Cancer News and Research

Latest Cancer News and Research

Researchers using microRNA to identify aggressive melanoma

Research at the University of Leicester will be breaking new ground in the search for a simple blood test that could tell whether a patient with melanoma has the condition in an aggressive form.

30 Jun 2009

Improved communication encourages patients to seek colorectal cancer screening in primary care setting

Improved communication among patients and primary care physicians increases the chances those due for colorectal cancer screening will follow their doctors' advice and complete the procedure, a University at Buffalo study has found.

30 Jun 2009

Prostate cancer: current evidence weighs against population screening

The recent release of two large randomized trials suggests that if there is a benefit of screening, it is, at best, small, says a new report in CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.

30 Jun 2009

Specially bred purple sweet potato with anti-cancer components

A Kansas State University researcher is studying the potential health benefits of a specially bred purple sweet potato because its dominant purple color results in an increased amount of anti-cancer components.

30 Jun 2009

Peptic ulcer bacterium alters the body's defence system

Helicobacter pylori survives in the body by manipulating important immune system cells. This is shown in a thesis from the Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Sweden. The discovery may lead to new treatments against the common peptic ulcer bacterium.

30 Jun 2009

Sometimes insurance no match for health costs

Americans with serious illnesses who must often choose between paying a mortgage or their health premiums and deductibles are often going broke, The Seattle Times reports.

30 Jun 2009

News reports examine patients unable to pay health bills in Kenya's "cash starved" hospitals; "bad shape" of Uganda's facilities

The Los Angeles Times examines several stories of patients too poor to pay their hospital bills in Kenya that were held in a "makeshift patients' prison," until they escape or settle their debt. "Tragically, healthcare horror stories are common in Africa, where developing countries rarely have medical safety nets for the poor. But an increase in cases of cash-starved public hospitals and mortuaries detaining patients and even corpses over unpaid bills is spurring outrage in Kenya," writes the newspaper.

30 Jun 2009

Review of endocrine disorders in the U.S.

A dogged review of the medical literature has produced what is believed to be the nation's first comprehensive estimate of the extent of dozens of endocrine disorders in the United States.

29 Jun 2009

Discovery of second gene linked to familial testicular cancer

Specific variations or mutations in a particular can gene raise a man's risk of familial, or inherited, testicular germ-cell cancer, the most common form of this disease, according to new research by scientists at the National Institutes of Health.

29 Jun 2009

Researchers test whether estrogen could improve outcomes after traumatic brain injury, shock

UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers are conducting two pilot clinical trials to determine whether a single, early dose of estrogen can improve survival and neurological outcomes after severe traumatic brain injury or traumatic hemorrhagic shock.

29 Jun 2009

The Virtual Physiological Human

It could mean the end of animal testing and eventually even clinical patient drug trials. The Virtual Physiological Human is a 21st century pan-European project that’s gaining momentum and takes a major step forward this week at The University of Nottingham.

29 Jun 2009

First baby born after new ovarian transplant technique

A new technique for transplanting the ovaries of women who have lost their fertility as a result of cancer treatment was outlined to the 25th annual conference of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology today (Monday 29 June).

29 Jun 2009

New, less invasive genetic test greatly improves pregnancy rates in older women with poor prognosis

A new test examining chromosomes in human eggs a few hours after fertilisation can identify those that are capable of forming a healthy baby, a researcher told the 25th annual conference of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology today (Monday 29 June).

29 Jun 2009

White House: Shield biotech drugs from generics for only seven years

White House officials said Thursday that biotech drugs (also known as biologics) should only be protected from generics competition for seven years, Reuters reports.

29 Jun 2009

Rise in alcohol deaths worldwide down to women drinkers

Canadian researchers have found that as many as 1 in 25 deaths worldwide can be attributed to alcohol and this rise since 2000 is mainly due to increases in the number of women drinking.

28 Jun 2009

Australian swine flu vaccine ready in months

A vaccine developed 'in record time' by Australian scientists to protect against the influenza A H1N1 virus (swine flu) may not be available just yet because this swine flu vaccine, developed by University of Queensland (UQ) scientists, is not yet registered for use in Australia.

28 Jun 2009

Recent trends in breast cancer incidence in U.S. white women by urban/rural and poverty status

The recent decline in invasive breast cancer in the US was significantly less pronounced in the poor and those who live in rural areas. Researchers writing in the open access journal BMC Medicine suggest this may be due to varying reductions in the numbers of women taking hormone therapy (HT).

28 Jun 2009

'Trojan horse' cancer therapy beats tumours resistant to chemotherapy

A new therapy to treat cancer has been developed by Australian scientists and it promises to have far fewer unpleasant side effects than conventional treatments and should also be much cheaper.

28 Jun 2009

Living near water may raise your risk of skin cancer

Australian researchers say those living in coastal areas are probably more at risk for skin cancer because they spend more time in the sun.

28 Jun 2009

Discovery of novel mechanism that could be targeted to prevent cancer spread

Researchers have discovered a key to the function of a specific protein that helps control the levels of other critical proteins within cells, including a protein that suppresses the spread of cancer. The new information about the mechanism of action of the protein, called gp78, may enable researchers to explore new types of therapies to prevent the spread of cancer. The study, by researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, was published in the June 26, 2009, issue of Molecular Cell.

28 Jun 2009