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Experimental gene therapy proven safe for preserving vision of people with AMD

In a small and preliminary clinical trial, Johns Hopkins researchers and their collaborators have shown that an experimental gene therapy that uses viruses to introduce a therapeutic gene into the eye is safe and that it may be effective in preserving the vision of people with wet age-related macular degeneration.

17 May 2017

Two widely used drugs show effectiveness in treating patients with CRVO-associated macular edema

Monthly eye injections of Avastin (bevacizumab) are as effective as the more expensive drug Eylea (aflibercept) for the treatment of central retinal vein occlusion, according to a clinical trial funded by the National Eye Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health.

10 May 2017

Breakthrough therapy reduces symptoms of Graves' eye disease in clinical trials

The disease is characterized by inflammation and a buildup of tissue around the eyes that cause them to bulge painfully from their sockets.

4 May 2017

Research sheds new light on surprising link between blood sugar and brain cancers

New research further illuminates the surprising relationship between blood sugar and brain tumors and could begin to shed light on how certain cancers develop.

3 May 2017

Powerful pain medicine may help reduce vision damage of glaucoma

The tip of our optic nerve is typically the first place injured by glaucoma. Now researchers want to know if the powerful pain medicine (+)-pentazocine can help avoid the damage.

2 May 2017

Stivarga receives expanded FDA approval for treatment of liver cancer

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today expanded the approved use of Stivarga (regorafinib) to include treatment of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC or liver cancer) who have been previously treated with the drug sorafenib.

28 Apr 2017

Hair-derived keratin biomaterials show promise to regenerate skeletal muscle tissue and function

The use of human hair-derived keratin biomaterials to regenerate skeletal muscle has shown promise in new research that documents significant increases in both new muscle tissue formation and muscle function among mouse models of volumetric muscle loss.

27 Apr 2017

Novel mechanism of antidepressant action may benefit patients unresponsive to SSRI treatment

Antidepressants treat symptoms of depression by increasing levels of brain signaling molecules such as serotonin, as with the most widely used type of antidepressant, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors.

25 Apr 2017

New blood test can accurately, quickly identify genetic mutations linked to NSCLC

Identification of a specific genetic mutation in patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) helps clinicians select the best treatment option. Potential NSCLC patients usually undergo invasive tissue biopsy, which may often be unnecessary and delays treatment.

19 Apr 2017

Scientists discover novel therapeutic target for retinal neovascularization

A team led by Massachusetts Eye and Ear researchers has identified a novel therapeutic target for retinal neovascularization, or abnormal blood vessel growth in the retina, a hallmark of advanced diabetic eye disease (proliferative diabetic retinopathy).

11 Apr 2017

Careful counselling from clinicians may help alleviate anxiety in wAMD patients

Highly effective current treatments for vision loss need to be allied with careful counselling to ensure patients maintain good psychological health as well as good vision, new research recommends.

From The University of Manchester 11 Apr 2017

Salk scientists discover chemical cocktail that enables stem cells to generate tissues

When scientists talk about laboratory stem cells being totipotent or pluripotent, they mean that the cells have the potential, like an embryo, to develop into any type of tissue in the body.

6 Apr 2017

Growth factors in cord blood may help identify preemies at risk for fatal lung disease

Findings published in the Journal of Pediatrics describe growth factors in cord blood that may identify premature infants at risk for bronchopulmonary dysplasia-associated pulmonary hypertension (BPD-PH) – an often fatal lung disease in which the vessels carrying blood from the heart to the lungs become narrowed and dysfunctional.

6 Apr 2017

Advanced image analysis technique identifies genetic cell mutations in patients with lung cancer

Researchers have used positron emission tomography to successfully identify genetic cell mutations that can cause lung cancer.

3 Apr 2017

Men with high levels of anabolic hormones less likely to develop worsening frailty, study suggests

A new study suggests that middle-age and elderly men are less likely to develop worsening frailty if they have high levels of certain anabolic hormones, which are muscle- and bone-building hormones.

3 Apr 2017

Researchers find antibody to be effective against radiation-induced fibrosis

Radiation therapy is part of the treatment regimen for about two thirds of cancer patients today. Radiotherapy is well tolerated in most cases, but it can also lead to damage in healthy tissues that are also irradiated.

31 Mar 2017

Researchers propose novel theory of how some cancers circumvent killing power of targeted therapies

Nearly 50 years into the "war" on cancer, doctors possess weapons that once would have seemed magical in their tumor-killing specificity.

29 Mar 2017

Study identifies how BPA may encourage inflammatory breast cancer growth

The chemical bisphenol A, or BPA, appears to aid the survival of inflammatory breast cancer cells, revealing a potential mechanism for how the disease grows, according to a study led by researchers in the Department of Surgery at Duke University School of Medicine and the Duke Cancer Institute.

28 Mar 2017

Scientists identify molecule that could be targeted to prevent vision loss in diabetics and preterm infants

Researchers at Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, part of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, have identified a new molecule that induces the formation of abnormal blood vessels in the eyes of diabetic mice.

23 Mar 2017

Study identifies potential Achilles heel of kinase-driven cancers

Scientists identify two signaling proteins in cancer cells that make them resistant to chemotherapy, and show that blocking the proteins along with chemotherapy eliminate human leukemia in mouse models.

22 Mar 2017