Cancer News and Research

Latest Cancer News and Research

Combination of radiation and hormone therapy improves survival rate among prostate cancer patients

Prostate cancer patients who are treated with a combination of hormone therapy and radiation have a substantially improved chance of survival compared to patients who do not receive radiation, according to interim results of the largest randomized study of its kind presented at the plenary session, November 1, 2010, at the 52nd Annual Meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO).

26 Oct 2010

Salk discovers potential new target for MS

Scientists are closer to solving one of the many mysteries of multiple sclerosis and other demyelinating diseases, thanks to a recent study conducted at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies. The research revealed a previously unknown connection between two ion channels, which, when misaligned, can cause the many bizarre symptoms that characterize the condition.

26 Oct 2010

Chemoradiotherapy can reduce bladder cancer recurrence

A major bladder cancer trial, funded by Cancer Research UK, has shown that adding two commonly used chemotherapy drugs to traditional radiotherapy can reduce the chance of a patient's tumour coming back by a third.

26 Oct 2010

Duke Center releases online atlas of ultra-high-resolution mouse brain

The most detailed magnetic resonance images ever obtained of a mammalian brain are now available to researchers in a free, online atlas of an ultra-high-resolution mouse brain, thanks to work at the Duke Center for In Vivo Microscopy.

26 Oct 2010

Panasonic completes investment in CardioNexus

Panasonic Corporation of North America has completed an investment in CardioNexus Corporation, a portfolio company of Houston's Fairway Medical Technologies which works closely with the Texas Medical Center. The move is part of Panasonic's plans to establish itself as a global leader in Personalized Preventive Medicine. The investment follows on an earlier Panasonic initiative to establish a presence in the world's largest medical complex, the Texas Medical Center based in Houston.

From PHC Europe B.V. 26 Oct 2010

Maven Semantic updates Lymphocyte Cell Biology research database

Maven Semantic announces updates to their Lymphocyte Cell Biology research database. The new database is now available to marketing, business development, competitor intelligence, KOL, medical affairs and related departments in the life sciences sector.

26 Oct 2010

Aspirin reduces risk of death from prostate cancer

Men with prostate cancer who take anticoagulants like aspirin in addition to radiation therapy or surgery may be able to cut their risk of dying of the disease by more than half, according to a large study presented on November 3, 2010, at the 52nd Annual Meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) in San Diego. The study involved more than 5,000 men with localized cancer whose disease had not spread beyond the prostate gland.

26 Oct 2010

ARIAD's oral ridaforolimus improves PFS in patients with metastatic endometrial cancer

Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced interim results of a randomized, open‐label, active-control multicenter Phase 2 study of oral ridaforolimus, an investigational mTOR inhibitor, in patients with metastatic or recurrent endometrial cancer. Based on this interim analysis, the study demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in the primary endpoint of median progression-free survival (PFS) in patients receiving single-agent ridaforolimus compared to patients receiving standard-of-care treatment.

26 Oct 2010

IMRT minimizes gastrointestinal side effects of prostate cancer treatment

Men with prostate cancer treated with a specialized type of radiation called intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) have fewer gastrointestinal complications compared to patients treated with conventional three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3D-CRT), according to a study presented November 1, 2010, at the 52nd Annual Meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO).

26 Oct 2010

Calif. budget comes in the nick of time for health centers; LA. Gov. announces cuts in health care funding

With some California community health centers just weeks or days away from laying off staff or reducing their hours, the state adopted its latest-ever annual budget on Oct. 8.

26 Oct 2010

Researchers investigate impact of fungal toxin on birth defects

A Creighton University School of Medicine researcher has been awarded a $2.7 million grant by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to investigate a possible link between the ingestion of tortillas and corn-based food products contaminated with a fungal toxin and increased risk for birth defects.

26 Oct 2010

Combination of chemotherapy and radiation improves control of cancer within bladder

Adding chemotherapy to radiation therapy for muscle invasive bladder cancer allows 67 percent of people to be free of disease in their bladders two years after treatment. This compares to 54 percent of people who receive radiation alone, according to the largest randomized study of its kind presented at the plenary session, November 1, 2010, at the 52nd Annual Meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO).

26 Oct 2010

Vertex initiates OPTIMIZE Phase 3b study in patients infected with genotype 1 HCV

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated today announced the initiation of a Phase 3b study called OPTIMIZE that will evaluate twice-daily (BID) dosing of a telaprevir-based combination regimen in people chronically infected with genotype 1 hepatitis C virus (HCV) who have not been treated previously. This is the first Phase 3 study to evaluate twice-daily dosing of a protease inhibitor for the treatment of hepatitis C. OPTIMIZE will not include a control arm of pegylated-interferon and ribavirin alone.

26 Oct 2010

NIH awards Phase I SBIR grant to develop Generic Antibodies for cancer

Rockland Immunochemicals Inc., a biotechnology company focusing on antibodies and antibody based tools for basic research, diagnostic assay development and preclinical studies, today announced that it has received a Phase I Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from the National Institutes of Health to develop Generic Antibodies "Biosimilars" for the Treatment of Cancer.

26 Oct 2010

Amgen reports $3,816 million for 2010 third quarter revenue

Amgen reported revenue unchanged for the third quarter of 2010 at $3,816 million versus $3,812 million for the third quarter of 2009.

26 Oct 2010

Alzheimer’s risk raised 157% with smoking: Study

A Kaiser Permanente study reported this Monday that heavy smoking in midlife more than doubles the odds of developing Alzheimer's disease. This study is one of the first of its kind to examine the long-term consequences of heavy smoking on Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia explained the study's principal investigator, Rachel Whitmer, a research scientist with Kaiser Permanente in Oakland. The research is published in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

25 Oct 2010

S.A.N.E. Vax requests temporary suspension of Gardasil sales as cervical cancer preventive

In a letter addressed to Dr. Margaret Hamburg, the FDA commissioner, Ms. Norma Erickson, president of S.A.N.E. Vax, Inc. stated her research team has revealed the fact that in November 2001 the VRBPAC (Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee) mistakenly allowed the vaccine manufacturer to use "CIN 2/3, AIS, or cervical cancer; i.e. CIN 2/3 or worse by histology- with virology to determine the associated HPV type- as the primary endpoint in the evaluation of a vaccine to prevent cervical cancer."

25 Oct 2010

UMC of Göttingen purchases BSD-500 Hyperthermia System

BSD Medical Corporation announced today that the University Medical Center (UMC) of Göttingen, Germany, has purchased a BSD-500 Hyperthermia System (BSD-500). UMC was established in 1732 and is a center of scientific excellence in Europe and the most prominent medical center in Lower Saxony, Germany.

25 Oct 2010

FDA approves Roche's real-time PCR COBAS TaqMan HCV Test, v2.0

Roche announced today that the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the real-time PCR COBAS® TaqMan® HCV Test, v2.0. Clinical research organizations have depended on COBAS® TaqMan® technology to support hepatitis C pharmaceutical trials and development.

25 Oct 2010

DARA BioSciences to raise $1.4 million in registered direct offering

DARA BioSciences, Inc., a development-stage pharmaceutical company, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement with several institutional investors to sell 612,667 units, with each unit consisting of one of the Company's common shares and 0.50 warrants to purchase one share of common stock, for gross proceeds of approximately $1.4 million, before deducting placement agent fees and estimated offering expenses, in a "registered direct" offering.

25 Oct 2010