Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 18, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 23 January 1917 — RADIUM IS USED WITH SUCCESS IN ADVANCED CASES OF CANCER [ARTICLE]

RADIUM IS USED WITH SUCCESS IN ADVANCED CASES OF CANCER

Important Palliative Results Have Been Obtained, but It Cannot Be Relied Upon to Effect a Permanent Cure in Late Stages o.f Inoperable Tumors, Is tfie Message of Science to the Public. .

New York.—Although radium ha.s produced very important palliative results in advanced cases of cancer. and lias-eveiiZ in a considerable cases, apiatrenlly caused a complete disappearance of the disease, yet it cannot be relied upon to effect a nianent cure in the late stages of inoperable tumors, aiid therefore the importance of early diagnosis of cancer is again emphasized. Such,, is the essential message ITmn science io the public, bn the present status of the radium treatment, according io Dr. James Ewing of Cornell University Medical college who took part in a symposium on this disease held this afternoon at Museum of Natural History under the auspices of Section K (Physiology and Experimental Medicine) of the American As? sociation for the Advancement of Science. Other papers of special scientific interest were presented by a number of the foremost students of the _cancer problem. --- Doctor Ewing spoke from ills experience with the radium treatment of cancer at the Memorial hospital with which he is connected as director of Cancer Research amt which is receiving, through the generosity of Dr. Janies Douglas, a large part of the radium now nrodUcetLuinder improved processes by the United States Bureau of Mines in co-operation with the.Nio tiofial Kadium institute. Remarkably Little Scarring. According to the speaker the use of radium in cancer has within the lasi ten years established itself as an excellent method of dealing with benign and malignant tumors of the skin which, when properly applied, ally removes promptly and with remarkably little scarring. In the major types of cancer of the accessible mucous membranes radium has also achieved considerable success. It has been chiefly tested in uterine cancer in which* disease it has accomplished radical improvement of many inoperable cases and several apparently complete curty as attested by pdst-mortem examination after the patients had died from oflier causes. A number of t oreign surgeons stale that their results are. better than with surgery and they einploy radium in both operable and inoperable Uterine cases. The leading American surgeons who are usingradium obtain equally good results, but take the opposite position that .they orefer to operate in suitable cases. According to The speaker, much the same situation exists in regard to many other forms of accessible cancer, while a few authorities oven report apparent success wi tli - such those of the lip, tongue, rectum, etc. has liecoine iippa’rent Z saig.' Doctor Ewing, “that 'success depends very largely upon the skill and accuracy of application, upon a knowledge of the anatomical character of the particular tumors treated, and above all, upon attacking the disease before it is too 'ftir advanced."

any consfit utiontrl influence this- cannot - be relied upon to deal with extensive local or generalized cancer. Under , these.. .circumshmtatsi. a. general..x.e£«.m—mendation to the public to resort to radium for all types and stages of cancer is decidedly inadvisable.” Future of Radium. With reference to the future of radium, Doctor Ewing did not venture a forecast, but pointed out that verj great significance muslTbe attached to Its selective action on many kinds of tumor tissue. In spite of rapid improvement in the technique of application, the speaker believed that on the whole the met hods are still comparatively crude," although he had little dotibt that exact dosage and accurate -.tojustnient of worked out to a much greater degree than Is now accomplished. “For inoperable cases,” Doctor Ewing said,, in conclusion, “the value of radium, although great,, is perhaps already overestimated. To what extent it may establish itself in the treatment of operable cases it remains for the future to decide.” Dr. Joseph!'. Bloodgood of JohnsHopkins university spoke from the surgeon’s point of view on cancer in tlie human being.upon the importance of tlie pre-exist-ing lesions which may develop into cancer and in the .treatment and removal of which lies the chief opportunity of preventing this disease. Doctor Bloodgood made it clear that cancer in its early stogesffs easily Cured. ; “The disease,” lie said, “usually ■ springs from a pre-existing lesion allowed to go unattended. Chronic irritation of a sore may also contribute. Tin external cancer the warning is vis- } ilrte or can be felt UnfOTtunately, pain is rarely present. A tnole or a wart, a small area covered with a scab, ! a small lump or nodule beneath the ’ skin, an unhealetl wound, all of these ! may indicate potential cancer. The J-appearance of these defects should 4 mean a cal.l upon the physician for exI amination as to the probabllity^of’ in- ] eipient cancer. Not 1 njtuj-Just ky I taking tlie precaution if symptoms are : not founil and. on tlie .other-hand, tlie .•risk is toq ( great to allow the warnings to gounheeded. The question lie

Limitations of Radium. Referri-ng to the limitations of radium therapy as ■numerous and formidable." Doctor Ewing pointed out that “the supply of this metal is small and generally restricted to a few institutions. The requisite skill to appfy it safely and effectively and. to choose suitable cases is still more restricted. Beginners often do more harm than good and it is easy to discredit the agent entirely. The methods are badly ( in need of standardization. Underdosa&e may destroy superficial tumor cells only and leave the deeper ones to grow in the inflamed tissues. Overdosage causes the destrtMion of normal or diseased tissues, resulting in fistulas, hemorrhage and severe infection. With repeated doses tumor Sells appear- to become W mnl normal tissue more ble. Excessive scarring often results and prolonged exposure, to large amounts often eauses,ij, F peculiar and severe form of general intoxication. Several workers have had fatal results from their attempts to cure advanced cases. Finally, radium has only a local affect, extending nt most to a depth of 4x to ten centimeters, and If it has

this case is decided by the physician, and in many eases a minor operation removes a probable cause of the disease.”

Always Gives Warning. “No man ever yet had a cancer on the iijj„pr..XQt.igue wi thou t first expert? encihg some - waffling,” continued the speaker. “The defect may be a burn from continued smoking or an irritation from ragged teeth. The probabilities of a cure are excellent when men heed such signals of possible danger and are treated at once. Tobacco users are more "subject to cancer than those who do not use it. There is no means of preventing cancer of the Tbreasf, the Appearance of a lump or a discharge from the nipple being the first sign, but when such lumps are at once removed on their discovery, half will be found benign, that is, not cancerous. The removal of benign lumps undoubtedly prevents cancer in many cases, since modern medicine clearly recognizes the danger of benign lumps turning to malignant disease of the breast. The chances of permanent recovery in true breast cancer vary with tlie exact type of the disease, but are excellent if it is recognized early and completely removed. . The chance of recovery grows less and less as the delay is more and more protracted until cancer is incurable from the fytent-of-the local or general involvement. Cancer of the stomach is a more difficult proposition, but even in such cases ! there is usually a warning. Abnormal ' sensations of daily recurrence should not be neglected. So-called indlges"tion or what is styled ‘colic’ may be the warning. The chances are that it is not. Inn it may be so. If the pa in, the sensations, the message from this part of the body comes, time and time again, especially among people over thirty or forty years of age, a physician should surely be consulted."

Nothing to Be Ashamed of. ‘The mortality from cancer.” concluded the speaker, ‘‘could be reduced considerably' if the average pet-son knew how to take care of himself. It is 11ot a ‘blood disease,’ it :1s not a dlseasewhtclr people have any reason to tie ashamed of. So far as physicians can tell, it is.not brought on by illhealth or, food. It comes to healthy persons, the healthy man or the healthy tpiiuan; but if the simple, easily noticed warnings be heeded the task becomes comparatively easy and the only miracle we have to perforin is to educate a million people where we now educate one." —X- historical survey of the crusade against cancer through the education of the public was given by Curtis E. Lakeman, executive secretary of the American Society for the Control of Cancer. He said that the .first widely known campaign of this kind was initiated by Professor Winter of Koenigsberg, Prussia, in 1891. As a result the cancer death rate of that vicinity had been definitely lowered and a large increase ip the number of women applylng for treatment in the early and operablestages of the di sense had been noticed. '