A new test may help lung cancer patient benefit from early, persoalized treatment option. The cobas EGFR Mutation Test, a real-time polymerase chain reaction-based diagnostic test that identifies 41 mutations across exons 18, 19, 20 and 21 of the EGFR gene using multiplex PCR chemistry developed by Roche Diagnostics, a division of F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd, is now CE marked for commercial availability in Europe and other countries…

Researchers at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC – James) have found that male mice had lower levels of an important skin antioxidant than female mice and higher levels of certain cancer-linked inflammatory cells.



The antioxidant, a protein called catalase, inhibits skin cancer by mopping up hydrogen…

Every year over 1,500,000 new diagnoses of cancer are made in the U.S. In most cases, this condition can have a significant impact on the individuals' survival and quality of life. Cachexia, a complex metabolic syndrome associated with underlying illness, is common in patients with cancer. Many cancer patients have diminished appetite, food intake and insulin sensitivity which contribute to a decrease in functional performance, takes a heavy toll on patients' quality of life and…

Researchers have found the identification of a safe, effective treatment to mitigate toxicity after extensive radiation exposure to be challenging. Today, only a limited number of investigational drug candidates have emerged. However, according to a study led by scientists from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Children's Hospital Boston, a combination of two…

HIV-infected patients are at increased risk for cancer as a result of both their impaired immune system and lifestyle factors, such as smoking, according to researchers at Kaiser Permanente.



The study, which appears in the current issue of Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention, is among the first to directly compare the…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved its orphan drug asparaginase Erwinia chrysanthemi (Erwinaze™ www.erwinaze.com , EUSA Pharma) for the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in patients who have developed an allergy (hypersensitivity) to E. coli derived asparaginase and pegaspargase chemotherapy drugs used to treat ALL. The new drug will…

The first patients, enrolled at the Loma Linda University Cancer Center, have been dosed in a Phase II clinical trial of MM-121 (also known as SAR256212), a drug candidate that targets ErbB3, a cell surface receptor, or protein attached to the cell membrane that mediates communication inside and outside the…

A recent report in Cancer Discovery, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, suggests that a new treatment may be on the horizon for neuroendocrine prostate cancers (NEPC), the most lethal subtype of this disease which most commonly evolves from preexisting prostate adenocarcinoma (PCA).



Malignant neuroendocrine (NE) cells are devoid of androgen receptors. As a result,…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved ruxolitinib (Jakafi™ oral tablets, Incyte Corporation) for the treatment of intermediate and high risk myelofibrosis, including primary myelofibrosis, post-polycythemia vera myelofibrosis and post-essential thrombocythemia myelofibrosis.



Myelofibrosis is a progressive, potentially life-threatening blood…

The United Kingdom's National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) today published its final appraisal determination (FAD) on eribulin (Halaven®, Eisai), a non-taxane, microtubule dynamics inhibitor. While eribulin, launched on 20 April 2011, is commercially available in the UK, in England and Wales, the final…

Patients who rely on recombinant, protein-based drugs must often endure frequent injections, often several times a week, or intravenous therapy. Researchers at Children's Hospital Boston demonstrate the possibility that blood vessels, made from genetically engineered cells, could secrete the drug on demand directly into the bloodstream. In the November 17, 2011 issue of the journal…

Researchers have developed a new genetic screening tool that will aid in the investigation of possible treatments for patients with melanoma and the unique genetic mutations that may accompany the disease, according to data presented at the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference: Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics, held November 12-16, 2011 in San Francisco, CA, USA.



Heinz-Herbert Fiebig, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of medical oncology at the…

Scientists are another step closer to understanding what drives tumor metastasis, as laboratory models suggest there are factors inside tumors that can slow their own growth.



In a recent issue of Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, Raúl A. Ruggiero, Ph.D., a biological…

Patients with non-small cell lung cancer who have mutations in the KRAS gene, a GTPase and early player in many signal transduction pathways, should respond well to the antifolate class of drugs, according to results of a recent study comparing human lung cancer cell lines and patients conducted by Quintiles, a clinical research organization and consulting service company for the pharmaceutical and biotechnology…

Findings from preclinical studies in a skin cancer model showed that next-generation BRAF inhibitors used alone, or first-generation BRAF inhibitors used in combination with an epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR-) inhibitor, may have the potential to prevent drug-induced skin lesions (cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma)observed in BRAF mutation-positive patients treated for melanoma.



The studies, presented at the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference:…

First, findings from preclinical studies showed that treatment with a novel oral agent, PLX3397, a selective kinase inhibitor that down-modulates macrophages, microglia, osteoclasts and mast cells, re-programmed the tumor microenvironment, supporting further development of this single agent treatment for certain cancers and malignancies such as prostate cancer. Is scientific findings was presented during the AACR-NCI- EORTC International Conference on Molecular Targets and Cancer…

Researchers have shown how estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer tumors become resistant to tamoxifen, the only approved hormonal therapy for premenopausal patients with this type of breast cancer. They also found that introducing a novel histone deacetylase inhibitor in hormone therapy treatment can overcome resistance to hormonal therapy.



“We always thought that resistance was primarily an inborn or genetic effect,” said Pamela N. Munster, M.D.,…

Despite the widespread use of current antiangiogenic cancer therapies, many tumors escape this blockade, which is designed to shut down growth of new blood vessels that feed tumors and spread cancer cells. Now, a study reported at the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference: Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics (November 12-16, 2011, Moscone Center West, San Francisco, CA)suggests that targeting a novel antiangiogenic receptor may help patients whose cancer does not respond…

Combining the investigational agents REGN910 and aflibercept yielded statistically significant improvements in antitumor effects in animal models compared with either agent alone, according to results presented at the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference: Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics, held November 12-16, 2011 in the Moscone Center West, San Francisco, CA.



“These preclinical findings suggest that combining REGN910 (SAR307746) and aflibercept…

Clinical benefit from use of a novel histone deacetylase inhibitor drug may be determined by examining blood cells days after a patient receives treatment. The drug entinostat, also known as SNDX-275 and MS-275, is the first histone deacetylase inhibitor successfully tested in a randomized, placebo-controlled study in metastatic breast cancer — and is the first to show that clinical outcome can be predicted shortly after administration.



The findings,…