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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

ALSF commemorates "a decade of standing for hope" by holding high profile lemonade stands

Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation for Childhood Cancer (ALSF) is commemorating "a decade of standing for hope" by holding a string of high profile lemonade stands, the first taking place at the Pro Bowl and Super Bowl. 2010 marks 10 years since cancer patient Alexandra "Alex" Scott (1996-2004) held her first front yard lemonade stand to find a cure for childhood cancer.

11 Feb 2010

Italian researchers identify a new therapeutic approach for Ewing sarcoma

Ewing sarcoma (EWS) is a bone tumor of unknown cellular origin that affects children and young adults. The protein CD99 is highly expressed in most cases of EWS, but its function in the disease is unknown.

9 Feb 2010

News article on the evolving role of hyperthermia in cancer therapy

BSD Medical Corp. reports publication of a news article by the Journal of the National Cancer Institute on the evolving role of hyperthermia in cancer therapy titled, “International Study of Hyperthermia Spurs Hope in U.S.” (J. Natl. Cancer Inst. 2010 102: 79-81; doi:10.1093/jnci/djp530).

3 Feb 2010

Children with cancer are treated with proton therapy at ProCure Proton Therapy Center

Children with cancer are now being accepted for treatment at the ProCure Proton Therapy Center in Oklahoma, where a wide range of tumors are treated with proton therapy, an alternative to X-ray radiation that spares healthy tissue and results in far fewer short- and long-term treatment side effects.

28 Jan 2010

ZIOPHARM receives Notice of Allowance for palifosfamide from U.S. patent office

ZIOPHARM Oncology, Inc. announced today that it has received a Notice of Allowance from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for Application Serial No. 11/257,766 entitled “Salts of Isophosphoramide mustard and analogs thereof as anti-tumor agents” with claims directed to compounds, pharmaceutical compositions, and lyophilisates. These claims cover the Company’s proprietary palifosfamide composition (ZIO-201 or ZymafosTM). The Company has recently reported positive randomized Phase II sarcoma interim data for intravenous palifosfamide at the Annual Meeting of the Connective Tissue Oncology Society (CTOS) on November 6, 2009 and expects, following U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) review, to initiate a registration trial the first half of 2010.

27 Jan 2010

CytRx announces its plans to advance multiple oncology development programs in 2010

CytRx Corporation, a biopharmaceutical company specializing in oncology, today announced its plans for 2010 aimed at advancing the clinical development of its high-value drug development pipeline and enhancing shareholder value.

22 Jan 2010

PCI Biotech AS completes second dose group in phase I/II study of Amphinex

PCI Biotech AS ( PCIB.OL) reported today that it has completed the successful treatment of the second dose group in the phase I/II study of its proprietary photosensitiser Amphinex® used in combination with the cytotoxic agent bleomycin in cancer patients.

19 Jan 2010

Autologous stem cell transplantation may benefit breast cancer patients

Compared to conventional chemotherapy, autologous stem cell transplantation can extend "event-free survival" for breast cancer patients. Clinical trials provide proof of this for breast cancer with and without distant metastases. However, there are indications that this type of stem cell transplantation can more frequently give rise to severe complications affecting almost all organ systems. This is the conclusion of the final report of the Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) published on 16 December 2009.

13 Jan 2010

Selection of therapeutic workshops to be presented at the Twelfth Annual BIO CEO & Investor Conference

“This year’s BIO CEO & Investor Conference will provide a unique forum to showcase therapeutic areas with key catalysts – from new and dynamic therapies to cutting edge investment opportunities,” said Alan Eisenberg, executive vice president of Emerging Companies & Business Development at BIO.

9 Jan 2010

Phase 3 trial of figitumumab discontinued by Pfizer

Pfizer Inc. announced today the discontinuation of A4021016 (also known as ADVIGO 1016), a Phase 3 trial examining the effects of investigational compound figitumumab (CP-751,871) as first-line treatment in patients with advanced non-adenocarcinoma non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) due to the study meeting predefined boundaries for early termination.

30 Dec 2009

Trabectedin now available for patients with advanced soft tissue sarcoma

Patients with a rare form of cancer called advanced soft tissue sarcoma could now benefit from a new drug called trabectedin, after the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) approved the drug for NHS use.

23 Dec 2009

ARIAD Pharmaceuticals completes enrollment of patients for Phase 3 clinical trial of ridaforolimus

ARIAD Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced the completion of patient enrollment in its pivotal, Phase 3 clinical trial of oral ridaforolimus, its investigational mTOR inhibitor, in patients with metastatic soft-tissue and bone sarcomas.

18 Dec 2009

UT Southwestern Medical Center performs minimally invasive procedures for sinuses and chronic rhinosinusitis

Only about one in 2,000 people in the United States get a sinus tumor, but Johnnie Wilcox was one of the unfortunate few.

15 Dec 2009

Oncolytics Biotech develops REOLYSIN for patients affected by hard-to-treat cancers

A novel class of cancer therapies called live biologics is offering new hope for patients affected by hard-to-treat cancers, according to two different studies testing the therapies in patients with sarcomas and head and neck cancers.

14 Dec 2009

NCKUH and NHRI sponsor virology lab in Vietnam Children’s Hospital

A Virology Lab in Children’s Hospital No. 1 (CH1), Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, sponsored by National Cheng Kung University Hospital (NCKUH) and National Health Research Institutes (NHRI) in Taiwan was launched on November 11th, 2009.

11 Dec 2009

IQWiG's report on autologous stem cell transplantation for soft tissue sarcoma

Due to a lack of suitable studies, it is unclear whether patients with soft tissue sarcoma can benefit from autologous haematopoietic stem cell transplantation. With this type of therapy, some of the patient's own (autologous) stem cells are removed at a convenient time and generally re-implanted after a course of high-dose chemotherapy.

9 Dec 2009

Erbitux gaining market share of Avastin in Europe

Decision Resources, one of the world's leading research and advisory firms for pharmaceutical and healthcare issues, finds that, despite its dominance in early lines of metastatic colorectal cancer treatment, Roche/Chugai's Avastin will face increasing competition from Bristol-Myers Squibb/Eli Lilly/Merck KGaA's Erbitux in Germany, France and Spain.

8 Dec 2009

SU2C awards $9.68 million to support high-risk cancer research

Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C) announced today that it is awarding $9.68 million to support high-risk/high-reward cancer research conducted by 13 young scientists.

7 Dec 2009

50 U.S. Hospitals approve Osteotech's Plexur M bone-polymer biocomposite

Osteotech, Inc., a leader in the emerging field of biologic products for regenerative healing, announced today that Plexur M® (moldable), a bone-polymer biocomposite built upon the Company's proprietary Plexur® technology platform, has been approved for use by 50 U.S. hospitals to date. The Company expects to receive additional approvals as Plexur M continues to gain mindshare among surgeons.

1 Dec 2009