http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. An eight gene 'signature' can predict length of relapse-free survival after chemotherapy, finds new research in Biomed Central's open access journal BMC Medicine. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-gene-signature-survive-chemotherapy.html Cancer Mon, 15 Apr 2013 20:00:01 EST news285246069 (Medical Xpress)—A team of researchers at Indiana University's School of Medicine has found that giving meloxicam, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), to people and baboons boosts the number of haematopoietic stem cells that enter the blood stream from bone marrow. This, the team writes in their paper they've had published in the journal Nature, may help cancer patients recover their ability to create new blood cells following chemotherapy. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-03-nsaids-stem-cells-bloodstream-prior.html Medical research Thu, 14 Mar 2013 08:37:33 EST news282469042 CT texture analysis of primary tumors may be a potential imaging biomarker in localized esophageal cancer following neoadjuvant chemotherapy, according to research being presented at the 2013 Cancer Imaging and Radiation Therapy Symposium. This Symposium is sponsored by the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) and the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-ct-texture-analysis-tumors-valuable.html Cancer Fri, 08 Feb 2013 15:20:01 EST news279558223 (Medical Xpress)—A study has found that many patients receiving a potentially life-saving drug for the childhood cancer neuroblastoma are potentially being under-dosed. Every year in the UK approximately 100 children aged between 0-15 are diagnosed with neuroblastoma and currently only half of those will survive. The drug, 13-cis-retinoic acid, has been used in high doses to treat children with the disease for the last ten years. It plays a key role in stopping cancer returning after tumours are treated by surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-01-vital-children-cancer-drug-underdosed.html Cancer Fri, 18 Jan 2013 08:01:50 EST news277718504 (HealthDay)—In patients with oropharyngeal cancer (OPC), human papillomavirus (HPV) status and T and N staging categories affect the rate of distant control (DC) and may help identify candidates for treatment deintensification strategies, according to research published online Jan. 7 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-01-oropharyngeal-cancer-hpv-status-impacts.html Cancer Mon, 14 Jan 2013 14:10:01 EST news277390672 (HealthDay)—In women with breast cancer that has recurred but remains confined to in or near the breast, post-surgical chemotherapy appears to boost survival, new research shows. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-12-chemo-survival-breast-cancer.html Cancer Thu, 06 Dec 2012 16:20:01 EST news274030481 Chemotherapy can induce changes in the brain that may affect concentration and memory, according to a study presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). Using positron emission tomography combined with computed tomography (PET/CT), researchers were able to detect physiological evidence of chemo brain, a common side effect in patients undergoing chemotherapy for cancer treatment. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-physiological-evidence-chemo-brain.html Cancer Tue, 27 Nov 2012 00:00:03 EST news273174051 (Medical Xpress)—A new type of molecular switch can boost common chemotherapy drugs to destroy bowel cancer cells, according to research presented today (Monday) at the NCRI Cancer Conference in Liverpool. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-molecular-volume-bowel-cancer-treatment.html Cancer Mon, 05 Nov 2012 08:30:06 EST news271326585 A study from the University of Calgary's Hotchkiss Brain Institute shows there is evidence to support a new drug therapy called nabilone to treat diabetic neuropathy, or nerve pain. Researchers enrolled 60 patients with diabetic neuropathy in a 12-week placebo controlled clinical study. At the end of the study, patients reported less pain and an improvement in sleep and anxiety when taking nabilone as compared to the placebo. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-drug-pain-therapy-diabetics.html Diabetes Tue, 30 Oct 2012 15:09:29 EST news270828552 (HealthDay) -- Treating patients with surgically unresectable metastatic colon cancer and an asymptomatic intact primary tumor with bevacizumab and infusional fluorouracil, leucovorin, and oxaliplatin (mFOLFOX6) chemotherapy is a viable and safe option, according to research published online Aug. 6 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-nonoperative-approach-feasible-advanced-colon.html Cancer Thu, 09 Aug 2012 11:42:53 EST news263731366 (HealthDay) -- For patients with operable breast cancer, peripheral neuropathy due to adjuvant taxane therapy does not correlate with improved outcomes, according to research published online July 30 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-taxane-induced-neuropathy-tied-breast-cancer.html Cancer Thu, 02 Aug 2012 13:30:02 EST news263132377 Patients who had surgery for periampullary cancer (a variety of types of cancer that are located in and near the head of the pancreas, including an area called the ampulla where the bile duct joins up with the pancreatic duct to empty their secretions into the upper small intestine) and received chemotherapy had a statistically significant survival benefit, compared to patients who did not receive chemotherapy, after adjusting for prognostic variables, according to a study in the July 11 issue of JAMA. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-07-chemotherapy-cancer-pancreas-survival.html Cancer Tue, 10 Jul 2012 16:14:04 EST news261155637 (HealthDay) -- For patients with metastatic melanoma with activating mutations in serine-threonine protein kinase B-RAF (BRAF), treatment with the oral selective MEK inhibitor trametinib is associated with improved progression-free and overall survival, compared with chemotherapy, according to a study published online June 4 in the New England Journal of Medicine to coincide with presentation at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, held from June 1 to 5 in Chicago. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-06-asco-trametinib-survival-metastatic-melanoma.html Cancer Tue, 05 Jun 2012 04:10:01 EST news258086357 A Cleveland Clinic study has detected significant changes in the electroencephalogram (EEG) brain activity patterns of patients receiving chemotherapy. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-06-chemobrain-eeg.html Cancer Mon, 04 Jun 2012 10:50:37 EST news258025809 Previous exposure to certain antibiotics could boost the risk of infection with drug-resistant strains of a severe fungal infection. Researchers report their findings in the May 2012 issue of the journal Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-antibiotics-boost-infection-antifungal-resistant-candida.html Medications Tue, 22 May 2012 09:00:04 EST news256894390 Chemotherapy is a major first line defense against breast cancer. However a patient's response is often variable and unpredictable. A study published in BioMed Central's open access journal BMC Medical Genomics shows that 'gene expression signatures' for TOP2A and β-tubulin can be used to predict the outcome of chemotherapy. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-genetic-predictor-breast-cancer-response.html Genetics Thu, 10 May 2012 20:00:01 EST news255886114 (AP) -- After scraping together a mound of zucchini, broccoli, beef, pineapple and noodles on a big round Mongolian grill, Kevin Wallace measured out a shot of grapeseed oil infused with hashish and poured it over the steaming food, setting off a sizzle. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-munchies-pot-eatery-ore.html Health Fri, 04 May 2012 10:20:05 EST news255344647 (Phys.org) -- Bladder cancer patients given low doses of chemotherapy combined with radiotherapy were nearly 50 per cent less likely to relapse with the most lethal form of the disease compared to patients given radiotherapy alone, a major trial funded by Cancer Research UK shows today. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-adding-chemo-radiotherapy-halves-deadly.html Cancer Mon, 23 Apr 2012 06:44:55 EST news254382289 Analysis of a drug regimen approved by the F.D.A. in 2006 for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (bevacizumab added to the standard chemotherapy regimen carboplatin and paclitaxel) finds Medicare insured patients age 65 years and older who received this regimen did not have improved survival compared to patients who received the standard treatment of carboplatin and paclitaxel alone, according to a study in the April 18 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on comparative effectiveness research. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-drug-regimen-treatment-non-small-cell.html Cancer Tue, 17 Apr 2012 10:51:03 EST news253878657 Biomarkers which could help to predict resistance to chemotherapy in breast cancer patients have been identified by researchers from the University of Hull, UK. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-biomarker-family-chemo-resistant-breast.html Cancer Thu, 12 Apr 2012 10:09:30 EST news253443952 Using fractionated doses of the targeted anticancer drug gemtuzumab ozogamicin allows for safer delivery of the drug into patients aged 50-70 years with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) and substantially improves their outcomes. These are the conclusions of an Article published Online First by The Lancet, written by Professor Sylvie Castaigne, Centre Hospitalier de Versailles, France, and colleagues. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-fractionated-dosing-regimen-anticancer-drug.html Cancer Wed, 04 Apr 2012 18:30:01 EST news252768318 Researchers and doctors at the North Shore-LIJ Health System and the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research have discovered that blood can help determine the best treatment plan for patients with ovarian cancer. More specifically, a genetic marker embedded in deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), called microRNA, indicates if a patient with ovarian cancer has a benign or cancerous tumor, and that she will benefit from chemotherapy after surgery on the tumor. This data will be presented at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting to be held from Saturday through Wednesday (March 31- April 4) in Chicago, IL. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-dna-marker-ovarian-cancer-treatment.html Cancer Tue, 03 Apr 2012 16:09:14 EST news252688146 Adding the drug cetuximab to a regimen of drugs used for the treatment of patients following surgery for stage III colon cancer did not result in improved disease-free survival, according to a study in the April 4 issue of JAMA. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-adding-drug-chemotherapy-colon-cancer.html Cancer Tue, 03 Apr 2012 16:02:50 EST news252687759 The combination of the novel drug TH-302 with the standard drug gemcitabine has shown early signs of delaying the worsening of cancer in patients with advanced pancreatic cancer, a Mayo Clinic-led study has found. This was evaluated using a measure termed progression-free survival (PFS). According to the results of a multi-center Phase II clinical trial, patients receiving the combination of gemcitabine and TH-302 demonstrated a progression-free survival of 5.6 months compared to 3.6 months in those patients who received gemcitabine alone. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-two-drug-combo-advanced-pancreatic-cancer.html Cancer Tue, 03 Apr 2012 09:48:29 EST news252665289 The antiangiogenic drug pazopanib has demonstrated clinically meaningful activity in patients with refractory urothelial cancer, according to results presented at the AACR Annual Meeting 2012, held here March 31 - April 4. The results also revealed that increases in interleukin-8 levels early after treatment with pazopanib may predict a lack of tumor response to the therapy. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-biomarker-drug-response-refractory-urothelial.html Cancer Sun, 01 Apr 2012 06:05:21 EST news252479112 A study led by Dr Janet Shipley from The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) in London in collaboration with Dr Mauro Delorenzi from the SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics in Lausanne has shown that a simple genetic test could help predict the aggressiveness of rhabdomyosarcoma tumours in children. The test, which should be introduced into clinical practice, would lead to changes in treatment for many patients, allowing some children to escape potentially long-term side-effects whilst giving others the intense treatments they need to increase their chances of survival. The results of the study are published online today in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-genetic-fault-tailor-cancer-treatment.html Cancer Tue, 27 Mar 2012 09:55:50 EST news252060942 Detecting the presence of circulating tumour cells (CTCs) in the blood of women with early breast cancer after surgery but before the start of chemotherapy can provide useful information about their chances of surviving the disease. CTCs are cancer cells which are detectable in patients with a solid tumour and their value in the prognosis of metastatic breast cancer has been known for a few years. Until now, however, there has been little information about their role in early disease. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-cancer-cells-blood-chances-survival.html Cancer Thu, 22 Mar 2012 05:15:29 EST news251612123 (AP) -- A panel of cancer experts overwhelmingly backed the approval of a GlaxoSmithKline drug for a rare type of tumor, noting there are few other treatment options for patients. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-fda-panel-glaxo-drug-rare.html Cancer Tue, 20 Mar 2012 14:15:15 EST news251471708 Stage III colon cancer patients in the general population who receive adjuvant treatment for the disease have an improved rate of survival when oxaliplatin is added to 5-fluorouracil (5FU), according to a study published Jan. 20 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-oxaliplatin-colon-cancer-patient-survival.html Cancer Fri, 20 Jan 2012 17:53:32 EST news246304402 Results from a German study demonstrated no improvement in disease-free survival among patients with breast cancer who were treated with dose-dense chemotherapy and the bisphosphonate ibandronate. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-12-oral-bisphosphonate-prognosis-patients-breast.html Cancer Wed, 07 Dec 2011 16:22:52 EST news242497366