RELEASES
-
For further information contact:
Armaiti Shahidi-Fitzgerald
Fight Oral Cancer Foundation
972-612-7886
arma@fightoralcancer.orgFred Iannotti
Trimira LLC
203-844-0693
fiannotti@planningsource.comFight Oral Cancer Foundation's Baylor Screening Features Identafi 3000 ultra Detection Device
Oral Cancer Kills Half of Its Victims Within Five Years
DALLAS, June 8, 2010 — The nonprofit Fight Oral Cancer Foundation (FOCF) teamed up with Trimira® LLC of Houston, maker of Identafi® 3000 ultra — the world's first and only "multispectral" oral cancer detection device — to conduct a free oral cancer screening Saturday, April 17 at the Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas.
Helping to facilitate the screening, which was held at Baylor Tom Landry Health And Wellness Center downtown, was FOCF Founder and President Armaiti Shahidi-Fitzgerald.
"Nearly half a million people around the globe are diagnosed with oral cancer," Shahidi-Fitzgerald said, "Compared to other cancers, very little has been done to warn the public about the critical importance of early detection and proper treatment. Sadly," she continued, "without this lifesaving information, people are unable to make the very best healthcare decisions for themselves and their loved ones."
One American dies every hour of every day from oral cancer. The death rate from oral cancer is higher than that for such cancers as cervical, testicular, Hodgkin's lymphoma, laryngeal, thyroid, and malignant melanoma. Because oral cancer often is not caught early, only about half of the more than 35,000 Americans who will be diagnosed this year with oral or pharyngeal cancer will still be alive five years from now.
Like most cancers, cancers of the lip and oral cavity are best treated when found early. Shahidi-Fitzgerald recommends that all adults be screened at least once a year.
Today oral cancer is growing at significant rates, despite declines in alcohol and tobacco use. This increase is due largely to the spread of HPV-16 via all forms of sex.
Still, fewer than 50 percent of those who visit a dentist get screened for oral cancer.
Identafi 3000 ultra's multispectral, or triple-wavelength spectroscopy, was developed by Trimira in collaboration with The University of Texas and Rice University in Houston, and the British Columbia Cancer Research Centre in Vancouver, Canada.
Identafi 3000 ultra uses white, violet, and amber-green wavelengths of light to excite oral tissue in distinct ways. Biochemical changes are monitored with fluorescence, while morphological changes are monitored with reflectance. This marriage of fluorescence and reflectance optical processing technology uses the body's natural tissue properties as an adjunctive tool for oral mucosal examination. Conventional examination of tissue is performed using a highly concentrated white light. The result is superb reliability.
A health professional wears reusable Identafi 3000 filtered eyewear to enhance visual effects and permit transmission of reflected light, then switches to violet for a second observation. The clinician's filtered glasses block the violet excitation light and allow the observance of the tissue's natural fluorescence. Violet light enhances normal tissue's natural fluorescence; suspicious tissue appears dark due to loss of fluorescence.
When suspect abnormalities are present, the selector is switched to green-amber, which enhances normal tissue's reflectance properties so the health professional may directly observe the difference between the normal and abnormal tissue's vasculature. This minimizes the impact of "confounders" when screening and diagnosing oral cancer.
Studies indicate abnormal tissue has a diffuse vasculature, while normal vasculature is clearly defined. The combination of multispectral wavelengths provides the health professional with more visual information to differentiate between normal and diseased tissue, and improve decision-making for the professional.
About Fight Oral Cancer Foundation (FOCF)
Armaiti Shahidi-Fitzgerald founded The Fight Oral Cancer Foundation (FOCF) after losing a loved one to the disease. Shahidi-Fitzgerald is dedicated to the education and prevention of oral cancer and her travels as an oral cancer spokesperson. FOCF holds free oral cancer screenings, produces free informational pamphlets, schedules oral cancer fundraiser walks, sponsors speakers for oral cancer, and raises funds to support research. FOCF accepts donations in any amount. FOCF knows how important funding is to its mission; therefore, FOCF relies mainly on volunteers. Moreover, 98 percent of donations to FOCF go directly toward the fight against oral cancer — just two percent are spent on administrative expenses, a percentage few nonprofits can match.
About Trimira LLC
Trimira LLC is a private capital-funded company, with investment by Dallas cancer research philanthropist T. Boone Pickens, of oil and windfarming fame. Other Trimira sister subsidiaries are working on screening and diagnostic devices for skin, cervical, gastrointestinal, and bladder cancers. Remicalm®, as the parent company, has licensed exclusive use of certain of its patents and patents pending for use as a cervical cancer product to be later expanded to include additional epithelial-based cancers. Remicalm's core technologies are based on high-speed, high-resolution capabilities from its patented optical processing technology platforms and include the ability to read metabolic and physiologic differences in diseased and healthy tissue in the human body.
Visit Trimira® at: http://www.trimira.net/
Animations
Identafi® Technology
Identafi® Process
Screening Results
Training
