Gemcitabine News and Research

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Gemcitabine is the active ingredient in a drug that is used to treat pancreatic cancer that is advanced or has spread. It is also used together with other drugs to treat breast cancer that has spread, advanced ovarian cancer, and non-small cell lung cancer that is advanced or has spread. It is also being studied in the treatment of other types of cancer. Gemcitabine blocks the cell from making DNA and may kill cancer cells. It is a type of antimetabolite

Research shows how bacteria inactivate common drug used to treat cancers

To the reasons that chemotherapy sometimes does not work, we can now add one more: bacteria. In a study published today in Science, researchers describe findings that certain bacteria can be found inside human pancreatic tumors.

18 Sep 2017

Researchers define how cancer drug works in cells, mice and man

Science is very good at determining how drugs work in experimental models. New research out of Dartmouth's Norris Cotton Cancer Center led by Alan Eastman, PhD, helps to bridge the gap when it comes to ensuring that drugs work by the same mechanism in human patients.

7 Sep 2017

Bone metastasis-targeting drug shows potential as new therapeutic strategy for osteosarcoma

The treatment of osteosarcoma, the most common tumor of bone, is challenging. A study led by The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center found a drug known as bone metastasis-targeting peptidomimetic (BMTP-11) has potential as a new therapeutic strategy for this devastating illness.

13 Jul 2017

Combination therapy has complete response rate in children, young adults with Hodgkin lymphoma

New research presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology 53rd Annual Meeting in Chicago shows that a previously untested combination of a monoclonal antibody-drug conjugate with a common chemotherapy agent has a high complete-response rate in children and young adults with relapsed or refractory Hodgkin lymphoma.

6 Jun 2017

Researchers explore new treatment combination for pediatric patients with Hodgkin lymphoma

Pediatric and young adult patients whose Hodgkin lymphoma has recurred or is resistant to initial treatment can achieve remission and even cure with secondary treatments.

18 May 2017

Combination of TTFields with standard therapies may improve survival in pancreatic cancer patients

Novocure announced today results from the second cohort of its phase 2 pilot PANOVA trial studying Tumor Treating Fields (TTFields) in combination with nab-paclitaxel and gemcitabine for the treatment of advanced pancreatic cancer.

31 Mar 2017

Scientists identify vulnerabilities of highly aggressive pancreatic cancer cells

Researchers have identified a gatekeeper protein that prevents pancreatic cancer cells from transitioning into a particularly aggressive cell type and also found therapies capable of thwarting those cells when the gatekeeper is depleted.

9 Feb 2017

Antivirals that block influenza can also inhibit Zika virus infection, study shows

Researchers from the University of Helsinki have shown that three anti-influenza compounds effectively inhibit Zika virus infection in human cells.

16 Jan 2017

New treatment can halt growth of liver cancer cells, research shows

Scientists have shown that a mutation in a gene called Arid1b can cause liver cancer. The gene normally protects against cancer by limiting cell growth, but when mutated it allows cells to grow uncontrollably.

1 Nov 2016

Super-resolution imaging of biological specimens: an interview with Dr. Manasa Gudheti

Traditional light microscopy techniques such as confocal and wide-field are diffraction-limited in resolution, which is about 200 nm laterally (in xy) and 500 to 600 nm axially (in z). Features that are closer than the diffraction limit will appear blurred in the image.

From Bruker Nano Surfaces 27 Sep 2016

Using the immune system to fight cancer: an interview with Dr Charles Akle

We all produce as many as 100,000 different types of cancer cells every day, which are recognized and eliminated by our extraordinarily efficient immune system. However, if something goes wrong with the immune system, and it no longer gets rid of these cells, then that’s when cancerous cells grow and become a problem.

12 Sep 2016

New immunotherapy treatment may offer hope for many pancreatic cancer patients

A new immunotherapy treatment has shown dramatic results in treating advanced pancreatic cancer, a deadly cancer that has seen little progress in treatment over the last 20 years.

8 Sep 2016

Novel marine natural product appears to reduce pancreatic tumor size

Scientists at Florida Atlantic University's Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute found that a deep-water marine sponge collected off of Fort Lauderdale's coast contains leiodermatolide, a natural product that has the ability to inhibit the growth of cancer cells as well as block cancer cells from dividing using extremely low concentrations of the compound.

18 Aug 2016

Necitumumab drug shows minor added benefit in patients with metastatic NSCLC

The monoclonal antibody necitumumab has been approved since February 2016 for the treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) expressing non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who have not received prior chemotherapy for this condition.

5 Jul 2016

First-line nivolumab promising in advanced NSCLC

Phase I results published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology suggest that nivolumab, either given alone or alongside platinum-based doublet chemotherapy, could have a role in the first-line treatment of advanced non-small-cell lung cancer.

5 Jul 2016

Combining sonoporation with chemotherapy drug may help improve pancreatic cancer treatment

Researchers at Haukeland University Hospital in Bergen, Norway have combined a laboratory ultrasound technique called "sonoporation" with the commercially-available chemotherapy compound Gemcitabine to increase the porosity of pancreatic cells with microbubbles and to help get the drug into cancer cells where it is needed.

26 May 2016

Combining vitamin A with chemotherapy may offer promise for pancreatic cancer treatment

Around 8,800 people in the UK are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer each year. It is known as the UK's deadliest cancer, with a survival rate of just 3 per cent. Chemotherapy and radiotherapy alone are relatively unsuccessful in treating the disease, and while surgery to remove the tumour offers the best chance of survival, most patients are diagnosed when the cancer has already spread to other organs.

25 May 2016

Bayer-new phase 3 liver cancer data

Bayer has announced that a Phase III trial evaluating its oncology compound Stivarga® (regorafenib) tablets for the treatment of patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has met its primary endpoint of a statistically significant improvement in overall survival. The study, called RESORCE, evaluated the efficacy and safety of regorafenib in patients with HCC whose disease has progressed after treatment with sorafenib. The safety and tolerability were generally consistent with the known profile of regorafenib. Detailed efficacy and safety analyses from this study are expected to be presented at an upcoming scientific congress.

4 May 2016

Study assesses effect of chemoradiotherapy on survival of locally advanced pancreatic cancer patients

In a study appearing in the May 3 issue of JAMA, Pascal Hammel, M.D., of Beaujon Hospital, Clichy, France and colleagues assessed whether chemoradiotherapy improves overall survival of patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer controlled after 4 months of gemcitabine-based induction chemotherapy, and assessed the effect of erlotinib on survival. Gemcitabine and erlotinib are drugs used to treat cancer.