Cancer Research
Hollow gold nanospheres equipped with a targeting peptide find melanoma cells, penetrate them deeply, and then cook the tumor when bathed with near-infrared light.
The polyphenols present in green tea help prevent the spread of prostate cancer by targeting molecular pathways that shut down the proliferation and spread of tumor cells, as well as inhibiting the growth of tumor nurturing blood vessels, according to research published in the December 1 issue of Cancer Research.
The anti-inflammatory drug Celebrex, or celecoxib, reduces tumor mass by encouraging cell death and discouraging both cell proliferation and the sprouting of new blood vessels that feed growing tumors, according to a study reported in the November issue of Molecular Cancer Research. The study suggests this drug one day might be used to prevent and even treat breast tumors. Celebrex, marketed by Pfizer Inc., is a member of the general family of drugs that target the COX-2, an enzyme that plays a major role in arthritis pain and inflammation.
Hotspots in two areas of a gene that encodes a specific signaling enzyme, or kinase, are vulnerable to a variety of mutations found in five types of brain cancers, according to a report published in the August 1 issue of the journal Cancer Research. Mutations in the gene PIK3CA occur spontaneously as part of the brain tumor development rather than being passed genetically between generations, said Hai Yan, M.D., Ph.D., the senior scientist of the studies. ''PIK3CA mutations are known to occur in as much as 30 percent of colorectal and gastric cancers and glioblastomas and they are also present, to a lesser extent, in breast and lung cancer,'' Yan noted. ''Our studies defined the association of mutant PIK3CA gene in a wider spectrum of adult and pediatric brain tumors as well.''
Physicians may be able to make early decisions on the best treatment for breast cancer, thanks to research published in Breast Cancer Research today. A gene involved in the adhesion of cells is less active in breast tumors with a poor prognosis than those that are less aggressive, researchers found.
Contrary to previous research findings that have suggested a link, marijuana use does not appear to be associated with an increased risk of developing oral cancer, according to a large, population-based study led by researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. Their findings, the result of the most comprehensive evaluation to date regarding the association between marijuana use and the incidence of oral squamous-cell carcinoma, appear in the June issue of Cancer Research, a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research.
A genetically engineered virus can selectively kill cancerous cells in the lung and colon while leaving healthy cells intact, according to new research published today. The research could lead to a new class of cancer therapies that selectively kill cancer cells. ''These engineered viruses kill cancer cells through a mechanism that is completely different from chemotherapy or radiation,'' said Dr. William Wold, chair of the department of molecular microbiology and immunology at Saint Louis University School of Medicine. ''These viruses have the potential to treat many cancers that are resistant to currently available therapeutics. It also may be possible to use these viruses in combination with other therapies to create novel treatment regimens.''
Three hours of moderate exercise per week significantly reduced circulating estrogens in postmenopausal women, according to a new study published in the current issue of Cancer Research. The finding may explain why women who exercise regularly lower their risk for breast cancer. Within three months of undertaking the five-day per week exercise program, serum levels of estrogens dipped significantly in the more active postmenopausal women. After 12 months of routine exercise, women who decreased body fat by more than 2 percent also had a 16.7 percent reduction in free serum estradiol, a 13.7 percent reduction in serum estradiol, and an 11.9 percent reduction in serum estrone, a less estrogenic form of estrogen.
Researchers from the Cancer Center at the University of Minnesota have found that adult women taking aspirin two or more times a week may lower their risk of adult leukemia by more than 50 percent. The study will be published in the June 13 edition of Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.
Regular use of ibuprofen and aspirin inhibits the formation and growth of breast cancer, according to data published in the Proceedings for the 94th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR). The data, taken from the National Cancer Institute?s (NCI) Women?s Health Initiative (WHI) Observational Study, concluded that weekly doses of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) had a significant effect in reducing the risk of breast cancer.
?These results suggest that even women at high risk for breast cancer may be protected by taking NSAIDs,? explains Randall Harris, M.D., Ph.D., lead investigator of the study, professor of the division of epidemiology and biometrics at the Ohio State University. ?However, before usage guidelines for NSAIDs can be implemented, additional studies are needed.?
Measuring a woman's leptin levels may offer an additional indicator of her risk of developing breast cancer, say researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center. Their small study, published in the Proceedings for the 2003 Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research, suggests that because a woman's production of leptin may reveal her history of eating dietary fat, reading leptin levels may offer more prognostic information than just measuring body mass index and the amount of fat she currently eats.
Scientists at the John Wayne Cancer Institute in Santa Monica, California have found a panel of molecular markers that could signal which patients might have the best results following vaccination for malignant melanoma. According to a study published in the January 15, 2003 issue of Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), the scientists showed that patient survival improved significantly if their tumors expressed higher levels for these markers, known as melanoma-associated antigens (MAAs).
Cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy often endure painful side effects caused by the powerful drugs as they course through their entire bodies, damaging healthy tissue and tumors alike. Utah researchers are reporting in the December issue "Cancer Research" that they have successfully tested a new method in laboratory animals that would concentrate the impact of cancer drugs on specific cancerous tissues, thus sparing the rest of the body from harm.
Amid the glowing results for chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) patients using Gleevec the past three years, the one reality check has been that a majority of the patients with advanced disease eventually relapse and die of the leukemia. An article to be published in the Dec. 15 issue of the journal Cancer Research shows that, in the lab, the molecular mutations that produce a resistance to Gleevec can be overcome. Brian Druker, M.D., Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator and JELD-WEN Chair of Leukemia Research at the Oregon Health & Science University Cancer Institute, and colleagues report that a compound called PD180970 successfully stopped the activity of several mutations found in patients who developed a resistance to Gleevec.
Scientists at Emory University School of Medicine have identified a signaling pathway that is turned on when benign moles turn into early-stage malignant melanoma. The pathway could provide a new target for the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of the most lethal form of skin cancer. The research was reported in the December issue of the journal Clinical Cancer Research.
