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fiannotti@earthlink.netWHNT-TV Health Fair Features Oral Cancer Checkup
Signature Smile's Dr. Wilson Says Most Popular Health Test During News 19's Fair Was Identafi 3000 ultra Screening
FLORENCE, ALABAMA, July 27, 2010 — Signature Smile's Dr. L. Don Wilson said that the most popular of all of the free health screenings offered at the July 15 News 19 Health Fair was the oral cancer screening that featured the world's most advanced oral cancer detection device — Identafi® 3000 ultra from Trimira® LLC of Houston.
"An Identafi oral cancer screening is quick, painless, and accurate," Wilson. "It only takes about five minutes, normally costs thirty dollars, but for fairgoers was free."
The event was sponsored by CBS affiliate WHNT-TV Channel 19 in Huntsville, Alabama, and organized by News 19's Elise Morgan. It was held at the North Hall of the Von Braun Center, a multi-purpose event and exhibition venue in Huntsville.
Free News 19 Health Fair at VBC North Hall
http://www.whnt.com/news/whnt-huntsville-health-fair,0,7464391.story"We did 65 oral cancer screenings from 10 AM right through till the end of the fair at 2 PM," Wilson said. "We had the longest line and so we worked nonstop during the fair."
Noting that the death rate for oral cancer is now higher than that of such cancers as cervical, thyroid, Hodgkin's lymphoma, testicular, laryngeal, or skin (malignant melanoma), Wilson observed that fairgoers, many of whom have never been tested before for oral cancer, were very relieved to be screened for the dread disease.
In fact, Wilson said that his team discovered one fibroma, four dark areas that required a two-week follow-up, and one dark area with diffuse vasculature that required biopsy.
In the year that Wilson has been using Identafi 3000 ultra, he has already diagnosed two cases of squamous cell cancer, two cases of pre-cancerous lesions, and a benign, but serious, jugular glomerulus case. "I suggest everyone over the age of 17 be screened, so share that advice with a friend," Wilson said. "Early detection is vital."
Early detection of oral cancer improves the oral cancer survival rate to 80-90 percent. "Unfortunately," Wilson continued, "there has been little improvement in the survival rate over the past four decades. In fact, most cases of oral cancer are diagnosed in late stages because very few patients are properly screened by dentists or physicians."
He noted that the one-of-a-kind "multispectral" technology featured in Identafi 3000 ultra is helping the Signature Smile team spot many more oral cancer cases before the damage is done. Identafi 3000 ultra's patented triple-wavelength imaging spectroscopy was developed by Trimira LLC in collaboration with The University of Texas, Rice University, and British Columbia Cancer Research Centre in Vancouver, Canada.
Wilson pointed out that while most cancers are on the decline, oral cancer is spiking among people under the age of 40. "We're seeing a 500 percent increase among young people under 40 who have no history that would contribute to the disease," Wilson said.
Trimira VP Jerry S. Trzeciak noted that 40 percent of patients diagnosed with oral cancer do not and have not smoked or used smokeless tobacco, nor do they have a history of drinking alcohol in excess. He explained that the oral cancer increase in the younger demographic is due to the sexual transmission from one person to another of the human papilloma virus, namely HPV-16, making it the "contagious cancer."
Trzeciak said that HPV-related oral cancer lesions tend to occur in the back of the throat, base of the tongue, and tonsillar pillars. "Hence the need for a device which can detect cancer and pre-cancer that's otherwise invisible to the naked eye."
"Identafi is highly reliable," Wilson said. "Abnormal tissue that's not noticeable to the naked eye will be revealed by its white, green-amber, and violet wavelengths of light."
Trzeciak explained that Identafi 3000 ultra delivers a higher degree of clinical accuracy and confidence to dentists and other users, which translates into better patient care. Unlike other methods, Identafi 3000 ultra pinpoints biochemical and morphological changes in cells of the mouth, throat, tongue, and tonsils. The device's violet wavelength capability was cited in the May 2009 issue of Cancer Prevention Research, the journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, as the best excitation wavelength to discriminate between neoplastic and non-neoplastic tissue areas.
He added that adjunctive technology like oral cancer detection devices should be used in conjunction with the American Dental Association's recommended conventional visual and tactile examination of the head, neck, and oral cavity. He added that the gold standard of ascertaining whether a patient has oral cancer continues to be the biopsy.
"Of course, it is not practical to do regular biopsies on all dental patients when actually only 10 percent of them have something that is of concern," Trzeciak concluded.
About Dr. L. Don Wilson
Dr L. Don Wilson is a 1978 graduate of the University of Alabama School of Dentistry. Wilson has been in private practice for 30 years. He just recently opened his newest practice, "Signature Smile," in Florence, Alabama. He is a trained instructor and routine user of both the Er,Cr:YSGG and diode lasers.
Wilson holds the standard proficiency and advanced proficiency certification, as well as educator status through the Academy of Laser Dentistry and associate fellowship within the World Clinical Laser Institute. He has authored several articles on laser dentistry, including laser practice management articles for Dental Economics and The Incisal Edge. He is also the featured clinician in training DVDs for Laser Dentistry, Group Practice, and the Identafi 3000 ultra oral cancer screening device.
Wilson has been a featured speaker in such venues as The Star of the South Dental Meeting, the Mid South Dental Congress, the Northern Virginia Dental Society, International Meeting of the Academy of Laser Dentistry, and the WCLI Super Symposium. He has conducted more than 300 seminars in 26 states with a greater than 95 percent "excellent" rating by attendees.
For several years, Wilson has served as one of the featured speakers for laser training at the renowned Las Vegas Institute. He also is director of laser education at the acclaimed Nash Institute in Charlotte, North Carolina.
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/
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