From: Drugs.com An experimental drug may extend the lives of people with certain hard-to-treat forms of leukemia and lymphoma — without the need for traditional chemotherapy, according to two studies released Wednesday. The drug, called idelalisib, targets a specific enzyme on white blood cells known as B cells. Researchers found that for people with certain forms of recurrent blood cancers, …
Home Care Assistance Unveils Definitive Volume on Non-Pharmacological Approaches to Slowing Cognitive Decline
Led by neuropsychologist and Executive Director of Research and Development at Home Care Assistance, Dr. Samuel T. Gontkovsky, a team of cognition experts released a guide to non-pharmacological neurocognitive care, The Cognitive Therapeutics Method: Non-Pharmacological Approaches to Slowing the Cognitive and Functional Decline Associated with Dementia. The authors were inspired by requests from patients and their family members for a …
OB/Gyn FDA Panel: Roche’s DNA Test Can Replace Pap Smear
By Joyce Frieden, News Editor, MedPage Today An FDA advisory committee voted unanimously Wednesday to recommend that the Pap smear be replaced with a human papillomavirus (HPV) test as the first-line standard of care for cancer screening. The FDA’s Medical Devices Advisory Committee Microbiology Panel agreed by a vote of 13-0 in each of three successive votes that the cobas viral …
Donors step up with $86 million in early giving to end cancer as we know it
Thousands of donors in Oregon and beyond have responded to Nike Co-founder Phil Knight and his wife Penny’s fundraising challenge by giving just over $86 million to date in support of Oregon Health & Science University’s ambitious two-year, $1 billion campaign to revolutionize early cancer detection and treatment. The Knights sparked the unprecedented fundraising effort to beat cancer last September …
Liver Transplant May Arrest Neurological Damage in a Rare and Progressive Form of Autism
From: Wiley Science Newsroom A patient with a rare metabolic disease that causes liver failure and autistic behavior experienced significant improvements in both her physical and mental health after receiving a liver transplant, according to a new case report published in the American Journal of Transplantation. The report’s findings suggest an unexpected link between metabolic conditions and some forms of …
Targeted Drug May Prolong Survival of Patients with Cervical Cancer
From: Wiley Science Newsroom A new clinical study has found that erlotinib, a targeted antitumor agent, has promising potential to improve treatment for cervical cancer. Published early online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, the results indicate that larger trials are warranted to determine whether the drug should become part of standard therapy for women with …
The costs of care was far beyond her means
By: Monica Williams-Murphy, MD From: kevinmd.com Mrs. Sandra Jackson knew that she was no Warren Buffet. She knew that she was no Bill Gates. Instead, Mrs. Jackson knew that she worked two jobs, 7 days a week to support her family. So, she hid her breast condition for a better time, another day. She would ask herself, which was more …
Health Law Concerns for Cancer Centers
By RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR Associated Press Cancer patients relieved that they can get insurance coverage because of the new health care law may be disappointed to learn that some the nation’s best cancer hospitals are off-limits. An Associated Press survey found examples coast to coast. Seattle Cancer Care Alliance is excluded by five out of eight insurers in Washington state’s insurance …
Breast cancer breakthrough: Windber researchers study genetic changes in fat cells
By: Randy Griffith From: tribune-democrat.com Scientists at Windber Research Institute have discovered genetic changes that could help promote the growth of breast cancer tumors. The findings, published in the research journal Adipocyte, show changes in the gene expression of fat cells in breasts with cancer tumors. “Nobody has ever done this before,” said Rachel Ellsworth, director for translational breast research. Ellsworth …
New Ten-Minute Breath Test May Help Detect Breast Cancer
From: fashiontimes.com A new ten-minute breath test can help reduce the need for mammograms and x-rays may be effective in detecting breast cancer, according to reports. The test, BreathLink, has been developed by scientists as a means to check for breast cancer. The results of their research showed that the kit is at least as accurate as breast X-rays typically …