A pair of University of California, Irvine, College of Medicine researchers recently wrapped up a study on stomach cancer survival rates in Asians vs. other ethnic groups. Their findings, published in the November issue of the journal Cancer, may be the first to link differences in tumor biology between ethnic group to survival rates.
UCI College of Medicine researchers Hoda Anton-Culver and Dr. Charles Theuer led the team, which looked at records of 3,770 Asian and non-Asian stomach cancer patients in Southern California. Patients came from Orange, San Diego and Imperial counties, said Anton-Culver, a professor of epidemiology.
The group’s research found that Asians who had stomach cancer had far higher survival rates than other ethnic groups. They also found that Asian patients’ tumors did not invade normal tissues, or metastasize, as aggressively as tumors in non-Asian patients.
“The issue of looking at cancer is really very important to all ethnic groups,” Anton-Culver said.
Anton-Culver said differences in cancer rates between Asians and non-Asians were attributed in the past to varying diet, diagnostic methods and more radical surgical techniques.
“But we found that Asian-Americans with the same stage of disease who received the same healthcare as non-Asians still exhibited superior survival rates. The variation indicates that diagnosis, screening and treatment will have to accommodate biological differences in the way cancer attacks certain ethnic groups,” Anton-Culver said.
Previous studies had found that tumors in Japanese patients had higher levels of a chemical marker called antimetastasis factor nm23 that discourages aggressive tumor growth. By contrast, other studies have noted that British cancer patients had higher levels of a growth cell receptor that encourages the proliferation of cancerous cells.
Theuer, an assistant professor of surgery, said the next step is finding out why there are biological differences in the tumors of Asians and non-Asians. “This knowledge may help us to find ways to more quickly and effectively treat stomach and other cancers among all ethnic groups,” he said.
Tom Kurosaki, Argyrios Ziogas and Dr. John Butler joined Anton-Culver and Theuer on the study team. Funding came from a National Cancer Institute grant and a gift from the V Foundation for Cancer Research in Cary, N.C., named for Jim Valvano, the North Carolina State University men’s basketball coach who died of bone cancer in 1993.
Health Net Offers Cross-Border Care
Health Net, which is one of the larger HMOs operating in Orange County, rolled out Salud con Health Net, a group of products targeted toward Latinos and their families in California and Mexico, earlier this month. Health Net, based in Woodland Hills, has more than 110,000 members in Orange County.
Health Net has three partners in Salud con Health Net: Medico Hispano, a Spanish-speaking medical group in Los Angeles, Tenet Healthcare Corp.’s Southern California hospitals and Sistemas Medicos Nacionales, S.A. de CV in Mexico. Health Net says Sistemas Medicos Nacionales is the first Mexican health plan authorized to contract with California employers to provide healthcare benefits and services in Mexico.
Salud con Health Net products are broken down into large-employer and small-employer plans. The large employer plans, which serve businesses with 51 or more employees, are now available statewide. Small employer plans, on the other hand, will only be available in Los Angeles County at first, but officials indicated the small-employer piece should be available in Orange County within the next six months.
Cooper in Deal With Optical Portal
CooperVision, a unit of the Cooper Cos., Lake Forest, signed a letter of intent to establish a trading partnership with New York-based Emerging Vision Inc., which is developing and launching an Internet-based portal for the optical industry. CooperVision makes contact lenses, including toric lenses that are used by people with astigmatism.
Emerging Vision is going to provide CooperVision a suite of online services to support the latter’s supply chain efforts on the Internet. CooperVision will initially use Emerging Vision’s portal to facilitate sales to various retail chains.
Bits and Pieces:
GenSci OrthoBiologics Inc., Irvine, reported results of a study it said showed 36 posterior lumbar fusion patients at three research centers who received its DynaGraft putty plus autogenous bone grafts experienced good clinical outcomes … Refractec Inc., Irvine, said a study conducted as part of a Food and Drug Administration clinical trial on conductive keratoplasty showed that most people who had the procedure continued not to need glasses a year after the surgery. Refractec’s CK procedure uses controlled-release radio frequency energy to reshape the cornea. The private company has submitted pre-market approval modules for FDA review … Building Blocks Pediatric Home Health Services, Newport Beach, signed a Southern California HMO provider agreement and a statewide PPO contract with Cigna HealthCare of California … South Coast Medical Center, Laguna Beach, recently hosted a group of healthcare professionals from Tokyo. The visitors attended a seminar that touched upon the hospital’s dual-diagnosis treatment programs for people with chemical dependency and psychiatric disorders … PSK & A; Information Services, Irvine, released a database containing 32,000-plus physician assistants and more than 75,000 nurse practitioners.
