Cancer Care Associates, Oklahoma City, OK

No miracle pill to erase the scourge of cancer is available; however, new advancements are taking place at astounding speeds. "Drugs are now in development and some in use that we only dreamed of years ago, said Dr. Alan M. Keller, an oncologist with Cancer Care Associates. Drugs that can be used to target the cancer cells are now available that let doctors fight the disease in a more precise manner. "Instead of taking a handful of darts and throwing at the target, now we can take one dart and hit the bull's-eye, Dr. Keller said.

In the past, the most ef fective way to ensure all cancer was eradicated from the body was to also sacrifice many normal cells in the body. With these new drugs, doctors are able to leave the healthy cells untouched and only take on the cancer cells. The hormone treatments were the first of this class of drugs known as "targeted therapies.

The new science and research advances are making the latest entries into the field even better. "There hasn't been much activity in this targeted area for decades, said Dr. Keller. "Now we are seeing drugs that target genes within a cell. One example of this is the drug Herceptin, which is used to treat many breast cancer patients after surgery. Herceptin became available in 2003 and targets the Her-2-Neu gene.

Patients are tested for the gene, and if they have more than the normal amount of the gene, doctors know the Herceptin is a prime choice. The Her-2-Neu gene is "overexpressed (too many copies of the gene) in about 30 percent of women with breast cancer. By using Herceptin in combination with the chemotherapy traditionally used, the rate of recurrence in these patients has been reduced by 50 percent. Another new drug now in use is Erbitux.

Erbitux interferes with the growth of the cancer. It attaches to the cells and keeps them from being active. This kills the cancer cell and decreases the spread of the cancer"Our response rates are going up. People are living longer, he said. "It's getting better all the time. Avastin, approved for lung and colon cancer, prevents the growth of some blood vessels to the cancer cells. This blood supply is needed for the cell to live and by blocking it, the cancer is starved of needed nutrients. "Using these drugs means that we have new options for patients, Dr. Keller said. "Some people are cured that heretofore were not curable.

Another new option, Rituxan, fights lymphoma and some forms of leukemia "It's changed lymphoma a lot, said Dr. Keller. "It's taken people who couldn't be cured to a curative stage. It's like delivering a little nuclear bomb to the cancer cell. The drug binds to certain proteins on the lymphoma cell and then works with the body's immune system to attack and kill these cells. Using these cutting-edge medicines often shortens treatment times and gives new hope to patients. Cancer Care Associates is actively involved in many clinical research trials so that some of their patients have access to drugs such as these even before they are available to the rest of the market. "Our drugs are getting better, and because of