For the first time, scientists have directly observed events that lead to the formation of a chromosome abnormality that is often found in cancer cells. The abnormality, called a translocation, occurs when part of a chromosome breaks off and becomes attached to another chromosome. The results of...
Genomic sequencing experts at Johns Hopkins partnered with pharmacologists at Stony Brook University to reveal a striking mutational signature of upper urinary tract cancers caused by aristolochic acid, a plant compound contained in herbal remedies used for thousands of years to treat a variety of...
Minimal data are available on outcomes of second allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation from unrelated donors after first hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in patients with hematologic relapse of acute leukemia. In a study reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology, Maximilian...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today approved the first rapid human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) test for the simultaneous detection of HIV-1 p24 antigen as well as antibodies to both HIV-1 and HIV-2 in human serum, plasma, and venous or fingerstick whole blood specimens. Approved for...
A new study by thoracic surgeons and pathologists at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center shows that a specific pattern found in the tumor pathology of some lung cancer patients is a strong predictor of recurrence. Knowing that this feature exists in a tumor's pathology could be an important...
Researchers from Indiana University, the University of Michigan, the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have identified and validated a biomarker accessible in blood tests that could be used to predict which stem cell transplant patients are at highest risk ...
A recent study published in the Journal of Oncology Practice assessed the feasibility and value of incorporating patient reported outcomes into oncology practice. Although previous research has shown that using patient-reported outcomes in oncology can improve physician-patient communication and...
Researchers at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC – James) have discovered a novel mechanism responsible for the loss of a critical tumor-suppressor gene in rhabdomyosarcoma and other...
In a study reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology, David Margel, MD, PhD, of University of Toronto, and colleagues examined the effect of duration of antidiabetic medication exposure after prostate cancer diagnosis on all-cause and prostate cancer–specific mortality in men with diabetes....
Researchers at Mayo Clinic in Florida have revealed the process by which pancreatitis—chronic inflammation of the pancreas—morphs into pancreatic cancer. They say their findings point to ways to identify pancreatitis patients at risk of pancreatic cancer and to potential drug therapies...
Patients with advanced chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) often receive allogeneic transplants that effectively “reboot” their own immune defenses, which then attack and potentially cure the hard-to-treat disease. However, there is a high rate of relapse in these patients, and the...
Although celiac disease is associated with an increased risk of lymphoma, including enteropathy-associated T-cell lymphoma, it was not known whether persistent atrophy of the villi, the fingerlike projections that normally absorb nutrients, contributed to that risk. In a large population-based...
Organized mailing campaigns could substantially increase colorectal cancer screening among uninsured patients, according to a study published online in JAMA Internal Medicine. The research also suggested that a noninvasive colorectal screening approach, such as a fecal immunochemical test, might be ...
The results of a large-scale analysis of the association between DNA viruses and human malignancies suggest that many of the most common cancers are not associated with DNA viruses. The findings, published in the August issue of the Journal of Virology, challenge earlier studies suggesting that as...
A team of researchers at the Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center at Columbia University Medical Center has identified 18 new genes responsible for driving glioblastoma multiforme, the most common—and most aggressive—form of brain cancer in adults. The study was published online...
Long-term use of a calcium-channel blocker to treat hypertension is associated with higher breast cancer risk, according to a report published by JAMA Internal Medicine. The study assessed the relationships between the major classes of hypertensive agents and risk of the two most common histologic...
Deciphering the body's complex molecular pathways that lead to disease when they malfunction is highly challenging. Researchers at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute now have a more complete picture of one particular pathway that can lead to cancer and diabetes. In a study published in...
Scientists at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital have discovered a way to target the immune system to shrink or eliminate tumors in mice without causing autoimmune problems. Researchers also found evidence that the same mechanism may operate in humans. The study was published online today...
The contribution of purging of peripheral blood stem cells to outcome of autologous stem cell transplantation in high-risk neuroblastoma has not been defined. In a trial (COG A3973) reported in Lancet Oncology by Susan G. Kreissman, MD, of Duke University Medical Center, and colleagues, children...
An international research team led by scientists at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute (UPCI) discovered that by preventing cancer cells from entering a state of cellular sleep, cancer drugs are more effective, and there is a lower chance of cancer recurrence. The findings, published...
In the SoFEA trial, reported in Lancet Oncology by Stephen R.D. Johnston, PhD, FRCP, of Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, and colleagues, postmenopausal women with advanced hormone receptor–positive breast cancer that progressed on nonsteroidal aromatase inhibitors were treated with the...
Omega-3 fatty acids, contained in oily fish such as salmon and trout, selectively inhibit growth and induce cell death in early- and late-stage oral and skin squamous cell carcinomas, according to new research from scientists at Queen Mary, University of London. The findings were published online...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is informing the public that acetaminophen has been associated with a risk of rare but serious skin reactions. These skin reactions, known as Stevens-Johnson Syndrome, toxic epidermal necrolysis, and acute generalized exanthematous pustulosis, can...
A more precise method for determining bone marrow involvement in patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma—a key factor in tailoring patient management plans—has been identified by researchers in a study published in the August issue of The Journal of Nuclear Medicine. Imaging with...
In a study reported in The New England Journal of Medicine, María-Victoria Mateos, MD, PhD, of the Universidad de Salamanca, and colleagues compared induction lenalidomide (Revlimid) plus dexamethasone followed by maintenance lenalidomide with observation in patients with high-risk...
Scientists at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center who identified a protein’s dual role in cancer promotion have discovered a way to shut it down, opening a potential new avenue for cancer treatment. Reporting their findings in the journal Cell, the researchers describe the first ...
Blocking dietary sugar and its activity in tumor cells may reduce cancer risk and progression, according to researchers from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York. The study, conducted in fruit flies and published in the August issue of Cell, provides insight as to why...
A new study led by researchers at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute reveals how a promising anticancer compound called SMIP004 specifically kills prostate cancer cells by compromising their ability to withstand environmental stress. The study, recently published in Oncotarget, uncovered...
Nonsentinel lymph node positivity appears to be a significant prognostic factor in patients with stage III melanoma, according to a study by Anna M. Leung, MD, of the John Wayne Cancer Institute at Saint John’s Health Center, Santa Monica, California, and colleagues. The study was published...
Scientists studying acute myeloid leukemia (AML) have discovered that rather than displacing hematopoietic stem cells in the bone marrow as previously believed, the cancer is in fact inhibiting production of downstream hematopoietic cells, effectively putting them to sleep. The findings were...
Researchers from UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center (JCCC) have discovered that specific types of bacteria that live in the gut are major contributors to lymphoma. The study, led by Robert H. Schiestl, PhD, Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Environmental Health Sciences, and...
Men who decide to be screened for prostate cancer and those who forgo PSA screening stick with their decisions after receiving materials explaining the risks and benefits of the test, according to a study published in JAMA Internal Medicine. The study examined both Web-based and printed tools aimed ...
The recommendation by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) for the use of low-dose, computed tomography (CT) to detect early lung cancer in high-risk individuals is a major milestone in the war on cancer. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death across the world. Despite...
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force posted its final evidence report and draft recommendation statement on screening for lung cancer. The Task Force is providing an opportunity for public comment on this draft recommendation statement; comments can be submitted from July 30 to August ...
A number of initiatives have been implemented to encourage reduction of inappropriate use of imaging to stage incident prostate cancer. Since 2000, the National Prostate Cancer Register (NPCR) of Sweden has led an effort to decrease national rates of inappropriate prostate cancer imaging by...
The incidence of a non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) is significantly higher in regions near facilities that release the chemical benzene into the environment, according to a new study published early online in Cancer. This and other studies like it will be critical to identifying and enacting public...
Patients diagnosed with thymoma, a rare cancer of the thymus gland, may be able to avoid certain cancer treatments associated with severe adverse events if the results of a new test reveal they are at low risk of metastasis, according to a study published in PLOS ONE. The study, by researchers at...
Richard I. Fisher, MD, a leading cancer center administrator and nationally recognized hematology/oncology expert, has been appointed President and CEO of Fox Chase Cancer Center. Dr. Fisher will also hold the title of Cancer Center Director of Fox Chase, serving as the principal investigator on...
Ambient air pollution has been associated with lung cancer risk. In a study reported in Lancet Oncology by Ole Raaschou-Nielsen, PhD, of the Danish Cancer Society Research Center, and colleagues, lung cancer incidence in European countries was prospectively assessed according to several measures of ...
The endothelin pathway has a role in bone metastases, which are characteristic of advanced prostate cancer, and the investigational endothelin receptor antagonist atrasentan has shown activity in prostate cancer. In the SWOG S0421 trial reported in Lancet Oncology by David I. Quinn, FRACP, of...
Intratumoral injections of plasmid DNA encoding interleukin-12 (IL-12), facilitated in its delivery by electroporation, results in tumor regression in patients with both metastatic melanoma and Merkel cell carcinoma, according to findings reported at the 2013 World Cutaneous Malignancies Congress...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced today that oral ketoconazole should not be used as first-line treatment for any fungal infection and should only be used for the treatment of endemic mycoses when alternative antifungal therapies are not available or tolerated. The use of...
There is ongoing debate about the efficacy of erlotinib (Tarceva) in patients with advanced non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) whose tumors have wild-type EGFR. In the TAILOR trial, reported in Lancet Oncology by Marina Chiara Garassino, MD and colleagues, erlotinib was compared with standard ...
Scientists have identified a protein that could play a crucial role in recognizing whether patients with colorectal cancer are candidates for chemotherapy due to a high risk of their cancer spreading, according to a new study published in the British Journal of Cancer. Scientists at the University...
An analysis of data from the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) of the height measurement at enrollment of 144,701 postmenopausal women and the risk of all cancers combined has found that 20,928 of the women had a diagnosis of one or more invasive cancers during a median follow-up of 12 years....
Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital have used digital versions of a standard molecular biology tool to detect a common tumor-associated mutation in the cerebrospinal fluid of patients with brain tumors. In a report published in Molecular Therapy – Nucleic Acids, the...
This afternoon, the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) hosted a congressional briefing to highlight the significance of federally funded biomedical research in improving our understanding of cancer health disparities and developing targeted interventions to eliminate them. The...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) seeking additional information to help the agency make informed decisions about menthol in cigarettes. Despite decades of work to reduce tobacco use in the United States, it continues to be the...
In a study reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology, Sebastien Gouy, MD, of Institut Gustave Roussy, and colleagues evaluated survival outcomes in locally advanced cervical cancer patients with negative PET-CT imaging results who underwent laparoscopic para-aortic staging surgery before...
A number of different strategies for combining chemotherapy and radiation therapy have been evaluated in the effort to improve survival in patients with high-risk medulloblastoma. In a trial (POG 9031) reported in Journal of Clinical Oncology, Nancy J. Tarbell, MD, of Massachusetts General Hospital ...