Glioma News and Research

RSS

Glioma is a cancer of the brain that begins in glial cells (cells that surround and support nerve cells).

Geron highlights telomerase inhibitor's activity against cancer stem cells at AACR Special Conference

Geron Corporation today announced several presentations at the American Association for Cancer Research Special Conference on The Role of Telomeres and Telomerase in Cancer Research held in Fort Worth, TX between February 27th and March 1st.

3 Mar 2010

Archimedes Pharma raises GBP65 million in new funding

Archimedes Pharma, the leading specialty pharma company, today announced that it has raised GBP65 million (approx US$100 million) in new funding. The round was led by new investor Novo Growth Equity, the growth equity fund of Novo A/S, and included participation by major current investor, Warburg Pincus, a global private equity firm. Archimedes also announced the appointment of a new President and Chief Executive Officer, Jeffrey H. Buchalter, formerly President and Chief Executive Officer of US-based Enzon.

2 Mar 2010

AGH neurosurgeons explore new therapeutic approach for brain tumor

Neurosurgeons at Allegheny General Hospital (AGH) are exploring use of a drug that illuminates brain tumor cells to determine if the experimental visualization technique will enhance their ability to surgically excise tumors and improve patient survival.

19 Feb 2010

Antigenics announces fourth-quarter and full-year 2009 financial results

Antigenics Inc. reported today its results for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2009. The company reported net income attributable to common stockholders of $1.7 million, or $0.02 per share, basic and diluted, for the fourth quarter of 2009, compared with net income attributable to common stockholders in the fourth quarter of 2008 of $3.9 million, or $0.06 per share, basic and diluted.

18 Feb 2010

Cancer Research UK, immatics Biotechnologies sign collaboration agreement to trial IMA950 vaccine for GMB

CANCER RESEARCH UK and Cancer Research Technology - the charity's development and commercialisation arm - have reached a collaboration agreement with immatics Biotechnologies to trial their new treatment vaccine, IMA950, for glioblastoma multiforme (GMB), one of the most common forms of brain cancer.

16 Feb 2010

Second-quarter fiscal 2010 results announced by Pharmacyclics

Pharmacyclics, Inc. today reported financial results for its second fiscal quarter ended December 31, 2009.

12 Feb 2010

M. D. Anderson researchers discover mechanism that helps glioblastomas evade immune attack

Cancer-initiating cells that launch glioblastoma multiforme, the most lethal type of brain tumor, also suppress an immune system attack on the disease, scientists from The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center report in a paper featured on the cover of the Jan. 15 issue of Clinical Cancer Research.

18 Jan 2010

Sangamo BioSciences initiates two new clinical trials of ZFP Therapeutics

Sangamo BioSciences, Inc. announced the initiation of two new clinical trials of ZFP Therapeutics, a Phase 2b study in diabetic neuropathy (DN) and a Phase 1 trial in glioblastoma, as well as the renewal of $3.0 million in funding for the Phase 2b trial by the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International (JDRF).

11 Jan 2010

Plexxikon commences dosing in PLX4032 Phase 3 trial for metastatic melanoma

Plexxikon Inc. announces that enrollment has been initiated and the first patient has been dosed in a pivotal Phase 3 trial of PLX4032 (RG7204) in patients with metastatic melanoma. PLX4032 is a novel, oral and highly targeted drug that is designed to inhibit the BRAF cancer-causing mutation that occurs in about 50 percent of melanomas and about eight percent of all solid tumors. The randomized, controlled, Phase 3 “BRAF Inhibitor in Melanoma” (BRIM3) trial in previously untreated patients is part of the planned registration program for PLX4032.

9 Jan 2010

New evidence suggests long-term exposure to cell phone signals may protect against Alzheimer's disease

The millions of people who spend hours every day on a cell phone may have a new excuse for yakking. A surprising new study in mice provides the first evidence that long-term exposure to electromagnetic waves associated with cell phone use may actually protect against, and even reverse, Alzheimer's disease.

6 Jan 2010

Investigation of IDH1 gene mutations in brain cancer receives new funds

Agios Pharmaceuticals, the leading biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing novel drugs in the emerging field of cancer metabolism, announced today that it has received funding from Accelerate Brain Cancer Cure (ABC2), a non-profit organization that supports brain cancer research. ABC2’s funding will enable new research investigating IDH1 gene mutations in brain cancer, with the goal of supplementing Agios’s ongoing research into the development of new IDH1 therapeutics and diagnostics.

21 Dec 2009

New stem cell based technology may eliminate brain cancer

Using a novel stem cell based technology of Cellonis Biotechnologies, Beijing, a Chinese research/medical team may eliminate a glioma -- brain cancer -- of a 36 year old Norwegian patient in a hospital in Beijing.

18 Dec 2009

Therapure Biopharma to fill/finish nimotuzumab at its Canadian GMP certified fill suite

David Allan, Chairman and CEO of YM BioSciences Inc. and Thomas Wellner, President and CEO of Therapure Biopharma Inc. today announced the signing of an agreement under which Therapure Biopharma will provide fill and finish services for nimotuzumab, the humanized monoclonal antibody licensed to YM's majority-owned Canadian subsidiary, CIMYM BioSciences Inc., by the Centre of Molecular Immunology (CIM).

17 Dec 2009

Phase Forward’s InForm Global Trial Management solution standardized to support early-stage clinical trials

Phase Forward, a leading provider of data management solutions for clinical trials and drug safety, today announced that Cancer Research UK’s Drug Development Office – the drug development arm of the world’s largest independent organization dedicated to cancer research – is standardizing on Phase Forward’s InForm™ Global Trial Management solution to support its diverse portfolio of early-stage clinical trials.

17 Dec 2009

Mobile phone does not increase risk of brain tumour

A new study has found no increase in the incidence of brain tumours during the years immediately following the introduction of mobile phones in Nordic countries.

5 Dec 2009

Videos can help overcome communication barriers and influence patients' choices for medical care

Patients with terminal brain cancer who watched a brief video illustrating options for end-of-life care were significantly more likely to indicate a preference for comfort measures only than were patients who listened to a verbal description of treatment choices.

3 Dec 2009

Researchers discover ability of stem cells in brain cancer glioma to resist radiation therapy

Duke University Medical Center researchers have figured out how stem cells in the malignant brain cancer glioma may be better able to resist radiation therapy. And using a drug to block a particular signaling pathway in these cancer stem cells, they were able to kill many more glioma cells with radiation in a laboratory experiment.

2 Dec 2009

Faulty enzyme may contribute to malignant brain tumour formation

Around 70 per cent of people with a type of brain tumour - called a low-grade glioma - have a faulty version of an enzyme called IDH1. The mutation is also found in a significant proportion of patients with acute myeloid leukaemia.

25 Nov 2009

Mutated IDH1 gene linked to the progression of gliomas

23 Nov 2009

Mutated IDH1 gene has novel enzyme activity consistent with cancer-causing gene: Study

Agios Pharmaceuticals today announced that its scientists have established, for the first time, that the mutated IDH1 gene has a novel enzyme activity consistent with a cancer-causing gene, or oncogene. This breakthrough discovery shows that the mutated form of IDH1 produces a metabolite, 2-hydroxyglutarate (2HG), which may contribute to the formation and malignant progression of gliomas, the most common type of brain cancers.