Retinoblastoma News and Research

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A retinoblastoma is a malignant tumor of the retina, occurring most often in young children below 5 years. In one of three cases it is bilateral i.e., affecting both eyes. About 250-350 new cases occur every year in the USA, in children younger than 15 years.

Scientists target tumor suppressor as a new treatment approach to 'triple-negative' breast cancer

Researchers studying “triple-negative” breast cancer have found that the loss of a specific tumor suppressor provides clues about potential new treatments.

6 Feb 2018

Sex steroid hormone fluctuations may have direct effects on eye physiology and AMD

Gender-based differences may influence several ocular conditions, suggesting that fluctuations in sex steroid homeostasis may have direct effects on eye physiology and the pathogenesis of conditions like Age-Related Macular Degeneration.

18 Jan 2018

WPI professor receives Smith Family Foundation grant to explore biology of cancer cells

Amity Manning, assistant professor of biology and biotechnology, has received a three-year, $300,000 award from the Smith Family Awards Program for Excellence in Biomedical Research.

8 Jan 2018

CHLA and Keck Medicine of USC develop new liquid biopsy for tumor of the retina

Retinoblastoma is a tumor of the retina that generally affects children under 5 years of age. If not diagnosed early, retinoblastoma may result in loss of one or both eyes and can be fatal. Unlike most cancers that are diagnosed using a biopsy, retinoblastoma tumors cannot be directly biopsied.

16 Oct 2017

St. Jude creates world’s largest collection of pediatric solid tumor samples

In an effort to improve outcomes for patients with some of the deadliest childhood cancers, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists have created the world's largest collection of pediatric solid tumor samples, drug-sensitivity data and related information and have made the resource available at no charge to the global scientific community.

31 Aug 2017

ASTRO releases updated insurance coverage recommendations for proton beam therapy to treat cancer

The American Society for Radiation Oncology has issued an update to its recommendations for medical insurance coverage regarding the use of proton beam therapy to treat cancer.

13 Jul 2017

Study prompts further assessment of tomato extracts’ use in gastric cancer prevention

A new study shows that whole tomato extracts from two different Southern Italy cultivars inhibit gastric cancer cell growth and malignant features, paving the way for future studies aimed at implementing lifestyle habits not only for prevention but potentially as a support to conventional therapies.

15 May 2017

Retinoblastoma protein plays larger role in tumor suppression, study finds

The Retinoblastoma protein (pRB) has long been studied for its role in cell growth and the prevention of cancer.

16 Dec 2016

Experimental cancer drug Nutlin-3 shows promise in cancelling effects of fragile X syndrome

A University of Wisconsin-Madison researcher who studies the most common genetic intellectual disability has used an experimental drug to reverse — in mice — damage from the mutation that causes the syndrome.

28 Apr 2016

Survivin inhibitor with chemotherapy provides therapeutic advantage for Rb cells, tumors

Researchers at The Saban Research Institute of Children's Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) have demonstrated that targeting survivin - a protein that inhibits apoptosis or cell death - enhances the effectiveness of chemotherapy in cells and mouse models of retinoblastoma (Rb), the most common malignant tumor of the eye in children.

18 Apr 2016

Research shows tumor suppressor protein regulates polarity genes

What does Brad Pitt have in common with a fruit fly? His Hollywood hairstyles cover a prominent cowlick - the swirl of hair that that is caused by a patterning mechanism also active in our two-winged friends -- that similarly feature "polarized" hair patterns.

24 Mar 2016

CHLA, Thermo Fisher Scientific agree to develop NGS-based panel for pediatric cancer research

Children's Hospital Los Angeles and Thermo Fisher Scientific have agreed to develop a next-generation sequencing (NGS)-based panel designed specifically for pediatric cancer research. The assay would be CHLA's first NGS panel designed to target biomarkers associated with childhood cancers.

19 Feb 2016

Genetic profiling ‘feasible’ for paediatric cancer patients

Research published in JAMA Oncology demonstrates that tumour and germline molecular profiling is feasible in paediatric cancer patients and can have actionable findings.

2 Feb 2016

New studies provide insights into impact of vision loss among survivors of childhood cancers

Little is known about the long-term health of survivors of childhood cancers that affect vision, but two new studies provide valuable insights that could impact patient care and follow-up. The findings are published early online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society.

12 Jan 2016

Study paves way for development of novel cancer therapeutics

A team of scientists, comprising researchers from the Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, a research institute under the Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore, and the VIB Laboratory of Molecular Cancer Biology, has revealed the mechanism by which tumor cells elevate levels of MDM4, a protein that is highly expressed in cancer cells but not in normal adult tissues.

16 Dec 2015

Research shows link between absence of RB protein and long-term survival rates in lung cancer patients

November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month, highlighting the number one cause of cancer-related death in North America. While prognosis for the most common form, adenocarcinoma, has remained poor, new research has shown a link between the absence of a specific protein and improved patient outcomes.

4 Nov 2015

Researchers receive NIH grants to find genomic regions containing variants that affect disease risk

Six new grants from the National Institutes of Health will support researchers to develop new computational approaches for searching among millions of genomic variants to find those that make a difference in disease susceptibility or in other traits.

23 Sep 2015

Recipients of GSA poster awards announced at 20th International C. elegans Meeting

The Genetics Society of America and the C. elegans research community are pleased to announce the recipients of the GSA poster awards at the 20th International C. elegans Meeting, which took place at the University of California, Los Angeles, June 24-28, 2015.

28 Jul 2015

Review article provides in depth survey of studies focusing on retinoblastoma protein's role in apoptosis

Retinoblastoma protein RB1, which is named after a form of pediatric tumor of the eye, is among the most common genetically regulated cellular proteins to malfunction in human cancer. RB1 was also the first tumor suppressor gene to be identified and its modes of inactivation in retinoblastoma tumors provided the basis for the ground-breaking two-hit hypothesis by the geneticist Alfred G. Knudson in the 70s, according to which cancer is due to the accumulation of multiple 'hits' or mutations in certain genes.

3 Jul 2015

St. Jude scientists develop new computer tool to find DNA duplications and deletions in tumors

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists have developed a significantly better computer tool for finding genetic alterations that play an important role in many cancers but were difficult to identify with whole-genome sequencing.

5 May 2015