Brain Tumor News and Research

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A Brain Tumor is the growth of abnormal cells in the tissues of the brain. Brain tumors can be benign (not cancer) or malignant (cancer).

Paper illuminates importance of PKM2 in cancer development and progression

Researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have tracked down a cancer-promoting protein's pathway into the cell nucleus and discovered how, once there, it fires up a glucose metabolism pathway on which brain tumors thrive.

26 Nov 2012

Cancer-killing viruses found safe but less effective than expected

Doctors now use cancer-killing viruses to treat some patients with lethal, fast-growing brain tumors. Clinical trials show that these therapeutic viruses are safe but less effective than expected.

26 Nov 2012

IRCM researchers discover a nerve cell's internal clock

A team of IRCM researchers, led by Dr. Fr-d-ric Charron, recently uncovered a nerve cell's internal clock, used during embryonic development.

22 Nov 2012

Meningiomas likely results from hemodynamic changes associated with pregnancy

Meningiomas are a common type of benign brain tumor that sometimes grows dramatically in pregnant women. A new study suggests that this sudden tumor growth likely results from "hemodynamic changes" associated with pregnancy, reports the November issue of Neurosurgery, official journal of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons.

21 Nov 2012

Uninsured patients could be twice as likely to die after brain cancer surgery

Uninsured patients who undergo surgery to remove a brain tumor could be twice as likely to die in the hospital as those who have the same operation but are privately insured, new Johns Hopkins research suggests. In teaching hospitals, where most neurosurgical procedures take place, those with government-subsidized insurance in the form of Medicaid were found in the same study to have rates of survival closer to those who are privately insured.

20 Nov 2012

Boston and Cincinnati Children's Hospital to learn more about how autism develops

A network of five leading medical centers, led by Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center and Boston Children's Hospital, has received a five-year, $12.5 million National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant to learn more about how autism develops.

20 Nov 2012

Positive results from Genentech Avastin plus temozolomide Phase III study on glioblastoma

Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, today announced results from the positive Phase III AVAglio study. The study showed Avastin (bevacizumab) in combination with radiation and temozolomide chemotherapy reduced the risk of cancer worsening or death (progression-free survival; PFS) by 36 percent compared to radiation and temozolomide chemotherapy plus placebo>th Annual Meeting of the Society for Neuro-Oncology in Washington, D.C.

19 Nov 2012

Scientists identify cell growth pathway that is unusually active in gliomas

Insights from a genetic condition that causes brain cancer are helping scientists better understand the most common type of brain tumor in children.

17 Nov 2012

New AAN book for people with primary and metastatic brain tumors

It is estimated that every 30 minutes, someone is diagnosed with brain cancer. Published in conjunction with the American Academy of Neurology as part of the Neurology Now Books series, NAVIGATING LIFE WITH A BRAIN TUMOR provides readily accessible information and encouragement for the thousands of people living with primary and metastatic brain tumors.

16 Nov 2012

Scientists eliminate metastasis in laboratory experiments

In laboratory experiments, scientists have eliminated metastasis, the spread of cancer from the original tumor to other parts of the body, in melanoma by inhibiting a protein known as melanoma differentiation associated gene-9 (mda-9)/syntenin. More than 1 million cases of skin cancer are diagnosed each year in the U.S., and melanoma is the deadliest form.

15 Nov 2012

Medulloblastomas that arise from different cell types might require personalized treatments

Cancers arise when a normal cell acquires a mutation in a gene that regulates cellular growth or survival. But the particular cell this mutation happens in-the cell of origin-can have an enormous impact on the behavior of the tumor, and on the strategies used to treat it.

14 Nov 2012

Radiotherapy protocol deviations: an interview with Dr Nitin Ohri

Radiotherapy is a key component of cancer therapy. A majority of cancer patients get radiotherapy in some form at some point in their disease course. It can be used in a curative setting or in a palliative setting.

12 Nov 2012

Advanced breast cancer that has spread to the brain could be treated with drug combination

The sizeable and increasing proportion of women with advanced breast cancer whose disease has spread to the brain could be effectively treated systemically with a combination of two drugs, sparing them the debilitating neurological side effects of whole brain radiotherapy (WBRT), suggests new research published Online First in The Lancet Oncology.

2 Nov 2012

Immigration status, language of caregivers appear to impact care of Hispanic children with cancer

Language barriers and the immigration status of caregivers appear to impact the care of Hispanic children with cancer and affect the experience of the families within the medical system, according to data presented at the Fifth AACR Conference on The Science of Cancer Health Disparities, held here Oct. 27-30, 2012.

30 Oct 2012

Glioblastoma multiforme can originate from cortical neurons

Scientists have long believed that glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), the most aggressive type of primary brain tumor, begins in glial cells that make up supportive tissue in the brain or in neural stem cells. In a paper published October 18 in Science Express, however, researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have found that the tumors can originate from other types of differentiated cells in the nervous system, including cortical neurons.

23 Oct 2012

UMB, UMCP to develop small robot that could help neurosurgeons in removing brain tumors

A research team from the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP) and the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) have been awarded a new $2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to continue developing a small robot that could one day be a huge aid to neurosurgeons in removing difficult-to-reach brain tumors.

17 Oct 2012

UCI neuro-oncologist to lead DCVax Phase II trial in glioblastoma multiforme

UC Irvine doctors are enrolling patients with the deadly brain tumor glioblastoma multiforme in a clinical trial of a vaccine that may prevent the cancer's return or spread after surgery.

11 Oct 2012

Henry Ford Hospital opens new Center for Cancer Surgery

With more patients seeking cancer treatment – especially surgery – than ever before, Henry Ford Hospital has opened the new Center for Cancer Surgery.

27 Sep 2012

Flow cytometry isolates stem cells from brain tumors

A new video protocol in Journal of Visualized Experiments (JoVE) details an assay to identify brain tumor initiating stem cells from primary brain tumors. Through flow cytometry, scientists separate stem cells from the rest of the tumor, allowing quick and efficient analysis of target cells. This approach has been effectively used to identify similar stem cells in leukemia patients.

26 Sep 2012

NeuroTouch system provides 3-d graphics and tactile feedback during brain cancer surgery

A new virtual reality simulator-including sophisticated 3-D graphics and tactile feedback-provides neurosurgery trainees with valuable opportunities to practice essential skills and techniques for brain cancer surgery, according to a paper in the September issue of Neurosurgery, official journal of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons.

24 Sep 2012