Higher survival among German children with cancerInternationally viewed, medical care in Gera number of for children with cancer is very good as far as survival is concerned. However, other aspects, such as quality of life, pain, and long-term consequences of the disease are still insufficiently investigated in studies. This is the conclusion of the Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) in its final report published on 16 October 2009.
Establish required quality........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 11/24/2009 11:19:27 AM)
Chemo-radiation before prostate removalScientists in the Oregon Health & Science University Knight Cancer Institute and the Portland Veterans Affairs Medical Center have found a combination of radiation treatment and chemotherapy given before prostate removal is safe and may have the potential to reduce cancer recurrence and improve patient survival.
Their findings were presented this week at the 51st annual meeting of the American Society of Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology in........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 11/5/2009 8:36:14 AM)
More-sensitive assay for detecting DNA methylation in colon cancerA study published in this week's online issue of Nature Biotechnology, demonstrates a unique and highly sensitive method for detecting methylation-associated cancers.
Chemical modification of DNA via the addition or deletion of methyl groups has been established as a common biological means of activating or silencing genes. Abnormal levels of DNA methylation, which effectively disrupt the genes responsible for normal cell cycle regulation,........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 8/16/2009 8:28:31 PM)
Conflicts of interest in many cancer studiesA new analysis finds that a considerable number of clinical cancer studies published in respected medical journals have financial connections to pharmaceutical companies. Reported in the June 15, 2009 issue of CANCER, a peer-evaluated journal of the American Cancer Society, the study indicates that conflicts of interest may cause some scientists to report biased results that are favorable to companies.
Ties between clinical scientists and........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 5/11/2009 5:12:50 AM)
Diagnostic advance in head and neck cancerPharmacy scientists at Oregon State University today announced the discovery of a genetic regulator that is expressed at higher levels in the most aggressive types of head and neck cancers, in work that may help to identify them earlier or even offer a new treatment at some point in the future.
This "transcriptional regulator" is called CTIP2, and in recent research has been demonstrated to be a master regulator that has important roles in a........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 4/29/2009 5:18:01 AM)
How to improve immune response to cancerA team of researchers at The Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research (CFIBCR) at Princess Margaret Hospital and international collaborators have discovered how to trigger an improved immune response to cancer that could be included in new clinical trials that use a patient's own cells to destroy tumours.
The findings, published online today in Nature Medicine (DOI: 10.1038/nm.1953), demonstrate the tantalizing potential of........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 4/27/2009 5:14:58 AM)
Genetic Variants Predict Recurrence of Bladder CancerResearchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center have discovered genetic variations in the inflammation pathway that reduce the likelihood of recurrence and increase survival of patients with non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) who are treated with mainstream treatment.
Patients with risk-reducing genotypes were 84 percent less likely to have their disease recur after therapy with Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG), the........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 4/21/2009 5:31:05 AM)
Genetics alone is poor indicator for drug response In certain respects, cells are less like machines and more like people. True, they have lots of components, but they also have lots of personality. For example, when specific groups of people are studied in aggregate (conservatives, liberals, atheists, evangelicals), they appear to be fairly uniform and predictable. But when looked at one person at a time, individuals often break the preconceptions.
Same with cells.
Scientists tend to........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 4/13/2009 1:53:09 PM)
The new tumor suppressor geneNational Institutes of Health (NIH) scientists have identified a gene that suppresses tumor growth in melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. The finding is reported today in the journal Nature Genetics as part of a systematic genetic analysis of a group of enzymes implicated in skin cancer and a number of other types of cancer.
The NIH analysis observed that one-quarter of human melanoma tumors had changes, or mutations, in genes that........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 3/30/2009 5:20:36 AM)
Switch May Prevent the Spread of CancerScientists at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine have identified a master switch that might prevent cancer cells from metastasizing from a primary tumor to other organs. The switch is a protein that, when in the "on" position, maintains the normal character of cells that line the surface of organs and body cavities. These epithelial cells are the type of cell from which most solid tumors arise. However, when the switch is turned........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 3/16/2009 8:12:17 PM)
Nanoscopic Changes to Pancreatic CellsA team of scientists led by a Northwestern University biomedical engineer has developed a way to examine cell biopsies and detect never-before-seen signs of early-stage pancreas cancer, as per a new paper published online by the OSA journal Optics Letters.
Though the new technique has still not proven effective in double-blind clinical trials, it may one day help diagnose cancers of the pancreas and, potentially, other organs at their........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 2/25/2009 5:20:52 AM)
New culprit for prostate cancer?Howard Hughes Medical Institute scientists have identified a new biological marker present in the urine of prostate cancer patients that indicates whether the cancer is progressing and spreading.
In experiments published in the February 12, 2009, issue of the journal Nature, the researchers identified 10 metabolites that become more abundant in prostate cells as cancer progresses. Their studies showed that one of these chemicals, sarcosine,........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 2/12/2009 5:46:16 AM)
Why bladder cancer is deadlier for someBladder cancer is much more likely to be deadly for women and African-Americans, but the reasons long believed to explain the phenomenon account for only part of the differences for such patients in comparison to their white and male counterparts, as per results reported in the Jan. 1 issue of the journal Cancer
The results present a stark question for doctors and patients: If age, tumor type, and stage of the disease upon diagnosis don't........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 1/8/2009 9:23:03 PM)
Destabilizing cancer cells in kidney cancerKidney cancer is typically without symptoms until it has spread to other organs, when it is also the most difficult to treat. Newer chemotherapies show great promise for extending survival during later disease stages, but they can also be highly toxic.
In one of the first discoveries of its kind, UC Davis Cancer Center scientists have identified ways to block a cancer gene's own repair mechanism and, in so doing, help make chemotherapy for........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 12/23/2008 10:27:27 PM)
Pre-existing diabetes for persons diagnosed with cancerPatients with diabetes at the time of a cancer diagnosis have an increased risk of death in comparison to patients without diabetes, as per a meta-analysis of studies published in the December 17 issue of JAMA
Approximately 20 million Americans have diabetes mellitus, which is about 7 percent of the U.S. adult population. Diabetes mellitus appears to be a risk factor for some cancers, but the effect of pre-existing diabetes on all-cause........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 12/16/2008 9:33:54 PM)
Statins do not interfere with rituximab treatmentStatins, drugs widely prescribed to lower cholesterol, do not interfere with a usually used medicine to treat lymphomas, as per a Mayo Clinic study presented today at the.
50th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology (http://www.hematology.org/meetings/2008/) in San Francisco. In fact, statins may slow the progression of certain types of lymphoma.
The study focused on the impact of statin use on outcomes of patients with two........Go to the Cancer-articles (Added on 12/8/2008 10:16:20 PM)
European ancestry increases breast cancer risk Latina women have a lower risk of breast cancer than European or African-American women generally, but those with higher European ancestry could be at increased risk, as per data reported in the December 1 issue of Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.
"We need to study the possible factors that are placing Latina women of high European ancestry at greater risk," said Laura Fejerman, Ph.D., a........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 12/1/2008 6:10:47 PM)
Potential new drug target for chronic leukemiaScientists at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) and the Moores UCSD Cancer Center have discovered what could be a novel drug target for an often difficult-to-treat form of leukemia. The researchers have identified a unique "signature" or pattern of a specific family of enzymes in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), the most common form of adult leukemia.
Paul Insel, M.D., professor of pharmacology and medicine at........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 11/24/2008 9:33:37 PM)
Role of vitamin D in cancer therapyA colon cancer cell isn't a lost cause. Vitamin D can tame the rogue cell by adjusting everything from its gene expression to its cytoskeleton. In the Nov. 17 issue of the Journal of Cell Biology, Ordez-Morn et al. show that one pathway governs the vitamin's diverse effects. The results help clarify the actions of a molecule that is undergoing clinical trials as a cancer treatment.
Vitamin D stymies colon cancer cells in two ways. It........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 11/18/2008 5:28:23 AM)
Scientists close in on method to fight deadly childhood cancerA multicenter team of researchers, including researchers from the University of Florida, has discovered a way to potentially block the growth of neuroblastoma, a type of cancer responsible for 15 percent of all cancer deaths in children.
Working with human cell lines and tissue samples, scientists describe in Thursday's (Oct. 16, 2008) online issue of Nature how they were able to short-circuit genetic processes that apparently contribute to........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 10/15/2008 5:23:02 PM)
|
|
Pancreatic tumors are marked for immunotherapyPancreatic tumors can be identified by a readily detectable marker that shows promise as a basis for immune treatment against the disease, as per research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.
The marker is mesothelin, a protein normally found on mesothelial cells that line the body cavities. Several types of cancer cells make large amounts of mesothelin, which then circulates in the blood.
Mesothelin levels in the........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 12/1/2009 8:31:46 AM)
Warburg effect against cancerThe pedal-to-the-metal signals driving the growth of several types of cancer cells lead to a common switch governing the use of glucose, scientists at Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University have discovered.
Researchers who study cancer have known for decades that cancer cells tend to consume more glucose, or blood sugar, than healthy cells. This tendency is known as the "Warburg effect," honoring discoverer Otto Warburg, a German........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 11/18/2009 11:47:43 PM)
Depression in older cancer patientsDepression in older cancer patients can be effectively treated with collaborative approach in primary-care settings.
Depression in older cancer patients is very common, and has debilitating effects on their quality of life both during and after therapy. University of Washington (UW) scientists are showing that there are ways to better this situation.
"Little is known about the optimal approach to treating depression in this population,........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 10/20/2009 10:07:16 PM)
Cancer-obesity linkA new link between body fat and cancer identified by a Michigan State University researcher underscores obesity's health risk and could lead to new cancer therapy and prevention strategies.
Jenifer Fenton, an MSU food science and human nutrition researcher with the Michigan Agricultural Experiment Station, identified the correlation between obesity and colon cancer, the third-leading killer of Americans, in part by examining tissue hormones.........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 4/30/2009 9:37:39 PM)
A new weapon against brain cancerAn unlikely multidisciplinary scientific collaboration has discovered that an electronic nose developed for air quality monitoring on Space Shuttle Endeavour can also be used to detect odour differences in normal and malignant brain cells. The results of the pilot study open up new possibilities for neurosurgeons in the fight against brain cancer.
Neurosurgeons from the City of Hope Cancer Center, along with researchers from the Brain........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 4/30/2009 5:08:03 AM)
Reducing prostate cancer and diseaseStatins, drugs widely prescribed to lower cholesterol, may have protective effects on prostate health. This large Mayo Clinic cohort study looked at three different aspects of urological health -- prostate cancer, erectile dysfunction and prostate enlargement. Initial research results are being presented April 25-30, 2009, at the American Urological Association (AUA) meeting in Chicago.
VIDEO ALERT: Additional audio and video resources,........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 4/27/2009 5:23:31 AM)
A gel to treat esophageal cancerGastroenterologists at Rush University Medical Center are studying the safety and efficacy of a new system for delivering chemotherapy for patients with esophageal cancer, a rare, but deadly disease that attacks the throat. The unique drug treatment delivers a highly concentrated dose of chemotherapy injected directly on to the hard-to-reach tumors in the esophagus non-surgically. Scientists at Rush are trying to determine if the gel therapy........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 4/16/2009 5:12:54 AM)
When cancer cells can't let goLike a climber scaling a rock face, a migrating cancer cell has to keep a tight grip on the surface but also let go at the right moment to move ahead. Chan et al. reveal that the focal adhesion kinase (FAK) coordinates these processes to permit forward movement. The study will be published online April 13 (www.jcb.org) and will appear in the April 20 print issue of the Journal of Cell Biology
Crawling cancer cells send out extensions called........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 4/13/2009 1:27:12 PM)
Breakthrough model for human cancerAVEO Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company leveraging breakthrough discoveries in cancer biology to discover, develop and commercialize targeted oncology therapies, today announced findings from its novel human-in-mouse (HIM) cancer model system, in which AVEO successfully created invasive human tumors from primary human breast tissue that develop over time in mice and mimic human tumor behaviors and response. The findings were........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 4/6/2009 10:14:44 PM)
Five-day radiation treatment of early stage prostate cancerPreliminary results show that a shortened course of radiation treatment for prostate cancer called stereotactic body radiation treatment (SBRT) provides good PSA response for early-stage prostate cancer and has the same side effects as other therapys, as per a March 15 study in the International Journal of Radiation Oncology*Biology*Physics, the official journal of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO). Study authors caution that........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 3/16/2009 5:16:09 AM)
When should you stop doing PSA testing?Although widespread Prostate-Specific-Antigen (PSA) testing has undoubtedly decreased prostate cancer mortality, is there a point of diminishing returns? According to a research findings published in the April 2009 issue of The Journal of Urology, researchers found that in a subgroup of elderly men, among those who were 75 years old or older and had a PSA below 3 ng/ml (nanograms per milliliter), none subsequently died of prostate cancer. The........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 2/20/2009 6:07:44 AM)
New method to predict colorectal cancer recurrenceA preliminary report shows that genetic testing may help identify a marker in lymph nodes that is linked to an increased risk of colorectal cancer recurrence among patients in whom conventional testing indicates that those lymph nodes show no evidence of cancer spread, as per a research studyin the February 18 issue of JAMA
Metastasis of tumor cells to regional lymph nodes is the single most important prognostic factor in patients with........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 2/18/2009 6:20:15 AM)
New class of cancer drugs in makingA team of Vanderbilt University Medical Center researchers has developed a group of chemical compounds that could represent a new class of drugs for treating cancer.
The compounds are the first selective inhibitors of the protein phospholipase D (PLD), an enzyme that has been implicated in multiple human cancers including breast, renal, gastric and colorectal.
The new inhibitors, published in the recent issue of Nature Chemical Biology,........Go to the Cancer-articles (Added on 2/4/2009 6:11:26 AM)
E. coli engineered to produce anti-cancer drugsScientists from the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science have taken a major step forward in the field of metabolic engineering, successfully using the bacterium Escherichia coli to synthesize a class of natural products known bacterial aromatic polyketides, which include important antibiotic and anticancer drugs.
Natural products are pharmacologically or biologically potent chemical compounds produced by living........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 12/22/2008 9:32:54 PM)
Fluorescence Tomography Of Tumors In Living AnimalsFluorescent molecules - i.e. substances which can be stimulated to emit light - are extremely valuable tools in biological research and medical diagnosis. Fluorescence can be used for instance to analyze the regulation and expression of genes, to locate proteins in cells and tissues, to follow metabolic pathways and to study the location and migration of cells. Of particular importance is the combination of fluorescence imaging with novel........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 12/11/2008 5:13:16 AM)
Selenium, vitamin E do not prevent prostate cancerFindings from one of the largest cancer chemoprevention trials ever conducted have concluded that selenium and vitamin E taken alone or in combination for an average of five and a half years did not prevent prostate cancer, as per a team of scientists coordinated by the Southwest Oncology Group (SWOG) and led by researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center and Cleveland Clinic.
Data and analysis gathered through Oct.........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 12/9/2008 10:16:33 PM)
Prostate cancer spurs new nervesProstate cancer and perhaps other cancers promotes the growth of new nerves and the branching axons that carry their messages, a finding linked to more aggressive tumors, said scientists from Baylor College of Medicine in the first report of the phenomenon that appears today in the journal Clinical Cancer Research
Prior research showed that prostate cancer follows the growth of nerves, but this is the first time that researchers have........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 12/1/2008 6:07:46 PM)
Suppressing prostate cancer developmentScientists at the University of Southern California (USC) have observed that inactivating a specific biomarker for aggressive prostate cancer blocks the development of prostate cancer in animal models.
Scientists say the upcoming study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciencesnow available onlinemay lead to a novel cancer treatment for humans.
"This research has far-reaching implications in a wide range for human cancers,"........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 11/24/2008 9:28:57 PM)
If the diabetes has a direct carcinogenetic effect?The association of DM2 with solid tumors, and especially with HCC, has been long suspected and several studies have reported increased mortality rates for neoplastic diseases in patients with DM2. However, the temporal relationship between onset of diabetes and development of HCC, and the clinical and metabolic characteristics of patients with DM2 and HCC have not been well examined.
A research article would be published on October 7, 2008........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 10/29/2008 10:07:42 PM)
Disparities in head and neck cancer patientsA new analysis finds considerable disparities in survival correlation to race and socio-economic status among patients with head and neck cancer. Reported in the November 15, 2008 issue of CANCER, a peer-evaluated journal of the American Cancer Society, the study indicates that earlier diagnosis and greater access to therapy could improve outcomes for these cancers among African Americans and the poor.
Many studies have examined disparities........Go to the The-cancer-blog (Added on 10/6/2008 10:24:48 PM)
|
