Therapy News and Research

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Laminin-111 shows potential for congenital muscular dystrophy

Current research suggests laminin, a protein that helps cells stick together, may lead to enhanced muscle repair in muscular dystrophy.

1 Jan 2009

New online tool for calculating colorectal cancer risk

A new online tool for calculating colorectal cancer risk in men and women age 50 or older was launched today, based on a new risk-assessment model developed by researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health.

1 Jan 2009

Lung cancer cells activate inflammation to induce metastasis

A research team from the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine has identified a protein produced by cancerous lung epithelial cells that enhances metastasis by stimulating the activity of inflammatory cells.

1 Jan 2009

Researchers assess safety of bismuth compounds for treatment peptic ulcer disease

The discovery of H. pylori in 1983 led to renewed interest in bismuth compounds, because these were found to successfully treat the infection in combination with antibiotics. However, in the 1970s bismuth salts, used at high doses for prolonged periods, were found to lead to neurotoxicity.

1 Jan 2009

First U.S. implants of Embozene color-advanced microspheres embolization technology

Against the backdrop of a flagging economy, bailouts, and bleak predictions, there is a biotechnology firm in suburban Atlanta with a future as bright as New Year's Eve fireworks.

1 Jan 2009

Arousal frequency in heart failure found to be a unique sleep problem

A study in the Jan. 1 issue of the journal Sleep demonstrates that the frequent arousals from sleep that occur in heart failure patients with central sleep apnea (CSA) may reflect the presence of another underlying arousal disorder rather than being a defensive mechanism to terminate apneas.

1 Jan 2009

Antioxidant supplementation effective in relieving pain in chronic pancreatitis

Antioxidant supplementation was found to be effective in relieving pain and reducing levels of oxidative stress in patients with chronic pancreatitis (CP), reports a new study in Gastroenterology.

1 Jan 2009

Pegloticase BLA filing accepted for priority review by FDA

Savient Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted for review the Company's Biologics License Application (BLA) for pegloticase, a novel biological drug for treatment-failure gout (TFG) patients.

30 Dec 2008

May hepatic granulomas be part of the histological spectrum of chronic hepatitis C?

While older large series of patients with hepatic granulomas have found sarcoidosis and tuberculosis to be the most common causes of hepatic granulomas, recent works have noted some patients with chronic hepatic C and hepatic granulomas and no other obvious associations.

30 Dec 2008

Long-term gene therapy used to reverse heart damage in heart failure

Long-term gene therapy resulted in improved cardiac function and reversed deterioration of the heart in rats with heart failure, according to a recent study conducted by researchers at Thomas Jefferson University's Center for Translational Medicine.

30 Dec 2008

Antifungal medication could provide asthma relief for 150,000 UK sufferers

Up to 150,000 people suffering from severe asthma in the UK could benefit from taking antifungal medication already available from pharmacists, new research has found.

From The University of Manchester 30 Dec 2008

Scientists reverse brain birth defects using stem cell therapy

Scientists at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem have succeeded in reversing brain birth defects in animal models, using stem cells to replace defective brain cells.

29 Dec 2008

FDA approves injectable drug degarelix for advanced prostate cancer

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently approved the injectable drug degarelix, the first new drug in several years for prostate cancer.

29 Dec 2008

Barcode chip enables cheaper, faster blood testing

A new barcode chip developed by a multi-institutional team of investigators promises to revolutionize diagnostic medical testing. In less than 10 minutes and using just a pinprick's worth of blood, the chip can measure the concentrations of dozens of proteins, including those that herald the presence of diseases such as cancer and heart disease.

29 Dec 2008

Magnetic nanotags allow sensitive detection of cancer biomarkers

The detection of cancer-associated proteins, or biomarkers, in blood samples is a potentially powerful tool for early diagnosis of cancer and monitoring of cancer treatment.

29 Dec 2008

Targeted nanoparticles deliver therapeutic DNA to cancer cells

Given that cancer is a disease caused by gene mutations, cancer researchers have been striving to develop gene therapies aimed at correcting these mutations. However, these efforts have been hobbled by the difficulty in safely and efficiently delivering anticancer genes to tumors. Nanoparticles, however, may solve these delivery issues, and two recently published studies, using two different types of nanoparticles, lend credence to that hypothesis.

29 Dec 2008

Seniors warned about mixing OTC and prescription drugs

According to researchers in the United States about 2.2 million seniors put themselves at high risk for drug interactions - they say many non-prescription medication, which are bought over-the-counter (OTC) can produce a harmful drug interactions.

29 Dec 2008

New therapy for transplant rejection

Researchers in the U.S. have discovered a new cancer drug which effectively treats transplant rejections.

29 Dec 2008

Physicians perform rare surgery to restore hearing to a deaf patient

Marisela Leon, 44, has neurofibromatosis type 2 -- a rare genetic condition that causes tumors to grow on nerves in the brain or spinal cord, but most commonly on the auditory nerve. Leon lost her hearing more than four years ago when surgery to remove a tumor damaged her auditory nerve.

22 Dec 2008

Trial looks at high intensity focused ultrasound for locally recurrent prostate cancer

A Phase III clinical trial at New York University is investigating the safety and efficacy of High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) for the treatment of locally recurrent prostate cancer following failed external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) using the Sonablate(R) 500.

22 Dec 2008