Patterns Noted in Occurrence of Cancers

A researcher has found that the diagnosis of cancer seems to peak in certain months of the year and victims of the disease appear to be more receptive to treatment at certain times of the day.

“Female breast cancer occurs with a very sharp rhythmicity, peaking in spring, and younger males with prostrate cancer have a winter peak in disease diagnosis,” Dr. William J. Hrushesky said.

Speaking at a recent seminar sponsored by the American Cancer Society, Hrushesky said his studies on the predictable nature of cancer occurrence also point to a possible seasonal occurrence of glandular cancers and certain malignancies in men.

More Responsive to Treatment

In the same sense that cancers occur at certain times in the year, he said, victims of the disease are more responsive to treatment at certain times of the day.

Hrushesky and researchers at the University of Minnesota are now treating patients with advanced cancer on time-regulated programs called chronotherapy, he said.

Cancer drugs aimed at halting the spread of malignancies are administered daily at precise times and placed in the body where the disease is proliferating, he said.

“The object of chronotherapy is to make the tumor more susceptible than the host,” Hrushesky said.

Minnesota researchers have designated the hours of 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. as the most favorable times to administer cancer drugs to the patients in the study, Hrushesky said.

Implanted Pumps

To aid in the treatment plan, some patients undergoing time-regulated treatment have had computerized pumps implanted that administer drugs internally at the given intervals, he said.