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.

Some women with ovarian cancer do not receive beneficial surgical treatment, study finds

Nearly 20 percent of women with ovarian cancer do not undergo surgery, despite it being a standard part of treatment recommendations, according to new research from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

2 Jun 2016

Combining VCA with organ transplants improves patient outcomes

Simultaneous transplantation of a "composite" skull and scalp flap plus a kidney and pancreas—all from the same donor—provided excellent outcomes for a patient with a non-healing scalp defect and declining organ kidney and pancreas function, according to a report in the June issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.

28 May 2016

Gene expression patterns of normal tissue may predict survival rates of estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer patients

Breast tissue surrounding tumors could be used to gauge future survival outcomes for women with estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer, a study led by University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center researchers has found.

27 May 2016

Clinical trials of anti-cancer agent PAC-1 continue to progress with anonymous funding

Clinical trials of the anti-cancer agent PAC-1 are continuing to expand, thanks to a $7 million angel investment from an anonymous contributor who originally invested $4 million to help get the compound this far in the drug-approval pipeline.

25 May 2016

Radiation-immunotherapy combination can help treat melanoma

Combining radiation treatments with a new generation of immunotherapies is showing promise as a one-two-punch against melanoma, Loyola Medicine researchers report in a review article.

20 May 2016

Conventional repeated radiation treatments may offer no major benefit to brain tumor patients

A new study shows that repeated radiation therapy used to target tumors in the brain may not be as safe to healthy brain cells as previously assumed.

19 May 2016

Play-based procedural preparation helps reduce sedation use and costs tied to cranial radiation therapy

New research from St. Jude Children's Research Hospital shows support interventions by child life specialists decrease sedation use and costs associated with cranial radiation therapy.

19 May 2016

Vessel-sparing radiation, better understanding of prostate anatomy can improve quality of life

Remember the game Operation? You need to carefully remove the body part without nicking the sides or the buzzer will sound.

12 May 2016

New interactive radiation therapy planning system can help improve patient's chances of recovery

Radiation therapy is one of the most essential elements in cancer treatment. But properly planning radiation therapy is a highly complex task. Fraunhofer mathematicians have joined an alliance with medical physicists and physicians to improve the therapy planning process. In doing so they have helped improve patient's chances of recovery.

11 May 2016

Sophisticated technology helps model and simulate optimal dose for pediatric ependymoma patients

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists have used sophisticated pharmacologic modeling and simulation to translate preclinical findings into a successful phase I clinical trial of a chemotherapy agent for treatment of ependymoma. The research marked the first time the approach has been used to calculate drug doses for a clinical trial in pediatric brain tumor patients.

10 May 2016

MUSC Hollings Cancer Center receives $8.9 million grant to explore signaling in sphingolipids

The Medical University of South Carolina's Hollings Cancer Center received an $8.9 million grant from the National Cancer Institute designed to foster collaboration across clinical and laboratory research for the study of signaling in sphingolipids, a class of lipids known to be involved in the growth of solid tumor cancers.

10 May 2016

Patient-oriented online health resources can impact clinical outcomes of pancreatic cancer patients

The Internet has become a powerful and important resource for daily life. When patients receive a medical diagnosis, particularly a difficult one like pancreatic cancer, the web can be an essential information tool, helping to enable patients to have meaningful discussions with health care providers. However, new research from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center published today in JAMA Surgery suggests that online information about pancreatic cancer is often written at a prohibitively high reading level and lacks accuracy concerning alternative therapies.

6 May 2016

Proton therapy offers new hope to patients with inoperable tumors

An enormous high tech machine is providing new hope to patients across the country with inoperable tumors. Proton therapy is a precise radiation technique that reduces the side effects often accompanied by traditional treatment options. Thanks to this remarkable technology, a new proton therapy center at UF Health Cancer Center - Orlando Health is saving the eyesight of a new mother who was diagnosed with a tumor behind her eye during her second trimester of pregnancy.

5 May 2016

Addition of L19-IL2 can increase radiation therapy-induced immune response against tumours

Radiation therapy not only kills cancer cells, but also helps to activate the immune system against their future proliferation. However, this immune response is often not strong enough to be able to cure tumours, and even when it is, its effect is limited to the area that has been irradiated.

2 May 2016

Stereotactic body radiation therapy for NSCLC patients may raise non-cancer mortality risk

Researchers have found that treating patients who have early stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with a type of radiotherapy called stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) is associated with a small but increased risk of death from causes other than cancer.

2 May 2016

Radiation therapy better than chemotherapy for stage IIa testicular cancer patients

A large study of testicular cancer patients has shown that radiation therapy is a better treatment than chemotherapy for patients with stage IIa disease (where one or more regional lymph nodes contain cancer cells but they are less than 2cms in diameter).

2 May 2016

New class of cancer-driver gene may serve as unique therapeutic targets, biomarkers in TNBC

The discovery of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) has dramatically changed the understanding of the biology of diseases such as cancer. The human genome contains about 20,000 protein-coding genes - less than 2 percent of the total - but 70 percent of the genome is made into non-gene-encoding RNA.

29 Apr 2016

New form of SBRT to deliver radiation to specific area of prostate cancer

University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center physicians have started the world's first clinical trial using a new form of stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) to deliver radiation to a specific area of the prostate invaded with cancer - instead of the entire gland. The study aims to determine if treating a targeted cancer region within the prostate in early stage prostate cancer can increase treatment options and reduce the side effects of radiation.

28 Apr 2016

Drugs that block NOTCH signaling in many cancers could be effective against ACC

Using a novel cell culture approach, Yale Cancer Center researchers have discovered critical vulnerabilities in adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC), a rare and lethal glandular cancer with a high recurrence rate and few treatment options.

21 Apr 2016

Immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab shrinks tumors in patients with Merkel cell carcinoma

In a clinical trial of the immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab, half of 25 patients with a rare type of virus-linked skin cancer called Merkel cell carcinoma experienced substantial tumor shrinkage lasting nearly three times as long, on average, than with conventional chemotherapy.

20 Apr 2016

Radiation Therapy News and Research

Further Reading

Some women with ovarian cancer do not receive beneficial surgical treatment, study finds

Combining VCA with organ transplants improves patient outcomes

Gene expression patterns of normal tissue may predict survival rates of estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer patients

Clinical trials of anti-cancer agent PAC-1 continue to progress with anonymous funding

Radiation-immunotherapy combination can help treat melanoma

Conventional repeated radiation treatments may offer no major benefit to brain tumor patients

Play-based procedural preparation helps reduce sedation use and costs tied to cranial radiation therapy

Vessel-sparing radiation, better understanding of prostate anatomy can improve quality of life

New interactive radiation therapy planning system can help improve patient's chances of recovery

Sophisticated technology helps model and simulate optimal dose for pediatric ependymoma patients

MUSC Hollings Cancer Center receives $8.9 million grant to explore signaling in sphingolipids

Patient-oriented online health resources can impact clinical outcomes of pancreatic cancer patients

Proton therapy offers new hope to patients with inoperable tumors

Addition of L19-IL2 can increase radiation therapy-induced immune response against tumours

Stereotactic body radiation therapy for NSCLC patients may raise non-cancer mortality risk

Radiation therapy better than chemotherapy for stage IIa testicular cancer patients

New class of cancer-driver gene may serve as unique therapeutic targets, biomarkers in TNBC

New form of SBRT to deliver radiation to specific area of prostate cancer

Drugs that block NOTCH signaling in many cancers could be effective against ACC

Immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab shrinks tumors in patients with Merkel cell carcinoma

Lab Matters host Harriet Gould on building a more connected lab community

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Advancing Neuroscience Research Through Collaboration and Patient-Centered Innovation

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