Cancer News and Research

Latest Cancer News and Research

Study about U.S. attitudes toward human embryonic stem cell research

While research using human embryonic stem cells has roused political controversy for almost two decades, little has been done to scientifically assess American attitudes on the subject. New research from the University of Nevada, Reno provides decision-makers with a much clearer picture of how their constituents truly feel about the subject.

30 Jun 2011

New medical contrast agent could play important role in diagnosing colon cancer

Colon cancer could become easier to detect, thanks to a newly developed medical contrast agent and advanced optics that illuminate dangerous, invisible polyps.

30 Jun 2011

Research raises questions about some generic epilepsy drugs

Generic anti-epilepsy drugs, pharmaceutical products similar to brand-name versions, save consumers billions of dollars each year, but some are different enough from branded formulations that they may not be effective, particularly if patients switch between two generic drugs, a new study by Johns Hopkins researchers suggests. A report on the study, published online and in an upcoming issue of Annals of Neurology, raises questions about whether some generic products are safe and effective when a narrow dose range separates patients from help and harm.

30 Jun 2011

Coffee protects against Alzheimer's disease

The study appears online in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, was in mice whose DNA had been tweaked to contain a human Alzheimer’s gene. Just like humans with familial Alzheimer’s, these mice become increasingly forgetful as they age. It was seen that the equivalent of four to five cups of caffeinated coffee every few days led to much improved memories in the Alzheimer’s mice, says study co-author Gary Arendash, a scientist at the Florida Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center in Tampa.

30 Jun 2011

100 million Americans suffer pain - many in silence

According to a report released by the Institute of Medicine Wednesday, nearly a third of Americans experience long-lasting pain and too often feel stigma rather than relief from a health care system poorly prepared to treat them. Chronic pain is costing the nation at least $558 billion a year in medical bills, sick days and lost productivity, the report found. That's more than the cost of heart disease, the top killer.

30 Jun 2011

Lung cancer screenings reduce risk of dying by 20%: Study

A lnew study shows some smokers' lives could be saved by screening with lung scans and the chances improve further if there is a false alarm.

30 Jun 2011

Study provides novel information about clinical potential of anti-cancer antibiotics

Most of us have had a doctor prescribe an antibiotic for a stubborn bacterial infection, or for a cut that gets infected. However, prescribing an antibiotic to fight cancer? In fact, anti-cancer antibiotics have been used since the 1950s to successfully treat several forms of cancer, but often the side effects limit the duration they can be given to a patient.

30 Jun 2011

NLST: CT screening reduces lung cancer specific mortality by 20%

Current and former heavy smokers can now be screened more effectively for lung cancer. Results from the National Lung Screening Trial (NLST) revealed that detecting small lung cancers with computed tomography (CT) reduces lung cancer specific mortality by 20 percent.

30 Jun 2011

Anabasis, Scil Proteins enter license deal for rhNGF to treat eye diseases

Scil Proteins, a private biopharmaceutical company specialized in the research, development and production of recombinant proteins, today announced that it has signed an agreement with Anabasis Pharma.

30 Jun 2011

New technology reduces stress of scheduling chemotherapy treatments

The stress of scheduling chemotherapy treatments has been substantially reduced by a new technology created and implemented by a team of researchers from the Sauder School of Business at the University of British Columbia and the BC Cancer Agency.

30 Jun 2011

Sensitivity of bladder cancer cells linked to chemotherapy and expression of miR-34a gene

Researchers at the UC Davis Cancer Center have discovered a way of sensitizing muscle-invasive bladder cancer cells so that they succumb to the toxic effects of chemotherapy. The finding adds to mounting evidence that tiny strands of RNA - called microRNA - play key roles in some of the deadliest types of cancer.

30 Jun 2011

Forte Research's OnCore Software Developer Toolkit for eIRB integration now freely available

After proving the success of their electronic Institutional Review Board (eIRB) management system integration interface, Forte Research Systems, Inc. is making their Software Developers' Toolkit (SDK) freely available to all interested parties.

30 Jun 2011

Veterans who have attempted suicide may face risk of mortality

An estimated 18 American military veterans take their own lives every day -- thousands each year -- and those numbers are steadily increasing. Even after weathering the stresses of military life and the terrors of combat, these soldiers find themselves overwhelmed by the transition back into civilian life.

30 Jun 2011

New highly-accurate blood test can measure all forms of vitamin D deficiencies

Researchers from London's Kingston University have developed a new highly-accurate blood test which can detect how much a patient's diet could be responsible for a lack of the so-called 'sunshine vitamin'. Vitamin D deficiencies can weaken the immune system and increase the risk of cancer and osteoporosis.

30 Jun 2011

TCGA examines ovarian serous adenocarcinoma tumors from 500 patients

An analysis of genomic changes in ovarian cancer has provided the most comprehensive and integrated view of cancer genes for any cancer type to date. Ovarian serous adenocarcinoma tumors from 500 patients were examined by The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) Research Network and analyses are reported in the June 30, 2011, issue of Nature.

30 Jun 2011

STSI joins JAX consortium to develop targeted cancer therapies

The Scripps Translational Science Institute (STSI) of San Diego, Calif., has joined a national consortium of research institutions headed by The Jackson Laboratory (JAX) that is building a library of primary human tumors with the goal of developing highly targeted cancer therapies.

30 Jun 2011

Researchers develop way to uncover evolution of human cancer cells

A team of researchers led by scientists at the University of California, San Francisco has developed a way to uncover the evolution of human cancer cells, determining the order in which mutations emerge in them as they wend their way from a normal, healthy state into invasive, malignant masses.

30 Jun 2011

Boston University, University of Utah Foundation and Allegro enter license agreement for molecular testing platform

Allegro Diagnostics today announced that the company has entered into an exclusive license agreement with Boston University and the University of Utah Foundation for intellectual property related to the company's molecular testing platform. This platform utilizes gene expression of normal epithelial cells in the respiratory tract to detect early signs of lung cancer.

30 Jun 2011

Protect your ears from loud noise of fireworks, trains, and concerts

The sounds of summer can be noisy. "Fireworks, trains, concerts and road construction can be harmful to your hearing. And once hearing is damaged, it cannot be repaired," said Jyoti Bhayani, certified audiologist at Gottlieb Memorial Hospital, part of Loyola University Health System.

30 Jun 2011

FDA's ODAC recommends withdrawal of Avastin approval for metastatic breast cancer

Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, announced today that, during a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) hearing, the FDA's Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee (ODAC) recommended that the FDA withdraw its approval of Avastin in combination with paclitaxel chemotherapy for previously untreated HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer.

30 Jun 2011