Radiotherapy News and Research

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Radiation therapy (in North America), or radiotherapy (in the UK and Australia) also called radiation oncology, and sometimes abbreviated to XRT, is the medical use of ionizing radiation as part of cancer treatment to control malignant cells (not to be confused with radiology, the use of radiation in medical imaging and diagnosis).

Cancer Research UK and Cancerbackup form strategic partnership

Cancer patients seeking facts about their diagnosis and treatment will soon be able to receive information prescriptions thanks to a new partnership between Britain's leading cancer charities, Cancer Research UK and Cancerbackup.

15 Mar 2007

Women from poor backgrounds fare worse with breast cancer

Women from more deprived backgrounds have worse treatment and a lower breast cancer survival rate than their more affluent counterparts - according to a new study published by Cancer Research UK in the British Journal of Cancer.

7 Mar 2007

Cancer Research UK secures fenretinide orphan drug licence

A previously shelved drug could prove effective for treating a group of rare childhood cancers, and Cancer Research UK today announced it has been granted exclusive marketing rights for the drug in these indications by the European Commission and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

27 Feb 2007

Stimuvax investigational lung cancer vaccine phase III study starts

Merck KGaA today announced that the first patient has been enrolled in its global Phase III clinical study, START (Stimulating Targeted Antigenic Responses To NSCLC), assessing the efficacy and safety of Stimuvax (BLP25 liposome vaccine) as a potential treatment for patients with unresectable stage III non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

26 Feb 2007

Osteopenia and cancer in children and adolescents

Physicians caring for children with cancer should be on the lookout for signs of bone fragility caused by disease and treatment, according to a new report.

26 Feb 2007

Group exercise helps breast cancer sufferers

Group exercise sessions can help to improve the physical and psychological wellbeing of people diagnosed with breast cancer, a new British Medical Journal study reveals.

18 Feb 2007

Changes in breast cancer management

Aggressive research currently underway brings hope of dramatic advances in breast cancer management, according to a new review.

12 Feb 2007

BrainLAB wins patent lawsuit

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has upheld the dismissal of the patent infringement lawsuit filed by Medtronic against BrainLAB AG in 1998.

11 Feb 2007

Researchers study dosimetry in radiotherapy through Monte Carlo techniques

The mathematical tool, quite used in Medical Physics, takes its name from the city of Montecarlo, well-known for its bingo halls and games of chance.

5 Feb 2007

Drug giant Wyeth loses another HRT trial to the tune of $1.5 million

Drug giant Wyeth has been ordered by a court in Philadelphia to pay $1 million in compensation to a woman who developed breast cancer after taking the hormone replacement therapy (HRT) Prempro.

30 Jan 2007

Cetuximab with radiotherapy does not increase side effects for head and neck cancer patients

The addition of Cetuximab (brand name Erbitux) to radiation therapy treatments does not increase the rate or duration of some side effects in the treatment of advanced head and neck cancers, according to a study presented at the plenary session today at the Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancer Symposium, co-sponsored by the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology, the American Society for Clinical Oncology and the American Head and Neck Society.

18 Jan 2007

Tea aids recovery of radiation damaged skin

A team of American and German researchers have discovered that tea extracts can help reduce the skin damage caused by cancer radiation therapy.

4 Dec 2006

Scientists discover how androgen plays a role in the development of prostate cancer

Scientists have discovered for the first time a specific biochemical pathway by which the sex hormone, androgen, increases levels of harmful chemicals called reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the prostate gland that play a role in the development of prostate cancer.

8 Nov 2006

New research could affect future treatment options for prostate cancer

Two new studies on the treatment of prostate cancer could well affect future treatment options for patients.

8 Nov 2006

Hospital strapped for cash may offer radiotherapy facilities to pets

A British hospital has come under attack over its plans to earn desperately needed cash, by offering its radiotherapy facilities for the treatment of pets suffering from cancer.

31 Oct 2006

Bright light band aid - high tech way to treat skin cancer

Scientists in Scotland have come up with a revolutionary way of treating common skin cancers.

31 Oct 2006

Sequencing of chemotherapy and radiation therapy for early breast cancer

For women who have had surgery for early breast cancer, it may not matter whether they receive follow-up chemotherapy before, after or during radiation therapy, according to a new review of studies.

30 Oct 2006

World's first fully digital neuroscience center at Singapore General Hospital

BrainLAB has signed a contract with Singapore Health Services (SingHealth), the largest healthcare group in Singapore, for the establishment of the world's first fully digital neuroscience center at Singapore General Hospital (SGH), one of Asia's leading teaching hospitals.

30 Oct 2006

16 year old cancer victim dies after overdoses of radiation

A 16 year old cancer victim who was inadvertently given more than 17 overdoses of radiation during treatment for a brain tumour, has died at home nine months later.

23 Oct 2006