In a recently published study, neurosurgeons found that a new MRI-guided laser treatment used for the first time in a human study called NeuroBlate™ Thermal Therapy System (formerly known as AutoLITT™) a from of Laser Interstitial Thermal Therapy or LITT, offers them a new, safe and minimally invasive procedure for treating recurrent glioblastoma (GBM), a malignant type of brain tumor.

In the article, published in the April 5, 2013 online edition of the…

A new a double-blind, randomized Phase 2b clinical trial of CV9104 (CureVac GmbH) for the treatment of patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer will enroll up to 200 patients in eight European countries.The purpose of this study is to determine whether the new RNActive-derived prostate cancer vaccine prolongs survival in patients with asymptomatic or minimally symptomatic metastatic prostate cancer that is castrate…

Adults who’ve smoked daily for at least the past year who want to quit their habit within the next 30 days are needed for a study of a quit-smoking iPhone app being conducted by Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in collaboration with the University of Washington and 2Morrow Mobile. Study enrollment will end May 11, 2013.

The clinical trial led by Jonathan Bricker, Ph.D., a psychologist and an associate member of the Fred…

Positive results from the stage I part of CLL11, a Phase III randomized study shows an improvement in progression-free survival (PFS) and significantly reduced the risk of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL) worsening or death compared to chlorambucil alone.

Hematological malignancies are cancers of the blood and include CLL, indolent NHL and diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). In 2013, it is expected that there will be nearly 19,020 annual deaths from NHL and nearly 4,580…

Soft tissue sarcomas (STS), diverse, malignant, mesenchymal tumors that originate in the soft tissues of the body, while uncommon, generally affect young adults in the prime of their life. The tumors arise in any of the mesodermal tissues of the extremities (50%), trunk and retroperitoneum (40%), or head and neck (10%). The prognosis for patients with advanced/metastatic sarcoma remains poor and there are limited options for their treatment. In the US, the number new cases of soft tissue…

A new phase III study confirms that the breast cancer drug nanoparticle albumin-bound paclitaxel (Abraxane®, Celgene) in combination with gemcitabine (Gemzar®, Eli Lilly and Company), the current standard of for advanced pancreatic cancer, demonstrated highly statistically significant and clinically meaningful results across primary and key secondary endpoints and patient…

Preclinical and clinical studies with AEZS-108 (AN-152, zoptarelin doxorubicin; Aeterna Zentaris) a hybrid molecule composed of a targeted cytotoxic peptide conjugate analog designed for receptor-mediated targeted chemotherapy consisting of an Luteinizing Hormone Releasing Hormone carrier (LHRH; also known as gonadotropin-releasing hormone) linked to the cytotoxic agent …

Results of the Phase III AMPLIFY-EXT trial (Apixaban after the initial Management of PuLmonary embolIsm and deep vein thrombosis with First-line therapY-EXTended Treatment) evaluating the prevention of recurrent venous thromboembolism (VTE) in 2,486 patients who had already completed 6 to 12 months of anticoagulation treatment for VTE, including deep vein thrombosis (DVT) or pulmonary embolism (PE) shows that apixaban (Eliquiq®, Bristol-Myers…

The results of a new phase III head-to-head study comparing crizotinib, a targeted therapy, with standard chemotherapy show that crizotinib is more effective than standard chemotherapy for patients with advanced, ALK-positive lung cancer. The results were prensented at the ESMO 2012 Congress of the European Society for Medical Oncology in Vienna, Austria (September 28 - October 2, 2012).…

Results of a large prospective study on the treatment of early breast cancer presented during the 2012 Breast Cancer Symposium at the San Francisco Marriott Marquis in San Francisco, CA, September 13-15, 2012, determined that the use of a novel device called MarginProbe helps ensure that sufficient tissue is removed during a lumpectomy.  This results in fewer additional surgeries helping to avoid cost of having to remove larger amounts of tissue. For patients, this could…

BPM 31510 targets the metabolic machinery of the cancer microenvironment to reverse the aerobic glycolytic phenotype of cancer cells also called the Warburg phenotype.  The Warburg phenotype has been related to the pathogenesis of schizophrenia, malignancy, metabolic syndrome x, autoimmune disease and neuronal degeneration.



The endogenous small molecule resident in mitochondria restores oxidative phosphorylation and confers re-capitulation of the BCL-2…

Final results from PARAMOUNT trial, a Phase III clinical study of pemetrexed (Alimta®, Eli Lilly and Company) in the continuation maintenance setting, demonstrated improved overall survival in patients with advanced nonsquamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treated with pemetrexed continuation maintenance. PARAMOUNT trial results were presented on Monday, June 4, 2012, at the 48th Annual Meeting of the American Society of…

The long-term follow-up of a phase II clinical trial showed encouraging survival in some patients with stage 3B/4 non-small cell lung cancer treated with belagenpumatucel-L, a therapeutic vaccine. The findings were presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), held in Chicago, March 31 - April 4, 2012.



“This is a novel immunotherapy that appears to show unusually…

Soy isoflavone supplements did not decrease breast cancer cell proliferation in a randomized clinical trial, according to a study published in the February 2012 issue of Cancer Prevention Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.



Lead researcher Seema A. Khan, M.D., professor of surgery at the…

The first patient has been treated in a Phase IIa clinical trial of JX-594 as a neoadjuvant therapy in patients who are undergoing surgery to treat colorectal cancer that has spread to the liver.



Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States and according to the World Health Organization, it accounts for approximately 639,000 deaths worldwide each year. Approximately one in 20 people in the United States will…

Using data from the largest clinical trial to date to assess the use of hydroxyurea in pediatric patients with sickle cell anemia (SCA), researchers have provided further evidence that the therapy likely does not cause long-term genetic damage (known as genotoxicity) in young patients with SCA.



To assess whether hydroxyurea potentially causes genotoxic effects in infants with SCA, researchers analyzed patient data from the Pediatric Hydroxyurea Phase III…

Just 24 hours after Lisa Rek sang at her niece’s wedding, her husband Brad was driving her to a local hospital. “The pain got worse. When we got to the emergency room, I said to Brad ‘something is just not right,’” Rek remembers.



After an MRI showed a suspected tumor, Rek was immediately flown to Seidman Cancer Center at University Hospitals (UH) Case Medical Center, where Andrew Sloan, MD,…

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…

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.,…

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,…