Metastasis News and Research

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Metastasis is the spread of cancer from one part of the body to another. A tumor formed by cells that have spread is called a “metastatic tumor” or a “metastasis.” The metastatic tumor contains cells that are like those in the original (primary) tumor. The plural form of metastasis is metastases

Potential new strategy for blocking tumor growth

Targeting a master molecule that helps cancer cells survive when blood oxygen levels are low may offer a potentially powerful strategy for blocking tumor growth, say researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center.

16 Jun 2004

Atrasentan reduces cancer risk by 20 percent in men with advanced hormone-resistant prostate cancer

Recent clinical studies led by Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center researchers have found that a drug called atrasentan reduces the risk by 20 percent that cancer will progress in men with advanced hormone-resistant prostate cancer.

7 Jun 2004

Crucial discovery may help better diagnose and treat children with Hirschsprung disease

Researchers at Fox Chase Cancer Center have made a crucial discovery that may help physicians better diagnose and treat children with Hirschsprung disease, a debilitating and sometimes life-threatening ailment that causes bowel obstruction and involves an array of genetic changes.

5 Jun 2004

Avastin study shows significant improvement in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer

Genentech, Inc. and Roche have announced that the New England Journal of Medicine published the first Phase III study of an anti-angiogenesis cancer therapy, showing that the addition of Avastin™ (bevacizumab) to the IFL chemotherapy regimen (5-FU/Leucovorin/ CPT-11) significantly extended survival in patients with first-line (previously untreated) metastatic colorectal cancer.

2 Jun 2004

Understanding focal adhesion kinase (FAK) may lead to new cancer treatments

Scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have found an unexpected way to turn off a cellular enzyme involved in the progression of several types of human cancers.

2 Jun 2004

Results from a clinical study of CyberKnife ® radiosurgery for locally advanced pancreatic cancer

Accuray Incorporated announced today the publication of the results from a clinical study of CyberKnife ® radiosurgery for locally advanced pancreatic cancer.

25 May 2004

Combination radiation treatment for brain cancer leads to better life

People with cancer that has spread to the brain – about 40 percent of all cancer cases – live longer and enjoy a better quality of life if they are treated with a combination of radiation techniques, according to research conducted, in part, at the James P. Wilmot Cancer Center at the University of Rochester Medical Center.

21 May 2004

New study of tumor genetics may help to treat patients with head and neck cancer

Head and neck tumors account for more than 40,000 new cancers annually in the United States. The most common of these is squamous cell carcinoma. Prognosis is based largely on location and size of the tumor, and if the cancer has spread, or metastasized, to lymph nodes and distant sites in the body.

19 May 2004

New way by which cells can become cancerous may solve mystery with lung cancer

Researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center are describing an entirely new way by which cells can become cancerous. And they say their finding provides an answer to a mystery in lung and other cancers.

8 May 2004

Researchers find an entirely new way by which cells can become cancerous

Finding provides an answer to a mystery in lung and other cancers: why a potent tumor suppressor gene called FUS1 functions as it should, yet none of the protein it produces can be found anywhere in a cancer cell.

6 May 2004

World's first gene therapy trial aimed at preventing cancer

The concept seems straightforward. If, at its heart, cancer is a disease of genes, then giving patients new genes should disarm cancer. Such treatment would replace missing or faulty genes that keep cell growth in check, or would flush the body with "super genes" that could attack and destroy cancer.

5 May 2004

Australian company receives FDA orphan drug designation for product to treat malignant melanomas

Progen Industries Limited, an Australian anti-cancer drug development company, announced today that it has received orphan drug designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for their lead anti-angiogenesis product PI-88 for treatment of malignant melanoma.

3 May 2004

Drug, Nembutal can suppress activity in colon cancer cells

A barbiturate once commonly used to treat anxiety may play a role in controlling the spread of colon cancer, say researchers from The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center.

30 Mar 2004

Researchers find new purpose for existing drugs to suppress colon cancer metastasis, secure post-radiation brain function, and trick tumors

Drugs approved for treatment of specific maladies sometimes show unexpected benefits. Researchers at the 95th annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research demonstrated highlighted how some drugs may one day offer previously unforeseen benefits for patients.

30 Mar 2004

Novel vaccine technology to suppress the growth of certain tumors

MedImmune, Inc. and Cerus Corporation have announced preclinical results demonstrating the effectiveness of a novel therapeutic vaccine technology in suppressing the growth of certain tumors.

From Baxter International Inc. 29 Mar 2004