Merry Christmas from all the Denver volunteers from the Lustgarten Foundation.

Thinking of all those we've lost to Pancreatic Cancer.

A Purple Holiday Season

Remembering those not with us 

this holiday season.  

Meaningful Mondays

I walk because ...

Thanksgiving will never be the same for Jim and his family.  It was his mom's favorite holiday and a day where everyone was welcome in their home.  It was also the day they said good-bye.

Who inspired you to join pancreatic cancer fight?

curepc.org/

A big thank you Denver!

For all the teams, friends and family that participated in the 8th Annual Lustgarden Foundation for Pancreatic Research Walk.  At last check, we've raised over $82,000 and that doesn't include anything collected today!  

Thanks so much for your on-going contributions and commitment to the cause and for continually paying it forward.

Keep checking back on this site for pictures for all the festivities today and team photos!

New pancreatic cancer therapy labeled 'breakthrough' by FDA

Researchers have developed a breakthrough therapy in the treatment of one of the world’s deadliest cancers: pancreatic cancer.

Regulators designated Aduro Biotech Inc.'s new combination of CRS-207 and GVAX Pancreas drugs a "breakthrough therapy," putting it on the fast track to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval. This means that instead of going through the standard approval process, which typically takes years, it could be only a matter of months before this much-needed therapy is available to patients.

The designation was based on data from an ongoing phase 2 trial of 93 patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer who did not respond to other treatments.

According to study results, patients who received the combination of GVAX Pancreas and CRS-207 cancer vaccines had better outcomes than those who received GVAX Pancreas vaccine alone.
The new immune system-boosting treatment’s breakthrough status means it could be on the fast track to FDA approval within a few months. Experts are hopeful that combination immunotherapy could help extend the lives of those with metastatic pancreatic cancer.

What is pancreatic cancer?
The pancreas is a digestive organ located behind the stomach and bounded by the liver, small intestine, and spleen. It secretes enzymes to break down different molecules in the food we ingest and aids in digestion. Pancreatic juices are released into the upper part of the small intestine which help the body to digest fats, carbohydrates and proteins.

As an endocrine gland, the pancreas secretes two hormones, insulin and glucagon, to regulate blood sugar levels during the course of the day. These hormones are released directly into the bloodstream, the former acting to lower blood sugar and the latter to raise it. Maintaining proper blood sugar levels is vital to the body – namely to our brain, liver and kidneys, so they can work appropriately.

How common is it?
According to the National Cancer Institute, upwards of 45,000 new cases of pancreatic cancers were reported in the United States last year. Almost 40,000 patients lost their lives to the disease. Although pancreatic cancer accounts for less than 3 percent of new cancer diagnoses each year, it is the fourth most frequent cause of cancer death for both men and women. Compared to other cancers, the survival rate of those diagnosed with pancreatic cancer is very low with a 5-year survival rate of about 5 percent.

This, in many ways, is due to the lack of preventative diagnostic tools available for this type of cancer. Unlike prostate or breast cancer, there is no annual test or biomarker that can be measured in order to ensure early diagnosis of the disease.

How is it diagnosed?
The exact cause of pancreatic cancer is still unknown, but certain risk factors like smoking, family history and chronic pancreatitis increase the risk of developing the disease.
Signs of pancreatic cancer usually do not present themselves until the disease is advanced, making it very difficult to diagnose. Some symptoms include:

• Upper abdominal pain
• Yellowing of skin and whites of eyes
• Loss of appetite
• Weight loss
• Depression
• Blood clots

If your doctor suspects pancreatic cancer, you may have an imaging test like CT or MRI to diagnose the cancer, or a tissue biopsy of the pancreas.

How is it treated?  
Pancreatic cancer is one of the most challenging cancers because it is difficult to diagnose, responds poorly to treatment, and spreads quickly to surrounding organs like the stomach and small intestines. Treatment of pancreatic cancer may include surgery, chemotherapy and/or radiation. Depending on the size of the tumor, surgery may remove just a cancerous mass from the pancreas or part of the pancreas itself.



Dr. David B. Samadi is the Chairman of the Department of Urology and Chief of Robotic Surgery at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. He is a board-certified urologist, specializing in the diagnosis and treatment of urological disease, with a focus on robotic prostate cancer treatments. Dr. Samadi joined Fox News Channel in 2009 as a medical contributor. To learn more please visit his websites RoboticOncology.com and SMART-surgery.com. Find Dr. Samadi on Facebook.

Denver Pancreatic Cancer Research Events 2014

Sign up today: http://www.pancreaticcancerresearchevents.org/faf/home/default.asp?ievent=1093544

What are you doing tomorrow?

Come out and help with the Denver Lustgarten Pancreatic Cancer Walk!!!

Has pancreatic cancer affected your family?  

Do you want to help find a cure?  

Then we need your help.  Come and volunteer or even come out and walk, but either way, be there!

Clink here to learn more about the Lustgarten Walk in Denver!

Want to Volunteer?  

Click here to learn more or call Ann Walsh at 516.803.2419.

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween from the 

Lustgarten Foundation 

and all the volunteers fighting to find a cure!

2014 Lustgarten Pancreatic Walk in Denver in this weekend. Join us!

You Can Make a Difference! Volunteer Today!

Has pancreatic cancer affected your family?  Do you want to help find a cure?  Then the Denver Lustgarten Pancreatic Cancer Walk need your help!  

Here's your opportunity to give to the cause with your time and energy.  Whether you're looking to join the Walk Committee or the want to be a "day of volunteer" call us! We need your help!

Click here to learn more or call Ann Walsh at 516.803.2419.

Join us and helps us beat pancreatic cancer!

You can help make a difference!  Join the fight and walk for a cure!  Register today!

Pre-Registration Fee $50

Walk-In Registration Fee $60

Registration 9:00 am

Walk starts at 10:30 am

Join us on Sunday, November 2, 2014 at Sloan's Lake Park, Denver, CO. Pancreatic Cancer Research Events are a great way to increase funding for research and raise awareness for pancreatic cancer. Lustgarten Foundation Events serve as a wonderful celebration of the progress being made in the fight against this disease, and your important participation provides hope for the future.

Click here to learn more!

Preventing Pancreatic Cancer

Register for the 2014 Pancreatic Cancer Research Walk today!

http://www.pancreaticcancerresearchevents.org/faf/home/default.asp?ievent=1093544

Pre-Registration Fee $50
Walk-In Registration Fee $60
Registration 9:00 am
Walk starts at 10:30 am
Join us on Sunday, November 2, 2014 at Sloan's Lake Park, Denver, CO. Pancreatic Cancer Research Events are a great way to increase funding for research and raise awareness for pancreatic cancer. Lustgarten Foundation Events serve as a wonderful celebration of the progress being made in the fight against this disease, and your important participation provides hope for the future. - See more at: http://www.pancreaticcancerresearchevents.org/faf/home/default.asp?ievent=1093544#sthash.1xy6IpuH.dpuf

Denver Pancreatic Cancer Research Walk

Sunday, November 2, 2014

Pre-Registration Fee $50
Walk-In Registration Fee $60
Registration 9:00 am
Walk starts at 10:30 am
Join us on Sunday, November 2, 2014 at Sloan's Lake Park, Denver, CO. Pancreatic Cancer Research Events are a great way to increase funding for research and raise awareness for pancreatic cancer. Lustgarten Foundation Events serve as a wonderful celebration of the progress being made in the fight against this disease, and your important participation provides hope for the future. - See more at: http://www.pancreaticcancerresearchevents.org/faf/home/default.asp?ievent=1093544#sthash.1xy6IpuH.dpuf

Denver Pancreatic Cancer Research Walk

Sunday, November 2, 2014

Pre-Registration Fee $50
Walk-In Registration Fee $60
Registration 9:00 am
Walk starts at 10:30 am
Join us on Sunday, November 2, 2014 at Sloan's Lake Park, Denver, CO. Pancreatic Cancer Research Events are a great way to increase funding for research and raise awareness for pancreatic cancer. Lustgarten Foundation Events serve as a wonderful celebration of the progress being made in the fight against this disease, and your important participation provides hope for the future. - See more at: http://www.pancreaticcancerresearchevents.org/faf/home/default.asp?ievent=1093544#sthash.1xy6IpuH.dpuf

I walk because ...

Who inspired you to join pancreatic cancer fight?

curepc.org/

Join the fight to beat pancreatic cancer in Colorado!

Meaningful Mondays!

You can make a difference! Join the pancreatic cancer fight.

You can help make a difference!  Join the fight and walk for a cure!  Register today!

Pre-Registration Fee $50

Walk-In Registration Fee $60

Registration 9:00 am

Walk starts at 10:30 am

Join us on Sunday, November 2, 2014 at Sloan's Lake Park, Denver, CO. Pancreatic Cancer Research Events are a great way to increase funding for research and raise awareness for pancreatic cancer. Lustgarten Foundation Events serve as a wonderful celebration of the progress being made in the fight against this disease, and your important participation provides hope for the future.

Click here to learn more!

Join the fight to beat pancreatic cancer in Colorado!

Pancreatic Cancer News Feed -- What's the latest in pancreatic cancer research?

Halozyme Therapeutics, Inc today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Fast Track designation for Halozyme's program investigating PEGPH20 (PEGylated recombinant human hyaluronidase) in combination with gemcitabine and nab-paclitaxel for the treatment of patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer to demonstrate an improvement in overall survival.

Promising Lustgarten funded research pancreatic immunotherapy fast tracked Regulators designated Aduro Biotech Inc.'s new combination of CRS-207 and GVAX Pancreas drugs a "breakthrough therapy," putting it on the fast track to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval.

Aspirin may cut risk of pancreatic cancer in half Taking aspirin may cut in half the risk of developing pancreatic cancer, according to a study by the Yale School of Public Health and the Yale Cancer Center.

A paper diagnostic for cancer MIT engineers have developed a simple, cheap, paper test that could improve diagnosis rates and help people get treated earlier. The diagnostic, which works much like a pregnancy test, could reveal within minutes, based on a urine sample, whether a person has cancer. This approach has helped detect infectious diseases, and the new technology allows noncommunicable diseases to be detected using the same strategy.

DNA Shed By Tumors Shows Promise for Non-Invasive Screening and Prognosis Certain fragments of DNA shed by tumors into the bloodstream can potentially be used to non-invasively screen for early-stage cancers, monitor responses to treatment and help explain why some cancers are resistant to therapies, according to results of an international study. Analyzing blood samples from 640 patients with various cancers, the researchers used digital polymerase chain reaction-based technology to evaluate how well the DNA fragments predicted the presence of tumors in the patients. Investigators say the work provides strong evidence that ctDNA could be used as a �personalized biomarker� test and cancer screening tool.

Mayo Clinic Researchers Decode Origin of Inflammation-Driven Pancreatic Can Researchers at Mayo Clinic in Florida have revealed the process by which chronic inflammation of the pancreas, pancreatitis, morphs into pancreatic cancer. They say their findings point to ways to identify pancreatitis patients at risk of pancreatic cancer and to potential drug therapies that might reverse the process. The study, published online in The Journal of Cell Biology, maps how inflammation pushes acinar cells in the pancreas � those that produce digestive enzymes � to transform into duct-like cells. As these cells change, they can acquire mutations that can result in further progression to pancreatic cancer.

Consuming a high-quality diet is associated with lower risk of pancreatic c People who reported dietary intake that was most consistent with the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans had lower risk of pancreatic cancer, according to a new study published Aug. 15 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

NIH scientists visualize how cancer chromosome abnormalities form in living For the first time, scientists have directly observed events that lead to the formation of a chromosome abnormality that is often found in cancer cells. The abnormality, called a translocation, occurs when part of a chromosome breaks off and becomes attached to another chromosome. A chromosome translocation is visualized with images within circles indicating chromosome breaks.

Mechanism offers promising new approach for harnessing the immune system to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists have discovered a way to target the immune system to shrink or eliminate tumors in mice without causing autoimmune problems. Researchers also found evidence that the same mechanism may operate in humans.

Genetics: More than merely a mutated gene If two women have the same genetic mutation that puts them at higher-than-average risk for a disease such as breast cancer, why does only one develop the disease?

Technique filters cancer where chemo cant reach A cancer therapy that removes malignant cells from a patient\\\'s cerebrospinal fluid may soon be available to prevent metastases and decrease complications of cancers

Large study reveals increased cancer risks associated with family history o A family history of cancer increases the risk of other members of the family developing not only the same cancer but also a different (discordant) cancer, according to a large study of 23,000 people in Italy and Switzerland.

NYU-Poly nano scientists reach holy grail in label-free cancer marker detec Just months after setting a record for detecting the smallest single virus in solution, researchers at the Polytechnic Institute of New York University announced a new breakthrough: A nano-enhanced version of their biosensor detected a single cancer marker protein and even smaller molecules below the mass of all known markers.

Breakthrough in detecting DNA mutations could help treat tuberculosis, canc Researchers at the University of Washington and Rice University have developed a new method that can look at a specific segment of DNA and pinpoint a single mutation, which could help diagnose and treat diseases such as cancer and tuberculosis.

Molecular robots can help researchers build more targeted therapeutics Many drugs such as agents for cancer or autoimmune diseases have nasty side effects because while they kill disease-causing cells, they also affect healthy cells. Now a new study has demonstrated a technique for developing more targeted drugs, by using molecular "robots" to hone in on more specific populations of cells.

Putting the brakes on inflammation A team led by a UA researcher has discovered a previously unknown mechanism that prevents the immune system from going into overdrive. The findings shed light on the mechanisms underlying autoimmune disorders such as Crohn's disease, allergies, chronic inflammation and cancer, and offer potential applications for therapies.

New plan of attack in cancer fight New research by Harvard scientists shows that, under certain conditions, using two drugs in a "targeted therapy" -- a treatment approach designed to interrupt cancer's ability to grow and spread -- nearly all cancers could be effectively cured. 7/18/2013 3:00 PM

Deadliest cancers may respond to new drug treatment strategy UC San Francisco researchers have found a way to knock down cancers caused by a tumor-driving protein called �myc,� paving the way for patients with myc-driven cancers to enroll in clinical trials for experimental treatments.

Protecting the body in good times and bad Brandeis scientists bring us a step closer to understanding how to control cancer cells without harming healthy ones.

Self-perpetuating signals may drive tumor cells to spread A team of international researchers has identified a self-perpetuating signaling circuit inside connective tissue cells that allows these cells to form a front and a back and propel themselves in a particular direction over a long period of time.