TEX US TOO!

Date: November 10, 2008
Time: 7:00 P.M
Place: Please Note the New Meeting Room Location: Youth Chapel, 2nd floor . St. Luke’s Methodist Church, 3471 Westheimer
Topic: "Solutions for post-prostatectomy incontinence and erectile dysfunction"
Speaker: Dr. Rob Cornell

Interest Group Meettings: New Member Orientation & Recurring Cancer: Room R-25 (upstairs); Radical Prostatectomy, Radiation and Quality of Life: Room R-12 (downstairs); Women’s Group: Room R-11 (downstairs).

Tex Us TOO is a prostate cancer support group for the purpose of sharing information, education, experiences and mutual support. WE DO NOT DISPENSE MEDICAL ADVICE.

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Dr. Robert J. Cornell is a Board-Certified General Adult and Prosthetic Urology surgeon and a repeat speaker to our chapter. He is a graduate of Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, internship with Dr. Michael DeBakey’s Department of General Surgery and residency at Baylor College of Medicine, Scott Department of Urology.

Annual Dues to support the activities of Tex US TOO are voluntary but essential for the continuation of our chapter (suggested amount $30) and should be mailed to 12335 Kingsride, #237, Houston, TX 77024-4116.

From: gerald chodak [mailto:gerald.chodak@gmail.com]
Sent: Sunday, November 02, 2008 8:27 PM
Subject: prostate cancer information

My name is Dr. Gerald Chodak, whom some of you may know because I write a regular column for the monthly US TOO hot sheet. I also formed the first US TOO chapter in the United States. I am writing to you because I have a created a unique educational website to help patients and families with prostate cancer. Unlike other websites, this one includes more than 60 relatively short videos that I made explaining every aspect of this disease. It is factual and evidence-based and does not tell patients one treatment is better than another unless good scientific studies provide support. New information is being added regularly including videos about health stories appearing in the news and media. The website also takes questions sent in by patients.

The goal now is to make this information available to as many people as possible. For that reason I am asking you to make a brief announcement at your regular meetings to inform patients and family members about the website and invite them to check it out as I recommend for you as well. The website address is www.ProstateVideos.com. I have also attached a one-page description of the site that you could download and hang up on a bulletin board or show at your meetings. I greatly appreciate your help and based on feedback to date from others who have visited the site, patients and families will benefit greatly. Thank you.

Alternative Vaccine Strategy Shows Promise in Prostate Cancer Patients: Senior New, Waco, TX, October 2008.

New Research indicates that giving patients a continuous low dose of an immune system booster, a method known as metronomic dosing, as part of a therapeutic prostate cancer vaccine strategy, is safe and produces similar immune responses and fewer side effects than the more common dosing method, which is not well tolerated by many patients. This study, led by researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, was published in the August 15, 2008, issue of “Clinical Cancer Research”.

The patients received the same total amount of Interleukin-2 (IL-2) as in a previous study, but it was administered in smaller daily doses for 14 days of each 28-day treatment cycle.

“Based on safety and feasibility, metronomic dosing appears to be superior to standard dosing and administration”, said James L. Gulley, M.D., Ph.D., of the NCI’s Center for Cancer Research. “More research is needed to evaluate the efficacy of this dosing method in treating prostate cancer”.

Recurrence After Prostatectomy: WRAM Us TOO, Inc. Walter Reed Army Medical Center Newsletter; Nov. 2008.

Men with organ-confined prostate cancer and a Gleason score of 6 or less, very rarely have local or biochemical recurrence of disease five years after prostatectomy, according to Hernandez, et al, the Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, MD.

In a study of 2,526 such patients, there were 13 cases (0.5%) of biochemical recurrence and 5 cases (0.2%) of local recurrence after a median of 5 years of follow-up. Furthermore, there were no cases of distant metastases and there were no prostate cancer-specific deaths.

The 5, 10 and 15 year actuarial probabilities of local recurrence were 0.1%, 0.5% and 0.5% respectively, and the corresponding probabilities of biochemical recurrence were 0.3%, 0.9% and 1.3%.

The researchers concluded that their study demonstrated that when prostate cancer is treated by the anatomic approach to radical prostatectomy with negative surgical margins and the tumor is organ-confined and lacks high-grade elements, it is effectively cured. (Source: Urology 208; 72:172-176, via Reuters Health Information, August 11, 2008)

“I Know nothing grander, better exercise, better digestion, more positive proof of the past, the triumphant result of faith in human kind, than a well-contested …election” -- Walt Whitman

We welcome suggestions, criticisms, and contributions to this publication. This Is Your Newsletter. Please contact Manny Vazquez at (936) 597-6646, or by E-mail, at manny@consolidated.net - - TEX US TOO, 12335 Kingsride, #237, Houston, TX 77024-4116 (713) 623-4772 WEBSITES: Tex Us TOO www.texustoo.org

As one of the original Chapters of US TOO International, we now are in the18th year of providing education and support to those impacted by prostate cancer. New treatments constantly are being developed, but the cause and cure continue to be a challenge to the medical profession, so our mission goes on.

Our primary activity remains our monthly meetings at St. Luke’s Methodist :Church featuring speakers from major health institutions. We strongly feel that the informal discussion groups that follow make valuable contributions to those seeking information, advice, and emotional support. Our participation in corporate and community health fairs expands each year, and we continue to partner with local hospitals in their free screening efforts in September, Prostate Cancer Awareness month. Our Dad’s Day 5K again will be a major undertaking which now has been complemented by the formation of Chapter Running and Walking teams.

Board members who make these things happen include Manny Vazquez creating our monthly newsletter, Jim Howell, Bill Steiner, and David Turner managing our meeting arrangements, Derral Sperry, John Gealy, and Luis Suarez coordinating our health fair activity, and Joe Piper and Jerry Boldra leading our 5K event. After many years of very dedicated service, Malcolm Hendry has retired from the Board but we have been joined by Dean Trierwiler and Matthew Washington.

Our Chapter operates on a break-even financial basis with your voluntary dues (we suggest $30) covering newsletter and meeting costs. To remain on our mailing list, please complete and return the portion below.

We want to see more of you (and your spouses) at our monthly meetings, events, and activities…we have a life-saving cause, guys, so volunteer, participate….give back…!

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On an ongoing basis, M.D.Anderson Cancer Center does offer free prostate screenings every Tuesday. The appointments are limited to 10 patients each day and are held at 7:30 a.m. in the ACB (Mays Clinic) building. To schedule an appointment for a free prostate cancer screening, the patient would need to call 713-792-8924 to confirm.