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.

eviCore healthcare acquires Boston-based QPID Health

eviCore healthcare, a company committed to enabling better outcomes for patients, payers and providers through advanced medical benefits management, today announced that it has acquired Boston-based QPID Health.

27 Feb 2016

Queen's University leads world's first trial of new combination treatment for advanced prostate cancer

Queen's University Belfast, in partnership with the Belfast Trust, is leading the world's first ever trial of a new combination of cancer therapies for patients with advanced prostate cancer, with the hope of prolonging their lives.

26 Feb 2016

Maryland Proton Treatment Center completes first patient treatment with Varian ProBeam system

Varian Medical Systems, today announced the Maryland Proton Treatment Center successfully completed its first patient treatment with the Varian ProBeam system. The MPTC at the University of Maryland BioPark in West Baltimore houses five treatment rooms and is the first in the Eastern US to offer image-guided intensity-modulated proton therapy (IMPT) with a ProBeam system.

24 Feb 2016

Majority of LAHNC patients rely on lifestyle-altering cost-coping strategies to manage treatment

The majority of patients with locally advanced head and neck cancers (LAHNC) rely on cost-coping strategies that alter their lifestyle in order to manage the financial burden of their care, according to research presented at the 2016 Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancer Symposium.

19 Feb 2016

Researchers examine molecular profile of HPV-positive oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma

Throat cancer patients exposed to both human papillomavirus (HPV) and tobacco smoke demonstrate a pattern of mutations along several key cancer genes, according to research presented today at the 2016 Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancer Symposium.

19 Feb 2016

Post-treatment imaging can help detect recurrences of HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer

For patients treated with definitive radiation therapy (RT) for oropharyngeal cancer caused by human papillomavirus (HPV), the majority of recurrences can be detected by post-treatment imaging at three months and physical exams during the six months following treatment, according to research presented at the 2016 Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancer Symposium.

19 Feb 2016

Induction chemotherapy fails to improve survival in head and neck cancer patients

Head and neck cancer patients who receive chemotherapy prior to radiation therapy (induction chemotherapy or IC) rather than the standard treatment that combines chemotherapy with radiation (chemoradiation or CRT) show no survival benefit and are less likely to receive a full course of radiation, according to research from the University of Colorado Cancer Center presented at the 2016 Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancer Symposium.

19 Feb 2016

Uninsured and Medicaid patients have higher overall and cancer-specific mortality rates

Compared to patients with non-Medicaid insurance, uninsured patients and patients with Medicaid are more likely to present with advanced stages of head and neck cancer and have higher overall and cancer-specific mortality rates, according to research presented at the 2016 Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancer Symposium.

19 Feb 2016

Chemoradiation improves survival rates among subset of elderly head and neck cancer patients

The addition of chemotherapy (CT) to radiation therapy (RT) improves survival rates among a subset of elderly head and neck cancer patients, specifically those ages 71 to 79 with low comorbidity scores and advanced disease stage, according to research presented at the 2016 Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancer Symposium.

19 Feb 2016

ASTRO encourages policymakers to increase financial support for cancer research in FY 2017 Budget

The American Society for Radiation Oncology commends the proposed investment in cancer-related research announced in the Fiscal Year 2017 Budget released yesterday by the White House.

12 Feb 2016

ASTRO's new research journal 'Advances in Radiation Oncology' closes first issue

Advances in Radiation Oncology, ASTRO's new original research journal, has closed its first issue with research including a phase II clinical trial in prostate cancer, a prospective trial in quality of life for breast cancer patients receiving radiotherapy and several clinical and medical physics reports on the use of stereotactic body radiotherapy.

12 Feb 2016

Pediatric ALL patients treated with chemotherapy alone at risk for neurocognitive deficits

Pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) patients treated with chemotherapy alone remain at risk for attention and learning problems that persist after treatment ends, according to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital investigators.

10 Feb 2016

Cancer patients who miss scheduled radiation therapy appointments have worse outcomes

Cancer patients who miss two or more radiation therapy sessions have a worse outcome than fully compliant patients, investigators at Montefiore Einstein Center for Cancer Care and Albert Einstein College of Medicine's NCI-designated Albert Einstein Cancer Center have found.

10 Feb 2016

Landauer's revenues decrease 2.7% to $36.5 million in first fiscal quarter of 2016

Landauer, Inc., a recognized leader in personal and environmental radiation measurement and monitoring, outsourced medical physics services and high quality medical consumable accessories, today reported financial results for its fiscal 2016 first quarter ended December 31, 2015.

9 Feb 2016

Combined MRI and ultramicroscopy toolkit could help study vessel growth in glioma models in more detail

Stopping the growth of blood vessels in tumours is a key target for glioblastoma therapies, and imaging methods are essential for initial diagnosis and monitoring the effects of treatments. While mapping vessels in tumours has proven a challenge, researchers have now developed a combined magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and ultramicroscopy 'toolkit' to study vessel growth in glioma models in more detail than previously possible.

3 Feb 2016

Radiation could increase responses to innovative immune-based therapeutic approaches to fight cancer

A team of Georgia State University researchers is fighting cancers using a combination of therapies and recently found ways that radiation could maximize responses to novel immune-based therapeutic approaches to fight cancer.

1 Feb 2016

Proton beam therapy safe for treating childhood brain cancer medulloblastoma

Proton beam therapy--a more precise form of radiotherapy--to treat the childhood brain cancer medulloblastoma appears to be as safe as conventional radiotherapy with similar survival rates, according to new research published in The Lancet Oncology journal today.

1 Feb 2016

Proton radiotherapy as effective as standard photon therapy in treating pediatric brain tumor

The use of proton radiotherapy to treat the most common malignant brain tumor in children is as effective as standard photon (x-ray) radiation therapy while causing fewer long-term side effects such as hearing loss and cognitive disorders, according to a study receiving online publication in Lancet Oncology.

30 Jan 2016

New NCCN Guidelines published for Vulvar Cancer

It is estimated that more than 5,000 cases of Vulvar Cancer were diagnosed in the United States in 2015, and approximately 1,000 women died from the disease[i]. In order to provide comprehensive, up-to-date clinical treatment guidelines for this rare cancer, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, an alliance of 26 of the nation's leading cancer centers, has published the NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines) for Vulvar Cancer.

27 Jan 2016

Colorectal cancer in younger patients associated with more advanced disease but better survival

Nearly 15 percent of patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer were younger than 50, the age at which screening recommendations begin.

25 Jan 2016

Radiation Therapy News and Research

Further Reading

eviCore healthcare acquires Boston-based QPID Health

Queen's University leads world's first trial of new combination treatment for advanced prostate cancer

Maryland Proton Treatment Center completes first patient treatment with Varian ProBeam system

Majority of LAHNC patients rely on lifestyle-altering cost-coping strategies to manage treatment

Researchers examine molecular profile of HPV-positive oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma

Post-treatment imaging can help detect recurrences of HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer

Induction chemotherapy fails to improve survival in head and neck cancer patients

Uninsured and Medicaid patients have higher overall and cancer-specific mortality rates

Chemoradiation improves survival rates among subset of elderly head and neck cancer patients

ASTRO encourages policymakers to increase financial support for cancer research in FY 2017 Budget

ASTRO's new research journal 'Advances in Radiation Oncology' closes first issue

Pediatric ALL patients treated with chemotherapy alone at risk for neurocognitive deficits

Cancer patients who miss scheduled radiation therapy appointments have worse outcomes

Landauer's revenues decrease 2.7% to $36.5 million in first fiscal quarter of 2016

Combined MRI and ultramicroscopy toolkit could help study vessel growth in glioma models in more detail

Radiation could increase responses to innovative immune-based therapeutic approaches to fight cancer

Proton beam therapy safe for treating childhood brain cancer medulloblastoma

Proton radiotherapy as effective as standard photon therapy in treating pediatric brain tumor

New NCCN Guidelines published for Vulvar Cancer

Colorectal cancer in younger patients associated with more advanced disease but better survival

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

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