Cancer News and Research

Latest Cancer News and Research

Manipulation of MOF enzyme may make tumors more sensitive to radiation therapy

To make tumors more sensitive to the killing power of radiation is a key aspiration for many radiation oncologists. Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have uncovered new information that leads them closer to that goal.

5 Nov 2007

Family history of bipolar affects decision to have children

One in three people with a strong family history of bipolar disorder (manic depression) are reluctant to have children due to the hereditary nature of the illness and its perceived social stigma, new research from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) has found.

4 Nov 2007

HRT breast cancer case thrown out of court

A woman who claimed hormone replacement therapy (HRT) caused her breast cancer has had her case thrown out of court.

4 Nov 2007

The slimmer the better when it comes to avoiding cancer

A new study which has analysed 40 years of international research has revealed that maintaining a healthy weight is essential to preventing cancer.

4 Nov 2007

Antibody might help starve cancerous tumors

An antibody might offer a safe and effective complement to anti-cancer therapies designed to starve malignant tumors by pruning the blood vessels that feed them, researchers report in the November 2 issue of the journal Cell, a publication of Cell Press.

2 Nov 2007

Chemical peroxynitrite tolerates pain

The repeated use of opiate drugs such as morphine to relieve chronic pain results in individuals having to take higher and higher doses of the drug to achieve equivalent pain relief (they are said to exhibit antinociceptive tolerance).

2 Nov 2007

Educating teens about the dangers of tobacco use

"As a teen, no one ever told us that cigarettes would affect our health," says Jerry Berkowitz, a throat cancer survivor who started smoking at age 13. "Everyone smoked."

2 Nov 2007

SENP1 protein may provide a basis for future targeted cancer therapies

Researchers at the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center have found a protein that enables cellular survival during periods of low oxygen, or hypoxia, which also is key for development of many kinds of cancer.

2 Nov 2007

Substance abuse practitioners ask 'what is recovery?'

Abstinence from alcohol and drugs is just the starting point in defining "recovery" for people with substance abuse disorders, according to a paper in the October issue of the Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment (JSAT).

2 Nov 2007

Studies attribute recent increase in multiple myeloma survival to novel therapies

Multiple myeloma is one of the most common and devastating bone marrow cancers in the U.S., but survival rates have risen dramatically over the past decade.

2 Nov 2007

New understanding of gestational diabetes

A protein in the pancreas is giving researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine their first chance at cracking the code that determines how diabetes develops during pregnancy, a finding that could lead to new treatments for all forms of diabetes.

2 Nov 2007

Anti-leukemia drug dexamethasone increases patient fatigue

The anti-leukemia drug dexamethasone contributes to a relentless fatigue and poor quality of sleep in children undergoing treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), according to a new study from St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

2 Nov 2007

Non-invasive radio waves heat up nanotubes to destroy cancer

Cancer cells treated with carbon nanotubes can be destroyed by non-invasive radio waves that heat up the nanotubes while sparing untreated tissue, a research team led by scientists at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center and Rice University has shown in preclinical experiments.

2 Nov 2007

Enzyme sphingosine kinase 2 show to be potential new target to fight cancer

Researchers at the Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center have identified the enzyme sphingosine kinase 2 as a possible new therapeutic target to improve the efficacy of chemotherapy for colon and breast cancer.

2 Nov 2007

New studies add weight to link between pre-eclampsia and heart disease

Two studies, published together on bmj.com, add further weight to the theory that pre-eclampsia and cardiovascular diseases may share common causes or mechanisms.

2 Nov 2007

Report shows red and processed meat convincingly cause colorectal cancer

A new report published by the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) will show how much our diet needs to change if we are to reduce the risk of cancer.

2 Nov 2007

Minority patients prefer optical colonoscopy for colorectal cancer screening

The clinical importance of colorectal cancer screening is well established, however the majority of eligible people do not undergo screening tests.

2 Nov 2007

Mice predict the effectiveness of orally taken drugs

The amount of an orally taken drug that makes it to the site in the body at which it exerts its effects is much lower than the amount of an intravenously administered drug and it varies considerably between individuals.

2 Nov 2007

Discovery of novel mechanism to predict survival in older women with early stage lung cancer

A novel mechanism to predict survival in older women with early stage lung cancer has been uncoverecd by researchers at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, a discovery that may have significant implications for new treatment approaches.

2 Nov 2007

Increased glucose level is a strong risk factor for colorectal cancer

Diabetes is a very common illness that affects more than 20 million people in the U.S. and it is estimated an additional 54 million Americans have pre-diabetes, a condition that occurs when a person's blood glucose levels are higher than normal but not high enough for a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes.

2 Nov 2007