Cancer Research

26 Oct Increase in postmastectomy breast reconstruction

Posted at 20:13h in Breast Cancer

Released: 10/18/2011 11:00 AM EDT Source: American College of Surgeons (ACS) New findings show an increase in postmastectomy breast reconstruction, and that TRAM flap reconstruction remains intact with a high degree of patient satisfaction Newswise — SAN FRANCISCO: Until now, studies looking at trends in cancer care have shown that immediate postmastectomy breast...

26 Oct Through-the-Nipple Breast Cancer Therapy Shows Promise in Early Tests

Posted at 19:32h in Breast Cancer, Chemotherapy

October 26 2011 Newswise — Delivering anticancer drugs into breast ducts via the nipple is highly effective in animal models of early breast cancer, and has no major side effects in human patients, according to a report by Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center researchers in Science Translational Medicine on October 26....

26 Oct Gene responsible for relapses in young leukemia patients

Posted at 19:30h in Cancer Research, Leukemia

One of the causes of resistance to cancer treatment in children is now beginning to be elucidated. Acute lymphoblastic leukemia patients with a particular form of the ATF5 gene are at higher risk of having a relapse when treated with E. coli asparaginase, a key chemotherapy drug for this type...

11 Oct Study shows increased prostate cancer risk from vitamin E supplements

Posted at 23:45h in Cleveland Clinic, JAMA, Prostate Cancer

Men who took 400 international units (I.U.) of vitamin E daily had more prostate cancers compared to men who took a placebo, according to an updated review of data from the Selenium and Vitamin E Cancer Prevention Trial (SELECT). The findings showed that, per 1,000 men, there were 76 prostate...

11 Oct Ovarian cancer patients survive longer with BRCA2 mutated in tumors

Posted at 23:42h in Cancer Research, MD Anderson, Ovarian Cancer

HOUSTON - Women with high-grade ovarian cancer live longer and respond better to platinum-based chemotherapy when their tumors have BRCA2 genetic mutations, researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and the Institute for Systems Biology report in the Oct. 12 issue of the Journal of the American...

11 Oct Mushroom compound appears to improve effectiveness of cancer drugs

Posted at 23:40h in Cancer Research, Chemotherapy

AUGUSTA, Ga. – A compound isolated from a wild, poisonous mushroom growing in a Southwest China forest appears to help a cancer killing drug fulfill its promise, researchers report. The compound, verticillin A, sensitizes cancer cells to TRAIL, a drug which induces cancer cells to self destruct, said Dr. Kebin Liu,...

06 Oct Marijuana component could ease pain from chemotherapy drugs

Posted at 16:53h in Breast Cancer, Pain Research

A chemical component of the marijuana plant could prevent the onset of pain associated with drugs used in chemo therapy, particularly in breast cancer patients, according to researchers at Temple University's School of Pharmacy. The researchers published their findings, "Cannabidiol Prevents the Development of Cold and Mechanical Allodynia in Paclitaxel-Treated Female...

06 Oct Survival increased in early stage breast cancer after treatment with herceptin and chemo

Posted at 02:12h in Breast Cancer

Treating women with early stage breast cancer with a combination of chemotherapy and the molecularly targeted drug Herceptin significantly increases survival in patients with a specific genetic mutation that results in very aggressive disease, a researcher with UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center reported Wednesday. The study also found that a regimen...

06 Oct Tyk2 protein potential new Breast Cancer Therapy Target

Posted at 01:38h in Breast Cancer, Cleveland Clinic

New Rochelle, NY, October 5, 2011 -- A possible new target for breast cancer therapy comes from the discovery that the Tyk2 protein helps suppress the growth and metastasis of breast tumors, as reported in Journal of Interferon & Cytokine Research, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. Qifang...

22 Sep Study reveals rise in prostate biopsy complications

Posted at 16:31h in Prostate Cancer

In a study of complication rates following prostate biopsy among Medicare beneficiaries, Johns Hopkins researchers have found a significant rise in serious complications requiring hospitalization. The researchers found that this common outpatient procedure, used to diagnose prostate cancer, was associated with a 6.9 percent rate of hospitalization within 30 days...

22 Sep Cellular origin of a rare form of breast cancer identified

Posted at 16:28h in Breast Cancer, Nature, PNAS

BOSTON (September 22, 2011) -- Identifying the cellular origins of breast cancer might lead to earlier diagnosis and more efficient management of the disease. New research led by Charlotte Kuperwasser of Tufts University School of Medicine (TUSM) has determined that common forms of breast cancer originate from breast cells known...

21 Sep Studying how to stop breast cancers from coming back

Posted at 19:49h in Breast Cancer

Medical researchers at the University of Leeds have come a step closer to understanding how to stop breast cancers from coming back. Their findings, published in the International Journal of Cancer, suggest that some novel drugs that are being developed to tackle other cancers should be considered as a future treatment...

19 Sep More immigrant women are getting mammograms now than a decade ago.

Posted at 20:38h in Breast Cancer, Mammograms, Medical Imaging

Fewer immigrant women receive mammograms than native-born American women, according to Penn State researchers, who note that more immigrant women are getting mammograms now than a decade ago. "Lack of access to health care persistently contributes to mammography screening disparities among immigrants," said Nengliang Aaron Yao, graduate student in health policy...

19 Sep New imaging technique visualizes cancer during surgery

Posted at 20:19h in Ovarian Cancer

Ovarian cancer is one of the most frequent forms of cancer that affect women. As tumors can initially grow unchecked in the abdomen without causing any major symptoms, patients are usually diagnosed at an advanced stage and have to undergo surgery plus chemotherapy. During the operation, surgeons attempt to remove...

14 Sep Depression and pain increase fatigue in breast cancer survivors

Posted at 23:43h in Breast Cancer

In Spain, 5-year survival following breast cancer diagnosis is more than 83%. Around 66% suffer fatigue following treatment. A Spanish research establishes the factors associated with tiredness in cancer survivors to improve their quality of life and rehabilitation. "Cancer-related fatigue is the symptom that most limits quality of life and is...

13 Sep Study: Gene therapy causes breast cancer stem cells to self-destruct

Posted at 00:12h in Breast Cancer, MD Anderson

Targeted agent avoids healthy cells, blocks proteins that prevent cell death in tumors HOUSTON -- Gene therapy delivered directly to a particularly stubborn type of breast cancer cell causes the cells to self-destruct, lowers chance of recurrence and helps increase the effectiveness of some types of chemotherapy, researchers at The University...

08 Sep Study: Chemotherapy is as effective before breast cancer surgery as after

Posted at 23:49h in Breast Cancer

Approach may help some women avoid mastectomy San Francisco, CA - Whether chemotherapy is given before or after breast-conserving therapy (BCT) does not have an impact on long-term local-regional outcomes, suggesting treatment success is due more to biologic factors than chemotherapy timing, according to a study by researchers at The University...

05 Sep Gene that predisposes people to leukemia discovered

Posted at 17:13h in Cancer Research, Genetic Research, Nature

Those at risk because of family history may soon obtain tests to detect the genetic error before symptoms emerge A new genetic defect that predisposes people to acute myeloid leukemia and myelodysplasia has been discovered. The mutations were found in the GATA2 gene. Among its several regulatory roles, the gene acts...

02 Sep Key function of mutation in BRCA1 gene discovered

Posted at 00:21h in Breast Cancer, Cancer Research, Ovarian Cancer

Richmond, Va. (September 1, 2011) –It is widely known that mutations in the breast cancer susceptibility 1 (BRCA1) gene significantly increase the chance of developing breast and ovarian cancers, but the mechanisms at play are not fully understood. Now, researchers at Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center have shown that...

19 Aug PET scans confirm effectiveness of estrogen-blocking drugs in breast cancer patients

Posted at 23:47h in Breast Cancer, Cancer Research, Radiology

SEATTLE – For the first time, researchers at Seattle Cancer Care Alliance have demonstrated the feasibility of using serial positron emission tomography (PET) scans, using a special estrogen-containing isotope, to confirm the relative effectiveness of estrogen-blocking and estrogen-depleting therapy in patients with metastatic breast cancer. The results of the research...

16 Aug Breast Feeding & Breast Cancer in African-American women

Posted at 22:47h in Breast Cancer, Cancer Research

Investigators from the Boston University's Slone Epidemiology Center have reported findings that may shed light on why African American women have a disproportionately higher risk of developing more aggressive and difficult-to-treat breast cancers, specifically estrogen and progesterone receptor negative (ER-/PR-) cancers. The study, which appears online in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers &...

16 Aug Vitamin D and protection against the Advance of Colon Cancer

Posted at 22:36h in Colon Cancer, PLoS, Vitamin D

A study conducted by VHIO researchers confirms that a lack of vitamin D increases the aggressiveness of colon cancer The indication that vitamin D and its derivatives have a protective effect against various types of cancer is not new. In the field of colon cancer, numerous experimental and epidemiological studies show...

11 Aug Team reports genetic sequences most common bladder cancer

Posted at 21:45h in Cancer Research, Nature

August 11, 2011 (Aurora, CO)--In an article published online this week in Nature Genetics, a University of Colorado Cancer Center team in partnership with universities in China and Denmark. Recognizing the genetic mutations that make bladder cancer cells different than their healthy neighbors may allow early genetic screenings for cancer and...

11 Aug Report: NSAIDS reduce the severity of postpartum breast cancers in animal models

Posted at 21:39h in Breast Cancer, Nature

Published online on Aug. 7, 2011, the journal Nature Medicine reports that non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs including ibuprofen reduce the severity of postpartum breast cancers in animal models. “We caution patients and providers that because a mother’s body is undergoing radical changes during this time, we can’t yet speak to the...

04 Aug Scientists map genetic mutations in the second-most common form of brain cancer, oligodendroglioma

Posted at 18:44h in Brain Cancer - Brain Tumors

Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center scientists have completed a comprehensive map of genetic mutations occurring in the second-most common form of brain cancer, oligodendroglioma. The findings, reported in the Aug. 4 issue of Science, also appear to reveal the biological cause of the tumors, they say. To create the map, the...

03 Aug New Breast Cancer Strategies Presented at Conference

Posted at 20:24h in Breast Cancer, Cancer Research, Nature

ORLANDO, Fla. — August 3, 2011 — In their lifetime, women have more than a 12 percent risk of being diagnosed with breast cancer. 1 This week, research on novel approaches to breast cancer treatment is being presented at the Era of Hope (EOH) conference, a scientific meeting hosted by...

03 Aug Potential Links between Maternal Diet in Pregnancy and Breast Cancer in Daughters

Posted at 20:18h in Breast Cancer

ORLANDO, Fla. — August 3, 2011 — During pregnancy, women are counseled to refrain from consuming certain types of foods, beverages and medications in order to avoid jeopardizing the health and development of the fetus. In fact, the American Pregnancy Association has a list of a dozen items they recommend...

03 Aug Exploring Breast Cancer Mechanisms of Spread and Treatment Options

Posted at 20:15h in Breast Cancer

ORLANDO, Fla. — August 3, 2011 — Research into new methods to prevent and slow metastatic breast cancer will be presented this week at the Era of Hope conference, a scientific meeting hosted by the Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program (BCRP). Approximately 6 percent of women with breast...

03 Aug Simpler test to decide which lung cancer pts benefit from crizotinib

Posted at 01:10h in Lung Cancer

A relatively simple and inexpensive method may be used to determine whether a lung cancer patient is a candidate for crizotinib therapy, according to research published in the August issue of the Journal of Thoracic Oncology, the official monthly journal of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer...

01 Aug Combining dasatinib with Tamoxifen, may overcome Tamoxifen resistance in breast cancer

Posted at 20:45h in Breast Cancer

August 1 20100 PHILADELPHIA—Taking a leukemia chemotherapy drug may help breast cancer patients who don't respond to tamoxifen overcome resistance to the widely-used drug, new research from the Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson suggests. Interestingly, researchers found that taxoxifen combined with dasatinib, a protein-tyrosine kinase inhibitor, reverses the chemo-resistance caused by cancer-associated...