- With Mayo Clinic medical oncologist
Timothy Moynihan, M.D.
read biographyclose windowBiography of
Timothy Moynihan, M.D.
Timothy Moynihan, M.D.
"As a practicing medical oncologist, I meet with patients and families every day to help manage their course through this disease called cancer. This experience provides unique insight into the needs of cancer patients, their families and loved ones and brings into sharp focus the need for reliable information to be readily available in terms that can be easily understood." — Dr. Timothy Moynihan
Dr. Timothy Moynihan believes that providing consumers accurate, timely information on the broad, complex topic of cancer is the biggest challenge facing medical Web sites. As the guiding force behind our cancer coverage, he makes sure Mayo Clinic meets the test.
Dr. Moynihan, born in Las Vegas, N.M., but raised in Denver, is a consultant in medical oncology at Mayo Clinic and an associate professor at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine. He is board certified in internal medicine, medical oncology, and hospice and palliative care medicine. He did his medical oncology training at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, and then went on to the University of Minnesota and St. Paul Regions Medical Center in St. Paul, Minn., for seven years before moving to Mayo Clinic in 1999. Dr. Moynihan is director of the palliative care program at Mayo Clinic and associate medical director of the Mayo Clinic hospice.
Dr. Moynihan currently serves as the education chair for the Department of Medical Oncology and fellowship program director. Four times he has been selected as Teacher of the Year in medical oncology and elected to the Teacher of the Year Hall of Fame. Past honors include distinguished clinical teacher at the University of Minnesota Medical School, best internist at the Medical College of Wisconsin and recipient of The Upjohn Achievement Award for Excellence in Medicine. He serves on several national committees for the American Society of Clinical Oncology.
"The Internet provides a ready source of information on a wide range of topics of interest to those affected by cancer," Dr. Moynihan says. "The difficulty is trying to decide which sites provide reputable information and which information is relevant to each individual patient. The long history and tradition of excellence associated with Mayo Clinic assures you that information provided will be reliable, up-to-date and comprehensive."
Risk factors (2)
- Vasectomy: Does it increase my risk of prostate cancer?
- Flaxseed: Does it affect risk of prostate cancer?
Tests and diagnosis (2)
- Prostate cancer: Does PSA level affect prognosis?
- Watchful waiting and prostate cancer: What does it mean?
Complications (1)
- Prostate cancer: Can it spread to the pancreas?
Treatments and drugs (3)
- Prostate cancer brachytherapy: Can I pass radiation to others?
- Prostate cancer treatment: Is prostatectomy possible if brachytherapy fails?
- Ginger for chemotherapy-induced nausea: Does it work?
Alternative medicine (1)
- Pomegranate juice: A cure for prostate cancer?
Prevention (2)
- Frequent sex: Does it protect against prostate cancer?
- Prostate cancer vaccine: Is it available?
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Question
Prostate cancer vaccine: Is it available?
I've heard there is a prostate cancer vaccine? Is that true and where can I get it?
Answer
from Timothy Moynihan, M.D.
Researchers are working on a prostate cancer vaccine, but no prostate cancer vaccine has yet been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use in the general population. The prostate cancer vaccines currently in development are only available to men participating in clinical trials. One or more of the vaccines may be approved for wider use within the next few years.
Some vaccines target viruses — such as polio or influenza — and are designed to prevent a disease in otherwise healthy individuals. In contrast, the prostate cancer vaccines in development are therapeutic vaccines. They're designed to be given to men who already have prostate cancer to treat the cancer and to prevent it from spreading.
Prostate cancer vaccines help the body's immune system to recognize prostate cancer cells and to attack and destroy them. The vaccines use a number of mechanisms to do this. There's also some evidence that these vaccines have minimal side effects.
Talk with your doctor about whether participating in a clinical trial might be appropriate for you. You can also find out more about cancer clinical trials by going to the National Cancer Institute's Clinical Trials Web page.
Next questionVasectomy: Does it increase my risk of prostate cancer?
- What's new in prostate cancer research and treatment? American Cancer Society. http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/content/CRI_2_4_6X_Whats_New_in_Prostate_Cancer_Research_and_Treatment_36.asp. Accessed Feb. 10, 2009.
- Cancer vaccine fact sheet. National Cancer Institute. http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/cancervaccine. Accessed Feb. 11, 2009.
- Mohebtash M, et al. Therapeutic prostate cancer vaccines: A review of the latest developments. Current Opinion in Investigational Drugs. 2008;9:1296.
- Mohebtash M, et al. Cancer vaccines: Current directions and perspectives in prostate cancer. Current Opinion in Molecular Therapeutics. 2009;11:31.
