Sierra Nevada Cancer Center Offers Lung Cancer Treatment in Your Hometown

Lung Cancer Treatment Options

Lung cancer is the leading cancer killer in both men and women. Lung cancer causes more deaths than colorectal, breast, and prostate cancers combined. Chemotherapy continues to be the most effective lung cancer treatment available in the United States. Sierra Nevada Cancer Center has successfully used chemotherapy to combat lung cancer in the past. Dr. Perez and his team, after thoroughevaluation of your condition and your lifestyle, will recommend which cancer treatment is best for you.

Sierra Nevada Cancer Center is always looking for new ways to fight cancer. Lung cancer vaccines are not yet an FDA-approved reality, but remain a technology on the watch list for lung cancer centers across America — as well as Sierra Nevada Cancer Center.

In the spring of 2015, the FDA approved lung cancer treatment with nivolumab (Opdivo®). This advancement in immunotherapy for lung cancer is an exciting new development in the field of lung cancer treatment. Once thought of as a type of cancer that was poorly immunogenic, lung cancer is now the target of immune-based therapies. Studies show that a patient using nivolumab had a 40 percent reduced risk of death when used to treat non small-cell lung cancer that has failed chemotherapy.

The type of treatment recommended typically depends on factors such as the stage of the cancer when detected and if it has spread to other parts of the body, the type of lung cancer, whether the cancer has mutations and the patient's general health.

Advances in Lung Cancer Care

In addition to being the leading killer in men and women, lung cancer is the most common cancer worldwide. Sierra Nevada Cancer Center is committed to providing the best in lung cancer care, keeping the patients’ needs and comfort in mind. Sierra Nevada Cancer Center has locations throughout Nevada as well as northern California, so patients with lung cancer do not have to travel far for their lung cancer treatment. Sierra Nevada Cancer Center offers specialized treatment for all of its patients, treating them with what they need and what treatments best suit their lifestyles.

Sierra Nevada Cancer Center remains dedicated to offering the best technology available in their patients’ fight against cancer. Sierra Nevada Cancer Center keeps well-informed in the field of lung cancer treatment and lung cancer care so they can better serve the Northern Nevada community. Though there is not yet a cure for lung cancer, Sierra Nevada Cancer Center provides the best care available for all of their patients.

The Future of Colon Cancer Treatment

Colon cancer will affect 1 in 20 Americans in their lifetime. So how effective is chemotherapy for colon cancer? And perhaps more importantly, what's the latest in colon cancer treatment?

The headlines stemming from colon cancer treatment and prevention are abundant these days. From one source (medicalnewstoday.com) in the past month alone, there are news stories with headlines like, "…scientists patent an effective drug for treating breast, colon, and skin cancers," and "Newly identified biomarker may help predict colon cancer progression, personalize therapy."So how do you break through the hype to what is truly breaking news in the prevention and treatment for colon cancer today?

Perhaps the most promising treatment is immunotherapy for colon cancer. Immunotherapy uses a patient's own immune system to fight cancer—something that is proving successful in treating many types of cancers including melanoma, kidney cancer and lung cancer in study after study.

There are two types of immunotherapy for colon cancer and other types of cancer: active immunotherapy, which trains naturally occurring antibodies within the immune system to identify cancer cells as harmful, and to attack them; and passive immunotherapy, which uses lab-engineered monoclonal antibodies to kill cancer cells. Both types spare perfectly healthy cells, unlike today's chemotherapy for colon cancer.

"Chemotherapy has come a long way in treating colon cancer, "said Dr. Jorge Perez of Sierra Nevada Cancer Center in Carson City, Nevada. "But treatment innovation is important. I'm excited to explore the possibilities of immunotherapy."

Scientists are working diligently to prove that immunotherapy for colon cancer is more targeted and more successful than chemotherapy for colon cancer, and with fewer side effects, too.

Immunotherapy for colon cancer is still in the early phases of clinical testing. However, successes in the study of immunotherapy in other cancers are giving doctors and patients new hope for curing and preventing colon cancer in our lifetime.

The contrast is undeniable between immunotherapy and the current options for treatment of colon cancer, which include surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. While current treatments attack all fast-growing cells regardless of whether they're cancerous or not, immunotherapy selects only the cancerous cells to attack and kill.

In addition to immunotherapy and chemotherapy for colon cancer, there are also alternative and complementary therapies that some patients turn to after a diagnosis. Although they sound similar, they do not mean the same thing.

Alternative therapies are treatments that some choose instead of a doctor's medical treatment. These types of alternative treatments have typically not been tested scientifically to be safe and/or effective, and unfortunately, often postpone or take the place of scientifically tested treatments offer.

Complementary therapies, on the other hand, are used in conjunction with medically proven colon cancer treatments. These therapies are geared toward palliative care, or helping patients feel better. For example, meditation can reduce stress, peppermint tea can relieve nausea associated with colon cancer chemotherapy, and acupuncture has shown to relieve pain. According to the Mayo Clinic, no complementary or alternative therapies have been proven to cure colon cancer. However, certain treatments have given patients some relief of physical and emotional distress.

While the next great colon cancer treatment—immunotherapy for colon cancer—is not on the market just yet, there is promise of better, gentler treatment options. Experts encourage people with a colon cancer diagnosis to have an open dialogue with their doctor about the latest clinical trials, and about alternative and complementary therapies for colon cancer.

Are Breast Cancer Vaccines The New Chemotherapy?

The idea of curing breast cancer with a simple therapeutic vaccine instead of surgery and/or months of chemotherapy or radiation is very appealing to patients and breast cancer centers alike. And while we're not quite there yet scientifically, that certainly is the goal—one that's within reach.

In the past year, medical powerhouses like the Mayo Clinic, Johns Hopkins and MD Anderson have been studying various therapeutic breast cancer vaccines, all showing promise.

The Mayo Clinic is currently working on a breast cancer vaccine for a highly aggressive type called 'triple negative', which affects 15-20% of breast cancer patients. It cannot be treated by estrogen blockers like Tamoxifen, as this particular form of breast cancer is not fueled by estrogen. Instead, chemotherapy for this breast cancer type is currently the only treatment option, and that even with chemotherapy, the breast cancer is likely to return and metastasize.

Johns Hopkins is studying experimental breast cancer vaccine in clinical trials as well. This breast cancer vaccine awakens the immune system and teaches lead immune cells to attack breast cancer cells, something the cells do not inherently detect as foreign or dangerous.

The MD Anderson Cancer Center is studying ways to boost the body's immune system to fight metastatic breast cancer, and to prevent recurrence. Researchers there have taken on hard-to-treat metastatic cancer because of its aggressive nature.

In nearly every cancer center where research is happening (and well funded), breast cancer vaccines are being developed and studied and with good reason. Even with the improved cure rate using current therapies like chemotherapy for breast cancer, experts estimate that more than 200,000 women in the United States will be diagnosed with breast cancer each year.

The collective mission among breast cancer centers, researchers, patients, survivors and the society as a whole is to wipe out breast cancer entirely. To do that, a second kind of breast cancer vaccine is needed: the preventative vaccine.

Currently, the Cleveland Clinic is studying a breast cancer vaccine that the researchers believe will prevent cancer from occurring in the first place. They have already demonstrated success in mice. The study is now in Phase 1 of FDA clinical trials on its effectiveness on humans. This particular breast cancer vaccine is designed to activate the immune system to attack a type of protein only found in breast cancer tumors.

Experts predict that a successful vaccine will be approved and ready for use in a handful of years, not decades. So while chemotherapy for breast cancer is hardly a therapy of the past, breast cancer vaccine research seems to be paving the way for a world without breast cancer chemotherapy, radiation and most importantly, breast cancer itself.

SNCC Offers Immunotherapy, Cancer Vaccines

The immune system is developed to help protect the body from infections and diseases. Immune cells are designed to travel through the body to detect harmful germs or cells that can cause infections. The immune system can also help protect the body from cancer in some ways; however, there are limits to what the immune system can do to fight cancer on its own.

When dealing with cancer, there are many treatment options available. Determining the best and most effective treatment for your cancer case can seem overwhelming, which is why you need a cancer expert on your side to answer questions. And one set of questions you may have may be about immunotherapy, which can include cancer vaccines.

“Immunotherapy is a constantly evolving treatment option for cancer,” said Dr. Jorge Perez with Sierra Nevada Cancer Center. “Its focus is on enhancing the immune system, enacting the body’s own defenses to fight off, or stop, the spread of cancer in the body.”

Immunotherapy can help treat a variety of cancers such as melanoma, breast, prostate and lung cancer.

Melanoma is the deadliest form of skin cancer and is responsible for the majority of skin cancer-related deaths. Breast cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed in women, whereas prostate cancer is the most common cancer among men and lung cancer is a leading cause of cancer deaths. The most common treatment options for these types of cancer may consist of surgery followed by radiation therapy, chemotherapy and targeted therapy.

But for many different types of cancer, immunotherapy has shown to be effective in a variety of clinical outcomes for patients with cancer. Immunotherapy can be used in conjunction with other cancer treatment options such as radiation or chemotherapy.

The most effective immunotherapy treatments for cancer consist of:

• cancer vaccines, which help trigger the immune system to attack tumor antigens;
• monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), where generated molecules or antibodies target cancer tumors by causing an immune response;
• Checkpoint inhibitors, which are target molecules that produce or enhance pre-existing anti-cancer immune responses to attack cancer cells.

Cancer Vaccines

There are two different types of cancer vaccines: vaccines that can prevent certain types of cancer and vaccines that can help treat cancer.

Similar to traditional vaccines used to prevent the chickenpox or the flu, cancer vaccines can help prevent or treat cancer. Preventive cancer vaccines are most effective for cancers known to be caused by infections, like the HPV vaccine, which helps prevent cervical, anal or throat cancers that can begin as an infection. Most cancers such as lung, prostate and breast cancers are not thought to be caused by infections and therefore can not be prevented by a cancer vaccine.

However, treatment cancer vaccines help boost the immune system to attack against cancer cells in the body. Take, for example, Sipuleucel-T (Provenge®), the only U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved vaccine used to treat advanced prostate cancer that is no longer being helped by hormone therapy. Although the vaccine cannot cure prostate cancer, it has helped extend the lives of men with prostate cancer.

Monoclonal Antibodies

Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) are man-made antibodies that specifically target a certain antigen, such as one that is found in cancer cells. When dealing with cancer, creating monoclonal antibodies can be difficult, especially when trying to identify the right antigen to attack. The FDA has approved more than a dozen mAbs to treat certain cancers. There are two main types of mAbs: naked mAbs, which are antibodies not attached to drugs or radioactive material, and conjugated mAbs, which are joined to a chemotherapy drug or a radioactive particle. Adoptive T cell therapy can be similar to mAbs, but instead, T cells are removed from a patient and then modified or treated to enhance activity. They are then transferred back into the patient to improve the immune system’s anti-cancer response.

Checkpoint Inhibitors

Checkpoints in the immune system are important to keep the immune system from attacking the normal cells in the body, but oftentimes cancer cells can find ways to avoid these checkpoints and avoid being attacked by the immune system. Checkpoint inhibitors can access these immune cells that need to be activated to start an immune response to recognize and attack cancer cells in the body. These inhibitors are particularly effective in treating advanced melanoma by blocking the protein that typically prevent the immune system from attacking itself, often shrinking tumors and helping patients live longer.

Although they cannot cure or prevent cancer, these immunotherapy treatments have helped certain patients with their specific cancer case. As researchers begin to understand and learn about the immune system and how it can be used to treat cancer, immunotherapy treatments are constantly changing and advancing. Some immunotherapy treatments focus on simply boosting the body’s immune system, whereas others are used to train the immune system to specifically attack cancer cells.

Lung Cancer Treatment Options

Lung cancer is the second most common cancer diagnosed to both men and women and accounts for about 13 percent of all new type of cancers. It is responsible for 27 percent of all cancer deaths.

 According to the American Cancer Society, there are two main types of lung cancer: non-small cell lung cancer and small cell lung cancer.

“Each type of lung cancer has a variety of different treatment options,” said Dr. Jorge Perez oncologist with Sierra Nevada Cancer Center. “Treatment options should be specific to your case, so it is important to discuss all possible treatment options with your oncologist.”

 Treatments for lung cancer may include:

 Surgical options:

• Pneumonectomy: where an entire lung is removed.
• Lobectomy: where an entire section or lobe of a lung is removed.

Radiofrequency ablation (RFA):

Treatment where a probe is placed through the skin and into the tumor sending an electric current that heats the tumor to destroy it.This may also be an option for some patients who cannot tolerate surgery or for small lung tumors that are near the outer edge of the lungs.

Radiation therapy:

Uses high-energy rays (such as x-rays) or particles to kill cancer cells. There are 2 main types– external beam radiation therapy and brachytherapy (internal radiation therapy).

Targeted therapies:

Targeted drugs that work differently from standard chemotherapy and that specifically target changes in Lung Cancer. They are most often used for advanced lung cancers, either along with chemo or by themselves.

Immunotherapy:

The use of medicines used to stimulate a patient’s immune system to recognize and destroy cancer cells more effectively.

Chemotherapy:

May be used in different situations:

• Before or after surgery (sometimes along with radiation therapy) to try to shrink a tumor or to kill cancer cells that may have been left behind.
• As the main treatment (sometimes along with radiation therapy) for more advanced cancers or for some patients where surgery isn't an option.

Lung cancer chemotherapy, to elaborate,is most commonly used for small and non-small lung cancers. Lung carcinoid tumors do not respond well to chemotherapy because it does not always shrink the carcinoid tumors. Chemotherapy when used for carcinoid tumors is mainly used when they have spread to other organs, causing severe symptoms, and in some cases may be given after surgery.

Lung cancer chemotherapy may still be an option for patients, but it is always important to ask your doctor about the risks and benefits about chemotherapy in relation to your cancer case.

“At SNCC, we believe in treating the patient as a whole, not only the disease,” Dr. Perez said. “We work diligently to educate patients about their condition and treatment options.”

 For more information about lung cancer, see our newsletter here. http://www.sierranevadacancer.com/news/lung-cancer-101

Sierra Nevada Cancer Center Talks Breast Cancer: Care, Prevention, Risk Factors

Thanks to remarkable improvements in cancer detection, care and research, millions of women are surviving breast cancer today.

Our last post talked about treatment options and detection methods. This time, we’re talking about the role of personal care when diagnosed with breast cancer, as well as preventive measures and risk factors.

Personal Care

The idea of undergoing any cancer treatment can be difficult, which is why Dr. Jorge Perez and his team strive to offer immediate Advanced Cancer Care to patients and their families.

“I work personally with patients and their families and collaborate closely on disease management,” said Dr. Perez. “ I want all of my patients to beat their cancer, and I will do everything that I can to help them restore their health.”

The team prides itself on its personal approach, and SNCC patients become part of our extended family of cancer warriors and survivors.

“We are here to help,” said Dr. Perez. “While you are in our care, we want you to feel like you have a friend — and a resource that can help connect you with information, support, ideas or just an ear to listen.”

And the best feedback we can hear is that our patients felt supported throughout the process.

"I feel very blessed that the Sierra Nevada Cancer Center has been helping me fight my spreading breast cancer,” said SNCC patient and South Lake Tahoe resident Kathy B. “Dr. Perez and his staff are very supportive, inspirational, professional and secure. An illness like mine makes life difficult every day, but being able to communicate and stay focused on my medications helps me stay strong and encouraged to continue with all my treatments. Thank you with all my heart and soul."

Preventive Measures

Treatment and early detection is what has given the millions of breast cancer survivors their best chance at beating cancer.

 To reduce your risk of breast cancer:

• Increase your level of physical activity
• Maintain a healthy weight and diet
• Decrease the consumption of alcohol
• Talk with your doctor about ways to avoid Combined Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT)

Risk Factors

Many factors contribute to the risk of developing breast cancer — gender, age, family history and race among them.

• Breast cancer occurs nearly 100 times more often in women than in men. Men can also be diagnosed with breast cancer, but they have a far greater risk developing Prostate Cancer.
• Two out of three women with invasive cancer are diagnosed after age 55.
• If your mother, sister, father or child has been diagnosed with breast cancer, the risk of you developing breast cancer increases, especially if your relative was diagnosed before the age of 50.
• It is unknown as to why, but breast cancer is more common in Caucasian women.

Keep in mind: You only have control over some aspects of your risk factors. Sierra Nevada Cancer is here to help if you are diagnosed, with facilities and treatments that will encourage healing in your battle against cancer.

 For more information about breast cancer, click here. http://www.sierranevadacancer.com/news/focus-breast-cancer

Sierra Nevada Cancer Center Helps Women with Breast Cancer

It is estimated that in the year 2015, about 40,290 wives, mothers, daughters, granddaughters, nieces and sisters will die from breast cancer.

However, according to the American Cancer Society, there are currently more than 2.8 million breast cancer survivors in the United States.

We like that number.

Yes, breast cancer can be deadly. But the big picture reveals: Many, MANY survive. And we at Sierra Nevada Cancer Center are here to help.

Breast cancer is comprised of malignant cells that start in the cells of the breast and can grow into surrounding tissues or spread to distant areas of the body.

At Sierra Nevada Cancer, we believe in fighting alongside our patients when treating breast cancer. We strive to educate patients about breast cancer and the treatment options that are best for them.

Early detection is vital for any kind of cancer; specific to breast cancer, the following are the American Cancer Society recommendations for early breast cancer detection in women without breast symptoms:

Women age 40 and older should have a mammogram every year and should continue to do so for as long as they are in good health.

• Women in their 20s and 30s should have a clinical breast exam (CBE) as part of a periodic (regular) health exam by a health professional preferably every 3 years. Starting at age 40, women should have a CBE by a health professional every year.
• Breast self-exam (BSE) is an option for women starting in their 20s. Women should be told about the benefits and limitations of BSE. Women should report any breast changes to their health professional right away.
• Women who are at high risk for breast cancer based on certain factors should get an MRI and a mammogram every year.

Treatment Options

So if breast cancer is detected, how can it be treated?

There are numerous ways to treat breast cancer, and the type of treatment recommended will always take stage of the disease, lifestyle and personal patient histories into consideration.

Patients at SNCC experience one-on-one counseling, complete education about options and consultation about side effects, expected outcomes and considerations for each choice.

Primarily, however, these are the main types of treatment for breast cancer:

• Surgery
  • Breast-conserving surgery: where only the part of the breast containing the cancer is removed.
  • Mastectomy: surgery that removes the entire breast, including breast tissue and other nearby tissues.
• Radiation therapy
  • External beam radiation: radiation applied from a machine outside the body on the area affected by the cancer.
  • Brachytherapy: known as internal radiation, radioactive seeds or pellets are placed into a device in the breast tissue in the area where the cancer was identified.
• Chemotherapy: cancer-killing drugs that may be given intravenously (injected into a vein) or by mouth.
• Hormone therapy: most often used to help reduce the risk of the cancer coming back after surgery, but also used to treat cancer that has come back after treatment or has spread.
• Targeted therapy: drugs that target the HER2/neu protein. A number of drugs have been developed that target this protein:
  • Trastuzumab (Herceptin)
  • Pertuzumab (Perjeta®)
  • Ado-trastuzumabemtansine (Kadcyla™)
  • Lapatinib (Tykerb)
• Bone-directed therapy: drugs like bisphosphonates and denosumab are used when cancer spreads to bones, to lower the risks of pain, fractures and other problems.

Our next post (article) will focus on the importance of personal Cancer Care, risk factors for breast cancer and preventive measures.

In the meantime, if you or someone you love is diagnosed with breast cancer, Sierra Nevada Cancer facilities are specifically designed to make Cancer Treatments relaxing and comfortable, allowing us to aid you in your battle against cancer.

For more information about breast cancer, click here. http://www.sierranevadacancer.com/news/focus-breast-cancer