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Is Molecular Profiling Ready for Use in Clinical Decision Making?
 By Gregory D. Pawelski

Why hasn’t there been any progress at all in drug selection through the use of molecular diagnostics and biomarkers? Simply put, they do not work! Little progress has been made in identifying which therapeutic strategies are likely to be effective for individual patients by molecular prognostic and predictive markers.

“I’m Sorry I Don’t Know How Much Radiation Is Given”
 By Dr. Gifford Jones

Last week I reported on a study conducted by Peter Gotzsche (Stop Lying To Women About mammography), a leading Danish researcher. His study claimed there’s no convincing evidence that annual mammograms decrease the risk of dying from breast cancer. But can repeated exposure to radiation cause breast cancer?

28 years ago I reported a shocking discovery. Some x-ray machines were exposing patients up to 60 X the amount of radiation necessary for some procedures. X-ray equipment was often old, others rarely calculated for radiation exposure, and some technologists were incompetent. This column did not win me friends. But it resulted in a crack down by the government.

Stop Lying To Women About mammography
 By Dr. Gifford Jones

What’s a “sacred cow”? One is a medical belief that’s been etched in stone for years. For instance, to question the value of cholesterol lowering drugs is like damning motherhood. Or to challenge the belief that mammography does not save many lives may condemn you to hell. But everyone should be asking probing questions about the sacred cow of mammography.

Dr. Peter Gotzsche, a leading Danish researcher, claims there is no convincing evidence that annual mammograms decrease the risk of death from breast cancer.

To reach this conclusion Gotzsche and his colleagues analyzed international studies on half a million women.

Non-Smokers With Lung Cancer Get Double Whammy
 By Dr. Gifford Jones

An interesting psychological reaction happens to non-smokers who develop lung cancer. It occurs over and over again. When told someone has breast cancer friends often say, “How sad! Is there anything we can do to help?” But when informed a person has lung cancer, the first response is “Was he or she a smoker?” The remark often stigmatizes non-smokers afflicted with this disease.

Dana Reeves, the widow of former actor Christopher Reeves (Superman), who has never smoked, recently announced she has been diagnosed with lung cancer. It’s a frightful tragedy for a young woman who dedicated so many years to help her stricken husband. But her plight has made everyone aware that non-smokers develop lung cancer more often than suspected.

Darling, I Decided To Get a Second Opinion
 By Dr. Gifford Jones

“How many angels can dance on the head of a pin?” That’s a tough question to answer. Almost as hard as providing logical answers to questions of the PSA test used to detect prostate cancer. A recent report in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) claims that the accepted normal PSA value of 4.1 misses 15 per cent of prostate malignancies.

To correct this problem it’s been suggested that the normal level for PSA should be lowered to 2.5. But a Texas study of 3,000 males aged 62 to 91 revealed that 6.6 percent of these males with PSA levels of only 0.5 had prostate cancer! It appears no value is totally safe.

Death From The Sun
 By Dr. Gifford Jones

Ask Wayne Gretzky if you want to know about hockey. But ask Australians if you want to know about malignant melanomas, a deadly form of skin cancer. That country has the highest rate of this skin malignancy in the world. And studies show that in North America melanomas are becoming more common every year. We would all be dead without the sun’s energy. But being a sun worshiper is one easy way to leave this planet prematurely.

Every year over 50,000 new cases of malignant melanoma occur in North America. According to the American Academy of Dermatology one person dies every hour from this malignancy on this continent. Today, skin cancer is the most common malignancy in women between 25 and 30 years of age. 

If Breasts Can Be Examined Why Not The Testicles?
 By Dr. Gifford Jones

For years we’ve stressed to women the importance of an annual breast examination for the detection of cancer. Yet today little attention is paid to examination of the male testicles. It’s time for women to remind their mates that what is good medicine for the goose is also good medicine for the gander. Routine testicular self-examination (TSE) is the answer.

Dr. Joel Brenner, Assistant Professor of Sports Medicine at the University of Georgia, says, “There is a taboo about talking about the testicles unlike breasts and mammograms that are discussed on prime-time television.”

Yet cancer of the testicles is one of the most treatable cancers. The case of Lance Armstrong is the best example. In 1996 this world class athlete and five time winner of the Tour de France ignored early symptoms of groin soreness. Later he began to suffer from headaches and blurry vision. The diagnosis? Testicular cancer that had spread to many parts of his body.

His sex prowess may enter The Guinness Book of Records
 By Dr. Gifford Jones

Every year, thousands of men face a dilemma. Their blood test for prostate cancer (PSA) suspects a malignancy. Subsequent biopsies prove that cancer is indeed present, but today, the wisdom of Solomon is required to know what to do about it. Particularly when the first question they, and their wives, ask is, “Will the treatment result in impotence?”

Dr. Gary Onik is a radiologist and Director of the Centre for Surgical Advancement in Celebration, Florida. He recently reported to the Radiological Society of North America meeting in Chicago that freezing the prostate gland (cryosurgery) can save men from impotence, urinary incontinence, and injury to bowel.

Cryosurgery kills the malignancy by freezing only part of the gland, but spares the nerves responsible for an erection.

The Good And The Bad Of Cancer Screening
 By Dr. Gifford Jones

“Why did my wife die of Breast cancer when she’s had a mammogram every year?” Or “I went through hell after the mammogram revealed a possible cancer.” Or “During a routine checkup examination the doctor discovered my 73 year old husband had an elevated PSA test. He didn’t have any symptoms, but a biopsy revealed cancer of the prostate. A specialist advised a radical prostatectomy. Now he’s impotent and in diapers.” Every year I receive letters asking these questions. That’s why it’s vital to know the negatives as well as the positives about cancer screening.

There is no doubt that cancer screening saves lives. But there is also a price to pay. Any woman who agrees to mammography has to understand the possibility of a frightening telephone call that a second mammogram is needed. Why? Because a suspicious area has been spotted that requires additional inspection. At this point it takes a strong woman not succumb to the conclusion that, “I’ve got breast cancer.” And sleepless nights begin.

Milk Cuts Ovarian Cancer Risk By 50 Percent
 By Dr. Gifford Jones

How can we change these grim facts? That we can’t diagnose early ovarian cancer. And that once this malignancy spreads to other organs, 85 percent of women are dead within five years. Every doctor asks himself this question when confronted with the tragic confirmation of this disease. Now a new study shows that drinking milk cuts the risk of ovarian cancer by 50 percent!

It’s logical for women to ask, “Why can’t doctors diagnose early ovarian cancer?” After all, we live in an era of CT scans, MRI’s, ultrasound and blood tests. Unfortunately none of these tests can spot “early” malignancies of the ovary.

Do Support Groups Extend Life?
 By Dr. Gifford Jones

Does the power of positive thinking extend life when patients face serious life-threatening disease? Will joining support groups add months or years to life? Will they provide psychological benefit and ease the pain? Or is holding hands with strangers just a lot of hokus pocus?

Numerous studies have shown that focussing the mind on the fight against disease does work. That it not only improves life, but also extends it.

In 1989 the medical journal, Lancet, reported a study conducted by Dr David Spiegel, a psychiatrist at Stanford University. Patients with advanced breast cancer were randomly treated with standard care or standard care along with a support group. 

Music Can Save Lives
 By Dr. Gifford Jones

Do you listen to western music, jazz or Mozart? It doesn’t matter which type because any can save lives. So why isn’t music a part of all medical procedures?

Every year thousands of people die from colon cancer. The majority could have been saved by regular examination of the large bowel. Yet many people refuse this procedure because of its indignity and discomfort.

But researchers report to The American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons that music therapy during colonoscopy reduces psychological and physical stress. 

Pat Quinn Sends The Wrong Message
 By Dr. Gifford Jones

Why do Pat Quinn, Mike Harris and other celebrities do it? I refer to recent photos, one of Mike Harris, former Premier of Ontario, smoking a stogie on the golf course. Another of a multi-millionaire sports celebrity lighting up after winning a championship. The latest is a front page picture in The Toronto Sun of Pat Quinn, coach of the Maple Leaf hockey team, smoking a stogie during the NHL playoffs. This sends the wrong message to young fans. Celebrities are not lighting up for victory. They’re lighting up for death. It’s time public relations agents told macho males to stop acting like jackasses.

What an ironic situation. In the same newspaper on the previous day in the sports section, mention was made that Quinn had taken the day off. Not to play golf. But to have his heart monitored as he had had trouble breathing. Yet, the next day he’s smoking a stogie! Surely, someone should have the courage to tell him to see a psychiatrist.

The Prostate Dilemma In Treating Cancer
 By Dr. Gifford Jones

What should I do? I’ve been diagnosed with cancer of the prostate gland and my doctor has suggested a radical prostatectomy. He claims that a new report shows that surgery is the best way to ensure a cure. Of all the letters I receive this question is always the hardest one to answer.

The New England Journal of Medicine recently published a study from Sweden in which doctors followed men with an average age of 65 years with prostate cancer for 10 years.

695 men with prostate cancer were treated with radical surgery. In radical prostatectomy surgeons remove the prostate, as well as surrounding tissue and lymph nodes. Another group of 347 men with the same problem were treated by watchful waiting.

Is there a good side to Terminal Cancer?
 By Dr. Gifford Jones

Can there possibly be anything positive about dying from terminal cancer? For years I have focussed on the pain and agony suffered by so many patients afflicted with a fatal malignancy. But recently a headline in the Medical Post caught my eye. Dr. Robert Shepherd, a physician and victim of terminal cancer, described in an article some of the advantages of knowing you have just a short time to live.

What Dr. Shepherd wrote reminds me of Samuel Johnson’s remark that, “Nothing sharpens the wit so much as the knowledge you’re going to be hanged in the morning.” There’s little doubt that Shepherd’s medical diagnosis helped him rearrange his priorities. 

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