Geneva, Switzerland: Two large, landmark radiotherapy studies have shown that it is possible to treat cervical cancer effectively with high doses specifically adapted to each tumour, and with fewer serious side-effects to the surrounding normal organs. Two presentations at the 2nd Forum of the European Society for Radiotherapy and Oncology (ESTRO) show that image-guided brachytherapy […]
Category: Cancer
Mathematical models out-perform doctors in predicting cancer patients’ outcomes and responses to treatment
Geneva, Switzerland: Mathematical prediction models are better than doctors at predicting the outcomes and responses of lung cancer patients to treatment, according to new research presented at the 2nd Forum of the European Society for Radiotherapy and Oncology (ESTRO). These differences apply even after the doctor has seen the patient, which can provide extra information, […]
Lung cancer set to overtake breast cancer as the main cause of cancer deaths among European women
Lung cancer is likely to overtake breast cancer as the main cause of cancer death among European women by the middle of this decade, according to new research published in the cancer journal Annals of Oncology [1]. In the UK and Poland it has already overtaken breast cancer as the main cause of cancer deaths […]
Spin and bias in published studies of breast cancer trials
Spin and bias exist in a high proportion of published studies of the outcomes and adverse side-effects of phase III clinical trials of breast cancer treatments, according to new research published in the cancer journal Annals of Oncology [1]. In the first study to investigate how accurately outcomes and side-effects are reported in breast cancer […]
Lung cancer patients live longer if they use beta-blockers while receiving radiotherapy
Patients with non-small-cell lung cancer survive longer if they are taking beta-blockers while receiving radiotherapy, according to a study of 722 patients published in the cancer journal Annals of Oncology [1]. Researchers at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center (Houston, USA) reviewed the progress and outcomes of patients who had received radiotherapy as […]
First trial in humans of “minicells”: a completely new way of delivering anti-cancer drugs
A completely new way of delivering anti-cancer drugs to tumours, using “minicells” derived from bacteria, has been tested for the first time in humans and found to be safe, well-tolerated and even induced stable disease in patients with advanced, incurable cancers with no treatment options remaining. The research, which was presented at the 24th EORTC-NCI-AACR […]
Molecular ‘portraits’ of tumours match patients with trials in everyday clinical practice
Researchers in France are taking advantage of the progress in genetic and molecular profiling to analyse the make-up of individual cancer patients’ tumours and, using this information, assign them to particular treatments and phase I clinical trials – an approach that could become part of everyday clinical practice. In research presented at the 24th EORTC-NCI-AACR […]
Mesothelioma drug slows disease progression in patients with an inactive NF2 gene
Preliminary findings from the first trial of a new drug for patients with mesothelioma show that it has some success in preventing the spread of the deadly disease in patients lacking an active tumour suppressor gene called NF2. The study was presented at the 24th EORTC-NCI-AACR [1] Symposium on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics in […]
New targeted therapy for advanced prostate cancer shows anti-tumour activity in phase I clinical trials
Few available treatment options exist once prostate cancer has spread to other parts of the body and has failed to respond to therapies that involve blocking the male hormone androgen. Patients with advanced, hormone-refractory prostate cancer usually die from the disease after 12 to 18 months, so new therapies are desperately needed. At the 24th […]
Researchers develop non-invasive technique for predicting patients’ response to chemotherapy
Researchers have developed a non-invasive way of predicting how much of a cancer-killing drug is absorbed by a tumour. The preliminary study, which was reported at the 24th EORTC-NCI-AACR [1] Symposium on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics in Dublin, Ireland, was conducted in lung cancer patients and it also revealed that less than one per […]