約翰霍普金斯Johns Hopkins已正式闢謠: "最新癌症研究報告"的 Email 是惡作劇 謠言

約翰霍普金斯Johns Hopkins已正式闢謠: "最新癌症研究報告"的 Email 是惡作劇 謠言


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Johns Hopkins 網站 刊登

[來源]

http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/kimmel_cancer_center/news_events/featured/cancer_update_email_it_is

_a_hoax.html

按此前往 Johns Hopkins 網站

"最新癌症研究報告"的 Email (或附件) 是 謠言

2009年4月更新



正式聲明 : 關於 癌症 的 電子郵件 謠言

以 "來自 JOHN HOPKINS 最新癌症研究報告 " 為名稱的資訊 ， 偽稱是來自 JOHNS

HOPKINS ，描述癌症細胞的特性 並提出預防癌症的建議.

Johns Hopkins並未發表此資訊 (它常被用為 電子郵件的附件)，也不 認同 它的內容 .


該電子郵件把機構的名稱拼音 拼錯為 "John" Hopkins 而正確的拼音則是 "Johns" Hopkins.



關於癌症的更多資訊 請閱讀 我們 (Johns Hopkins) 網站的資訊 或訪視 （美國）國家癌症研究所的網站 ( 在 www.cancer.gov ) .

按此前往 美國）國家癌症研究所 網站

請藉由 讓別人知道我們的聲明 ， 來幫忙 阻止謠言的傳佈.

另一自從 2004 年就在流傳的 電子郵件 謠言 說 ": 加熱會使 塑膠容器 瓶子 保鮮膜 釋出dioxins 它會致癌. 那也不是 Johns Hopkins 公佈的 .

更多資訊來自美國約翰霍普金斯大學彭博公共衛生學院Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

謠言終結者 : 請藉由 傳送本網頁的連結 給 轉寄此 電子郵件 謠言給你的人 ， 來幫忙抑制此謠言的傳佈.

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[來源]

http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/kimmel_cancer_center/news_events/featured/cancer_update_email_it_is

_a_hoax.html


Home > The Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center > News & Events > Featured News &

Events

Cancer Update Email -- It's a Hoax!

Updated April 2009


STATEMENT: EMAIL HOAX REGARDING CANCER


Information falsely attributed to Johns Hopkins called, "CANCER UPDATE FROM JOHN HOPKINS"

describes properties of cancer cells and suggests ways of preventing cancer. Johns Hopkins did not

publish the information, which often is an email attachment, nor do we endorse its contents. The email

also contains an incorrect spelling of our institution as "John" Hopkins; whereas, the correct spelling is

"Johns" Hopkins. For more information about cancer, please read the information on our web site or visit

the National Cancer Institute's web site at www.cancer.gov. Please help combat the spread of this hoax

by letting others know of this statement.


Another hoax email that has been circulating since 2004 regarding plastic containers, bottles, wrap

claiming that heat releases dioxins which cause cancer also was not published by Johns Hopkins. More

information from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.


Mythbusters: Please help curb the spread of this hoax by sending a link to this page to individuals that

forward you this email.


The Truth about the "Cancer Update" Email


It has become such a problem, that the National Cancer Institute, American Cancer Society, and

individual cancer centers like the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center have posted warnings on their

Web sites. Emails offering easy remedies for avoiding and curing cancer are the latest Web-influenced

trend. To gain credibility, the anonymous authors falsely attribute their work to respected research

institutions like Johns Hopkins. This is the case with the so-called “Cancer Update from Johns Hopkins.

”


The gist of this viral email is that cancer therapies of surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy do not

work against the disease and people should instead choose a variety of dietary strategies.


Traditional therapies, such as surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy, work. The evidence is the

millions of cancer survivors in the United States today who are alive because of these therapies. We

recognize that treatments don’t work in every patient, or sometimes work for awhile and then stop

working, and there are some cancers that are more difficult to cure than others. These problems are the

focus of ongoing cancer research.


We’ll go through each statement in the email hoax and provide real responses from Johns Hopkins

Kimmel Cancer Center experts.


Email hoax contentions #1 and 2: Everyone Has Cancer Cells


Cancer is a genetic disease resulting from a variety of mutations and alterations either inherited from our

parents or, more commonly, acquired over time due to environmental exposures and behaviors, such as

smoking and poor diet. These alterations turn off important cell growth regulators allowing cells to

continually divide unchecked, explains Luis Diaz, a clinician-scientist in Ludwig Center for Cancer

Genetics. This type of cell is called a malignant or cancer cell. Among the trillions of cells in the human

body, inevitably everyone has some abnormal or atypical cells that possess some of the characteristics of

cancer cells, most resolve themselves and never result in cancer, says Diaz.


There is no single or standard test for cancer. There are ways to screen for certain cancers with tests

such as colonoscopy for colon cancer, mammography for breast cancer, PSA for prostate cancer, and the

Pap smear for cervical cancer, and these tests can detect cancers in a very early and curable stage. For

many cancers, there currently are no screening tests, and they are diagnosed when they begin to cause

symptoms.


Diaz and other Kimmel Cancer Center researchers are working on new tests that detect abnormal DNA

shed by cancer cells into blood and body fluids and have the ability to find cancers before they cause any

symptoms. Approaches like this could lead to a broad-based screening test for cancer.


Tests like these also are being used to detect cancer recurrences and malignant cells left behind following

surgery, and can find cancers that are not detectable under the microscope or in x-rays.


Other researchers are studying cancer stem cells. They are stealth cells that make up just a tiny fraction

of a tumor. While small in number, investigators believe they may be the cells that drive certain cancers

and lead to cancer recurrence. Therapies that target these cells are now being tested in clinical trials.


A team of our breast cancer researchers has developed a method that could make it possible to detect

breast cancer from the DNA contained in a single drop of blood.


But, while evasive cancer cells are a challenge and the focus of ongoing research, it does not mean, as

the email contends, that all patients, even those treated successfully for cancer, have cancers-in-waiting

—undetectable but still there. People are treated and completely cured of cancer everyday.


Email hoax contention #3: A Strong Immune System Destroys Cancer


When it comes to cancer and the immune system, it is not a matter of strong or weak as the fictional

report contends, but rather an issue of recognition. "The immune system simply does not recognize

cancer. In its complexity, the cancer cell has learned to disguise itself to the immune system as a normal,

healthy cell. Cells infected with viruses or bacteria send out danger signals setting the immune system in

action. But cancer cells do not, explains Elizabeth Jaffee, co-director of cancer immunology and leading

expert on cancer and the immune system." By deciphering the methods cancer cells use to make them

invisible to the immune system, Jaffee and team have developed cancer vaccines that have successfully

triggered immune reactions against prostate cancer, pancreatic cancer, leukemia, and multiple myeloma.


Email hoax contention #4 and #5: Cancer is caused by Nutritional Deficiencies and Supplements Will

Correct Them


Dietary habits and lifestyle choices, such as smoking, contribute to the development of many human

cancers, says Kimmel Cancer Center director William Nelson. Our experts recommend a balanced diet

(see response #11) as a way of reducing cancer risk. In terms of supplements, Nelson points out that

while they may help mediate vitamin deficiencies, taking doses above what the body needs provides no

added benefit.


Email hoax contentions #6, 7, 8, 9, and 10: Chemotherapy and Radiation Therapy Harms Normal Cells.

Surgery Causes Cancer to Spread


Chemotherapy and radiation therapy kills cancer cells with remarkable selectivity, says Nelson. There

are some temporary and reversible side effects common to cancer therapies, including hair loss and low

blood counts. Limiting and managing these side effects is an integral part of treatment.


Surgery is the first line of treatment for many types of cancer. It does not cause cancer to spread.

Cancers spread to other tissues and organs as a tumor progresses and cancer cells break away from the

original tumor and travel through the bloodstream to other body sites.


Email hoax contentions #11, 12, 13, and 14: Cancers Feed on Certain Foods


The premise is that cancer cells feed on certain foods, and if a person refrains from eating these foods,

the cancer will die. According to our experts, a poor diet and obesity associated with a poor diet is a risk

factor for the development of cancer. However, there is no evidence that certain foods alter the

environment of an existing cancer, at the cellular level, and cause it to either die or grow.


While there is such a thing as tumors that produce mucus, the mucus made by a tumor does not result

from drinking milk. And, eating less meat, while a good choice for cancer prevention, does not free up

enzymes to attack cancer cells, explains cancer prevention and control expert Elizabeth Platz.


Moderation is key, says Platz. As part of a balanced diet, sugar, salt, milk, coffee, tea, meat, and

chocolate—the foods the “Update” calls into question—are all safe choices, she says. The real

concern with many of these, particularly sugar, is that it adds calories to a diet and can lead to obesity,

and obesity is a major risk factor for cancer. A balanced nutritious diet, healthy weight, physical activity,

and avoiding alcoholic drinks may prevent as many as 1/3 of all cancers. Platz recommends eating at

least five servings of fruits and vegetables per day and limiting red and processed meats, like hot dogs.


Several Johns Hopkins experts participated in the World Cancer Research Fund - American Institute for

Cancer Research report Food, Nutrition, Physical Activity, and the Prevention of Cancer: A Global

Perspective, published in November 2007, which is considered by cancer prevention experts to be an

authoritative source of information on diet, physical activity and cancer. Their recommendations for

cancer prevention and for good health in general are:


Be as lean as possible without becoming underweight.

Be physically active for at least 30 minutes every day.

Avoid sugary drinks. Limit consumption of energy-dense foods (particularly processed foods high in

added sugar, or low in fiber, or high in fat).

Eat more of a variety of vegetables, fruits, whole grains and legumes such as beans.

Limit consumption of red meats (such as beef, pork and lamb) and avoid processed meats.

If consumed at all, limit alcoholic drinks to 2 for men and 1 for women a day.

Limit consumption of salty foods and foods processed with salt (sodium).

Don't use supplements to protect against cancer.

Our experts recommend that people meet their nutritional needs through their food choices. While

vitamin supplements can be helpful in people with nutritional deficiencies, evidence suggests that

supplementation above what the body can use provides no added health benefit.


Email hoax contention #15: Cancer is a Disease of Mind, Body, and Spirit


Cancer is a disease caused by genetic alterations. Many times, these alterations occur through our own

behaviors—cigarette smoking, a poor and unbalanced diet, virus exposures, and sunburns, says cancer

prevention and control expert John Groopman.


How stress, faith, and other factors influence this is largely unknown. We would like people to be happy,

loving, and stress free, simply because it is a nice way to live and can contribute to an overall feeling of

well being, says Platz. There is no evidence, however, that a person prevents or causes cancer based on

his or her state of mind.


Still, we understand that a cancer diagnosis can make patients and families feel stressed and anxious, and

these are not pleasant feelings. So, we offer extensive patient and family services, including a cancer

counseling center, pain and palliative care program, chaplain services and a meditation chapel, an image

recovery center, and the Art of Healing art and music program.


Email hoax contention #16: Oxygen Kills Cancer Cells


Platz recommends regular exercise as a part of any healthy lifestyle, but says there is no evidence that

breathing deeply or receiving oxygen therapy prevents cancer.


On its Web site, the American Cancer Society includes the following statement about oxygen therapy, “

Available scientific evidence does not support claims that putting oxygen-releasing chemicals into a

person's body is effective in treating cancer. It may even be dangerous. There have been reports of

patient deaths from this method.” Read more


Please pass this information on to family and friends.


Questions?


Contact:

Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center

Office of Public Affairs



410-955-1287