Eurek Alert News - Cancer

(<i>Rockefeller University Press</i>) Like some people, cells eat when they are under pressure -- but they consume parts of themselves. A multi-function protein helps control this form of cannibalism, according to a study in the Sept. 6 issue of the Journal of Cell Biology.

(<i>University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio</i>) A long-term study published in JAMA of women with a genetic predisposition for breast or ovarian cancer showed that those who elected preventive surgeries had a significantly reduced risk of those cancers.The study confirms the view of researcher Dr. Gail Tomlinson at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio that for women with genetic mutations BRCA1 and BRCA2, mastectomies and removal of fallopian tubes and ovaries can be worth it.

(<i>Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo</i>) The Sao Paulo Research Foundation presents the Marine Biodiversity Workshop: Recent Improvements in Bioprospection, Biogeography and Phylogeography to be held on September 9 and 10. This scientific meeting is intended to stimulate the formation of research groups involving both Brazilian and foreign scientists towards the development of research on bioprospection, geographic distribution of sea organisms in the Brazilian Coast as well as the search for natural bioactive compounds for pharmaceutical production.

(<i>Ohio State University Medical Center</i>) There is yet no straightforward way to determine the optimal dose level and treatment schedules for high-dose radiation therapies such as stereotactic radiation therapy, which is used to treat brain and lung cancer, or for high-dose brachytherapy for prostate and other cancers. Radiation oncology researchers at Ohio State University may have solved the problem with a new mathematical model called the Generalized LQ (gLQ) Model that encompasses all dose levels and schedules.

(<i>University of Minnesota</i>) The September cover story of the nation's leading cancer journal, Cancer Research, features a new study from the Hormel Institute, University of Minnesota, that links capsaicin, a component of chili peppers, to skin cancer.

(<i>University of Haifa</i>) The researchers say that their study results show that suppression of melatonin due to exposure to light at night, or LAN, is linked to the worrying rise in the number of cancer patients over the past few years.

(<i>University of Edinburgh</i>) Scientists have built a clearer picture of how lengthy strands of DNA are concertinaed when our cells grow and divide, in a discovery could help explain how cell renewal can go wrong.

(<i>Wiley-Blackwell</i>) Patients who use cannabis for medicinal purposes pose a wide range of legal, ethical and medical dilemmas for the health care professionals looking after them according to an in-depth review just published. The study also found extreme caution about integrating cannabis derivative medications into mainstream medical use.

(<i>Scripps Research Institute</i>) In two closely related studies, two teams of Scripps Research Institute scientists have discovered the underlying mechanisms that activate a type of immune cell in the skin and other organs. The findings may lead to the development of new therapies to treat inflammation, wounds, asthma and malignant tumors.

(<i>University of Georgia</i>) A research team at the University of Georgia has shown for the first time that a gene called Myc, which is traditionally thought of as a cancer-causing gene, may be far more important in the development and persistence of stem cells than was known before.

(<i>Cell Press</i>) New research uncovers a case of mistaken identity that may have a significant impact on future breast cancer prevention and treatment strategies. The study, published by Cell Press in the Sept. 3 issue of the journal Cell Stem Cell, suggests that despite their "stem cell-like" characteristics, most aggressive breast tumors are not derived from normal mammary gland stem cells.

(<i>University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center</i>) Specific prevention and education strategies are needed to address breast cancer in Mexican-origin women in this country, according to a study at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, which was published online in the journal Cancer.

(<i>Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory</i>) Two freely accessible methods from the September 2010 issue of Cold Spring Harbor Protocols can be used to probe the genetic basis of cancer.

(<i>University of Michigan Health System</i>) When breast cancer surgeons regularly confer with plastic surgeons prior to surgery, their patients are more likely to have reconstruction, according to a new study led by researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center.

(<i>Society of Nuclear Medicine</i>) A series of studies published in the September Journal of Nuclear Medicine show that molecular imaging plays a critical role in the evaluation and treatment planning for a broad spectrum of cancers, including thyroid cancer and lymphoma.

(<i>University of Central Florida</i>) A "game-changing" technique using near infrared light enables scientists to look deeper into the guts of cells, potentially opening up a new frontier in the fights against cancer and many other diseases.

(<i>BioMed Central</i>) Using readily available computer programs, researchers have developed a system to identify genes that will be useful in the classification of breast cancer. The algorithm, described in BioMed Central's open access Journal of Experimental and Clinical Cancer Research will enable researchers to quickly generate valuable gene signatures without specialized software or extensive bioinformatics training.

(<i>Journal of Clinical Investigation</i>) This release contains summaries, links to PDFs, and contact information for the following newsworthy papers to be published online, Sept. 1, 2010, in the JCI: "Protecting nerve cells from death in a model of stroke"; "Modified adenovirus malaria vaccine works a treat in mice"; "Mechanisms of testicular cancer drug resistance"; "Pacifying protein levels to treat diabetes"; "Preemptive approach to decreasing scarring in the heart"; and others.

(<i>International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer</i>) Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths worldwide, and the prognosis is generally poor, even if surgery is successful. Furthermore, the incidence of one type of lung cancer, adenocarcinoma, has been increasing in recent years.

(<i>International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer</i>) Chemotherapy is the best broad defense against cancer recurrence after surgical resection. However, it is difficult to predict which patients will benefit from which regimen of anticancer drugs, if at all. Building on existing knowledge, a study published in the September edition of the Journal of Thoracic Oncology, analyzed the usefulness of adjuvant chemotherapy for non-small cell lung cancer based on the histoculture drug response assay.

(<i>University of California - Los Angeles</i>) A multidisciplinary group of researchers at UCLA have produced a 3.6 angstrom resolution structure of the human adenovirus. Their findings were published in the journal Science, and featured in both a perspective and This Week in Science. Pharmacologist Lily Wu and her group are working with adenovirus as a vector for gene therapy, but needed better structural information. She sought assistance from microbiologist Hong Zhou, whose group used cryo-EM microscopy to produce the virus structure.

(<i>The Translational Genomics Research Institute</i>) The first study of Ewing's sarcoma that screened hundreds of genes based on how they affect cell growth has identified two potential anti-cancer drug targets, according to a scientific paper by the Translational Genomics Research Institute published this month in the journal Molecular Cancer.

(<i>Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center</i>) For the first time, researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center have identified and isolated adult mammary stem cells in mice. Long-term implications of this research may include the use of such cells to regenerate breast tissue, provide a better understanding of the role of adult stem cells in breast cancer development, and develop potential new targets for anti-cancer drugs.

(<i>Michigan State University</i>) Girls eating a high-fat diet during puberty, even those who do not become overweight or obese, may be at a greater risk of developing breast cancer later in life, according to Michigan State University researchers.The implications -- that a high-fat diet may have detrimental effects independent of its effect to cause obesity -- could drive new cancer prevention efforts.

(<i>Northwestern University</i>) A new study underscores the importance for women with a family history of breast or ovarian cancer to get genetic testing for the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes that make them more likely to develop lethal breast or ovarian cancer, says a Northwestern Medicine oncologist. In a JAMA editorial, she tells what the findings mean to women with the gene mutations and how preventive surgeries help them live longer and nearly eliminate their risk of cancer.