Oncology Product Guide

Clinical testing hints at new treatment for cervical cancer

Jim Marino — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 13:54:57 +0000

The journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences published a study that examined mice that were given the breast cancer drugs fulvestrant and raloxifene, both of which work by preventing estrogen from functioning in cells, HealthDay News reports. The mice where genetically engineered to carry HPV, an STD strongly linked with cervical cancer. The drugs cleared precancerous growths in the cervix and prevented cancer in mice with precancerous lesions, according to the research.

New drug ‘can kill leukaemia’

Jim Marino — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 11:49:57 +0000

Scientists from Trinity College Dublin (TCD) have discovered a new drug that can destroy cancerous cells in adult leukaemia patients who have developed resistance to other treatments. During the study, PBOX-15 was found to attack and break down the skeleton in leukaemia cells in samples given by patients. It was also found to effectively treat Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia (CLL), which is the most common leukaemia in the western world in adults.

Sahlgrenska Academy discovers new cancer gene

Jim Marino — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 08:48:31 +0000

The Sahlgrenska Academy, faculty of health sciences at the University of Gothenburg, research group has discovered a new cancer gene. The gene causes an insidious form of glandular cancer usually in the head and neck and in women also in the breast. The discovery could lead to quicker diagnosis and more effective treatment. The cancer caused by this new cancer gene is called adenoid cystic carcinoma and is a slow-growing but deadly form of cancer.

GlaxoSmithKline receives FDA approval for advanced renal cell carcinoma treatment

Jim Marino — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 14:48:08 +0000

GlaxoSmithKline has received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the Votrient (pazopanib) drug. The drug is approved for the treatment of patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC), a form of kidney cancer. The FDA’s Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee (ODAC) had earlier voted unanimously in favor of the drug due to encouraging results from the phase III trial.

Spectrum Pharma Fusilev fails to get FDA approval as metastatic colorectal cancer treatment

Jim Marino — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 03:24:16 +0000

Spectrum Pharmaceuticals has not received the FDA approval for the supplementary marketing application for its advanced metastatic colorectal cancer drug Fusilev. Fusilev is already approved for use after high-dose methotrexate therapy in osteosarcoma. It is also approved to decrease the toxicity and counteract the effects of impaired methotrexate elimination and of inadvertent over dosage of folic acid antagonists.

OncoGenex metastatic prostate cancer drug candidate given “fast track designation”

Jim Marino — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 05:56:18 +0000

OncoGenex Pharmaceuticals Inc said that the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) has given a “fast track designation” for the company’s metastatic prostate cancer drug candidate. The OGX-O11 drug, also known as custirsen sodium, when combined with first-line docetaxel (chemotherapy) treatment, has been given the designation, which is only given to drugs “that may provide a significant improvement in the safety or effectiveness of the treatment for a serious or life-threatening disease.”

Drexel researchers developing breast cancer detector

Jim Marino — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 04:07:50 +0000

Researchers at Drexel University are developing a new portable, low-cost, radiation-free breast cancer detector that can be used in a doctor’s office as a first-line to detect breast cancer in younger women and in women over 40 with mammographically dense-tissue breasts. The detector is based on piezoelectric fingers (an elastic and shear modulus sensor) developed at Drexel. In evaluations on tumor specimens, it has positively identified a 3mm tumor previously missed by mammography, ultrasound and the physician’s palpation.

Study shows Avastin can play critical role in treatment of brain cancer

Jim Marino — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 04:21:37 +0000

Roche Holding AG said cancer drug Avastin could play an important role in improving the daily lives of patients with the most aggressive form of brain cancer. An analysis of the phase II BRAIN study of Avastin alone or in combination with irinotecan chemotherapy for the treatment of relapsed or progressive glioblastoma demonstrated that the six months Avastin-based therapy improved patients’ chances of remaining alive without worsening their disease and had additional positive impact on patients.

Spectrum Pharma receives FDA approval for Zevalin

Jim Marino — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 03:46:12 +0000

Spectrum Pharmaceuticals Inc has received the FDA approval for its Zevalin as a treatment for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a blood cancer. Zevalin was previously used only for patients who had tumors that had not responded to other treatments. The FDA approval was granted on the basis of a phase-three study in which 414 patients showed partial or complete response after receiving a first-line chemotherapy regimen and Zevalin.

Study: Immune responses can kill tumors

Jim Marino — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 04:54:38 +0000

According to new scientific findings published in Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, immune responses has the ability to kill tumors before they can be directed toward normal body tissue. Lead researcher Richard G. Vile, Ph.D said, “There are extremely precise mechanistic methods augmenting the ability of the immune system to distinguish between normal tissues and tumors.” “Understanding the multiple checks and safeguards against autoimmunity should allow us to understand more closely how to generate antitumor immunity,” she added.