by Rick Davis | Mar 5, 2020 | Advocacy, Blood Cancers, Brain Tumors, Cancer Resources, Men's Breast Cancer, Multiple Sclerosis, Prostate Cancer, Recent News, Sarcoidosis, Women's Breast Cancer
Our Board Member and Moderator, Ken Anderson resides in Phoenix and is living with metastatic prostate cancer. He recently uncovered this article on a longstanding controversy over why many trials are not well reported. (rd)
https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/01/fda-and-nih-let-clinical-trial-sponsors-keep-results-secret-and-break-law
Seems the topic of clinical research and the data identified when the trials conclude has been around for years but one that I have just recently been forced into exploring in depth. At this point in my prostate cancer journey, certain second line hormone threapy drugs, that I would have hoped extend my life for years, have failed after just a couple months. This seems to be true for others and at the moment no one seems to know why. Is it from starting up front with aggressive treatments like chemotherapy? That may have forced my cancer to change just enough so something within the cancer cell activated and my cancer no longer has the required structure to allow these newer drugs to help extend life.
At this time I am fully aware that managing disease progression and cancer burden is the goal. As we move through these drugs and exhaust the Standard of Care outlined by our medical oncologists, our next option is to look for clinical trials. The data from these trials, both good and bad, has value. I can only hope that even when the data is not published, it is at minimum shared among our finest medical institutions and doctors.
An article published in Science this past month helps outline some of the Centers of Excellence that are doing a fine job with making the data available and others that are not doing so well. Find the article here.
We can only hope that the FDA and the NIH will start to use the power they do have to force more active reporting. The data from these trials, no matter the outcome, should be published in a timely manner.
by Rick Davis | Mar 1, 2020 | Exercise, Advocacy, Cancer Resources, Men 'Speaking Freely', Men's Breast Cancer, Prostate Cancer, Recent News, Women's Breast Cancer
Those of you who have followed me for years know I am totally committed to exercise. I strongly believed and endorsed its positive effects for disease control, especially for cancer. long before it was fashionable or well documented. I started a cancer exercise program at UCSF within 18 months of being diagnosed myself in 2007, that has flourished. At the time there was a paucity of evidence …. now it is abundant. Some of that evidence is well documented on the Research Page of our MedaFit site.
Our regular paritcpants in the High Risk/Recurrent/Advanced Prostate Cancer Virtual Group will know we have two particpants who swear by Dragon Boat Racing ….. Richard Foody who paddles for the MSKCC team.trained by guru Donna Wilson, as you can see.
And Advisory Board Member, Richard Wassersug PhD who paddles out West for his Vancouver based Butts in a Boat team. Richard’s colleagues recently published an academic paper in the February 2020 Issue of the Journal of Psychosocial Oncology that, to none of our surprise, concludes:
Physical activity improves quality of life in men with PC and recreationalphysical activity interventions may be attractive supportive care options for PC survivors with both physical and psychosocial benefits. Joining a sportfocused care group may increase social support and elicit positive psychological growth and future interventions may benefit from integrating the unique characteristics of dragon boating into peer support programs formale cancer survivors.
You can read the full Dragon Boat PCa study 2020 by clcking on the live link. Kudos to both Richards on their Dragon Boat Paddling!
Me on the other hand ….. am very happy in my single scull – the exercise without the social part!
by Rick Davis | Feb 28, 2020 | Blood Cancers, Brain Tumors, Cancer Caregivers, Cancer Resources, Health Resources, Men's Breast Cancer, Prostate Cancer, Recent News, Women's Breast Cancer
This past Tuesday, we discussed the impact of the corona virus on those living with cancer and suggested some risk mitigants – you can listen here.
The following day, CURE posted their own article that we are linking –
….. but remember, you heard it here first!!!
O&U, rd
PS AnCan is not so sure about cancer drugs manufactured overseas – regulation is VERY lax. Plesae see our earlier post by Len Sierra .
by Rick Davis | Feb 4, 2020 | Blood Cancers, Advocacy, Cancer Caregivers, Cancer Resources, Men 'Speaking Freely', Men's Breast Cancer, Women's Breast Cancer
Kudos – or as Ali G would say, “RESPECT” – to our newest Moderator (well, almost!), Richard Farmer. Richard and Kenny Capps, of Throwing Bones for a Cure, are planning to launch an AnCan blood cancer virtual group within the next few weeks.
In the meantime, Richard just published Reflections On The Journey of Cancer and Marriage in Cure’s online magazine. You can read it here. Nothing comes easy …..
O&U, rd
by Rick Davis | Jan 29, 2020 | Men 'Speaking Freely', Cancer Caregivers, Cancer Resources, Complementary Medicine, Health Resources, hospice and palliative, Men's Breast Cancer, Multiple Sclerosis, Prostate Cancer, Recent News, Sarcoidosis, Women's Breast Cancer
Loss comes from many sources …not losing a loved one alone. How we, as men, grieve a loss can be complex and insufficient. I note how this author is still wrapped in deep mourning after several years … despite his own tips.
Our thanks to John Novack, our buddy at Inspire, who sent this article that appeared on the nextavenue website.
O&U, rd
