each year the results improve.

3. HPV Vaccine

The Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) is known to cause a high percentage of anal cancer, vaginal cancer, oral cancer, cervical cancer, and vulvar cancer. Gardasil, a vaccine produced by Merck & Co Inc, was approved by the FDA to help protect against HPV. This innovative drug proved to be 100% effective at stopping cervical precancers related to HPV in women that never had exposure to the virus strains. The strains that Gardasil deals with are responsible for about 70% of all cervical cancer cases across the globe. Other international studies report that the vaccine acts similarly to help prevent vulvar and vaginal precancers related to HPV. The development and approval of Gardasil was a huge step forward in cancer prevention. By creating the vaccine, it will make it possible for women in poor countries, where cervical cancer is often very common, to receive treatment in an affordable and timely manner.

4. Hormone Therapy

Researchers learned that 2 out of 3 breast cancers have receptors for progesterone and estrogen, two human hormones. Since the cancer cells have receptors, the hormones actually encourage the cells to grow. For patients with receptor positive cancer, certain hormone treatments have been developed to stop or reduce estrogen and progesterone production. Although this therapy only works for a few kinds of cancer, it has worked well to prevent and treat recurrences. These successes have prompted further research to explore other effects hormone treatments may have on cancer cells.

5. Personalized Genetic Treatment

As we learn more about cancer, we are better able to treat it. One rather surprising thing scientists have discovered is that each type of cancer and tumor has its own unique genetic makeup. Knowing this has allowed researchers to closely examine cancers to find ways of attacking them at their weak points. In addition to the cancer’s genes, the patient’s genome plays a role as well. All of this information helps doctor organize personalized treatment plans. This is a relatively new field and there has not been enough work done yet to tackle every kind of cancer, but the road ahead is very bright for personally tailored cancer treatments.

6. lmmunotherapy Treatment

It has taken a while for the medical world to understand the human immune system. Although there is still a lot to learn, many hew discoveries have positively impacted the cancer community. lmmunotherapy prompts the body’s immune system to fight harder and specifically target cancer cells. It can also add man made proteins to help facilitate a better working immune system. Against some cancers this treatment alone can be enough to clear out a tumor on its own, while other times it functions best when combined with other therapy methods. Overall immunotherapy is continuing to develop into a highly effective treatment strategy for many forms of cancer.

7. Hypofractionated Radiation Therapy

This approach to radiation treatment takes the total dosage of radiation and divides it into large concentrated treatments over a shorter period of time. A Canadian study suggests that three week long treatments of concentrated radiation work just as well as a normal five week treatment. These hypofractioned radiation treatments have been used on their own and together with other forms of therapy to produce good results. Research is ongoing to utilize this method in the most effective way possible.

8. Advanced CT Scanning

A large clinical trial suggested that advanced CT scanning for smokers could decrease the risk of cancer related death by 20%. Heavy smokers were given three low dose CT scans yearly and it proved to be much more beneficial than yearly chest X-rays. All smokers should consider getting annual CT scans of their lungs since it is now a much better method of lung cancer detection. This advancement will get patients treatment sooner and help save lives.

9. Vitamin D Protein Blocking

Dr. John White together with his research group are working on studies with vitamin D. Their work has shown that vitamin D is able to block a protein called cMTC that over half of all cancer cells need to reproduce. They have demonstrated that Vitamin D has also reduced the risk associated with some cancers by up to 78%. At this point there is still much work to be done to fully understand how it all works, but this discovery has opened the door to a new form of cancer prevention and treatment.

10. Lenalidomide Therapy

Lenalidomide is a compound developed to help treat multiple myeloma. It is a very potent drug that interferes with cancer cells in the body. After much testing, it was approved by the FDA it has drastically improved survival rates for multiple myeloma patients. Doctors are now able to offer a much better prognosis for those diagnosed with this form of cancer.

Across the board there have been wonderful and radical changes in the cancer research community. New treatments, therapies, prevention methods, and discoveries give hope to those fighting against cancer.