11/7/2006 Durham, NC staff HealthNewsDigest.com Debora Tisdale didn't want to lose her heart in the process of saving her cancerous breast. She feared that during radiation treatment, the searing beams intended to attack her breast tumor could also inadvertently strike her healthy heart. "I thought, 'I'm going to live through breast cancer and then die of a heart attack," said 44-year-old Tisdale of Raleigh, N.C. Her family history of heart disease only intensified her worries. Just a year ago, the state of radiation technologies may have justified Tisdale's fears: radiation was difficult to harness and channel directly to the tumor, and healthy tissue often was damaged during treatment. But today, scientists in Duke University Medical Center's Department of Radiation Oncology, along with scientists at a handful of other institutions, are providing the medical equivalent of a guided navigation system to irradiate the tumor itself while avoiding healthy tissue nearby. The new techniques, known as "intensity-modulated radiation therapy" (IMRT) and "image-guided radiation therapy" (IGRT), are so precise that they hit the tumor while barely straying outside its perimeter, said Fang Fang Yin, Ph.D., director of radiation physics at Duke. The technology enables physicians to view the tumor in real time, with a three-dimensional view, as it shifts with the patient's breathing and the motion of nearby organs. Yin presented new data on Duke's experience using the technologies to treat patients on Monday, Nov. 6, 2006, at the annual meeting of the American Society of Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology, in Philadelphia. According [...]

11/7/2006 Washington, D.C. Christine Dell'Amore United Press International (www.upi.com) A series of new international studies on cancer therapies has identified treatments that may improve survival and limit harm to patients, researchers reported Monday. A phase-III randomized trial in Canada has suggested the use of "intensity modulated radiation therapy," or IMRT, reduces more painful side effects than the traditional form of radiation for women with breast cancer. "This is the first study that proves all the investment we've done in new technology has translated into a patient benefit," said researcher Dr. Jean-Philippe Pignol, an associate professor at the University of Toronto. Pignol and other researchers presented their preliminary findings during a news briefing at the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology & Oncology, or ASTRO, meeting in Philadelphia. All of the research presented was preliminary, meaning it has not been peer-reviewed and may change. Most women who get breast cancer will have surgery followed by radiation. But the standard radiation technique for breast cancer, called the wedge compensation technique, can cause painful skin irritation and burns along the breast and the breast crease, most often in women with large breasts. The burns can be severe enough to reduce quality of life, Pignol said. In the trial of 358 patients, Pignol and colleagues assigned patients to either the standard treatment or an intervention of IMRT. In the study, 50 percent of the women had burns resulting from treatment. Pignol found IMRT, which is able to deliver a high dose of radiation directly to [...]

11/6/2006 Phiadelphia, PA staff ScienceDaily.com A protein with the ironic name "Srcasm" can counteract the effects of tumor-promoting molecules in skin cells, according to new research by investigators at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. Using animal models, the researchers discovered that Srcasm acts like a brake in epithelial cells, preventing uncontrolled cell growth caused by a family of proteins called Src kinases. This finding, published online in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, suggests a target for future gene therapy to treat skin, head, neck, colon, and breast cancers. Investigators have known for decades that Src kinase proteins can promote tumor formation. Src kinase activity is elevated in most skin cancers and in common carcinomas, including those of the breast and colon. At the same time, levels of the signaling molecule Srcasm are typically low in tumor cells, notes senior author John Seykora, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor of Dermatology. The current findings show that Srcasm can reduce the amount of Src kinases in cells; they have also shown that increased activity of these kinases is associated with cancerous skin lesions. Src kinase proteins act like messengers, sending signals that control cellular growth. Found just inside the cell membrane, they conduct signals from cell surface receptors to the proteins that promote growth. Src kinases can be activated during cell division or through mutation. If these proteins are too active, they promote rapid cell growth that can spin out of control. In skin cells, Src kinases and Srcasm are involved in [...]

11/5/2006 Plainsboro, NJ press release PrimeZone.com Integra LifeSciences Holdings Corporation today announced that its subsidiary Integra Radionics launched its latest radiosurgery software, XKnife(TM) version RT 4.0, at the annual meeting of the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ASTRO). XKnife(TM) version RT 4.0 software is the tenth major release of the Integra Radionics radiosurgical treatment planning software, which was originally developed in collaboration with Harvard Medical School for the precise treatment of brain tumors. Through continued collaborations with institutions worldwide, the software has evolved into a system capable of precisely treating tumors in the brain, head and neck, lung, prostate, and spine. In addition to the three-dimensional treatment planning software, the XKnife(TM) system includes stereotactic localizers and immobilizers, radiosurgical collimators, a miniature multileaf collimator, and quality assurance instrumentation. Over 350 XKnife(TM) radiosurgery systems have been installed worldwide. Unlike conventional surgery, XKnife(TM) radiosurgery is completely non-invasive and does not require a surgical incision. This eliminates the discomfort and complications associated with standard surgery. Cancerous or other diseased tissue can be treated with focused radiation beams from a linear accelerator (linac) that are precisely guided using CT, MRI, and PET images. Surrounding normal tissue is spared and patients are typically able to leave the hospital immediately after their approximate thirty minute single treatment. To date, over 45,000 patients have undergone XKnife(TM) radiosurgery. The latest XKnife(TM) software offers the benefit of improved treatment planning efficiencies, enhanced quality assurance (QA), and increased synergies with new radiotherapy technologies. Shorter planning time is a product [...]

11/3/2006 New Rochelle, NY press release Genetic Engineering News (www.genengnews.com) Introgen Therapeutics obtained a worldwide, exclusive license to a family of patent applications regarding a combination therapy using Advexin® with inhibitors of epidermal growth factor receptors (EGFr). The family of patents was licensed from The University of Texas System M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. Advexin is Introgen’s p53 tumor suppressor therapy for potential use in head and neck cancer. The company plans to use it in combination with such drugs like Erbitux™ (ImClone Systems), Vectibix™ (Amgen), Tarceva™ (OSI Pharmaceuticals), and Iressa™ (AstraZeneca). "The regulatory implications of the combination of Advexin and EGFr inhibitors are significant," points out Max W. Talbott, Ph.D., Introgen's senior vp of worldwide commercial development. "In discussions with regulatory authorities, due to the unique efficacy mechanism of Advexin and its minimal toxicity, we have been encouraged to consider development of combination therapeutic approaches utilizing Advexin and the inhibitors." This technology is based on the discovery by scientists at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center that p53 and mda7 therapies can work synergistically with EGFr inhibitors to arrest tumor growth. Introgen reports that preclinical studies have shown that this double-barrel therapeutic approach results in an unexpectedly greater level of cancer cell death than when either therapy is used alone. "The results of our preclinical work, coupled with the recent agreement with M. D. Anderson Cancer Center for the EGFr technology, should have a positive impact on Advexin and follow-on product development plans both in the United States as well as in [...]

11/2/2006 New York, NY staff Forbes.com The editors of the New England Journal of Medicine this week added another chapter to the story of disgraced Norwegian researcher Dr. Jon Sudbo, as they formally retracted two reports on oral cancer his team published in the journal in 2001 and 2004. By his own admission -- issued through his lawyer earlier this year --much of Sudbo's published data was fabricated. A recent report from an investigative commission formed by Sudbo's former employers, the Rikshospitalet-Radiumhospitalet Medical Center and the University of Oslo, has since confirmed the fraud. The NEJM editors based their retraction largely on the report's findings. "Given the weight of evidence offered in the commission's report and the requests of most of the authors of the articles, we retract both articles," NEJM editors Dr. Gregory Curfman, Dr. Jeffrey Drazen and Stephen Morrissey wrote in the Nov. 2 issue of the journal. They noted that all of the two studies' authors, with the exception of Sudbo, have agreed with the Oslo commission's findings and the journal's subsequent retraction of the article. Sudbo's various co-authors have been cleared of any wrongdoing. Both articles focused on patients (typically long-term tobacco users) who were at high risk of oral cancer due to the presence of precancerous white growths in their mouths or on their tongues known as oral leukoplakia. Sudbo's April 1, 2004, NEJM article suggested that a cellular aberration called "aneuploidy" -- the presence of disordered cells marked by overabundant DNA -- might predict [...]

11/2/2006 Memphis, TN staff CancerConsultants.com According to the results of two studies published in the International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology, Physics, treatment of head and neck cancer with intensity-modulated radiation therapy is less likely to result in dry mouth (xerostomia) than treatment with conventional radiation therapy. Head and neck cancers originate in the throat, larynx (voice box), pharynx, salivary glands, or oral cavity (lip, mouth, tongue). Most head and neck cancers involve squamous cells, which are cells that line the mouth, throat, or other structures. Standard treatment for head and neck cancer is largely determined by the stage (extent to which the cancer has spread) and by the specific locations within the head or neck area where the cancer has spread. For head and neck cancer patients treated with radiation therapy, xerostomia is a potential side effect of treatment. Xerostomia refers to a condition of an abnormally dry mouth. Patients with severe xerostomia have very limited or virtually no saliva production. This results in difficulty eating, speaking, and swallowing. These symptoms make xerostomia extremely uncomfortable, and patients who suffer from the condition have a drastically reduced quality of life. Xerostomia can last long after treatment is completed. Intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) is a newer approach to radiation therapy that allows for the more precise delivery of radiation to cancer cells, while sparing healthy surrounding tissue. Two studies recently evaluated parotid gland function among head and neck cancer patients treated with IMRT or conventional radiation therapy. The parotid glands [...]

11/2/2006 New York, NY David Douglas CancerPage.com The development of hypothyroidism appears to have a beneficial effect in patients with head and neck cancer, researchers report in the October issue of the Archives of Otolaryngology--Head and Neck Surgery. Dr. Marc Nelson and colleagues at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Ohio note that there are reports of improved survival in hypothyroid patients with various cancers and thyroid hormones appear to have a role in neoplasia. To determine whether this might be the case in advanced-stage head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, the researchers studied 155 patients who had undergone radiation therapy with or without chemotherapy and surgery where indicated. In total 55 of the patients developed hypothyroidism, as indicated by a thyrotropin level greater than 5.5 mIU/L. Despite treatment for hypothyroidism, these patients had improved survival, lower recurrence rates and increased recurrence-free survival. After adjusting for the time of detection, hypothyroidism was still associated with improved survival but this did not reach statistical significance (hazard ratio = 0.62, p = 0.12). The researchers conclude that prospective studies would be needed to test the hypothesis that "maintaining patients at a clinically tolerable level of hypothyroidism may have a beneficial effect in regard to their neoplastic disease." In fact, senior investigator Dr. Marshall Strome told Reuters Health that "at this time it is my practice to leave those patients who are hypothyroid and asymptomatic, mildly hypothyroid. I believe that time and prospective controlled trials will prove the concept." Source: Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg [...]

11/1/2006 Quebec, Canada press release Biology Net News (www.biologynews.net) New research here suggests that hormones produced as during periods of stress may increase the growth rate of a particularly nasty kind of cancer. The study showed that an increase in norepinephrine, a stress hormone, can stimulate tumor cells to produce two compounds. These compounds can break down of the tissue around the tumor cells and allow the cells to more easily move into the bloodstream. From there, they can travel to another location in the body to form additional tumors, a process called metastasis. The research also suggests the same hormone can also stimulate the tumor cells to release another compound that can aid in the growth of new blood vessels that feed cancer cells, hastening the growth and spread of the disease. The work was reported in the latest issue of the journal Cancer Research. "This opens up an entirely new way of looking at stress and cancer that's different from current interpretations," explained Ronald Glaser, a professor of molecular virology, immunology and medical genetics, and director of the Institute for Behavioral Medicine Research at Ohio State University . Glaser and Eric Yang, a research scientist in the same institute, focused on the role of these three compounds. Two of them, both matrix metalloproteinases -- MMP-2 and MMP-9 -- play a role in breaking down the scaffolding that cells attach to in order to maintain their shape. The third compound, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), is important in the [...]

11/1/2006 Pittsburgh, PA Anita Srikameswaran Post-Gazette.com State health authorities are today launching a media campaign intended to get teenagers to chew on a few grim realities about smokeless tobacco. According to Pennsylvania Health Secretary Dr. Calvin B. Johnson, manufacturers are on the verge of introducing new products with fruit flavors and chew that can be swallowed instead of spat, which could entice youngsters into the addictive habit. "With these kinds of things on the horizon, we really wanted to get ahead of the curve and ... be aggressive about putting other information out there," Dr. Johnson said. A person who uses eight to 10 dips per day gets about the same amount of nicotine as a person who smokes 30 to 40 cigarettes daily. "That's a two-pack-a-day person," the health secretary explained. "That's considered a heavy smoker." Rather than lecture young people about the down-the-road risks of oral cancer, the campaign's television spots, radio ads and Web components will focus on the early, unpleasant consequences of using spit tobacco, including foul breath and stained teeth. After all, "what kid wants to try to get a prom date with teeth missing from their mouth?" Dr. Johnson pointed out. "Those immediate things, such as discoloration, bad breath and loss of teeth, seem to have more of a persuasive effect on the kids." According to the health department, 11.5 percent of high school students in Pennsylvania are smokeless tobacco users. The practice is more common among white males and in rural areas. Pediatric [...]