Radiation Therapy News and Research

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Radiation therapy (also called radiotherapy, x-ray therapy, or irradiation) is the use of a certain type of energy (called ionizing radiation) to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. Radiation therapy injures or destroys cells in the area being treated (the “target tissue”) by damaging their genetic material, making it impossible for these cells to continue to grow and divide. Although radiation damages both cancer cells and normal cells, most normal cells can recover from the effects of radiation and function properly. The goal of radiation therapy is to damage as many cancer cells as possible, while limiting harm to nearby healthy tissue.

Radiation therapy plays a crucial role in management of OPSCC

HPV-negative UM-SCC4 with and without transfection of HPV E6 oncoprotein, HPV-negative UPCI-SCC-089, and HPV-positive UPCI-SCC-099 cell lines were used in this study.

22 Apr 2020

AI may help eliminate use of biopsy for brain cancer patients

Brain cancer patients in the coming years may not need to go under the knife to help doctors determine the best treatment for their tumors.

21 Apr 2020

COVID-19 and immunodeficiency

COVID-19 disease, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is a highly infectious disease. As of today, over 170,000 people worldwide have succumbed to the infection. Reports have shown that some comorbidities and illnesses raise the risk of getting infected and also influence the severity of the disease. Having a compromised immune system can also drastically raise the risk of getting COVID-19.

21 Apr 2020

New drug preserves cognitive function in mice after brain irradiation

A study by researchers at the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center has identified a possible new drug that could help prevent cognitive decline in people who undergo radiation therapy for brain tumors.

15 Apr 2020

Chronic stress can influence the efficacy of radiation therapy, study suggests

Radiation is one of the oldest and most common therapies for cancer, and typically is delivered locally, or to specific targeted sites in the body.

15 Apr 2020

Mathematical model can predict patient outcomes to adaptive prostate cancer therapy

Prostate cancer is the most common malignancy among men in the United States. It is also the second most common cause of cancer-related deaths. Despite improved treatments for prostate cancer, many patients with advanced disease eventually develop drug resistance.

9 Apr 2020

New framework to help guide decisions for prostate cancer radiotherapy during COVID-19 pandemic

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, a team of radiation oncologists from the U.S. and U.K. is recommending a new framework for making decisions about radiation therapy for prostate cancer patients that weighs risks and benefits during these difficult times.

27 Mar 2020

Transmission of COVID-19 among cancer patients in China

Researchers from Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University in China in collaboration with those from the National Cancer Centre Singapore, have come up with a study that reveals the transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 or novel coronavirus among patients with cancer in China.

25 Mar 2020

Research aimed at increasing shelf life of radiation drugs offers hope for cancer patients

People with hard-to-reach cancers in the kidney, gut and prostate will have improved hope for early diagnosis and treatment with new research aimed at increasing the shelf life of revolutionary radiation drugs.

19 Mar 2020

Researchers solve the riddle of superbug toxin damage to gut

A powerful Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute (BDI) collaboration has revealed that a bacterial superbug can prevent stem cells in the gut from carrying out their vital role of regenerating the inner lining of the intestine.

16 Mar 2020

A miRNA signature linked to local-regional failure and overall survival after pancreatic cancer resection

The cover for issue 10 of Oncotarget features Figure 3, "Overall survival (OS) for high (red) versus low (black) risk groups in the (A) OSU, (B) TCGA, and (C) SNU resected cohorts," by Wolfe, et al.

13 Mar 2020

NCCN publishes recommendations for assessing quality improvements in cancer care

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network has published a curated list of high-impact measures for assessing quality improvements in cancer care.

10 Mar 2020

Inhibiting specific protein could make radiation therapy for colon cancer more effective

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis appear to have discovered a way to make radiation therapy for colorectal cancer more effective by inhibiting a protein found in cancer cells in the gut.

3 Mar 2020

Combination of radiation and immunotherapy shows promise for advanced head and neck cancers

A new phase II trial finds that a combination of radiation therapy and immunotherapy led to encouraging survival outcomes and acceptable toxicity for patients with locally advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

27 Feb 2020

Drug used for breast, renal cancers may provide survival benefit for patients with head and neck cancers

A targeted therapy drug used for breast and kidney cancers may also extend progression-free survival for patients with advanced head and neck cancer who are at high risk for recurrence after standard treatment.

27 Feb 2020

UC researchers uncover potential new treatment for patients with metastatic melanoma

Researchers at the University of Cincinnati have uncovered a potentially more beneficial treatment regimen for patients with metastatic melanoma.

26 Feb 2020

Advances in surgical care for patients with pancreatic cancer

Earlier this year, doctors and researchers celebrated the news that the five-year survival rate for pancreatic cancer had crossed into double digits for the first time -; up from just 6% in 2011.

23 Feb 2020

Administering immunotherapy alongside chemoradiation for advanced NSCLC appears to be safe and tolerable

Research from Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey shows administering the immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab together with chemotherapy given at the same time as radiation treatment (chemoradiation) is safe and tolerable as a first-line therapy for patients with stage 3 non-small cell lung cancer.

21 Feb 2020

NRG Oncology trial: Hippocampal avoidance during whole-brain radiotherapy reduces risks

Results from the NRG Oncology clinical study NRG-CC001 concluded that lowering radiotherapy dose to hippocampal stem cells improves cognitive and patient-reported outcomes for patients with brain metastases.

18 Feb 2020

Researchers develop new way to monitor radiation doses for cancer patients

More than half of all cancer patients undergo radiation therapy and the dose is critical. Too much and the surrounding tissue gets damaged, too little and the cancer cells survive.

16 Feb 2020