In Older Women, HPV May Be Due To Reactivation Of Virus, Not New Infection
12/18/2012
A new study suggests that human papillomavirus (HPV) infection in women at or after menopause may represent an infection acquired years ago, and that HPV infections may exist below limits of detection after one to two years, similar to other viruses, such as varicella zoster, which can cause shingles...
Researcher Identifies 2 New Genetic Mutations Associated With Cowden Syndrome
12/18/2012
Cleveland Clinic researchers from the Lerner Research Institute have uncovered two new genes associated with Cowden syndrome (CS) according to a new study, published in the online version of the American Journal of Human Genetics. Cowden syndrome is a difficult-to-recognize, under-diagnosed condition that carries high risks of breast, thyroid, and other cancers...
In Older Women, HPV May Be Due To Reactivation Of Virus, Not New Infection
12/18/2012
A new study suggests that human papillomavirus (HPV) infection in women at or after menopause may represent an infection acquired years ago, and that HPV infections may exist below limits of detection after one to two years, similar to other viruses, such as varicella zoster, which can cause shingles...
Singapore scientists have identified FAIM, a molecule that typically prevents cell death, as a potential biomarker to identify an incurable form of cancer in the bone marrow. Patients with this form of cancer usually do not get cured with current standard treatments such as chemotherapy and stem cell transplantation, with an average survival of only about four years...
Discovery Of Rare Type Of Cancer Suppressor Typically Missing In Lymphomas
12/18/2012
Medical researchers at the University of Alberta have discovered that knocking out a particular "partner" gene is the Achilles' heel of some cancers. Cancer causing genes often have a partner in crime, meaning when either of the two genes is active in cancer cells, the tumour grows. The challenge for researchers has been pinpointing the genes' "lethal partners...
Potential Drug Combos Identified For Difficult-To-Treat Melanomas
12/18/2012
A novel approach to identifying potential anticancer drug combinations revealed that pairing cholesterol-reducing drugs called statins with cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors might provide an effective approach to treating intractable melanomas driven by mutations in the NRAS and KRAS gene. David F. Stern, Ph.D., professor of pathology at Yale University School of Medicine in New Haven, Conn...
New Targets Found For Drugs To Defeat Aggressive Brain Tumor
12/18/2012
University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute (UPCI) researchers have identified over 125 genetic components in a chemotherapy-resistant, brain tumor-derived cell line, which could offer new hope for drug treatment to destroy the cancer cells. The results will be reported in the cover story of December's issue of the journal Molecular Cancer Research, to be published Dec...
Medulloblastoma Targeted By MicroRNA-218
12/18/2012
Between the blueprint of the genome and the products of its expression lie microRNAs, which can boost or lower the rate at which genes become stuff. In fact, many cancers use microRNA to magnify the expression of faulty genes or shrink the expression of helpful genes that would otherwise suppress tumors...
Hope For Wilms' Tumour Patients Following Isolation Of Cancer Stem Cells From Kidney Tumors
12/18/2012
Scientists have isolated cancer stem cells that lead to the growth of Wilms' tumours, a type of cancer typically found in the kidneys of young children. The researchers have used these cancer stem cells to test a new therapeutic approach that one day might be used to treat some of the more aggressive types of this disease. The results are published online in EMBO Molecular Medicine...
Protein Strongest Just Before Death
12/18/2012
Researchers at Michigan State University have discovered a protein that does its best work with one foot in the grave. The study, which appears in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, focuses on the nontraditional lifestyle of Retinoblastoma tumor suppressor proteins, which could lead to new ways to treat cancer...