A study(1) released earlier this month has been making its rounds on the internet, and has quickly become a hot topic on social media. I have seen some sensational headlines stating that this study “proves that chemotherapy spreads cancer” and “is the death blow to chemotherapy.” Statements such as these are typically the hallmark of an agenda-driven view, a poor understanding of science, or a combination of both. This study in question was performed on cells in the laboratory, and … Read More
Targeting Circulating Tumor Cells In Cancer Treatment
Cancerous tumors are formidable enemies, recruiting blood vessels to aid their voracious growth, damaging nearby tissues, and deploying numerous strategies to evade the body’s defense systems. But even more malicious are the circulating tumor cells (CTCs) that tumors release, which travel stealthily through the bloodstream and take up residence in other parts of the body, a process known as metastasis. While dangerous, their presence is also a valuable indicator of the stage of a patient’s disease, making CTCs an attractive … Read More
A Personal Experience With Immunotherapy Cancer Treatment
Michael D. Becker, a former biotech executive, knows a lot about cancer drug development. In 2015, he was diagnosed with head and neck cancer, which was caused by human papillomavirus (or HPV), a sexually transmitted infection. After the diagnosis, Becker — who detailed his experience in “A Walk With Purpose: Memoir of a Bioentrepreneur” — used his expertise in the drug industry to consider possible treatment options. One he was enthusiastic about? Cancer immunotherapy. read more Dr. Stegall’s Comments: I share this … Read More
How Could Onions Affect Colon Cancer?
In the first study to examine how effective Ontario-grown onions are at killing cancer cells, U of G researchers have found that not all onions are created equal. Engineering professor Suresh Neethirajan and PhD student Abdulmonem Murayyan tested five onion types grown in Ontario and discovered the Ruby Ring onion variety came out on top. Onions as a superfood are still not well known. But they contain one of the highest concentrations of quercetin, a type of flavonoid, and Ontario … Read More
Allergens Affected By Cancer Drug For Lymphocytic Leukemia
The cancer patients who were allergic to allergens such as cat dander and ragweed saw their allergic skin test reactivity reduced by 80 to 90 percent in one week, and this persisted with continued use of the drug for at least one to two months. The findings were published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology in May. “It almost completely knocked out the patients’ skin test and blood cell allergic reactivity,” said senior author Dr. Bruce Bochner, the … Read More
Highly Relevant Discovery In Prostate Cancer
Uncontrolled activity of male hormones, called androgens, contributes to the development of prostate cancer. One of the primary ways doctors treat prostate cancer is by inhibiting the activity of androgens by either surgically removing the testicles or with drugs that decrease androgen levels or activity. Unfortunately, even though most patients have early success with anti-androgen treatments, many patients eventually develop metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer within two to three years. Castration-resistant prostate cancer is more difficult to treat and cure because … Read More
Unique Way To Provide Cancer Treatment To Children
Although cancer is rare in children, worldwide there are approximately 215,000 new cases in the under 15s each year. Around a sixth of these children require treatment with radiotherapy, including those with brain tumours, and bone and soft tissue sarcomas such as Ewing sarcoma and rhabdomyosarcoma. Catia Aguas, a radiation therapist and dosimetrist at the Cliniques Universitaires Saint Luc, Brussels, Belgium, told the conference that using video instead of general anaesthesia is less traumatic for children and their families, as … Read More
Sequencing of Tumors Explored
The study suggests the value of so-called next generation sequencing, a sophisticated method of evaluating the DNA and RNA of a tumor to help direct treatment. A report on the first 500 patients with advanced solid tumors to go through the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center’s sequencing program found that 72 percent qualified for a clinical trial based on a genetic marker in their tumor. While not all of those patients were able to enroll in a trial based … Read More
New Research Looks At Combination Cancer Therapy
UTMB professor Satish Srivastava said that combining a newly-developed drug with a drug used to fight numerous kinds of cancers makes it better suited as a colon cancer treatment. The widely-used drug, doxorubicin, is effective in fighting cancer but can be toxic to the heart when higher doses are needed. The research, Srivastava said, shows that using aldose reductase, an enzyme, when used with doxorubicin, reduces the toxins that can damage the heart. The researchers have shown earlier that exposure … Read More
Read How Electronics Can Help Cancer Treatment
Symptoms are common among patients receiving treatment for advanced cancers, yet are undetected by clinicians up to half the time. There is growing interest in integrating electronic patient-reported outcomes (PROs) into routine oncology practice for symptom monitoring, but evidence demonstrating clinical benefit has been limited. Ethan Basch, M.D., of the Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and Associate Editor, JAMA, and colleagues assessed overall survival associated with electronic patient-reported symptom monitoring vs usual care based on … Read More