Basal Cell Carcinoma News and Research

RSS

Basal cell cancer begins in the lowest layer of the epidermis, the basal cell layer. About 8 out of 10 skin cancers are basal cell carcinomas. They usually begin on areas exposed to the sun, such as the head and neck. Basal cell carcinoma was once found mostly in middle-aged or older people. But now it is also being seen in younger people. This may be because people are spending more time in the sun without protecting their skin.

Basal cell carcinoma tends to grow slowly. It is very rare for a basal cell cancer to spread to distant parts of the body (metastasize). But if it is not treated, it can grow into nearby areas and spread into the bone or other tissues beneath the skin.

After treatment, basal cell carcinoma can come back (recur) in the same place on the skin. New basal cell cancers can also start in other places on the skin. As many as half of the people who have one basal cell cancer will get a new skin cancer within 5 years.

Individuals with MEN1 are at increased risk of developing neuroendocrine tumors

A mutation in a protein called menin causes a hereditary cancer syndrome called MEN1 (multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1).

25 Apr 2013

Blocking aPKC activity can stop growth of transplanted skin tumors resistant to vismodegib

Hailed as a major step forward in the effort to develop targeted cancer therapies, a recently approved drug for the most common type of skin cancer has been a mixed blessing for patients. Although the initial response is usually dramatic, the tumors often recur as the cancer becomes resistant to treatment.

28 Feb 2013

HIV-positive patients have higher incidence of non-melanoma skin cancers

HIV-positive patients have a higher incidence of non-melanoma skin cancers, according to a Kaiser Permanente study that appears in the current online issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Specifically, basal cell and squamous cell carcinomas occur more than twice as often among HIV-positive individuals compared to those who are HIV-negative.

30 Jan 2013

Five genes hold key to meningioma make up

Research published in Science shows that mutations in five genes characterize most meningiomas.

28 Jan 2013

Vismodegib team wins Drug Discovery of the Year award

The British Pharmacological Society proudly announces that its first annual Drug Discovery of the Year award has been won by the discovery team developing vismodegib for the treatment of basal cell carcinoma (a type of skin cancer).

19 Dec 2012

Researchers reveal molecular mechanisms that lead to basal cell carcinoma initiation

Advanced online publication in Nature Cell Biology: Researchers at the Université libre de Bruxelles, uncover the molecular mechanisms leading to basal cell carcinoma initiation.

26 Nov 2012

Vitiligo patients have low risk for skin cancer

Evidence suggests that patients with vitiligo have a reduced risk for both melanoma and nonmelanoma skin cancer.

16 Nov 2012

Ocular sebaceous carcinoma rare, but often misdiagnosed in UK

Ocular sebaceous carcinoma is rare in the UK, say researchers in the British Journal of Ophthalmology.

8 Nov 2012

Blistering sunburns and working outdoors associated with two nonmelanoma skin cancers

Researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center, the University of South Florida and the International Agency for Research on Cancer in France have studied the patterns and timing of sunlight exposure and how each is related to two nonmelanoma skin cancers - basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma.

25 Oct 2012

$Ustekinumab success in refractory Crohn’s disease$

Ustekinumab success in refractory Crohn’s disease

Patients with Crohn’s disease who have failed to respond adequately to anti–tumor necrosis factor treatment may benefit from the monoclonal antibody ustekinumab, results of a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial suggest.

22 Oct 2012

Ustekinumab shows positive results in decreasing debilitating effects of Crohn's Disease

Ustekinumab, an antibody proven to treat the skin condition psoriasis, has now shown positive results in decreasing the debilitating effects of Crohn's Disease, according to researchers at the University of California San Diego, School of Medicine.

18 Oct 2012

Further evidence against sun bed use

Results from a systematic review and meta-analysis published in the BMJ confirm those from previous studies linking sun bed use with an increased risk for skin cancer.

12 Oct 2012

Advanced optics system noninvasively maps out network of tiny blood vessels beneath the skin

The trained eye of a dermatologist can identify many types of skin lesions, but human sight only goes so far. Now an international team of researchers has developed an advanced optics system to noninvasively map out the network of tiny blood vessels beneath the outer layer of patients' skin, potentially revealing telltale signs of disease.

24 Sep 2012

New association found between basal cell carcinoma and eczema

In the powerful sunlight of July, newly published results from a large study of people at high risk for basal cell carcinoma support the emerging view of the nation's most common cancer as a chronic ailment that often repeatedly afflicts older people but for which the seeds may be planted in youth. The research also found a new association with eczema.

26 Jul 2012

Caffeine combats skin cancer risk

Drinking three or more cups of caffeinated coffee a day can significantly reduce a person’s risk for basal cell carcinoma, show study findings.

10 Jul 2012

Caffeinated coffee intake may reduce risk of basal cell carcinoma

Increasing the number of cups of caffeinated coffee you drink could lower your risk of developing the most common form of skin cancer, basal cell carcinoma, according to a study published in Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

3 Jul 2012

Having antibodies for cutaneous HPV and sun exposure can act synergistically in BCC, SCC

Researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center and colleagues at the University of South Florida and the German Cancer Research Center in Heidelberg have found that having antibodies for cutaneous types of human papillomavirus (HPV), coupled with sun exposure (ultraviolet radiation) or poor tanning ability, can act "synergistically" in the development of non-melanoma skin cancers such as basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC).

26 Jun 2012

Skin patch treatment kills common skin cancer

A skin patch treatment for basal cell carcinoma effectively destroys facial tumors in most patients without the need for surgery or major radiation, researchers report.

25 Jun 2012

Skin patch treatment kills common skin cancer

A skin patch treatment for a common type of skin cancer called basal cell carcinoma effectively destroys facial tumors in most patients without the need for surgery or major radiation, researchers report.

22 Jun 2012

Combination therapy may help defeat pancreatic cancer

Combining a new targeted therapy with standard chemotherapy may help defeat pancreatic cancer, according to results presented at the American Association for Cancer Research's Pancreatic Cancer: Progress and Challenges conference, held here June 18-21.

20 Jun 2012