Cancer News and Research

Latest Cancer News and Research

EntreMed receives $9.3 million in strategic financing

EntreMed, Inc., a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company developing therapeutics for the treatment of cancer, announced today that it has received approximately $9.3 million in strategic financing, as previously announced on January 23, 2012.

6 Feb 2012

Humana fourth quarter consolidated revenues increase 9% to $9.06B

Humana Inc. today reported diluted earnings per common share (EPS) for the quarter ended December 31, 2011 (4Q11) of $1.20, compared to $0.63 per share for the quarter ended December 31, 2010.

6 Feb 2012

McMaster receives $30M gift to accelerate innovations in health research, education and care

A Hamilton family is giving McMaster University $30 million to accelerate the university's innovations in health research, education and care.

6 Feb 2012

U-M develops new system to reduce incidence of retained surgical instruments

It may sound like something from a TV medical drama, but the incidence of surgeons leaving something behind in the body is very real at hospitals across the country. For decades, surgical teams have relied on counting -- and recounting -- the sponges, needles, blades, retractors, and other items used during operations.

6 Feb 2012

Pyromaker can more accurately identify complex genetic mutations

DNA sequencing to detect genetic mutations can aid in the diagnosis and selection of treatment for cancer. Current methods of testing DNA samples, Sanger sequencing and pyrosequencing, occasionally produce complex results that can be difficult or impossible to interpret. Scientists at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine have developed a free software program, Pyromaker, that can more accurately identify such complex genetic mutations.

6 Feb 2012

Komen denies cut in Planned Parenthood funding was political

Komen had said the decision was the result of newly adopted criteria barring grants to organizations under investigation - affecting Planned Parenthood because of an inquiry by a Republican congressman. On Thursday, Komen President Elizabeth Thompson told reporters that the funding decision was unrelated to the investigation into whether Planned Parenthood was illegally using federal funds to pay for abortions.

6 Feb 2012

At local level, Komen affiliates express concern about decision

In California, seven Komen groups ask the national breast cancer group to reverse its funding decision. Others report concerns about community support for future money-raising activities.

6 Feb 2012

Tennessee Gov. declares February as 'St. Jude Month'

In 1962, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital opened its doors amid an emotionally charged debate regarding how to treat childhood cancer. At that time, few children with the most common form of childhood cancer survived, and many physicians believed treatment was futile. St. Jude physicians and researchers took a radically different approach, and these efforts proved pivotal in changing the way the world treats childhood cancer.

6 Feb 2012

Viewpoints: Komen takes a lashing; Is the safety net really intact?; Romney assails HHS' rule on contraception

With its roster of corporate sponsors and the pink ribbons that lend a halo to almost any kind of product you can think of, the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation has a longstanding reputation as a staunch protector of women's health. That reputation suffered a grievous, perhaps mortal, wound this week from the news that Komen, the world's largest breast cancer organization, decided to betray that mission.

5 Feb 2012

Komen Foundation seeks to restore public support after ending cuts to Planned Parenthood

The prominent breast cancer charity announced Friday in a blog post that it had reversed this decision, which had stirred an outcry.

5 Feb 2012

University of Sydney academics praise sunbed ban

A NSW government decision to ban solariums has been welcomed by University of Sydney researchers who were among those advising the government to institute a ban.

5 Feb 2012

Road Hockey To Conquer Cancer to kick off sophomore campaign on Feb. 7

It's an ordinary workday, and the lunch hour at Commerce Court is bustling with people. Wait a minute! What the heck is going on? Where did those hockey sticks come from? How did those nets appear? There's a road hockey game in progress!! But what the heck is with those guys wearing jockstraps over their suits? After an extraordinary inaugural event that raised $2.4 million for cancer research at The Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and Canadian Cancer Society, Road Hockey To Conquer Cancer will kick off its sophomore campaign with a spontaneous road hockey game on Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 12:30pm in the courtyard at Commerce Court.

4 Feb 2012

Smoking cessation reduces coughing, other respiratory symptoms within weeks

If the proven long-term benefits of smoking cessation are not enough to motivate young adults to stop smoking, a new study shows that 18- to 24-year olds who stop smoking for at least two weeks report substantially fewer respiratory symptoms, especially coughing.

4 Feb 2012

New approach can solve treatment-resistant problem in cancers

Free-flowing cancer cells have been mapped with unprecedented accuracy in the bloodstream of patients with prostate, breast and pancreatic cancer, using a brand new approach, in an attempt to assess and control the disease as it spreads in real time through the body, and solve the problem of predicting response and resistance to therapies.

4 Feb 2012

UTMB's international vaccine symposium to be held Feb. 7-9

An international vaccine symposium sponsored by the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston and scheduled for Feb. 7-9 will reflect a dramatic shift in the world of vaccinology, according to Alan Barrett, director of UTMB's Sealy Center for Vaccine Development.

4 Feb 2012

Scientists discover extremely long-lived proteins in aging rats

One of the big mysteries in biology is why cells age. Now scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies report that they have discovered a weakness in a component of brain cells that may explain how the aging process occurs in the brain.

4 Feb 2012

Combination of Toca 511 and 5-FC may prolong survival in glioblastoma

Tocagen Inc. today announced the publication of data showing the company's investigational treatment for high grade glioma eradicates brain tumors and provides a dramatic survival benefit in mouse models of glioblastoma.

4 Feb 2012

Mineral and multivitamin supplements can lower risk of colon cancer

Could the use of vitamin and mineral supplements in a regular diet help to reduce the risk of colon cancer and protect against carcinogens? A study published in the Canadian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology (CJPP) found that rats given regular multivitamin and mineral supplements showed a significantly lower risk of developing colon cancer when they were exposed to carcinogens.

4 Feb 2012

Soy isoflavone supplements do not reduce breast cancer cell proliferation

Soy isoflavone supplements did not decrease breast cancer cell proliferation in a randomized clinical trial, according to a study published in Cancer Prevention Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

4 Feb 2012

Increased exposure to sunlight may prevent allergies and eczema

Increased exposure to sunlight may reduce the risk of both food allergies and eczema in children, according to a new scientific study published this week.

4 Feb 2012