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First accurate predictive model to differentiate between dengue fever and dengue hemorrhagic fever

Researchers at the University of Texas Medical Branch have developed the first accurate predictive model to differentiate between dengue fever (DF) and its more severe form, dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF).

17 Feb 2012

Drug companies forge joint ventures for smart pills

Imagine a "smart pill" containing a biodegradable electronic chip that monitors how your body responds to the medicine, broadcasts the information to your iPhone, which then emails the information to your physician.

16 Feb 2012

Helping cancer patients tackle geographic challenges to access clinical trials

As oncologists already know and newly diagnosed lung cancer patients learn, the kind of treatment given to patients is increasingly becoming dependent on the specific gene mutation present in the cancer.

16 Feb 2012

China's SFDA approves Affymetrix GeneChip System 3000Dx v.2

Affymetrix, Inc. today announced that its GeneChip System 3000Dx v.2 (GCS 3000Dx v.2) has been approved by China's State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA) for in vitro diagnostic use.

16 Feb 2012

World Economic Forum releases list of 'Important Technologies'

The World Economic Forum's Global Agenda Council on Emerging Technologies has just released its list of "Important Technologies" that will change the world in the years ahead. The list highlights technology trends most likely to impact on the state of the world in the near future and was developed by a cross section of experts from science, businesses, and public policy.

15 Feb 2012

Moffitt receives patent for computerized system designed to improve clinical trial selection

A new patent has been issued to Moffitt Cancer Center for a computerized system that efficiently selects the right patient for the right clinical trial. The newly patented system matches the registered patient's own molecular profile - warehoused in a database of thousands of patient-donated biological tissue or tumor samples - to the molecular design of the drug aimed at targeting their disease at the molecular level, and does it quickly.

15 Feb 2012

Gene sequencing could identify genetic variants of lung cancer and colorectal cancer

Foundation Medicine Inc., a molecular information company that brings comprehensive cancer gene analysis to routine clinical care, and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have come up with the results from their collaborative next-generation sequencing (NGS) study to assay cancer-relevant genes in 24 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and 40 colorectal cancer (CRC) cases.

14 Feb 2012

'Targeted' drugs may be effective against lung and colorectal tumors driven by novel gene abnormalities

Novel gene abnormalities discovered in a subpopulation of lung and colorectal tumors could potentially identify patients with a good chance of responding to highly specific "targeted" drugs already in use for treating other cancers, scientists report.

14 Feb 2012

New software key for personalized cancer medicine

High-throughput DNA sequencing technologies are leading to a revolution in how clinicians diagnose and treat cancer. The molecular profiles of individual tumors are beginning to be used in the design of chemotherapeutic programs optimized for the treatment of individual patients.

14 Feb 2012

EU-funded 4DCellFate project to kick off today

Today European scientists are meeting to kick off the 4DCellFate project, funded by the European Commission under the FP7 program.

13 Feb 2012

Road Hockey To Conquer Cancer to raise funding for personalized medicine

After an extraordinary inaugural event in 2011 that raised $2.4 million for cancer research at The Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and Canadian Cancer Society, Road Hockey To Conquer Cancer kicked off its sophomore campaign with a flash-mob road hockey game on February 7 at 12:30pm in the courtyard at Commerce Court.

9 Feb 2012

Sanford-Burnham, Florida Hospital and Moffitt partner to develop PMP Florida

Moffitt Cancer Center, Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute and Florida Hospital have announced they will collaborate on the creation of a Personalized Medicine Partnership of Florida (PMP Florida). The partnership will conduct collaborative research to accelerate discovery and develop new treatments in the areas of cancer and metabolic diseases, including obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

9 Feb 2012

Ethical framework to guide coverage and reimbursement decisions for expensive orphan drugs

How can insurers justify spending hundreds of thousands of dollars per patient per year on "orphan drugs" - extremely expensive medications for rare conditions that are mostly chronic and life-threatening -- when this money could provide greater overall health benefit if spread out among many other patients?

8 Feb 2012

FDA accepts Genentech's pertuzumab BLA and grants Priority Review

Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted the company's Biologics License Application for pertuzumab and granted Priority Review.

8 Feb 2012

Roche’s new breast cancer drug Pertuzumab up for FDA review

U.S. health regulators, the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) has granted a priority review for an experimental Roche breast cancer drug that in clinical trials added six months to the time before the disease worsened. Pertuzumab approval decision is due by June 8th this year. It could be used with Herceptin in HER2-positive patients. This was announced by Roche Holding AG's Genentech unit on Tuesday.

7 Feb 2012

Vending machine to dispense “morning after pills” at college sparks debate

Now students at Shippensburg University in Pennsylvania can get the “morning after” pill by sliding $25 into a vending machine, an idea that has drawn the attention of federal regulators and raised questions about how accessible emergency contraception should be.

7 Feb 2012

TGen to host Pediatric Cancer Translational Genomics in Scottsdale

The Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) will host Pediatric Cancer Translational Genomics Feb. 6-8 at the Hotel Valley Ho in Scottsdale, bringing together more than 150 leading pediatric cancer researchers, clinicians and foundations to promote the exchange of information and ideas for advancing pediatric cancer research and treatment.

7 Feb 2012

Whole exome sequencing provides clues about rare mutations in aneurysms

An innovative approach to genome screening has provided clues about rare mutations that may make people susceptible to brain aneurysms, predisposing them to brain bleeds, according to preliminary late-breaking research presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2012.

4 Feb 2012

Positive updated results from Aeterna Zentaris' AEZS-108 Phase 1 trial on CRPC

Aeterna Zentaris Inc. today reported positive updated results for the Phase 1 portion of its ongoing Phase 1/2 study in castration- and taxane-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) with AEZS-108 (zoptarelin doxorubicin), the Company's targeted cytotoxic luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) analog.

4 Feb 2012

Scientists establish HCV infection in liver-like cells derived from iPSCs

Hepatitis C, an infectious disease that can cause inflammation and organ failure, has different effects on different people. But no one is sure why some people are very susceptible to the infection, while others are resistant. Scientists believe that if they could study liver cells from different people in the lab, they could determine how genetic differences produce these varying responses. However, liver cells are difficult to obtain and notoriously difficult to grow in a lab dish because they tend to lose their normal structure and function when removed from the body.

2 Feb 2012