The European Commission has given conditional marketing authorization for crizotinib (Xalkori®, Pfizer)in the European Union (EU) for the treatment of adults with previously treated anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-positive advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). This ALK gene abnormality causes cancer development and growth. About 1% to 7% of those with NSCLC have the ALK gene abnormality. Patients with this form of lung cancer…

Researchers studying the molecular signals that drive a specific type of lymphoma have discovered a key biological pathway leading to this type of cancer. Cancerous cells have been described as being "addicted" to certain oncogenes or cancer-causing genes, and the new research may lay the groundwork for breaking that addiction and effectively treating aggressive types of B cell lymphoma.



B cell lymphomas, which occur both in children and adults, are cancers that…

Earlier today, Oncolytics Biotech Inc, a Calgary-based biotechnology company focused on the development of oncolytic viruses as potential cancer therapeutics, and NCIC Clinical Trials Group (CTG) at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, announced that they will collaborate in a randomized Phase II study of Reolysin® in patients with advanced or metastatic colorectal cancer.



This trial is a…

Researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center have solved the three-dimensional structure of a newly discovered type of gene-targeting protein that has shown to be useful as a DNA-targeting molecule for gene correction, gene therapy and gene modification. The findings are published online in Science Expresson January 5,…

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have demonstrated that a growth hormone, PDGF-BB, and the blood protein EPO are involved in the development of cancer tumours and that they combine to help the tumours proliferate in the body. These new preclinical findings offer new potential for inhibiting tumour growth and bypassing problems of resistance that exist with many drugs in current use. The results are published in the scientific journal…

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…

Challenging a half-century-old theory about why chemotherapy agents target cancer, scientists at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have devised a test that can predict how effective the drugs will be by determining whether a patient’s tumor cells are already “primed” for death.



In a study published online by the journal Science on October 27, 2011…

Genetic differences in prostate cells seem to be a root cause of the prostate cancer disparities between African-American men and white men, according to findings presented at the Fourth AACR Conference on The Science of Cancer Health Disparities, held in Washington DC, September 18-21, 2011.



Prostate cancer is the second most common cancer among U.S. men, with occurrences and mortality rates higher in African-American men compared to white men. “There are…

Scientists at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute have begun to uncover how the virus that causes most Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) – a rare and aggressive skin cancer – operates, meaning that a rational chemotherapeutic target for this cancer could be developed in the near future.



Patrick Moore, M.D., M.P.H., an American Cancer Society…

Final Phase III data from clinical trial with Abraxane® (paclitaxel albumin-bound particles for injectable suspension developed by Celgene Biopharmaceuticals) in combination with carboplatin in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC)shows significantly improved overall response rate for patients receiving the drug combination.



The…

A targeted delivery combination selectively crosses the tight barrier that protects the brain from the bloodstream to home in on and bind to brain tumors, a research team led by scientists from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center reported in the January issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation.



In experiments with…