Radiation Therapy News and Research

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Radiation therapy (also called radiotherapy, x-ray therapy, or irradiation) is the use of a certain type of energy (called ionizing radiation) to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. Radiation therapy injures or destroys cells in the area being treated (the “target tissue”) by damaging their genetic material, making it impossible for these cells to continue to grow and divide. Although radiation damages both cancer cells and normal cells, most normal cells can recover from the effects of radiation and function properly. The goal of radiation therapy is to damage as many cancer cells as possible, while limiting harm to nearby healthy tissue.

Long-term study of prostate cancer treatments

A rigorous, long-term study of quality of life in patients who underwent one of the three most common treatments for prostate cancer found that each affected men's lives in different ways.

24 Apr 2007

Pharmacyclics announces NDA for Xcytrin injection

Pharmacyclics, Inc. has announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has filed the company's New Drug Application (NDA) for Xcytrin (motexafin gadolinium) Injection.

24 Apr 2007

Prostate cancer treatment decisions can be complicated

For many men with early-stage prostate cancer, sorting out the treatment options can be overwhelming.

20 Apr 2007

Viventia Biotech announces results of Proxinium antibody in combinaton with chemotherapy and radiation

Viventia Biotech has announced results of in vitro cytotoxicity and in vivo pharmacokinetic studies conducted to evaluate the potential for combining its phase III anti-cancer antibody therapeutic, Proxinium, with first-line standard of care therapy for squamous cell carcinoma of the head & neck (SCCHN).

19 Apr 2007

New discoveries about stem cells in leukemia, breast and colon cancer

Recent discoveries about the role of stem cells in cancer have altered the landscape of cancer research. With each new study, scientists are learning more about cancer-initiating properties of stem cells at organ sites and throughout the body.

19 Apr 2007

Factors that dictate risk of developing primary or secondary cancer

Every day, people make assumptions, educated and not, about their risk for developing cancer.

18 Apr 2007

OncoGenex Technologies announces data from a Phase II clinical trial of OGX-011

The primary objective of this study was to assess the objective response rates (reduction in tumor size) when OGX-011 is combined with docetaxel in patients with metastatic or locally recurrent breast cancer.

18 Apr 2007

More effective therapies for individual cancers - personalized medicine

Genetic and epigenetic variations ensure that no two people are exactly alike, and the same holds true for any two cancers.

18 Apr 2007

Scientists isolate enzyme that could be used to predict survival for nasopharyngeal cancer

Mayo Clinic Cancer Center scientists, in collaboration with Chinese researchers, have isolated an enzyme that could be used to predict survival and recurrence rates for nasopharyngeal cancer -- a common cancer affecting people from Southeast Asia.

18 Apr 2007

Brain tumor vaccine shows promise

A vaccine for treating a recurrent cancer of the central nervous system that occurs primarily in the brain has shown promise in preliminary data from a clinical trial at the University of California, San Francisco.

17 Apr 2007

Predicting cancer risk in the long term

Every day, people make assumptions, educated and not, about their risk for developing cancer.

17 Apr 2007

FDA accepts Satraplatin NDA for priority review

Spectrum Pharmaceuticals has announced that the New Drug Application (NDA) for satraplatin has been accepted for priority review by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA).

17 Apr 2007

FDA accepts GPC Biotech's Satraplatin NDA

GPC Biotech AG has announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted for filing the Company's New Drug Application (NDA) for satraplatin in combination with prednisone for patients with hormone-refractory prostate cancer (HRPC) whose prior chemotherapy has failed.

17 Apr 2007

Investigational cancer 17-AAG drug targets critical proteins

A drug under study to treat various cancers selectively kills cancer cells because of its affinity for a modified version of a critical heat shock protein they contain, researchers have found.

16 Apr 2007

Lower educational level makes some men more vulnerable to the effects of prostate cancer

Among men who have received similar treatments for prostate cancer, those with less education , particularly those who did not graduate from high school , experience a significant drop in their quality of life after treatment compared with men who have more education, according to a study led by researchers at the San Francisco VA Medical Center (SFVAMC).

15 Apr 2007