Tag Archives: cancer
AntiVEGF therapy: hidden changes on heart and vessels
VEGF (Vascular endothelial growth factor) is a protein normally present in our organism that promotes the growth of new blood vessels, a process known as angiogenesis. Cancer cells produce this substance in large quantity, obtaining a continuous
Complementary therapies can increase survival in cancer patients
It is well known that a large percentage of cancer patients use some form of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), usually with the goal of improving quality of life, providing supportive care as well as relieving pain
CITED1 is a potential therapeutic target for metastatic melanoma
Cancer kills over 8 million people every year. What makes it so deadly is its ability to spread from the organ where it originates to the rest of the body, a process known as metastasis. Even though
Contraception protects females against germline tumours… in worms
Genetic females of the nematode worm C. elegans initially produce 30-40 oocytes that accumulate in two U-shaped gonad arms, after which oocyte production ceases until a male is encountered. Oocyte accumulation is perceived as a signal that
A new drug to prevent vomiting from cancer treatment
Vomiting after drug treatment for cancer used to be a major problem. However 2 different types of drugs were introduced which reduced this vomiting. The first was ondansetron which was very effective for the vomiting which occurred
Plant flavonoids prevent cancer progression through suppression of new blood vessel formation
Flavonoids are a sub-family of polyphenolic compounds. They are abundantly found in plants and known to have inhibitory properties in the initiation, promotion and progression of invasive cancers. Cancer progression is a complex process. It is mainly
Small-molecule RETRA is effective against a fatal childhood cancer
The bone tumor Ewing’s sarcoma is one of the most aggressive cancers in childhood and adolescence. Before the era of chemotherapy, more than 90% of Ewing’s sarcoma patients succumbed to their disease. With the introduction of intensive
Rare and uncommon cancers
A rare cancer is one that occurs less than 6 times in 100,000 people and an uncommon cancer is found between 6 and 12 times in each 100,000 people. The problem with being rare is that there
Silence the uncontrolled cancer cells’ growth by controlling cellular senescence
When toxic damage caused by environmental or internal stressors accumulates cells can either stop proliferation permanently ( cellular senescence ) or die. Cell death is a common goal of existing cancer therapies, yet cellular senescence is increasingly
Many factors determine prognosis in resected lung cancer. Is visceral pleural involvement one of them?
Prognosis after pulmonary resection for primary lung cancer is closely related to tumor stage, since stage predicts the risk recurrence. Lung cancer staging is based on the TNM system that evaluates tumor size and contiguous tissue infiltration
What stem cells have to do with stomach cancer
The surface of the stomach is lined by a delicate single-layered sheet of epithelial cells (termed the gastric mucosa and its glands), which represents a tight barrier to the outside world (i.e., the gastric juice and its
Metabolism and pheochromocytoma/paraganglioma
Tumors are named according to the organ or the tissue whose cells undergo biological derangement causing the loss of the control mechanisms that normally limit cell growth. Therefore, breast tumors derives from the cells of the ducts of
A combination therapy to induce apoptosis in difficult-to-treat cancer cells
The presence of activated PI3K-AKT is a major obstacle to successful chemotherapies. Since PI3K-AKT is activated in many healthy tissues, chemical inhibitors of PI3K-AKT inevitably have many unwanted side effects. By using a cholesterol-targeting drug called beta-cyclodextrin
It is time to stop screening all women with mammography based on age alone
The early detection of breast cancer by mammography has been promoted in the Western world for decades, usually for all women 40-70+. Mammography involves an x-ray of the breasts while under compression. While mammography screening was once
Radiation therapy for nerve pain when cancer spreads to bones
One of the hallmarks of cancer is its ability to spread from the primary site of origin to other places in the body. Such secondary sites are called “metastases”. One of the commonest sites for cancer secondaries
An important new tool to assess chemotherapy response in cancer patients
Although chemotherapy agents are widely used in the treatment of cancer, it is not widely known that for many patients with solid tumours, only a fraction receive a survival benefit from chemotherapy. This is particularly the case
VIRTUOSO: Virtual clinical trials concept to help identify resistant tumors
The use of anti-cancer drugs (chemotherapy) is one of the standard-of-care therapeutic treatments routinely applied in clinics. However, a significant portion of patients who show a good initial response to the chemotherapeutic treatment become unresponsive to the
Sponge toxin kills lung and breast cancer cells in mice
Peloruside A is a potent toxin that was isolated from a New Zealand marine sponge. It has a similar mechanism of action to the commonly used taxane-type anticancer drugs, including paclitaxel and docetaxel, that block the action
Punching above their weight: how the smallest RNAs offer great promise for cancer biology
In recent decades, scientists have witnessed transformative developments in the field of RNA biology. RNA molecules are similar in composition to their more famous DNA counterparts (they are both nucleic acids), but are present in a variety
Treating prostate cancer with immunotherapy
Cancer immunotherapy induces the immune system to recognize and destroy cancer cells. These therapies can work through a number of ways but two of the most researched methods are therapeutic cancer vaccines and immune checkpoint inhibitors. Therapeutic
