Cancer Awareness Month for September: Leukemia, Myeloma, Ovarian Cancer

September is leukemia, myeloma, and ovarian cancer awareness month. Be sure to subscribe to the Focus On Cancer blog and like the Abramson Cancer Center Facebook page for more information on leukemia, myeloma, and ovarian cancer throughout the entire month.

At a Glance: Leukemia

• Leukemia is a cancer of the blood or blood cells, and is categorized by how quickly they progress and which cells they affect.
• Cigarette smokers are at a higher risk for acute myelogenous leukemia because it increased their exposure to the chemical benzene.
• There are around 44,240 cases of leukemia per year in the United States. It is considered a rare disease and it’s recommended that patients be treated quickly by a medical center with experience with the disease.

Learn more about the treatment for leukemia at the Abramson Cancer Center.

At a Glance: Myeloma

• Myeloma cancer affects bone marrow plasma cells, causing low blood count, painful bone lesions and fractures, kidney failure, and an increased risk of infection.
• Multiple myeloma is very rare, with about 14,600 cases a year. It accounts for only 1 percent of all cancers diagnosed in the United States.
• Almost all patients with myeloma are at risk for eventual relapse, making follow up appointments a crucial part of treatment.

Learn more about the treatment for myeloma at the Abramson Cancer Center.

At a Glance: Ovarian Cancer

• Women with ovarian cancers rarely show symptoms until the cancers are advanced, making it the 5th most common cause of cancer death in women. 1 in 57 women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer each year.
• Because ovulation stops or occurs less in women who are breastfeeding, pregnancy and breastfeeding are linked to a decreased risk of ovarian cancer.
• The Penn Ovarian Cancer Research Center is working to establish an Ovarian Cancer Tumor Center to facilitate the procurement of ovarian tumor tissue at the time of surgery. Cells from the tumor issue can then be used to develop personalized vaccine therapies, which could eventually lead to improved survival and quality of life for women with ovarian cancer.

Learn more about the treatment for ovarian cancer at the Abramson Cancer Center.

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Breastfeeding and Decreased Risk of Ovarian Cancer

Ovarian cancer is cancer that forms in tissues of the ovary (one of a pair of female reproductive glands in which the ova, or eggs, are formed). Most ovarian cancers are either ovarian epithelial carcinomas (cancer that begins in the cells on the surface of the ovary) or malignant germ cell tumors (cancer that begins in egg cells).

While there is no cure for ovarian cancer yet, Penn Medicine is at the forefront of discovering new treatments for ovarian cancer, and learning about a woman's risk for developing ovarian cancer through research at the Basser Research Center for BRCA 1 and 2.

Pregnancy, Breastfeeding Linked To Decreased Risk of Ovarian Cancer

There are some ways women can decrease their risk of ovarian cancer. One of those ways is through pregnancy and breastfeeding.

Pregnancy and breastfeeding are linked to a decreased risk of ovarian cancer.

That is because ovulation stops or occurs less often in women who are pregnant or breastfeeding. Some experts believe that women who ovulate less often have a decreased risk of ovarian cancer.

In fact, Australian researchers conducted a study involving 493 women diagnosed with ovarian cancer and compared them with 472 healthy volunteers of similar age. Each was asked how many children they had and for how long they breastfed each one, the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition reports.

The results showed those who breastfed a child for at least 13 months were 63 percent less likely to develop a tumor than those who did so for less than seven months.

Mothers who had three children and breastfed for a total of 31 months or more were found to cut their chances of ovarian tumors by 91 percent. This was compared to those feeding naturally for a total of under 10 months.

Do You Know Your Risk?

Learn your risk for cancer with the What’s My Risk tool from Oncolink.

What’s My Risk? is a comprehensive program designed to help you learn about factors that determine your personal risk of many types of cancer and what they can do to decrease that risk.

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What is the BRCA Gene Mutation?

This week is Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer (HBOC) Risk Awareness Week.

The goal of HBOC Week is to raise awareness about hereditary cancer. HBOC Week marks the transition between National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month and National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and recognizes anyone affected by hereditary breast or ovarian cancer, including women and men with BRCA mutations, people with a family history of cancer, breast and ovarian cancer survivors, and previvors, individuals who carry a strong predisposition to cancer but have not developed the disease.

Women with breast cancer or ovarian cancer may want to ask their physicians if their cancer has a genetic link.

The BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, breast cancer susceptibility gene 1 and breast cancer susceptibility gene 2, are genes with several roles. One important role is to repair certain types of DNA errors that may occur each time a cell makes a copy of itself. Without a gene mutation, functional BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes help ensure the stability of the cell’s genetic material, or DNA, and help prevent uncontrolled cell growth. Mutations of these genes have been linked to an increased genetic risk for multiple forms of cancer, but most notably breast and ovarian cancer.

The lifetime risk of developing breast and/or ovarian cancer is greatly increased for women who inherit a harmful mutation in BRCA1 or BRCA2. These women have an increased risk of developing breast and/or ovarian cancer at an earlier than average age and may have multiple, close family members who have been diagnosed with these conditions.

Mutations in BRCA1 or BRCA2 may also increase the risk for pancreatic cancer and melanoma in both women and men. Men also have a higher chance to develop an earlier onset prostate cancer if a BRCA2 gene mutation is present. Men with BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations also have an increased risk of male breast cancer.

Should you get tested for a BRCA gene mutation?

In a family with a history of breast and/or ovarian cancer, the first step may be to test a family member who has had breast or ovarian cancer. If that person is found to have a harmful BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation, then other family members can be tested to see if they also have the mutation.

The Mariann and Robert MacDonald Women's Cancer Risk Evaluation Center provides genetic counseling to help people identify their genetic risk of breast cancer, ovarian cancer and other cancers.

The center assists patients with cancer as well as those individuals who may be at an increased risk for cancer.

The program is designed to:

• Help people understand their genetic risk of breast cancer, ovarian cancer and other cancers.
• Obtain and assess detailed family history information for possible inherited cancer conditions.
• Provide expert genetic counseling and the option of genetic testing.
• Arrange genetic testing and provide consultation regarding results.
• Provide a clinical breast examination.
• Provide tailored medical recommendations.
• Review outside genetic testing results and make recommendations for follow-up.
• Coordinate screening and long-term, follow-up care for those with a known inherited genetic risk for cancer.
• Review medical history and lifestyle risk factors.
• Provide a written summary of a genetic consultation.
• Evaluate eligibility for participation in research studies.

The Mariann and Robert MacDonald Women's Cancer Risk Evaluation Center also provides information for those who have been diagnosed with cancer and are interested in learning about the role of genetics in their disease.

Some people are interested in obtaining this information for the benefit of their siblings, children and grandchildren. The center also holds education and support programs periodically throughout the year for individuals at high risk for developing cancer.

*Some of this information was adapted from the National Cancer Institute.

Watch the Abramson Cancer Center’s Focus On Your Risk of Breast and Ovarian Cancer Conference to learn more about cancer genetics and risk assessment.

The Basser Research Center to Focus on BRCA1 and BRCA2

The Basser Research Center — BRC for BRCA — supports research on the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, harmful forms of which are linked to greatly increased risks of developing breast and ovarian cancer. The Center is named in honor of Mindy Gray’s sister, Faith Basser, who died of ovarian cancer at age 44.

The Basser Research Center was established with a $25 million gift to the University of Pennsylvania from alumni Mindy and Jon Gray.

Emphasizing outreach, prevention, early detection, treatment and survivorship, the Basser Research Center will contribute to all stages of research and clinical care related to BRCA-related cancers.

Learn more about the Basser Research Center.

Jill Stopfer, MS, is a certified genetic counselor at the Mariann and Robert MacDonald Women’s Cancer Risk Evaluation Center at Penn’s Abramson Cancer Center. In this blog post, she explained genetic risk due to the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes.

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Robotic Surgery for Ovarian Cancer Got Susan Home the Next Day

When Susan Cramer’s mother had gynecologic surgery back in 1973, she was in the hospital for nine days and spent two months recovering. When Cramer, 54, had a robotic-assisted radical hysterectomy for ovarian cancer this January, she was out of the hospital the next day and back to her routine as soon as she got home.

“I couldn’t believe the results,” says Cramer, who traveled from West Virginia to have her surgery at Pennsylvania Hospital. “I didn’t even need pain medication after 48 hours. It really was a miracle.”

Diagnosed with stage III ovarian cancer, Cramer researched her options and found Thomas Randall, MD, director of gynecologic oncology at Pennsylvania Hospital. She met with Dr. Randall, and was so impressed with the team at Penn Medicine, that she chose to have her surgery in Philadelphia – more than 250 miles away from her home in West Virginia.

“Surgery for gynecologic cancer used to mean open surgery with more risk for complications and a longer recovery time,” says Dr. Randall. “Today, with the technology and experience we have at Penn, we can often remove the cancer with a less invasive surgery so women can move forward with their treatment plans sooner.”

More surgical options for ovarian cancer at Penn

Robotic-assisted surgery is like other minimally invasive surgery in that instruments and cameras are inserted through small incisions in the body. In robotic surgery, however, the surgeon sits at a console next to the patient. Looking through a viewfinder in the console, he or she uses hand and foot controls to move the surgical “arms.”

“We can see more with the robot because it allows us to go deeper into the body without compromising control or sight,” says Dr. Randall. “We use 3-D binoculars while we operate that actually allow us to see more clearly than if we were performing traditional surgery.”

Robotic-assisted surgery also requires smaller incisions, so there is less blood loss and a shorter hospital stay. It is an ideal option for women with a lot of scar tissue or who are obese. “Most women I see are candidates for robotic-assisted surgery,” says Dr. Randall. “This type of surgery can actually reduce the amount of scar tissue and adhesions from surgery.”

Dr. Randall says most robotic surgeries he performs are for endometrial and cervical cancer. While using robotic surgery to treat ovarian cancer is a recent development, Dr. Randall says the efforts of the Penn Ovarian Cancer Research Center (OCRC) has helped provide women with ovarian cancer more innovative treatment options.

The Penn Ovarian Cancer Research Center’s major initiative, immunotherapy, uses a patient’s own tumor tissue to develop cancer vaccines and therapeutic lymphocytes. The Center collects, transports, processes and stores the tumor tissue of both Penn and non-Penn patients — offering women with ovarian cancer the opportunity to access personalized tumor vaccine services.

The OCRC brings together scientists and clinicians to develop innovative approaches to treating ovarian cancer, with the goal of improving survival and the quality of life for women with this disease

Experience driving technology

Penn is home to eight da Vinci Surgical Systems, making it one of the largest robotic-assisted surgical programs in the United States. However, the experience of the surgical team is what really makes Penn’s program stand out.

Dr. Randall is a national expert in robotic-assisted gynecologic surgery, and has performed more than 800 robotic-assisted surgeries since 2007.“Everyone on our surgical team is an early adopter of technology,” says Dr. Randall.

Gynecologic oncologists at Pennsylvania Hospital are also part of a multidisciplinary team of cancer treatment specialists that work together to create a tailored treatment plan for every patient.

For Susan Cramer, the physician experience combined with advanced technology meant more than just a few tiny incisions; it meant getting valuable time back thanks to a quicker recovery.

Get the Facts About Ovarian Cancer

Learn more about ovarian cancer, and ovarian cancer treatment at Penn.

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Shaping the Future of Ovarian Cancer Treatment at Penn

Terri Loring of Philadelphia is an ovarian cancer survivor.

One in 57 women will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer this year, and most women have advanced disease at the time of diagnosis because ovarian cancer may have no symptoms in its early stages.

The Penn Ovarian Cancer Research Center is working to establish an Ovarian Cancer Tumor Center to facilitate the procurement of ovarian tumor tissue at the time of surgery. Cells from the tumor issue can then be used to develop personalized vaccine therapies, which could eventually lead to improved survival and quality of life for women with ovarian cancer.

In this video, Terri shares her story of survivorship, and George Coukos, MD, PhD, of the The Penn Ovarian Cancer Research Center talks about research at Penn that is shaping the future of ovarian cancer treatment.

Learn more about ovarian cancer treatment at the Abramson Cancer Center.

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Facts About Ovarian Cancer

September is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month.

Ovarian cancer is cancer that forms in tissues of the ovary (one of a pair of female reproductive glands in which the ova, or eggs, are formed). Most ovarian cancers are either ovarian epithelial carcinomas (cancer that begins in the cells on the surface of the ovary) or malignant germ cell tumors (cancer that begins in egg cells).

While there is no cure for ovarian cancer yet, Penn Medicine is at the forefront of discovering new treatments for ovarian cancer, and learning about a woman's risk for developing ovarian cancer through research at the Basser Research Center for BRCA 1 and 2.

 

Facts About Ovarian Cancer

• 1 in 57 women in the United States will develop ovarian cancer.
• Over 21,000 women will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer in the Unites States this year.
• Two-thirds of women with ovarian cancer are age 55 or older at the time of diagnosis.
• 10 to15 percent of ovarian cancers are inherited, and women with a family history are at an increased risk.
• Ovarian cancer is the deadliest cancer among women and is the 5th leading cause of cancer-related deaths in women.
• Most women have advanced disease at the time of diagnosis because ovarian cancer may have no symptoms in its early stages.
• The majority of women with ovarian cancer fail conventional chemotherapy.
• Personalized immunotherapy using the patient's tumor to derive cancer vaccines and cell–based therapeutics is a promising new approach to treat ovarian cancer.
• The Penn Ovarian Cancer Research Center is working to establish an Ovarian Cancer Tumor Center to facilitate the procurement of ovarian tumor tissue at the time of surgery. Cells from the tumor issue can then be used to develop personalized vaccine therapies, which could eventually lead to improved survival and quality of life for women with ovarian cancer.

Learn more about ovarian cancer at the Abramson Cancer Center.

Do you know your risk for ovarian cancer?

The lifetime risk of developing certain types of cancer is greatly increased for women and men who inherit a BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation.

Men and women can learn if they have the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutation by getting evaluated at the Mariann and Robert MacDonald Cancer Risk Evaluation Center. There, men and women receive expert genetic counseling and education about their results, and the impact those results may have on their family.

This multidisciplinary program also provides long term care from medical oncologists with genetics expertise.

Learn more about ovarian cancer risk through research at the Basser Research Center for BRCA 1 and 2.

Read More

What are BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene mutations?

Jill Stopfer, MS, is a certified genetic counselor at the Mariann and Robert MacDonald Women’s Cancer Risk Evaluation Center at Penn’s Abramson Cancer Center. Here she explains genetic risk due to the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes.

Women with breast cancer or ovarian cancer may want to ask their physicians if their cancer has a genetic link.

The BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, breast cancer susceptibility gene 1 and breast cancer susceptibility gene 2, are genes with several roles. One important role is to repair certain types of DNA errors that may occur each time a cell makes a copy of itself. Without a gene mutation, functional BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes help ensure the stability of the cell’s genetic material, or DNA, and help prevent uncontrolled cell growth. Mutations of these genes have been linked to an increased genetic risk for multiple forms of cancer, but most notably breast and ovarian cancer.

The lifetime risk of developing breast and/or ovarian cancer is greatly increased for women who inherit a harmful mutation in BRCA1 or BRCA2. These women have an increased risk of developing breast and/or ovarian cancer at an earlier than average age and may have multiple, close family members who have been diagnosed with these conditions.

Mutations in BRCA1 or BRCA2 may also increase the risk for pancreatic cancer and melanoma in both women and men. Men also have a higher chance to develop an earlier onset prostate cancer if a BRCA2 gene mutation is present. Men with BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations also have an increased risk of male breast cancer.

Should you get tested for a BRCA gene mutation?

In a family with a history of breast and/or ovarian cancer, the first step may be to test a family member who has had breast or ovarian cancer. If that person is found to have a harmful BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation, then other family members can be tested to see if they also have the mutation.

The Mariann and Robert MacDonald Women's Cancer Risk Evaluation Center provides genetic counseling to help people identify their genetic risk of breast cancer, ovarian cancer and other cancers.

The center assists patients with cancer as well as those individuals who may be at an increased risk for cancer.

The program is designed to:

• Help people understand their genetic risk of breast cancer, ovarian cancer and other cancers.
• Obtain and assess detailed family history information for possible inherited cancer conditions.
• Provide expert genetic counseling and the option of genetic testing.
• Arrange genetic testing and provide consultation regarding results.
• Provide a clinical breast examination.
• Provide tailored medical recommendations.
• Review outside genetic testing results and make recommendations for follow-up.
• Coordinate screening and long-term, follow-up care for those with a known inherited genetic risk for cancer.
• Review medical history and lifestyle risk factors.
• Provide a written summary of a genetic consultation.
• Evaluate eligibility for participation in research studies.

The Mariann and Robert MacDonald Women's Cancer Risk Evaluation Center also provides information for those who have been diagnosed with cancer and are interested in learning about the role of genetics in their disease.

Some people are interested in obtaining this information for the benefit of their siblings, children and grandchildren. The center also holds education and support programs periodically throughout the year for individuals at high risk for developing cancer.

*Some of this information was adapted from the National Cancer Institute.

Watch the Abramson Cancer Center’s Focus On Your Risk of Breast and Ovarian Cancer Conference to learn more about cancer genetics and risk assessment.

The Basser Research Center to Focus on BRCA1 and BRCA2

The Basser Research Center — BRC for BRCA — supports research on the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, harmful forms of which are linked to greatly increased risks of developing breast and ovarian cancer. The Center is named in honor of Mindy Gray’s sister, Faith Basser, who died of ovarian cancer at age 44.

The Basser Research Center was established with a $25 million gift to the University of Pennsylvania from alumni Mindy and Jon Gray.

Emphasizing outreach, prevention, early detection, treatment and survivorship, the Basser Research Center will contribute to all stages of research and clinical care related to BRCA-related cancers.

Learn more about the Basser Research Center.

Read More