Lung and head and neck cancer patients who smoked before surgery are more likely to relapse than those who had quit before surgery, Moffitt Cancer Center researchers say. They found that smoking-relapse prevention interventions are needed immediately after surgery to help prevent relapse. The study was published in a recent issue of the journal Cancer...
Avastin Wins FDA Approval For Colorectal Cancer Treatment
1/25/2013
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved use of Roche's Avastin for patients with colorectal cancer that has gotten worse despite treatment with the medication. This new approval will permit patients who were already treated once with Avastin plus chemotherapy to be treated again with Avastin in combination with a different chemotherapy regimen...
Abraxane Improves Survival Among Pancreatic Cancer Patients
1/24/2013
Celegene Corp's drug Abraxane (paclitaxel protein-bound particles for injectable suspension) was found to be effective at improving overall survival among pancreatic cancer patients when combined with chemotherapy, according to results from the drug's phase III clinical trial. Even though Pancreatic cancer is a relatively uncommon form of cancer - making up only 2...
Follow-Up To REDUCE Study Shows Low Rate Of Prostate Cancer Diagnosis
1/24/2013
Analysis of 2 Years of Additional Data on Dutasteride Treatment Reported in The Journal of Urology® The four-year REDUCE (REduction by DUtasteride of prostate Cancer Events) clinical study evaluated prostate cancer risk reduction in men taking dutasteride, a 5-alpha-reductase inhibitor (5ARI) typically used to treat enlarged prostate...
Five-Minute' Blood Cancer Injection Cuts Treatment Time By Two Hours
1/24/2013
A new injection for blood cancer patients trialled at Southampton's teaching hospitals can deliver a two-hour dose of drugs in around five minutes. Patients diagnosed with follicular non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), a disease that attacks one specific type of infection-fighting cell, previously had rituximab administered via an intravenous drip...
Study Reveals Gaps In Availability Of Radiotherapy Services Across Europe
1/24/2013
Wide disparities in access to radiotherapy services, patchy provision, unmet need, and unequal spending on resources are revealed in a European-wide study published Online First in The Lancet Oncology. The analysis exposes, for the first time, the reality of radiotherapy services on a country-by-country basis across Europe...
Cancer Expert Remains To Be Convinced By Breast Screening Review
1/24/2013
In this week's BMJ, a leading cancer expert says he remains to be convinced that the benefits of breast screening outweigh the harms. Michael Baum, Professor emeritus of surgery at University College London says that, while deaths from breast cancer may be avoided, any benefit will be more than outweighed by deaths due to the long term adverse effects of treatment...
Best-in-Class potential with improved therapeutic index compared to other armed antibodies Synthon Biopharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of specialty pharma company Synthon, has reported promising results with its lead program of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs)...
Best-in-Class potential with improved therapeutic index compared to other armed antibodies Synthon Biopharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of specialty pharma company Synthon, has reported promising results with its lead program of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs)...
Mathematical Model Suggests Helping Healthy Cells Could Be Key To Fighting Leukemia
1/24/2013
Researchers at Imperial College London have shown that keeping healthy blood cells alive could be a more important tool in the fight against leukaemia than keeping cancerous cells at bay. The team used computer modelling to show that maintaining a friendly environment for healthy cells was more effective than targeting the damaged cells directly...