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Expanded HIV screening can increase patient life span

Expanded HIV screening can increase patient life span, prevent the spread of the disease, and is cost effective, researchers at Yale, Harvard and the Massachusetts General Hospital report in the February 10 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM).

10 Feb 2005

Babies who weighed more at birth had higher rates of digestive and lymphatic cancers in adulthood

Medical experts have proposed associations between birth size and rates of adult cancer. To examine this hypothesis, researcher Valerie A. McCormack and colleagues at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and the Universities of Uppsala and Stockholm investigated overall and site-specific cancer incidence in relation to birth characteristics in a Swedish population-based cohort.

7 Feb 2005

Research reveals a novel key player in the initiation of colon cancer

Gastric and colorectal cancers account for more than 1 million deaths worldwide every year and several research groups have been working to identify the molecular events that result in the initiation and progression of these tumors.

3 Feb 2005

Eleventh Edition of the Report on Carcinogens

The Department of Health and Human Services released its Eleventh Edition of the Report on Carcinogens today, adding seventeen substances to the growing list of cancer-causing agents, bringing the total to 246.

31 Jan 2005

Schering and Novartis agree on joint commercialization of novel cancer drug

Schering AG, Germany announced today that, following regulatory approvals, it will co-promote the novel oral angiogenesis inhibitor PTK787/ZK 222584 (PTK/ZK) for all oncology indications together with Novartis Pharma AG in Europe, North America and Japan. This agreement will enable both Schering and Novartis to maximize the compound's full potential.

25 Jan 2005

Nasogastric tube after abdominal surgery slows recovery

Routine use of a nasogastric tube after abdominal surgery, once thought to speed the return of normal intestinal functions, actually slows recovery, according to a new review of research.

24 Jan 2005

Chinese medicines may be helpful in treating side effects of chemotherapy and symptoms of flu

New research reviews hint that traditional Chinese medicines may be helpful in treating side effects of chemotherapy and symptoms of flu. For now, however, the findings remain more tantalizing than conclusive.

24 Jan 2005

Screening tests find colorectal cancer in its earliest stages when it can be treated more successfully

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is second only to lung cancer as the leading cause of cancer-related death in the United States. In 2004, it’s estimated that CRC caused nearly 57,000 deaths.

18 Jan 2005

Avastin available across Europe within the next few weeks

Roche has announced that the European Commission has approved Avastin (bevacizumab, rhuMAb-VEGF), the new innovative anti-angiogenesis drug, for the treatment of patients with previously untreated metastatic colorectal cancer.

16 Jan 2005

Study links meat consumption to colon cancer

A major American Cancer Society study finds people who reported the highest consumption of red and processed meat had a significantly higher risk of colorectal cancer than those who reported the least consumption.

12 Jan 2005

No link between eating fruits and vegetables and a subsequent decreased risk for breast cancer

Contrary to findings in previous studies, new research that includes a large group of women found no link between eating fruits and vegetables and a subsequent decreased risk for breast cancer, according to a study in this week’s JAMA.

12 Jan 2005

High consumption of red meat increases risk for colorectal cancer

High consumption of red and processed meat over a long period of time is associated with an increased risk for a certain type of colon cancer, according to a study in the January 12 issue of JAMA.

12 Jan 2005

Chronic constipation is uncomfortable, but not dangerous

There are a lot of common myths about constipation treatment. An article in the January issue of The American Journal of Gastroenterology dispels those myths and clears numerous misconceptions regarding chronic constipation.

4 Jan 2005

DNA stool testing is more effective in detecting colon cancer than a widely used stool test

A study in the current issue of the New England Journal of Medicine concludes that DNA stool testing is more effective in detecting colon cancer than a widely used stool test, but a Virginia Commonwealth University family medicine and public health physician argues in the same issue that its superiority is still in doubt.

22 Dec 2004

Celebrex suspension

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced that it has suspended the use of COX-2 inhibitor celecoxib (Celebrex™ Pfizer, Inc.) for all participants in a large colorectal cancer prevention clinical trial conducted by the National Cancer Institute (NCI).

19 Dec 2004

How radiation therapy is used to safely and effectively treat various cancers

To help cancer patients and their families better understand their treatment options before making a decision, the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology has published seven patient information brochures that explain how radiation therapy is used to safely and effectively treat various cancers.

16 Dec 2004

False positive cancer screening tests result not only in anxiety but also additional economic costs

Cancer screening tests can frequently produce false positive outcomes that may result not only in anxiety but also additional economic costs as well, according to research conducted by scientists at the Henry Ford Health System, Detroit, Mich., and published in the December issue of Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention

14 Dec 2004

Study focused on patients with chemotherapy-related anemia

Findings from an interim analysis of a new study comparing the hemoglobin response rates of Epoetin alfa and darbepoetin alfa in the treatment of chemotherapy-related anemia were published in the November 15, 2004 issue of the Medical Journal 'Blood' as part of the American Society of Hematology 46th Annual Meeting and Exposition.

4 Dec 2004

Two out of every three Americans know someone stricken by lung cancer

Two out of every three Americans know someone stricken by lung cancer, yet more than half of Americans don't realize that lung cancer is among the most lethal of cancers, according to a nationwide survey conducted on behalf of The Lung Cancer Online Foundation.

3 Dec 2004

Avastin plus Folfox4 chemotherapy significantly extends survival in second-line metastatic colorectal cancer

Genentech and Roche today announced that a randomized Phase III study of Avastin™ (bevacizumab) plus the FOLFOX4 chemotherapy regimen (oxaliplatin/5-FU/leucovorin), compared to FOLFOX4 alone, in second-line metastatic colorectal cancer patients achieved its primary endpoint of improving overall survival.

29 Nov 2004