We need some good news! Look below the fold for a heads up on a promising cancer treatment and added bonus, a possible new fuel!!
I want to give a little lift to everyone and tell you about an exciting development in cancer treatment. I live near a man, John Kanzius (pronounced "Kansas"), who is working on an idea he had for cancer treatment. He is a former radio station owner in Erie, Pa. and he has cancer. He remembered how radio waves heated his skin years ago and wanted to know if it could be focused on a body's cancer and kill it. Erie Times News has an early look at Mr. Kanzius and his idea. He has been working on a way to do this and has been to Pittsburgh and Houston to pitch the idea to researchers. They have taken the ball and run with it. He is now trying to get seed money to get production of the equipment going here in Erie. Here
Erie is an odd place to live. It is as down to earth a place as you can find. The area has natural beauty not surpassed by many places, the most notable attraction being Presque Isle, the "Pennisula", to residents. Presque Isle is a large spit of land that is formed by the currents that move east towards Buffalo. The current drags sand along the shore and is caught and held by the pennisula. Originally it was an island that at some time in the past was connected to the mainland by enterprising and hard working residents. This action formed "The Bay", an area of beauty and recreation and the hub of summer living here.
The beauty here, including the sunsets (ranked in the top 3 in the US), is calming and inspiring. I have found that it doesn't seem to translate to the citizen's mind set. We are known as a curmudgeonly bunch, full of negativity and gloom. Now along comes John Kanizius and we have a hero we can root for. John is a fighting cancer and inventing a cure and he wants to set up the manufacturing of the equipment here in Erie.
The idea of radio waves killing cancerous tumors has now extended into nanotube technology.. According to this article Nobel prize winning chemist Richard Smalley is working to use nanotechnology with the directed radio waves to produce a treatment that will work. The experiments on animal tumors has been successful and they are going to start human trials soon.
This has been exciting to follow from 2004 till now. It has created a certain amount of buzz here, although the negativity burns bright. Erie could be the poster child of the North East rust belt, a disintigrating, depressed area, with people struggling to keep face and opportunity alive. When something optimistic comes along many here will quash enthusiasm by bashing and predicting gloom and doom. The beauty of the area doesn't seem to seep into the consciousness of the inhabitants. An opinion piece written by Peter Panepento from 5/24/07 in a newsletter I get, called Inside Erie, generated a letter that states
Instead of chasing the next hot technology we need to identify what strengths we have in this geographic area and find where we fit in the new economics. While John Kanzius' technology may end up proving very beneficial, it's highly unlikely that it will end up being manufactured here just because the idea was developed here.
He also says in typical downer fashion
Most of the larger cities in the US - Cleveland, Pittsburg, etc - are all chasing the biotechnology money. And they have resources that are more appropriate to that market."
He spells Pittsburgh wrong too! I can't link because there is no web address to link to. The opinion writer is optimistic and enthusiastic though. He says,
But, regardless of the source, the money would help fast-track experiments that could save untold lives and generate untold economic opportunity.
Seems like a gamble worth taking to me.
And this
That gamble also seems to make sense to Erie County Executive Mark DiVecchio. DiVecchio has proposed using some of the county’s take in the revenue from Presque Isle Downs to help pay for research into Millcreek entrepreneur John Kanzius’ radio-wave cancer theory.Kanzius’ idea isn’t pie-in-the-sky. Research at Houston’s MD Anderson Cancer Center is consistently showing that the treatment has enormous potential. I’ve followed this process from the beginning and I can say with confidence that these guys aren’t tilting at windmills here.
I don't think Mr. Kanzius will take any negativity into account. He seems determined to promote and install this technology.
The research has turned up another exciting find. It seems that the radio waves directed at salt water make it burn with an intense flame. That is really wild. Here, here and here are articles about the find. There doesn't seem to be much more on this development but then again I am betting that some of you more advanced Googlers will find something. I hope a few of our science people will read and comment. Some additional links;
Thermal Abulation, Hyperthermia, Testing begins, John Kansius' patents
I leave you with one of our beautiful sunsets, photographed from down the street, taken from a cliff looking towards Presque Isle.