The Mongol Rally: Steve Langan Fund-raises for MASScot

The Mongol Rally takes place over a week, covering 10,000 miles and some of the harshest roads in the world. When it comes to the choice of car for covering the terrain the Mongol Rally official line is that you can “bring anything as long as its crap and has an engine no bigger than 1 litre of yaks milk” a mammoth task for a rally from Europe to Ulan Bator, capital of Mongolia, it’s quite the feat. 

Steve Langan, whose sister Anne sadly passed away last year will be taking part in the Mongol rally in memory of Anne and raising funds in the process. 

"As some of you will know, my younger sister died in May this year of a misdiagnosed melanoma. It started under her big toe and ended up in her brain, and killed her very quickly indeed.  She left behind a wonderful husband and three lovely young teenage girls.  

The cancer spread so fast that I didn't get a chance to say goodbye to her properly, and so in her memory, and to raise awareness of the dangers of melanomas, I - and two equally unhinged friends, Rodger Williams and Peter Martin - have decided to raise £100,000 for MASScot by taking part in the 2014 Mongol Rally."

The route Steve and the guys will be taking will take them through Europe, Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan, across the Caspian Sea to Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Russia and finally Mongolia. Whilst it will be an adventure of a lifetime for everyone involved it will also be extremely hard work. 

You can donate to Steve at his Just Giving page here

Check out the video to see what the guys have in store.

Melanoma & Skin Cancer News Round Up: 07/01/2014

Hope everyone had a nice Christmas and New Year. This is the first news round up of 2014, so plenty of news to catch up on from over the past couple of weeks. 

In no particular order, here are a selection of links to articles referring to melanoma and skin cancer. 

Skin cancer awareness low among minorities

Black and Hispanic people and other minorities tend to know less about skin cancer than whites, a new study suggests.

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/01/03/us-skin-cancer-awareness-minorities-idUKBREA020WP20140103

Newly Discovered Molecular Targets May Treat Difficult Melanomas

A recently-published study in the journal Clinical Cancer Research supported by the Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C) charitable foundation has identified new molecular targets which could potentially result in new remedies for difficult-to-treat melanomas.

http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/1113037626/melanoma-treatments-based-on-newly-discovered-molecular-targets-010114/#vsdiZK5L7T6KbeFL.99

Breakthrough in melanoma research

University of Newcastle cancer researchers have identified a protein that plays a role in the growth of melanoma cells, which they hope will lead to a new treatment for the disease.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-01-03/breakthrough-in-melanoma-research/5182974

T-VEC Shows Efficacy in Melanoma Trial

In a Phase III trial of stage IIIB-IV melanoma patients, a vaccine engineered from herpes simplex virus improved durable response rate compared with granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating growth factor (GM-CSF). The trial of talimogene laherparepvec (T-VEC, Amgen), a virus engineered to carry two human GM-CSF genes, also showed hints of improving survival.

http://www.clinicaloncology.com/ViewArticle.aspx?d=Solid%2BTumors&d_id=148&i=December+2013&i_id=1018&a_id=24630&tab=MostRead

Instructional film helped students to bolster melanoma knowledge

Medical students significantly improved their knowledge of melanoma and confidence in performing skin cancer examinations after viewing a novel instructional film, according to recent study results.

http://www.healio.com/dermatology/cutaneous-oncology/news/online/%7Bab2d6a9a-9edb-4c71-842d-cfe56caa37a3%7D/instructional-film-helped-students-to-bolster-melanoma-knowledge

Shocking away melanoma

Each year, more than 76,000 Americans are diagnosed with melanoma, 9,000 die. Once its spread, this type of cancer is extremely difficult to treat. Now, researchers say a new therapy is helping them shock away some of the most stubborn tumors.

http://www.mysuncoast.com/health/news/shocking-away-melanoma/article_1ea011e2-725a-11e3-a92d-0019bb30f31a.html

Former Emmerdale star Roxanne Pallett reveals skin cancer scar

Roxanne Pallett has revealed that she has undergone an emergency operation, after suffering from a rare form of skin cancer.

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/showbiz/news/a541569/former-emmerdale-star-roxanne-pallett-reveals-skin-cancer-scare.html#ixzz2pbuChWaQ 

Radiation treatment for skin cancer offers positive cosmetic, functional outcomes

Skin cancer is the most common cancer among women and men; more than 1 million cases of basal cell or squamous cell cancer occur in the U.S. annually. It has also been estimated that nearly half of all Americans who live to age 65 will develop skin cancer at least once.


http://lubbockonline.com/advertising/2014-01-06/radiation-treatment-skin-cancer-offers-positive-cosmetic-functional-outcomes#.Usp6hPRdUgs

Protein may combat melanoma

ONCE it has spread there is no cure – but University of Newcastle researchers could one day provide hope to melanoma sufferers who detect the cancer too late.

http://www.theherald.com.au/story/2008387/protein-may-combat-melanoma/?cs=2373

Hull-born The Apprentice winner Michelle Dewberry reveals she has skin cancer

Former winner of the BBC's The Apprentice Michelle Dewberry has announced she has skin cancer.

http://www.hulldailymail.co.uk/Hull-born-Apprentice-winner-Michelle-Dewberry/story-20406420-detail/story.html#ixzz2phqFhbLf

Comment: East Asian genes may solve the skin cancer puzzle

Europeans fall prey to skin cancer because of their lighter skin, while Africans' dark skin protects them. But East Asians, whose skin colour resembles that of Europeans, are similar to Africans in their low susceptibility to melanoma – the deadliest skin cancer. No one yet knows why, but our research might hold the answer and perhaps help find treatment for the cancer.

http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2014/01/07/comment-east-asian-genes-may-solve-skin-cancer-puzzle

JUNE is a Fashionable Way to Prevent Skin Cancer

June is a long way from now, but you can get your preparations for beach season started early, anyway. JUNE is an upcoming fashion/tech accessory that will help you stay safe out in the sun, once it finally comes out again.

http://www.chipchick.com/2014/01/june-skin-cancer.html