Chemo sensitivity testing

Education please. The name of Suzanne Somers means nothing to me but this piece of hers interested me and I'd like to know what anyone here thinks about the topic.

Chemosensitivity Tests – Why Does Big Pharma Know About Them and WE Don’t?
By Suzanne Somers10/30/2009 3:30:00 PM

http://www.suzannesomers.com/Blog/post/Chemosensitivity-Tests-e28093-Why-Does-Big-Pharma-Know-About-Them-and-WE-Done28099t.aspx


From the stomach cancer forum:-

April 1, 2011 - 8:32pm
integrated treatments
have you looked into integrated treatments where they use chemo sensitivity testing to see which chemo drug is most effective. they mix conventional and alternative treatments to compliment each other. Germany they do IPT and hyperthermia together and have had very positive results.
iliana

From the lung cancer forum in 2009:-

"If you mom is quite weak, maybe you can ask your doctor on the possibility of having a chemo sensitivity test, to find out which drugs would not work or would be least effective.."

On the sarcoma forum in April 2010:-

"German or Greek sensitivity test (very helpful because they do experiment on what chemo will work and what will not on a sample not on you. It's expensive, yest - but worth every penny."

A study report on the peritoneal cancer forum:-

"Conclusions:

The in vitro assay showed a consistency with results observed in vivo in 27 out of the 30 patients analyzed. Sensitivity and resistance profiles of different drugs used in vivo would therefore seem to be better defined by the in vitro chemosensitivity test than by expression levels of markers."

Journal of Translational Medicine 2011, 9:94 doi:10.1186/1479-5876-9-94

http://www.translational-medicine.com/content/9/1/94

A good explanation was given way back in 2004 on another forum here:-

"March 23, 2004 - 5:34am
Re: treatment for metastatic adenocarcinoma
Chemosensitivity Testing

One approach to individualizing patient therapy is chemosensitivity testing. Chemosensitivity assay is a laboratory test that determines how effective specific chemotherapy agents are against an individual patient's cancer cells. Often, results are obtained before the patient begins treatment. This kind of testing can assist in individualizing cancer therapy by providing information about the likely response of an individual patient's tumor to proposed therapy. Chemosensitivity testing may have utility at the time of initial therapy, and in instances of severe drug hypersensitivity, failed therapy, recurrent disease, and metastatic disease, by providing assistance in selecting optimal chemotherapy regimens.

All available chemosensitivity assays are able to report drug "resistance" information. Resistance implies that when a patient's cancer cells are exposed to a particular chemotherapy agent in the laboratory, the cancer cells will continue to live and grow. Some chemosensitivity assays also are able to report drug "sensitivity" information. Sensitivity implies that when a patient's cancer cells are treated with a particular chemotherapy agent in the laboratory, that agent will kill the cancer cells or inhibit their proliferation.

The goal of all chemosensitivity tests is to determine the response of a patient's cancer cells to proposed chemotherapy agents. Knowing which chemotherapy agents the patient's cancer cells are resistant to is important. Then, these options can be eliminated, thereby avoiding the toxicity of ineffective agents. In addition, some chemosensitivity assays predict tumor cell sensitivity, or which agent would be most effective. Choosing the most effective agent can help patients to avoid the physical, emotional, and financial costs of failed therapy and experience an increased quality of life.

Fresh samples of the patient's tumor from surgery or a biopsy are grown in test tubes and tested with various drugs. Drugs that are most effective in killing the cultured cells are recommended for treatment. Chemosensitivity testing does have predictive value, especially in predicting what "won't" work. Patients who have been through several chemotherapy regimens and are running out of options might want to consider chemosensitivity testing. It might help you find the best option or save you from fruitless additional treatment. Today, chemosensitivity testing has progressed to the point where it is 85% - 90% effective.

Listing of "Reputable" Labs USA:

These labs will provide you and your physician with in depth information and research on the testing they provide.

Analytical Biosystems, Inc., Providence, Rhode Island. Ken Blackman, PhD. Solid Tumors Only. 1-800-262-6520

Anticancer, Inc., San Diego, CA. Robert Hoffman, PhD. Solid Tumors Only. 1-619-654-2555

Oncotech, Inc., Irvine, CA. John Fruehauf, MD. Solid Tumors and Hematologics. 1-714-474-9262 / FAX 1-714-474-8147

Sylvester Cancer Institute, Miami, FL. Bernd-Uwe Sevin, MD. Solid Tumors Only. (especially GYN). 1-305-547-6875

Human Tumor Cloning Laboratory, San Antonio, TX. Daniel D. Von Hoff, MD. Solid Tumors Only. 1-210-677-3827

Rational Therapeutics Institute, Long Beach, CA. Robert A. Nagourney, MD Solid Tumors and Hematologics. 562-989-6455 http://www.rational-t.com/

Weisenthal Cancer Group, Huntington Beach, CA. Larry M. Weisenthal, MD, PhD. Solid Tumors and Hematologics. 1-714-894-0011 / FAX 1-714-893-3659 / e-mail: mail@weisenthal.org

Angiogenesis & Low Dose Chemotherapy

Giving low doses of several drugs every day by mouth. There would be no needles and the side effects are expected to be mild. Unlike standard chemotherapy, which is given in high doses to kill as many cancer cells as possible, the lower-dose regimen is meant to attack the blood vessels that feed the tumor. Tumors create their own supply lines by secreting substances that stimulate the formation of new blood vessels and researchers suspect that frequent low doses of certain drugs may disrupt the growth of those new vessels, starving the tumor.