ORTHO-IMMUNE

TUMOUR MARKERS
by Dr Keith Scott-Mumby

Blood, urine or body tissues may be tested for certain substances called tumour markers, which may indicate the presence of certain cancers. However a raised cancer marker does NOT mean you necessarily have cancer, only that you may have. Moreover, you may have a cancer with a normal marker level. That means such tests have little diagnostic or predictive value. However, they can be useful for following progress of treatment, once present.

Telomerase (Teleomerase) levels

WHAT IS TELOMERASE?

The enzyme telomerase produces telomeres, located at the ends of each chromosome, which protect the ends of chromosomes as cells divide. In a normal cell, the telomeres shorten each time the cell divides. After a cell divides 50 to 100 times, the telomeres shorten so much that they can no longer protect the chromosome, and the cell eventually dies.

Scientists believe that such cell death is normal, even healthy. But as a healthy cell turns cancerous, a genetic mutation triggers the production of telomerase, which restores the telomeres to normal length. The restored telomeres enable the cell to divide, unchecked, thousands of times instead of the usual 50 to 100. Thus telomerase is bad news, which is why we monitor it and why you want to watch if tall on your therapy programme.

Since researchers discovered the important role telomerase plays in most cancers in the mid-1990s, much attention has been focused on finding a way to attack them. Several methods are in various stages of development.

The telomerase test was originally a urine test but has now been developed as a blood test. Foetal and baby cells contain lots of Telomerase, which helps to keep DNA healthy; eventually we all lose it and the appearance of more Telomerase in the blood in later life is highly suggestive of active cancer, since malignant cells contain 10- 20 times normal levels. They can create Telomerase and so effectively make themselves immortal.

Your practitioner can use the test to monitor the suppression of cancer activity (or not). However there may be some confusion, due to the fact that simple infections may send levels up. Still, it is useful by making comparisons and, although high levels may be confusing, levels which have dropped to nil are indicative of success against the tumour.

Important points: when first seen, a cancer patient may have quite low Telomerase levels in the blood. But that's not good. It means the cancer cells are cloaking themselves and hiding from the immune system.

Also, when natural treatments are commenced, Telomerase levels will often go sky high. This frightens patients. But is actually a good sign, that the cancer cells are being destroyed and broken up, releasing the Telomerase.

AMAS: A Revolutionary New Cancer Test
The cancer diagnostic test developed by Dr Samuel Bogach is called Anti-Malignin Antibody in Serum or AMAS. It is a simple blood test for cancer which is claimed to be 95% accurate on the first test and 99% accurate on repeat analysis.

"This is a monumental breakthrough," says Dr Jack Taylor of the Taylor Wellness Center in Arlington Heights, IL, who is now providing the simple screening test to patients at the Center. Taylor told Options, "The test not only has a phenomenal 95% accuracy rate, but it can identify cancer years before it is visible on film or scan."

"The AMAS test has the potential of saving millions of human lives. This test is destined to change the face of cancer care as we know it," says People Against Cancer's executive director Frank D Wiewel.

Dr Scott-Mumby's comment: If the claims made for the AMAS test should prove out, it would indeed be a wonderful breakthrough in cancer management. But not even all alternative cancer doctors support the validity of this test, or find it helpful, but you should know about it. It is FDA approved.

More prosaic claims follow for conventional testing:

PSA and PAP
Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) and Prostatic Acid Phosphatase (PAP) are markers normally present in the blood in small amounts. They can be elevated in the presence of prostate cancer. An elevated PSA may also be a signal of other non-cancerous diseases such as benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) or prostatitis. These are very common conditions in men as they get older, so doctors use other tests besides the PSA to check for cancer. A decrease in PSA is a signal that prostate cancer therapy may be successful. PSA re-elevation is a potential, but not certain, sign of recurrence. If you have an elevated PSA score, your doctor will do a digital rectal exam, and may order an ultrasound or biopsy of the prostate.

CA-125
Carbohydrate Antigen 125 (CA-125) is at elevated levels in patients with ovarian cancer. It is sometimes elevated in the presence of other cancers. Its most common use today is to check for success in treating ovarian cancer, and to monitor for ovarian cancer’s potential recurrence. CA-125 is not useful as a screening test due to the high number of women with ovarian cancer who do not have this marker. Also, many non-cancerous conditions elevate this marker, such as pelvic inflammatory disease, endometriosis and liver disease.

CA 15-3 and CA 27-29
CA 15-3 and CA 27-29 markers are useful in following the course of breast cancer and its response to treatment. They are not used as screening tests since they are not detectable in early stage breast cancer.

CA 19-9
CA 19-9 is commonly used as a check for the spread of pancreatic cancer. It is also elevated in patients with colorectal, stomach and bile duct cancer. There are non-cancerous conditions such as gallstones and cirrhosis that can elevate CA 19-9.

CEA
Carcinoembryonic Antigen (CEA) marker is normally present in small amounts but can be elevated in the blood of patients with a wide variety of cancers. CEA is not used as a screening test because it is so widely present and can be elevated with chronic diseases such as bronchitis and irritable bowel syndrome. CEA is used today as a marker for the success of therapy for colorectal cancer and to test for recurrence of colorectal cancer.

OTHER TESTS
A number of other tests may prove useful:

Pyruvate-Kinase. This estimates the degree of metabolically active cancer of a certain type. Its main drawback is that it is totally non-specific.

L-Lactic Acid test. This is similar to the P-K test but measures another sort of metabolically active cancer cell. Also non-specific.

P-185 Test. This is a further test of value to estimate the degree of metabolically active cancer somewhere in your body.

VEGF Test (vascular-endothelial growth factor). This indicates whether cancer is developing its own blood supply. If we know this, specific treatment can be applied to halt new blood vessel growth.

TGF-Beta test. Cancer cells produce a lot of this chemical, which suppresses the immune system. It can be suppressed itself by a specific enzyme called Wobenzyme and the test will help decide at what dose.

Interferon Gamma. This cytokine (messenger chemical) measures the activity of the Natural Killer Cells, the most important anti-cancer cells of the immune system.

Interleukin-2. This measures the activity of the thymus-helper cells (T-helper cells), similar to CD4 cells in AIDS.

Interleukin-12. This cytokine measures the activity of your macrophages (gobbler cells) and dendritic cells, both of which are important anti-cancer fighters.

Anti-P53-Antibody test. This test the status of your P-53 gene, which is responsible for the process of "apoptosis" or programmed cell death. When first created, every cell is programmed for a set duration, after which the P-53 gene sends it a message to die. This applies to cancer cells too. If there is not enough P-53 signal marker, old decayed cells don't destruct when they should.

TUMOUR MARKERS by Dr Keith Scott-Mumby

TUMOUR MARKERS
by Dr Keith Scott-Mumby