Cancer Research Journal » Lung Cancer

Cuba Approves CimaVax EGF Vaccine for Lung Cancer

Lisa — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 10:00:24 +0000

Cuba has approved CimaVax EGF, the first vaccine in the world to be approved for the treatment of lung cancer.

Cuban scientists held a news conference earlier this week at the Center of Molecular Immunology in Havana to announce the availability of the new vaccine. They reported that studies had shown CimaVax EGF increased lung cancer patient survival an average of 4 to 5 months and it produced fewer side effects than standard therapies because the vaccine only targets malignant cells.

Several private companies have already been licensed to market the treatment, which will be produced in Cuba.

Cuban health officials said patients from outside the island nation are welcome to travel Cuba for treatment, but American patients may be unable to take advantage of the offer because of travel restrictions put in place by the US in the 1960s. As one Havana scientist said,

“Even though there is a new therapeutic tool approved in Cuba they (US citizens) probably wouldn’t be able to come to Cuba to receive it because of the embargo.”

Tania Crombet, MD
Director of Clinical Investigations
Molecular Immunology Center (Havana)

Health experts estimate lung cancer claims more than 1.3 million lives worldwide each year, with more than 160,000 of those deaths occurring in the U.S.

The vaccine has been approved for clinical trials in the United States and other countries, but approval by the US Food and Drug Administration — if it comes — is not expected for several years. Peru is also expected to make CimaVax EGF publicly available to patients later this year.

If you’d like to learn more about treatments currently available to help lung cancer patients in the US, you can visit the Lung Cancer Page by the National Cancer Institute.

Source: Reuters

Related Links: msnbc.com; BERNAMA.com (Malaysia)

Technorati Tags: bronchogenic carcinoma; oncology; tobacco-related diseases

Korea Unveils Clones of Cancer-Detecting Dog

Lisa — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 20:43:59 +0000

A collaborative project between Seoul National University and the Korean biotechnology firm RNL BIO Co Ltd (Public, SEO: 003190) has produced four identical puppies cloned from a Labrador Retriever with the ability to detect cancer by its smell.

Cancer-sniffing dogs are trained to sit in front of people or biological samples that carry the scent of specific chemicals present in cancer cells. Previous research has shown these dogs can detect the presence of bladder, breast, prostate and lung cancers simply by smelling a patient or their urine.

RNL Bio cloned Marine, a black Labrador Retriever trained by the St Sugar Cancer Sniffing Dog Training Center in Shirahama, Japan, from skin samples sent to Seoul National University last December. Yuji Satoh, the head trainer at St Sugar’s, made the decision to give Marine’s DNA to the university after a womb disease made it impossible for the dog to give birth.

The three-week-old puppies have been given the names Marine-L, Marine-N, Marine-R and Marine-S. Once the puppies have been trained, one will be donated to St Sugar’s and another to Seoul National University. The company plans to sell the two remaining puppies for $500,000.

RNL Bio used patent-pending technology to enhance the embryo implantation process so multiple births would be possible. As one of the company’s executives said,

“Cloning dogs is nothing new anymore. But we are the world’s first to have cloned four at a time from one surrogate mother. This makes it cost effective, and now we mean real business.”

Jeong Chan, Ra
CEO, RNL BIO Co Ltd

If you’re a cancer patient in the US who’d like to learn more about cancer detection, click here to visit the American Cancer Society Early Detection Guidelines web page.

Source: ABC News

World No Tobacco Day 2008

Lisa — Fri, 30 May 2008 11:00:54 +0000

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared Saturday, May 31, 2008, World No Tobacco Day.

The theme for this year’s observance is Tobacco-Free Youth. The campaign educates the public about marketing strategies the tobacco industry uses to encourage young people to smoke.

World No Tobacco Day activities will include video film festivals, mural dedications, bike races and more being held around the globe. WHO’s schedule includes World No Tobacco Day events in Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, France, India, Japan, Pakistan, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, and the United States, as well as other locations.

World No Tobacco Day 2008 Poster from the WHO

The WHO estimates tobacco use kills one adult every six seconds. If you’re a smoker in the US who’d like to kick the habit, you can get help from the American Cancer Society and the National Cancer Institute.

Source: World Health Organization Tobacco Free Initiative

Related Podcast: Smoking Can’t Buy Happiness from Scientific American

Technorati Tags: addiction; cancer prevention; lung cancer; public health; health awareness; oncology; smoking cessation; nicotine

Canada Makes Federal Prisons Smoke Free

Lisa — Thu, 08 May 2008 15:03:07 +0000

Earlier this week the Canadian government began implementing a smoking ban in their country’s federal prisons.

This latest action, which prohibits smoking in all indoor and outdoor locations on prison property, expands on a 2006 policy which prohibited smoking inside cells and other indoor areas. Since prison grounds are now smoke-free zones, prison employees will need to leave prison property before lighting up.

While the ban will reduce the risk of cancer for criminals, staff members and visitors inside the prisons, some fear nicotine withdrawal may lead to escalated violence.

The widespread ban took effect at maximum-security prisons on May 5, 2008. Plans call for it to be expanded to medium-security facilities on May 20th and minimum-security facilties on June 2nd.

The Correctional Service of Canada has budgeted $1M to provide incarcerated smokers counseling, nicotine patches and additional tools to help them quit. Some prisoners are upset about the ban, but others are embracing it as a chance to improve personal health. As one said,

“For myself, I’ve always wanted to quit smoking so this is the perfect opportunity, but I couldn’t say that for everybody.”

Dale Tremblay
Inmate, Archambault Federal Penitentiary

Health statistics indicate inmates are three times more likely to smoke than other Canadian citizens.

Source: cbc.ca

Related Podcast: Smoking Bans Help People Quit, Research Shows from NPR

Technorati Tags: secondhand smoke; lung cancer; public health; tobacco; cigarettes; smoking cessation; addiction; occupational safety

Fungal Extract Fights Four Common Cancers

Lisa — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 01:14:32 +0000

A study led by the Methodist Hospital Research Institute indicates extracts from a tropical fungus called Phellinus linteus may combat breast cancer.

Methodist Hospital’s results add to previous research suggesting the yellow mushroom is also effective for slowing lung, prostate and skin cancers.

Phellinus linteus grows on the bark of mulberry trees and has been used in Chinese medicines for hundreds of years. Methodist’s investigation suggests the powdered extracts from the mushroom block AKT enzymes involved in the development of blood vessels that feed tumors. As the study’s lead author said,

“We saw a number of positive results from our investigation of aggressive human breast cancer cells, including a lower rate of uncontrolled growth of new cancer cells, suppression of their aggressive behavior and the formation of fewer blood vessels that feed cancer cells essential nutrients.”

Dr Daniel Sliva
Methodist Research Institute

Dr Sliva emphasized that more studies will need to done to determine if the extract if safe and effective for treating cancer patients. Citing health and quality concerns, he also urged patients to avoid buying untested commercial mushroom powders.

If you’d like to learn more about the breast cancer study, the findings have been published in the March 25, 2008, online edition of the British Journal of Cancer.

Source: Daily Mail

JILA Scientists Create a Cancer Breathalyzer

Lisa — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 19:57:43 +0000

Most people think of breathalyzers as a tool to combat drunk driving, but a new type of breathalyzer could soon help doctors detect cancer, kidney failure, and other diseases impacting the lungs while they’re still in the early stages.

Researchers at JILA, an institution jointly operated by the University of Colorado at Boulder and the National Institute of Standards and Technology, based their innovative breathalyzer on earlier optical frequency comb technology awarded a Nobel Prize in 2005.

Adapting the optical frequency comb technology’s principles to spectroscopy, the scientists created a microwave-sized device that bounces laser beams through molecules exhaled in human breath. The system reveals the detailed composition of the breath, including the presence of biomarkers known to be associated with specific diseases.

According to the researchers, one important benefit of the device is its ability to determine the ratio of different molecules contained in a person’s breath because changes in those ratios can also point to problems. During one test involving a smoker, the breathalyzer detected five times the normal level of carbon monoxide. JILA’s team hopes once the breathalyzer is refined and tested, it will provide an affordable, non-invasive method for detecting asthma, lung cancer and other chronic medical conditions. As the team’s leader explained,

“Once it’s mass produced, the cost could be quite low. It could be put into every doctor’s clinic so people could walk in and do painless breath tests and then walk away. They would get the results in a day or so.”

Dr Jun Ye
Physicist, JILA

The experimental device has only been tested on a few college students and has only shown to be effective in detecting diseases which somehow involve lung function, yet the scientists are optimistic the breathalyzer’s applications will expand as the technology improves.

If you’d like to learn more, results of the research are published in the February 18, 2008, online edition of Optics Express.

Source: ABC News

Technorati Tags: physics; Optical Society of America; biotechnology; diagnosing lung cancer; emphysema; pulmonary disease; oncology

Anthropologists Ask Spanish Women Why They Smoke

Lisa — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 14:09:52 +0000

World Health Organization statistics released this week project one billion people will die as a result of tobacco use during this century if smoking rates are not significantly reduced.

Cancer and other health risks associated with tobacco use are widely publicized so why do so many people continue to pick up the habit?

A study conducted by University of Granada anthropologists is providing some answers to that difficult question for one population group: Spanish women.

Granada’s research indicates tobacco use among Spanish women is increasingly common because it’s become more socially acceptable in Spanish cultures and smoking provides the women with social and emotional advantages they desire — especially during their interactions with men.

Using in-depth personal interviews, field observation, discussion groups and advertising analysis, the study focused on the specific role smoking played in the daily lives of Spanish women. The investigation revealed the women were using cigarettes as a tool to reduce anxiety, control their body weight, and to get closer to men. They were also relying on smoking to convey an image of power and strength in situations where they felt they were being dominated.

In the past, many Spanish societies considered smoking a privilege to be enjoyed only by men, but that perception has changed over the last 50 years. Now cigarettes are readily available to Spanish women in many educational, work, social, leisure, and family settings, so they’re routinely turning to them to relax. They’re also using them as an easy way to come in contact with men or get their attention. As one anthropologist explained,

“Smoking has become compatible with the social demands imposed upon women. Cigarettes are used by women in order to relax, to avoid gaining weight, and to appear attractive, mature and feminine. It even helps them to pick up men.”

Maria Luisa Jiménez Rodrigo
University of Seville

The research also noted that these women started using tobacco with a specific product, industrially produced cigarettes made from Virginia tobacco. Jiminez Rodrigo attributes this exclusivity to tobacco company influences which made cigarettes more pharmacologically and socially acceptable to females than darker tobaccos, cigars or pipes.

Results of the University of Granada research are published in the Spanish journal Liberaddictus and were presented at the Ninth Spanish Conference on Sociology.

Source: AlphaGalileo.org

Related Podcasts: Teen Smoking Rates at a Standstill from NPR

Technorati Tags: Hispanic health; nicotine addiction; cancer prevention; minority health; lung cancer; women’s health; epidemiology; COPD

DoD Makes Mesothelioma Research Money Available

Lisa — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 18:05:08 +0000

The US Department of Defense (DoD) Medical Research Program is making mesothelioma research a priority for the 2008 grant cycle, a move which potentially makes millions of grant dollars available to civilian scientists studying the deadly disease.

Mesothelioma, a rare cancer strongly linked to asbestos exposure, occurs at elevated rates in certain populations of military veterans. In fact, one-third of all known mesothelioma cases are associated with the U.S. Navy and shipyard exposure to asbestos.

Mesothelioma advocacy groups worked with 15 senators, led by Senator Max Baucus (D-MT), for several years to promote the initiative. Those advocates are now strongly encouraging methothelioma investigators to take advantage of the new funding opportunity so mesothelioma research remains a candidate for federal funding in the future.

If you’d like more information on criteria for the grant, you can contact the Meso Foundation at (805)563-8400.

Source: Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation

Barcelona Biochemists Link Enzyme to Early Lung Cancer

Lisa — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 14:22:37 +0000

Scientists in Spain have detected an enzyme which is present while lung lesions — especially those caused by cigarette smoking — are still precancerous. The discovery could help assess who’s at risk of developing lung cancer.

During their study researchers found that an enzyme, known as AKR1B10, lowered levels of retinoic acid, a form of vitamin A involved in cell proliferation and development. Reduction of the acid impairs cell differentiation contributing to carcinogenesis.

Since the enzyme is only found in large quantities in lung cancer patients the scientists say it makes an attractive target for chemotherapies to treat the disease. The presence of AKR1B10 in premalignant lung lesions may also offer doctors a biomarker they can use to diagnose lung cancer earlier or to help prevent its onset altogether.

The research was directed by Xavier Parés and Juame Farrés from the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and included scientists from Biomedical Research Institute of the Science Park of Barcelona, the Institute of Molecular Biology of Barcelona, the Catalan Institute for Research and Advanced Studies and the University of Vigo, Galicia.

Findings from the Spanish study have been published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.

Source: AlphaGalileo.org

Related Video: Lung Cancer Video from the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center

Tags: retinol; lung disease; non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC); thoracic oncology; COPD

MGH Microchip Device Isolates Circulating Tumor Cells

Lisa — Wed, 26 Dec 2007 13:48:06 +0000

Scientists from the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) BioMicroMechanical Systems (BioMEMS) Resource Center and the MGH Cancer Center have developed a new microchip-based device that can isolate circulating tumor cells (CTC) in a blood sample.

The new CTC-chip is a business-card sized silicon chip covered with almost 80,000 microscopic posts smaller than a human hair. The specially designed posts are coated with antibodies that act like a glue so the tumor cells will adhere to them.

Unlike the current technologies used to detect CTCs, this test doesn’t require any pre-processing of the blood samples so fragile CTCs aren’t destroyed before they can be counted.

To evaluate the device, the researchers took blood samples from cancer patients with breast, colorectal, lung, pancreatic and prostate tumors as well as healthy control subjects. The CTC-chip produced a 99% sensitivity rating in the patients with cancer and registered no CTCs in samples from cancer-free control volunteers.

Although more studies will be required before the CTC-chip is ready for clinical use, the researchers are optimistic this new device will one day give oncologists a way to quickly monitor how patients are responding to therapy. As one of the scientists explained,

“Some of these tumors have several potential drugs to choose from, and the ability to monitor therapeutic response in real time with this device – which has an exquisite sensitivity to CTCs – could rapidly signal whether a treatment is working or if another option should be tried.”

Mehmet Toner, PhD
Director, BioMEMS Resource Center
Massachusetts General Hospital

If you’d like to learn more about this project, details have been published in the December 20, 2007, edition of Nature.

Source: HarvardScience

Related Links: ajc.com; henryfordhealth.org

Tags: Daniel Haber, MD, PhD; Ronald Tompkins, MD, ScD; nanofluidics; nanobiotechnology; Boston; Harvard Medical School; Shriner’s Hospital; metastatic disease