TREANDA Significantly Improves Clinical Outcomes In Patients With Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia Compared To Chlorambucil

FRAZER, Pa. -- Cephalon, Inc. announced today that in a pivotal study of treatment-naive patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), those who received TREANDA (bendamustine HCl) had better clinical outcomes compared to patients treated with chlorambucil, an FDA-approved therapy for patients with CLL. TREANDA(R) is a novel investigational chemotherapy that is currently under priority review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). CLL is a slowly progressing blood and bone marrow disease with an estimated 15,000 new cases diagnosed every year in the United States, according to the National Cancer Institute. The final data from this large, international, multi-center study were presented at the 49th Annual Meet... More »


Survival And Longer Term Disease Control Take Precedence Over Short Term Response To Treatment

NORTH HOLLYWOOD, Calif. & ATLANTA -- The International Myeloma Foundation (IMF) - supporting research and providing education, advocacy and support for myeloma patients, families, researchers and physicians - today said new data being reported at a global cancer conference require a new approach to evaluating cancer treatments. Findings from a multi-center clinical trial sponsored by the National Cancer Institute and led by the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) demonstrated that lowering the dose of the steroid dexamethasone when paired with REVLIMID(R) to treat newly diagnosed myeloma not only reduces side effects, but also improves long-term survival. The data are being discussed and evaluated at the 49th annual... More »


Two Studies Demonstrate REVLIMID Activity In Patients With Relapsed/Refractory Aggressive Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma

BOUDRY, Switzerland -- Celgene International Sarl announced that clinical data from two ongoing REVLIMID studies in Relapsed/Refractory Aggressive Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma (NHL) were reported during the 49th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology (ASH). These studies demonstrate REVLIMID's activity in NHL and the need to further evaluate treatment in this critical area of blood disease. NHL is the most common form of blood cancer in the United States affecting nearly 500,000 people. Approximately 50% have aggressive NHL, while the other half have indolent or follicular lymphoma. According to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, more than 63,000 men and women in the United States are diagnosed with NHL each year.... More »



ANAVEX 7-1037 Demonstrates Chemotherapeutic Potential Without Toxic Side Effects For The Treatment Of Colorectal Cancer, Other Types Of Solid Tumors

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND -- Anavex Life Sciences Corp. today announced that ANAVEX 7-1037 has been shown to kill human HCT116 colon cancer cells in advanced pre-clinical studies. In addition, ANAVEX 7-1037 demonstrated its ability to significantly suppress tumor growth in immune-deficient mice. ANAVEX 7-1037 is the company's lead drug candidate for the treatment of colorectal cancer and other types of solid tumors. "These results are very encouraging, particularly regarding the therapeutic signals from the significant in vivo anti-cancer activity against HCT116 xenografts at low nanomolar level," said Dr. Kontzalis, Chief Executive Officer for ANAVEX. "We are committed to further exploring the benefits of ANAVEX 7-1073 as... More »


Scientists Isolate The Faulty Gene That Triggers The Biggest Breast Tumours

Scientists have discovered how a single faulty gene causes one of the most aggressive types of breast cancer. The breakthrough could one day offer hope to millions of women by paving the way for better treatments for 'basal-like breast cancer tumours'. These are the most dangerous and hardest to treat forms of the disease. The research was welcomed by British cancer charities, but they stressed that new therapies were still many years away. Scientists have known for more than a decade that mutations in a gene called BRCA1 put women at much higher risk of developing the aggressive 'basal type' breast cancer. These tumours grow fast, spread quickly and do not respond well to conventional drugs. The risks are so... More »


Nurses Survey Suggests Risk From Chemical Exposure

ST. LOUIS -- Nurses who are exposed to high levels of chemicals and drugs on the job are more likely to report having asthma, miscarriages and some cancers, according to a survey released Tuesday. More than 1,500 nurses nationwide were asked last year about their health histories and on-the-job exposures to cleaning products, radiation, mercury and other potentially hazardous materials. The survey was conducted by the Washington-based nonprofit Environmental Working Group. Nurses who said they were exposed to high levels of radiation reported a 20 percent higher rate of breast cancer compared with nurses who had little or no exposure, according to the survey. High levels were defined as exposure at least once a week for 10 years or lo... More »



Doctors Often Miss Cancer In Mammograms, Study Reports

CHICAGO -- Doctors reading mammograms miss an average of 2 in every 10 cases of breast cancer, even for women with lumps and other symptoms, researchers reported Tuesday. In a stark reminder of the limitation of the common diagnostic test, the researchers found wide variation in radiologists' ability to detect cancer in breast X-rays, with some missing as many as 7 out of 10 cases. In other words, the test's ability to detect cancer is strongly dependent on who is reading it. "Women think mammography is perfect, so if they get a negative (normal) mammogram they think they're safe for at least the next year," said Diana Miglioretti, lead author of the study, which appears in this week's Journal of the National Cancer Institute. "The re... More »


Pixantrone Versus Doxorubicin In CHOP-R Therapy For First-line Treatment Of Aggressive Non-hodgkin's Lymphoma Preliminary Results Presented

ATLANTA -- Cell Therapeutics, Inc. (CTI) announced today that preliminary data from its phase II/III randomized study comparing CPOP-R to CHOP-R in the first-line treatment of patients with aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) showed patients who received pixantrone experienced less severe (grade 3/4) toxicities including severe infection and febrile neutropenia when compared to patients treated with standard doxorubicin-based therapy. A preliminary analysis of the study, known as PIX203, which is ongoing, was presented at the American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting in Atlanta. "While preliminary, these randomized trial results are encouraging in supporting the preclinical findings that pixantrone is asso... More »



Cleveland Clinic Surgeon Performs First Single-port Laparoscopic Radical Prostatectomy And Single-port Laparoscopic Radical Cystectomy

CLEVELAND -- Jihad H. Kaouk, M.D., Director of Robotic Urologic Surgery at Cleveland Clinic and a pioneer of a Single-Port Laparoscopic (SPL) methodology in the field of urology, recently performed the world's first radical prostatectomy and radical urinary cystectomy (cystoprostatectomy) entirely through a single incision in the navel. The conventional laparoscopic approach to radical prostatectomy for prostate cancer and cystoprostatectomy for bladder cancer utilizes five or six abdominal wall incisions. The true SPL trans-umbilical approach employed by Dr. Kaouk is a variant of the laparoscopic operation that uses only a single small umbilical incision through which a single specially-designed port is placed. There is... More »