ECOG Researchers Testing Selenium Against Lung Cancer.

Business Editors/Health & Medical Writers

PHILADELPHIA--(BW HealthWire)--Oct. 16, 2001

Researchers for the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) are launching a clinical trial of selenium for the prevention of new lung cancers in people who have had lung cancer surgery.

Selenium is a trace element found in grains, fish, and meat. It has been observed that in areas where the concentration of selenium is high in crops, the incidence of lymphomas and cancers of the gastrointestinal tract, lung, and breast in animals was lower than usual.

A clinical trial is a study designed to find better ways to prevent or treat diseases such as cancer. Clinical trials answer important scientific questions that can lead to advances in care. Clinical trials are conducted in caner centers, hospitals, clinics and doctor offices.

Dr. Daniel Karp, Co-director of Thoracic Oncology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (Boston, MA) said, "The purpose of this study is to compare how high dose of selenium yeast affect patients with surgically-removed lung cancer to patients who are treated conventionally." Two thousand people will be sought for this study. Patients will be required to take a pill daily for a maximum of four years. During that time, periodic follow-up questionnaires, phone interviews with a nurse or research assistant, and regular exams by a physician will help researchers collect information that will help to determine if selenium helps to prevent the recurrence of lung cancer.

There are two major types of lung cancer, non-small cell lung cancer and small cell lung cancer. Each type of cancer is unique and is treated differently. The clinical trial of selenium focuses non-small cell cancer. It is more common than small cell lung cancer and it grows and spreads more slowly. Squamous cell carcinoma (also called epidermoid carcinoma), adenocarcinoma, and large cell carcinoma are the three main histological classifications of non-cell lung cancer.

To find out how you can participate, please talk to your doctor or call the Study Information Line at 877/723-5597 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern Time for more information.

The Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) is one of the largest clinical cancer research organizations in the United States and it conducts clinical trials in all types of adult cancers. ECOG was established in 1955 as one of the first cooperative groups launched to perform multi-center cancer clinical trials.