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Onyx announces results from regorafenib Phase 3 trial on GIST

Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced results from the Phase 3 trial GRID (GIST – Regorafenib in Progressive Disease) evaluating the investigational compound regorafenib (BAY 73-4506), a Bayer-owned compound, for the treatment of patients with metastatic and/or unresectable gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) whose disease has progressed despite prior treatment with at least imatinib and sunitinib.

3 Apr 2012

Combination treatment effective against melanoma

Research from The Cancer Institute of New Jersey (CINJ) shows that a coordinated effort to block signaling pathways that promote cancer cell growth and survival enhances programmed cell death in melanoma.

3 Apr 2012

Expensive robotic-assisted bladder cancer surgery results in fewer deaths, in-patient complications

With technological advancements opening the door to less invasive medical procedures, robotic-assisted surgery is becoming increasingly popular, despite being more expensive than traditional surgery. Robotic-assisted surgical removal of the bladder due to cancer is a new approach to the traditional "open" - or more invasive - operation called a radical cystectomy.

3 Apr 2012

Mammograms may increase risk for ‘over-diagnosis’ of cancers: Study

According to a new study from Norway up to a fourth of breast cancers found through mammograms are harmless and would not cause noticeable disease during the women's lifetimes. Such women are said to be over-diagnosed, because their cancers would not have caused symptoms or death. Over-diagnosis is a problem because women may receive tests and treatment they did not actually need.

2 Apr 2012

Clinical data for cabozantinib to be presented at ASCO annual meeting

Exelixis, Inc. announced today that its lead compound, cabozantinib, will be the subject of nine separate data presentations at the upcoming Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

2 Apr 2012

Tokai Pharmaceuticals announces data from galeterone Phase 1 trial for CRPC

Tokai Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing new treatments for prostate cancer, today announced that its lead candidate galeterone (TOK-001) was well-tolerated with minimal side effects and demonstrated efficacy in patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) in a Phase 1 study.

2 Apr 2012

Study shows how fat cells can protect the body against diabetes

In a finding that may challenge popular notions of body fat and health, researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) have shown how fat cells can protect the body against diabetes. The results may lead to a new therapeutic strategy for preventing and treating type 2 diabetes and obesity-related metabolic diseases, the authors say.

2 Apr 2012

Brain images show nerves ‘crisscrossing’ in neat but complex patterns: Study

New images of the brain reveal a deceptively simple pattern of organization in the wiring of this complex organ. Instead of nerve fibers travelling randomly through the brain like spaghetti, as some imaging has suggested, the new portraits reveal two-dimensional sheets of parallel fibers ‘crisscrossing’ other sheets at right angles in a grid-like structure that folds and contorts with the convolutions of the brain. This same pattern appeared in the brains of humans, rhesus monkeys, owl monkeys, marmosets and galagos, researchers report Thursday in the journal Science.

1 Apr 2012

CINJ experts available for discussion on cancer

April marks National Cancer Control Month, which focuses on the importance of prevention, treatment and research in the fight against cancer.

30 Mar 2012

ASD more prevalent among New Jersey children: CDC

New statistics issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicate that the prevalence of autism spectrum disorders found among 8-year-old children in a sample area of New Jersey is significantly higher than in most other states surveyed.

30 Mar 2012

Two drinks a day after first heart attack may reduce death risk among men: Study

The study, carried out by researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, found that men who consumed two alcoholic drinks per day after their first heart attack were at lower risk of dying than non-drinking men. The type of drink did not have an effect on the results, but heavy drinkers had a risk of death that was similar to that of non-drinkers.

29 Mar 2012

Ember adds Joslin's BMP7 technology to brown fat intellectual property portfolio

Ember Therapeutics, Inc., a company harnessing breakthroughs in brown fat biology and insulin sensitization to revolutionize the treatment of metabolic disease, today announced the completion of an agreement with the Joslin Diabetes Center to exclusively license intellectual property covering bone morphogenetic protein 7 (BMP7), which has been shown to play a role in the regulation of brown fat development.

29 Mar 2012

UTHealth, PLx Pharma to test phosphatidylcholine-enriched version of indomethacin in PDA model

PLx Pharma Inc, a Houston-based pharmaceutical company developing a medical discovery made at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) Medical School, has been awarded $565,449 for the first year of a potential two-year $1,118,398 grant to conduct research designed to enhance a treatment for premature babies with a common congenital heart defect.

29 Mar 2012

BHECN designs new online training modules to treat mental health issues

It's estimated that more than half of all U.S. mental health care takes place at the primary care level and that percentage jumps considerably in rural areas where there often are no mental health practitioners for hundreds of miles. New online training modules have been designed by the Behavioral Health Education Center of Nebraska (BHECN) to help primary care providers better treat patients with mental health issues.

29 Mar 2012

Nature journal publishes first volume of Cancer Cell Line Encyclopedia

The goal of cancer treatment is to match the right drug to the right target in the right patient. But before such "personalized" drugs can be developed, more knowledge is needed about specific genomic alterations in cancers and their sensitivity to potential therapeutic agents.

29 Mar 2012

Protein's location in a cell affects impact on disease

If the fight against breast cancer were a criminal investigation, then the proteins survivin, HDAC6, CBP, and CRM1 would be among the shadier figures. In that vein, a study to be published in the March 30 Journal of Biological Chemistry is the police report that reveals a key moment for keeping cancer cells alive: survivin's jailbreak from the nucleus, aided and abetted by the other proteins.

29 Mar 2012

Clovis commences CO-1686 Phase I/II study in NSCLC

Clovis Oncology, Inc. announced today that the first clinical study of CO-1686 has commenced with the dosing of the first patient at a U.S. study site. CO-1686 is a novel, oral, targeted covalent inhibitor of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations currently being studied for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer.

29 Mar 2012

Local air pollution may explain neighborhood differences in rates of childhood asthma

Where a child lives can greatly affect his or her risk for asthma. According to a new study by scientists at Columbia University, neighborhood differences in rates of childhood asthma may be explained by varying levels of air pollution from trucks and residential heating oil. Results appear online in the Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology.

28 Mar 2012

AABB issues new RBC transfusion guidelines

The transfusion of red blood cells is a common treatment in clinical practice. However, the level at which they are transfused varies based not only on a patient's health, but also is determined by what the administering physician deems appropriate. Today, the American Association of Blood Banks (AABB) has issued new guidelines, published in Annals of Internal Medicine, recommending that transfusion of red blood cells be considered at a hemoglobin threshold of 7 to 8 g/dL for stable adults and children.

28 Mar 2012

CINJ celebrates National Library Week

The Cancer Institute of New Jersey (CINJ) joins communities, schools and other institutions across the nation in recognizing National Library Week (April 8-14). Sponsored by the American Library Association, this celebration aims to remind everyone that libraries serve as knowledge centers and a readily-available resource for all.

28 Mar 2012