Cancer Research

Many studies have been published that link specific “biomarkers” − genes, mRNA or proteins − with an aspect of cancer development or treatment, and the results often appear to be statistically valid, said the lead author of an article in Nature Reviews Cancer. Robert Clarke, Ph.D., D.Sc., is professor of oncology and physiology & biophysics at the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at GUMC, where he co-directs the Breast Cancer Program. “But it is not clear that that solution is complete or is necessarily correct. It may be partly right and may be intuitively pleasing because you are…

University of California, San Diego researchers have proven in animal studies that fibrosis in the liver can be not only stopped, but reversed. Their discovery, published in PLoS Online, opens the door to treating and curing conditions that lead to excessive tissue scarring such as viral hepatitis, fatty liver disease, cirrhosis, pulmonary fibrosis, scleroderma and burns. Six years ago, the UC San Diego School of Medicine research team discovered the cause of the excess fibrous tissue growth that leads to liver fibrosis and cirrhosis, and developed a way to block excess scar tissue in mice.…

In a finding that defies conventional culinary wisdom, researchers in Italy report that cooking vegetables can preserve or even boost their nutritional value in comparison to their raw counterparts, depending on the cooking method used. Their study is scheduled for the Dec. 26 issue of Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. Nicoletta Pellegrini and colleagues note that although many people maintain that eating raw vegetables is more nutritious than eating cooked ones, a small but growing number of studies suggest that cooking may actually increase the release of some nutrients. However,…

CALGARY, Canada, December 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Oncolytics Biotech Inc. ("Oncolytics") (TSX:ONC) (NASDAQ:ONCY) has completed patient enrolment in its Phase Ia/Ib U.K. clinical trial investigating the intratumoural delivery of REOLYSIN(R) in combination with radiation to treat patients with advanced cancers. A total of 23 patients received a range of two to six intratumoural doses of REOLYSIN(R) at escalating dosages up to a maximum of 1x10(10) TCID(50) with a constant localized radiation dose of either 20 Gy or 36 Gy. The treatment appears to have been well tolerated by the patients and results…

In 2007, researchers were dazzled by the degree to which genomes differ from one human to another and began to understand the role of these variations in disease and personal traits. Science and its publisher, AAAS, the nonprofit science society, recognize “Human Genetic Variation” as the Breakthrough of the Year, and identify nine other of the year’s most significant scientific accomplishments in the 21 December issue. “For years we've been hearing about how similar people are to one another and even to other apes,” said Robert Coontz, deputy news editor for physical sciences who managed the…

ABBOTT PARK, Illinois, December 20 /PRNewswire/ -- - In Clinical Trials, Patients Taking HUMIRA Saw Significant and Sustained Skin Clearance Abbott (NYSE: ABT) has received marketing authorization from the European Commission for the use of HUMIRA(R) (adalimumab) as a treatment for moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis. HUMIRA is the first fully human, self-injectable biologic for the treatment of psoriasis. In one clinical trial, more than 80 percent of patients taking HUMIRA achieved skin clearance of 75 percent or better and in another, almost three quarters of patients achieved 75 percent…

GAITHERSBURG, Maryland, December 20 /PRNewswire/ -- - Company also Establishes New Site Leadership Team at Cambridge Facility Continuing the solidification of its role as the global biologics unit for AstraZeneca plc (AZ), MedImmune today announced that Andrew D. Skibo has joined the company as senior vice president, engineering and JoAnn Suzich, Ph.D., a 19-year veteran of the company, has been promoted to vice president, research and development, infectious disease. In addition, MedImmune announced that it has established a new site leadership team at its Cambridge facilities as a part of…

GENEVA, Switzerland, December 20 /PRNewswire/ -- - Flamel's Medusa(R) Technology Designed to Allow Less Frequent Administration of Therapeutic Proteins and Peptides Merck Serono (NYSE: SRA), a division of Merck KGaA, announced today that it has entered into a collaboration with Flamel Technologies (Nasdaq: FLML), to investigate the applicability of Flamel's Medusa(R) technology for the extended release of a therapeutic protein of Merck Serono's portfolio. Under the terms of the agreement, Merck Serono will make an upfront payment of EUR 2 million to Flamel for investigating the therapeutic…

The seemingly inefficient way our bodies replace worn-out cells is a defense against cancer, according to new research. Having the neighboring cell just split into two identical daughter cells would seem to be the simplest way to keep bodies from falling apart. However that would be a recipe for uncontrolled growth, said John W. Pepper of The University of Arizona in Tucson. We wrote of the paper by Pepper and his colleagues,, "Animal Cell Differentiation Patterns Suppress Somatic Evolution", last week. "If there were only one cell type in the group, it would act like an evolving…

A new brain imaging study by researchers in the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania shows that cigarette cravings in smokers who are deprived of nicotine are linked with increased activation in specific regions of the brain. Using a novel method of measuring brain blood flow developed by John Detre, MD, associate professor of Neurology at Penn, this study is the first to show how abstinence from nicotine produces brain activation patterns that relate to urges to smoke. The findings were published in the December 19, 2007 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience and make an…