Cancer Research

LA JOLLA, California, January 7 /PRNewswire/ -- DermTech, Inc., a biotechnology company developing molecular diagnostics for the early detection of melanoma and other diseases, announced that it has entered into an agreement with Stiefel Laboratories, Inc., the largest, privately owned, dermatology company in the world. The two companies will work together using DermTech's patented EGIR technology and proprietary gene expression assays to identify and further understand the genes involved in causing acne. It is envisioned that data from the feasibility study may be used by Stiefel…

A mysterious and unpredictable group of side effects from modern medications called idiosyncratic drug reactions (IDRs) likely will persist as a major health care problem unless there is a dramatic increase in research funding, according to a 20-year review of research in the field scheduled. The review, by Jack Uetrecht at the University of Toronto, defines IDRs as reactions that happen unexpectedly and with no obvious connection to the known effects of a medication’s ingredients or dosage. Although relatively rare, IDRs make an important contribution to the annual burden of death, illness,…

A new study from Danish researchers has found that childless men have a lower risk of developing prostate cancer than fathers, and that, paradoxically, the more children a father has, the lower the risk of the disease. The study appears in the February 15, 2008 issue of CANCER. Whether fatherhood can affect the risk of prostate cancer remains controversial. Evidence has suggested that childless men may be at lower risk of prostate cancer than men with children, and that men who father sons may be at lower risk than men with daughters only. To address the issue, researchers led by Kristian…

A diagnosis of childhood cancer 50 years ago meant almost certain death. Now, because of scientific advances, the majority of newly diagnosed children can expect to survive. The current special issue of Chronic Illness, available free online until March, explores the history and advances of childhood cancer research while looking at an exciting new era of research. The special issue presents key articles of interest to caregivers and those who suffer from childhood cancer; articles that: consider the history of leukemia, and how different societies have looked at the ethics of using…

You may not think of oceanography when it comes to cancer research but an unexpected discovery in marine biomedical laboratories at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography has led to information on how a marine organism creates a natural product currently being tested to treat cancer in humans. A research team led by Bradley Moore, a professor with the Scripps Oceanography Center for Marine Biotechnology and Biomedicine and Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, and postdoctoral researcher Alessandra Eustáquio, along with their colleagues at the Salk Institute for Biological…

Hydrogen peroxide, the same mild acid that many people use to disinfectant their kitchens or treat cuts and abrasions, is also produced by the body to keep cells healthy. Now, researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine have solved how part of this complex process works. Reporting in the January 3 issue of Nature, a team led by W. Todd Lowther, Ph.D., developed a three-dimensional snapshot of how two proteins produced by cells interact to regulate the levels of hydrogen peroxide. For example, when the immune system is activated in response to bacteria, large amounts of hydrogen…

Planarians have fascinated centuries of biologists by their amazing powers of regeneration. If you decapitate a planarian, the body can grow a new head, and the head can grow a new body. In fact, if you cut out a very tiny chunk from the side of a planarian, that chunk will be able to regenerate a new, complete organism. How do these strange critters manage this? What genes do they have that we don't have? As it turns out, most planarian genes are shared with humans, and several groups of scientists are using the latest tools of genomics and molecular biology to figure out just what it is…

Just as the risk of developing alcoholism is strongly influenced by genetic factors, mutations in gene coding – such as the aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH2*2) allele – also appear to protect against the risk. Scientists have only just begun to apply gene-therapy techniques to the alcohol-research field. A proof-of-principle study has found that administering an anti-Aldh2 antisense gene in rodents can curtail their urge to drink. “An ‘experiment of nature’ is observed in some individuals of East Asian origin, who are 66 to 99 percent protected against alcoholism,” explained Yedy Israel,…

LUGANO, Switzerland, January 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Helsinn Healthcare S.A., Switzerland, a privately owned pharmaceutical group and its partner, MGI Pharma (Nasdaq: MOGN), a biopharmaceutical company focused in oncology and acute care, today announced that a supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) for Aloxi(R) (palonosetron hydrochloride) Capsules for oral administration was accepted for filing by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Aloxi Injection is approved by the FDA for the prevention of acute nausea and vomiting associated with initial and repeat courses of moderately and…

CALGARY, Canada, January 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Oncolytics Biotech Inc. ("Oncolytics") (TSX:ONC, NASDAQ:ONCY) announced today that the U.S. National Cancer Institute (NCI) has filed a protocol with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for a Phase 1/2 clinical trial for patients with metastatic ovarian, peritoneal or fallopian tube cancers using concurrent systemic and intraperitoneal administration of REOLYSIN(R), Oncolytics' proprietary formulation of the human reovirus. The NCI is sponsoring the trial under its Clinical Trials Agreement with Oncolytics, while Oncolytics will provide…