Cancer News and Research

Latest Cancer News and Research

Researchers discover alternative mechanism for Ras protein activation

The protein Ras plays an important role in cellular growth control. Researchers have focused on the protein because mutations in its gene are found in more than 30 percent of all cancers, making it the most prevalent human oncogene.

28 Nov 2012

Study broadens understanding of how cells regulate X chromosome inactivation

In a paper published in the Nov. 21 issue of Cell, a team led by Mauro Calabrese, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of North Carolina in the lab of Terry Magnuson, chair of the department of genetics and member of the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, broadens the understanding of how cells regulate silencing of the X chromosome in a process known as X-inactivation.

28 Nov 2012

Patients with RA more likely to have dislocation following hip replacement surgery

In the first systemic review of evidence assessing complications following total joint arthroplasty, patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) were found to have an increased risk for hip dislocation after hip replacement surgery compared to those with osteoarthritis (OA). Study findings published online in Arthritis & Rheumatism, a journal of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR), also indicate that RA patients have a higher infection risk following total knee replacement than patients with OA.

28 Nov 2012

Cry acoustics may help identify infants at risk of autism

Autism is a poorly understood family of related conditions. People with autism generally lack normal social interaction skills and engage in a variety of unusual and often characteristic behaviors, such as repetitive movements. While there is no specific medical treatment for autism, some success has been shown with early behavioral intervention.

28 Nov 2012

Carnosic acid promotes eye health

Herbs widely used throughout history in Asian and early European cultures have received renewed attention by Western medicine in recent years. Scientists are now isolating the active compounds in many medicinal herbs and documenting their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. In a study published in the journal Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science, Stuart A. Lipton, M.D., Ph.D. and colleagues at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute (Sanford-Burnham) report that carnosic acid, a component of the herb rosemary, promotes eye health.

28 Nov 2012

High-resolution real-time images show how nerves may be damaged during earliest stages of MS

High-resolution real-time images show in mice how nerves may be damaged during the earliest stages of multiple sclerosis. The results suggest that the critical step happens when fibrinogen, a blood-clotting protein, leaks into the central nervous system and activates immune cells called microglia.

28 Nov 2012

Study finds chemicals linked to cancer, learning problems and hormone disruption

A peer-reviewed study of the largest number of flame retardants ever tested in homes found that most houses had levels of at least one flame retardant that exceeded a federal health guideline. The journal Environmental Science & Technology will publish the study online on November 28, 12:01am Eastern.

28 Nov 2012

New investigational procedure may prolong life for patients with severe COPD

November is Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Awareness Month. COPD, also known as emphysema, is the third leading cause of death in the United States, only behind heart disease and cancer. Right now, the only studied interventions that prolong life for patients with severe COPD are supplemental oxygen in people with low oxygen levels and lung volume reduction surgery (LVRS) in appropriately selected individuals.

28 Nov 2012

Merrimack’s MM-302 Phase I results and MM-DX-929 preclinical data to be presented at SABCS

Merrimack Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that Phase I data evaluating the novel agent MM-302 for the treatment of advanced HER2+ breast cancer and preclinical data on potential imaging and biomarker-based diagnostics will be presented at the 2012 CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium (SABCS), Dec. 4-8, 2012 in San Antonio, Texas.

28 Nov 2012

THI to launch saliva-based TeloTest in first quarter 2013

Telome Health, Inc. (THI), developer of the TeloTest diagnostic test that measures average telomere length, announces the planned launch of the saliva-based TeloTest in the first quarter of 2013. Related telomere tests, including percentage of short telomeres, would follow.

28 Nov 2012

Study identifies gene signature associated with resistance to cancer therapies

Agendia, an innovative molecular cancer diagnostics company and leader in personalized medicine, today announced the publication in the November 21st issue of the prestigious scientific journal "Cell" of a study that identifies a gene signature that is associated with resistance to a broad range of cancer therapies in multiple cancer types.

28 Nov 2012

Post-prostatectomy erectile dysfunction treatment disliked

Less than half of men who initiate intracorporeal injections for post-prostatectomy erectile dysfunction are still satisfied with the treatment years later, report researchers.

27 Nov 2012

Big pharma and federal government predicted to play diminishing role in research funding

In a commentary to be published in the Dec. 12 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association, two Johns Hopkins faculty members predict an ever-diminishing role for government and drug company funding of basic biomedical research and suggest scientists look to “innovative” kinds of private investment for future resources.

27 Nov 2012

Algorithms improve certainty in ruling out deep and pelvic vein thrombosis at primary level of patient care

Algorithms improve certainty in ruling out deep and pelvic vein thrombosis at the primary level of patient care, say Lobna El Tabei and her co-authors in the current issue of the Deutsches Ärzteblatt International.

27 Nov 2012

Neurofibromatosis-1 may increase risk of breast cancer in women

New Johns Hopkins research showing a more than four-fold increase in the incidence of breast cancer in women with neurofibromatosis-1 (NF1) adds to growing evidence that women with this rare genetic disorder may benefit from early breast cancer screening with mammograms beginning at age 40, and manual breast exams as early as adolescence.

27 Nov 2012

China's Health Ministry orders hospitals to treat HIV patients

"China's Health Ministry has banned hospitals from turning away patients infected with HIV/AIDS," the Associated Press/Fox News reports.

27 Nov 2012

Study examines reasons why smoking is not treated in many cancer patients

It's a sad but familiar scene near the grounds of many medical campuses: hospital-gowned patients, some toting rolling IV poles, huddled in clumps under bus shelters or warming areas, smoking cigarettes.

27 Nov 2012

Buying mail-order medications may encourage patients to stick their treatments

Patients newly prescribed a cholesterol-lowering medication were more likely to pick it up from the pharmacy if they received automated phone and mail reminders, according to a study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine today.

27 Nov 2012

Weill Cornell Medical College dean wins Argentina's Dr. Luis Federico Leloir Prize

Dr. Laurie H. Glimcher, the Stephen and Suzanne Weiss Dean of Weill Cornell Medical College and provost for medical affairs of Cornell University, is a winner of the Dr. Luis Federico Leloir Prize of International Cooperation in Science, Technology and Innovation from Argentina's Ministry of Science, Technology and Productive Innovation.

27 Nov 2012

High CT utilization could increase risk of breast cancer for certain women

Researchers reviewing the records of approximately 250,000 women enrolled in an integrated healthcare delivery system found that increased CT utilization between 2000 and 2010 could result in an increase in the risk of breast cancer for certain women, including younger patients and those who received repeat exams.

27 Nov 2012