Gene therapy target tumor blood vessels.

Working with mice, St. Louis （ Alvin j. Siteman Cancer Center home) of long gene delivery method is required in the field of gene therapy, Washington University School of Medicine researchers reported development: carry a gene of interest can be deactivated virus to inject into the blood stream, making its way to the cell the. You can target the tumor blood vessels in mice without affecting healthy tissue they are scientists in this early concept study, shows.

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Research proposes alternative therapy against lung cancer

Jan. 6, 2014 — Research from the National Institute of Respiratory Diseases (INER) informs that besides smoking, there are other factors associated to the development of lung cancer such as the smoke from burning lumber and coal, as well as pollutant particles.

"It has been considered that the upturn in cases of lung cancer is possibly related to this particles," explains Patricia Gorocica from the INER, who, alongside her research team, has been working in an alternative therapy to boost the immune system of patients with this disease.

The specialist adds that since several years ago is known that the immune system has all the mechanism to watch and destroy tumor cells as they develop, but sometimes this mechanisms are not effective for reasons associated to the tumor or alterations of the patients organism.

Based in this principle, research at INER is directed to regulate the immune system against tumors. The tumor that can be more easily eliminated are the ones that express specific antigens.

Patricia Gorocica, chief of the Department of Biochemical Research at INER, details that with current technology is possible to manipulate the immune response against tumors. "We are developing at the lab a system of cell activation from the patient's own blood so it can eliminate its tumors."

This is a starting research, but it could be consolidated as an alternative therapy for the patients with lung cancer. The labor is being done with the support of the institutes of Biotechnology and Chemistry of the Autonomous National University of Mexico (UNAM), hoping that others will add to the cause, since this research requires a multi-disciplinary team for succeeding.

Gorocica adds that manipulating the immune system could be a new complementary therapy to chemo and radiotherapy usually used for treating lung cancer.

The research at INER is mainly focused in patients with lung adenocarcinoma, a type of cancer that has the most alterations in its tumor cells. It usually affects people of various ages, accentuated in people over 40, but has been known to affect the 20-something population.

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New combination therapy may improve outcomes for women with triple-negative breast cancer.

I-spy 2 trial, innovative multidrug resistance, phase II trial cancer led to a positive result in the first drugs to complete testing in breast cancer trial. Using the standard chemotherapy for women with triple-negative breast cancer improved outcomes I spy carboplatin combination chemotherapy and molecular targeted drugs veliparib 2 from trial (UCSF Helen Diller family comprehensive cancer led by researchers from the Center) in and results will be announced in 2013, according to the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium held 12/10-14.

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Clinical trials are not breast cancer high of searches concurrent therapy are required to achieve the pathological histological remission

Concerns can be associated with increased risk of cardiac toxicity as this combination is effective in the treatment of HER-2 positive breast cancer, given the concurrent Trastuzumab and anthracycline. University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer not required because new research from the Alliance in the Center, Department of Oncology, clinical trials for colleagues to achieve a high rate of Pathology histological remission of these agents at the same time shows.

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Burkitt's Lymphoma of the NIH study found low-intensity therapy is very effective

Known as an excellent long term survival rate have of adult patients with burkitt's lymphoma cancer type-90% or more-treated with low intensity regimen, according to the discovery of a new clinical trial in below. Burkitt's lymphoma is the most aggressive type of lymphoma cancer begins in the cells of the immune system.

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New guideline for management of blood cholesterol: Focuses on lifestyle, statin therapy for patients who most benefit

Nov. 12, 2013 — The American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association today released a new clinical practice guideline for the treatment of blood cholesterol in people at high risk for cardiovascular diseases caused by atherosclerosis, or hardening and narrowing of the arteries, that can lead to heart attack, stroke or death.

The guideline identifies four major groups of patients for whom cholesterol-lowering HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors, or statins, have the greatest chance of preventing stroke and heart attacks. The guideline also emphasizes the importance of adopting a heart-healthy lifestyle to prevent and control high blood cholesterol.

"The new guideline uses the highest quality scientific evidence to focus treatment of blood cholesterol on those likely to benefit most," said Neil J. Stone, MD, Bonow professor of medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and chair of the expert panel that wrote the new guideline. "This guideline represents a departure from previous guidelines because it doesn't focus on specific target levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, commonly known as LDL, or 'bad cholesterol,' although the definition of optimal LDL cholesterol has not changed. Instead, it focuses on defining groups for whom LDL lowering is proven to be most beneficial."

The new guideline recommends moderate- or high-intensity statin therapy for these four groups:

• Patients who have cardiovascular disease;
• Patients with an LDL, or "bad" cholesterol level of 190 mg/dL or higher;
• Patients with Type 2 diabetes who are between 40 and 75 years of age; and
• Patients with an estimated 10-year risk of cardiovascular disease of 7.5 percent or higher who are between 40 and 75 years of age (the report provides formulas for calculating 10-year risk).

In terms of clinical practice, physicians can use risk assessment tools in some cases to determine which patients would most likely benefit from statin therapy, rather than focusing only on blood cholesterol to determine which patients would benefit.

"The likely impact of the recommendations is that more people who would benefit from statins are going to be on them, while fewer people who wouldn't benefit from statins are going to be on them," Dr. Stone said. Doctors may also consider switching some patients to a higher dose of statins to derive greater benefit as a result of the new guidelines.

The guideline was prepared by a panel of experts based on an analysis of the results of randomized controlled trials. The panel was charged with guiding the optimal treatment of blood cholesterol to address the rising rate of cardiovascular disease, currently the leading cause of death and disability in the U.S.

The panel chose to focus on the use of statins after a detailed review of other cholesterol-lowering drugs. "Statins were chosen because their use has resulted in the greatest benefit and the lowest rates of safety issues. No other cholesterol-lowering drug is as effective as statins," said Dr. Stone. He added that there is a role for other cholesterol-lowering drugs, for example, in patients who suffer side effects from statins.

The report also stresses the importance of lifestyle in managing cholesterol and preventing heart disease. "The cornerstone of all guidelines dealing with cholesterol is a healthy lifestyle," said Dr. Stone. "That is particularly important in the young, because preventing high cholesterol later in life is the first and best thing someone can do to remain heart-healthy. On the other hand, if someone already has atherosclerosis, lifestyle changes alone are not likely to be enough to prevent heart attack, stroke, and death, and statin therapy will be necessary."

In addition to identifying patients most likely to benefit from statins, the guideline outlines the recommended intensity of statin therapy for different patient groups. Rather than use a "lowest is best" approach that combines a low dose of a statin drug along with several other cholesterol-lowering drugs, the panel found that it can be preferable to focus instead on a healthy lifestyle along with a higher dose of statins, eliminating the need for additional medications.

"The focus for years has been on getting the LDL low," said Dr. Stone. "Our guidelines are not against that. We're simply saying how you get the LDL low is important. Considering all the possible treatments, we recommend a heart-healthy lifestyle and statin therapy for the best chance of reducing your risk of stroke or heart attack in the next 10 years."

The guidelines are intended to serve as a starting point for clinicians. Some patients who do not fall into the four major categories may also benefit from statin therapy, a decision that will need to be made on a case-by-case basis.

The expert panel that wrote the report was convened by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health. At the invitation of the NHLBI, the American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology assumed the joint governance, management and publication of this guideline, along with four other prevention guidelines, in June. Committee members volunteered their time and were required to disclose all healthcare-related relationships, including those existing one year before the initiation of the writing project.

The full text of the report, "2013 ACC/AHA Guideline on the Treatment of Blood Cholesterol to Reduce Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Risk in Adults," will be published in future print issues of the of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association's journal Circulation. It will also be accessible today on the ACC (http://content.onlinejacc.org/article.aspx?doi=10.1016/j.jacc.2013.11.002) website and AHA (http://circ.ahajournals.org/lookup/doi/10.1161/01.cir.0000437738.63853.7a).

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Fewer weeks of hormone therapy before radiation reduces side effects in intermediate risk prostate cancer

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
A shorter course of androgen suppression therapy prior to radiation therapy, when compared to a longer course of androgen suppression therapy, yields favorable outcomes and fewer adverse effects for intermediate-risk prostate cancer patients, according to research presented at the American Society for Radiation Oncology's (ASTRO) 55th Annual Meeting by researchers from the Mayo Clinic. The study confirmed a disease-specific-survival (DSS) rate of 95 percent when patients received fewer weeks of neoadjuvant (NEO) total androgen suppression (TAS).

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Targeted radiation therapy safe, effective treatment for elderly with pancreatic cancer

Sep. 24, 2013 — A highly targeted cancer radiation therapy may offer a safe and effective treatment option for elderly pancreatic cancer patients unable to undergo surgery or combined chemotherapy and radiation therapy, according to researchers at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit.

Called stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT), the study finds patients lived, on average, six to seven months longer following treatment with minimal side-effects even when they had other severe comorbidities such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), heart disease and diabetes.

Two of the patients in the study lived nearly two years.

“Elderly individuals, those ages 75 and older, account for approximately 40 percent of patients diagnosed with pancreatic cancer,” says study lead author Raphael Yechieli, M.D., with the Department of Radiation Oncology at Henry Ford Hospital.

“These patients are too ill to receive any other treatment, but with stereotactic body radiotherapy we’re able to deliver a safe and effective treatment in two weeks that can provide them with a substantial quality of life with minimal side effects.”

The study was presented at the 55nd annual American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) meeting in Atlanta.

In 2013, there will be an estimated 45,220 new cases of pancreatic cancer, and approximately 38,460 will die from the disease, according to the National Cancer Institute. Risk factors for pancreatic cancer include smoking, diabetes, obesity, family history of the disease and pancreatitis. Most people diagnosed with the disease are older than 65.

Surgery is the only known cure for resectable pancreatic cancer, where the cancer is localized to the pancreas and hasn't spread. It is estimated that only 20 percent of pancreatic cancer patients have their tumors present with localized disease amendable to surgical removal.

A select number of those patients, however, are not candidates for surgery due to having other co-morbidities such as COPD, heart disease and diabetes. This leaves only chemotherapy and radiation, or a combination of the two, available for treatment.

But for a large portion of elderly patients with localized pancreatic cancer even chemotherapy and radiation therapy are not options.
The Henry Ford study looked to determine if SBRT – a method of giving radiation that can be highly targeted to the tumor, sparing the normal tissue around it – was a viable option for this group of patients. SBRT provides a higher dose of radiation, meaning patients have fewer treatments. In this case, treatment averaged two weeks.

The study included 20 patients with a median age of 83, all of whom were medically unable to tolerate surgery or combined chemo-radiation therapy. The majority of patients in the study (90 percent) received SBRT treatment at the time of diagnosis.

Seven patients reported side-effects from treatment: nausea, vomiting and fatigue.

Among the patients: 13 had a recurrence of cancer; nine had cancer spread from the original tumor to distant organs or distant lymph nodes.

Median overall survival was 6.7 months, and median recurrence-free survival was 8.1 months. At six months post-treatment, 61 percent of patients were alive; two patients in the study survived nearly two years.

“National trends tell us that very few patients over the age of 75 are getting any treatment at all for pancreatic cancer due to comorbidity risks,” notes Dr. Yechieli. “So we want to push the envelope to give them a treatment option that, while not a cure, is short, effective and safe, and has the potential to give them a good quality of life.”

The next step in this research, Dr. Yechieli says, is to closely follow patients after SBRT and get their direct feedback to measure post-treatment quality of life.

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Unstable chromosomes linked to less favorable response to radiation therapy and surgery in prostate cancer patients

Sep. 25, 2013 — Detailed evaluation of a prostate cancer tumor biopsy may predict treatment outcomes for image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT) or surgery for prostate cancer, according to research presented today at the American Society for Radiation Oncology's (ASTRO's) 55th Annual Meeting. The study results indicate that patients who have abnormal levels of breaks at common fragile sites (CFSs), sites within the chromosomes that are sensitive to DNA damage, are more likely to have their cancer to return -- treatment failure. These CFS break abnormalities are usually associated with instability of the cell's DNA, a phenomenon that is particularly associated with cancer.

In this study, researchers assessed the outcomes of 280 prostate cancer (Cap) patients, and reviewed the DNA "fingerprints" of each patient's tumor (using the patient's initial diagnostic core biopsy) to determine if gene copy number alterations (CNAs), or breaks in CFSs, were related to a less positive response to treatment. Two groups were analyzed: 126 localized intermediate risk CaP patients who had received image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT) treatments, with a mean dose of 74.6 Gy; and 154 localized intermediate and high risk CaP patients who had undergone radical prostatectomy (RP), which is the surgical removal of the entire prostate gland.

Utilizing an array comparative genomic hybridization (aCGH), DNA from frozen needle biopsies of the RT patients was analyzed for 13 previously characterized CFSs: FRA2G, FRA3B, FRA4F, FRA6E, FRA6F, FRA7E, FRA7G, FRA7H, FRA7I, FRA7K, FRA8C, FRA9E, FRA16D. The effect of having at least one CNA in any CFS was assessed using the Kaplan-Meier method and Cox proportional hazard models.

The data revealed a pattern in which the patients who failed treatment had abnormal levels of CNAs at CFSs. In the IGRT group, CNAs in CFSs occurred frequently, with 80 of the patients (64 percent) having a CNA in one or more CFS locations (median was 1, and the range was 0 -- 10).

Each patient's biochemical relapse-free rate (bRFR) was gauged, because if a patient relapses biochemically, his prostate specific antigen level has risen significantly and this is a reasonable indicator that the cancer has recurred. Thus, a high bRFR is desirable. On univariate analysis, patients with a CNA in at least one CFS showed a decreased 5-year bRFR (64 percent), compared with the bRFR of patients without genetic alteration in CFSs (90 percent; HR = 2.13, 95% CI: 1.17-3.86, p = 0.011). After adjusting for clinical factors in a multivariate model, a CNA in a CFS was determined to be a significant independent predictor of decreased response to radiation therapy and higher incidence of recurring cancer. (HR = 2.94, 95% CI: 1.51-5.75, P = 0.0016).

The results of the 154 patients in the RP group were compiled using the publically available Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) aCGH database of patients. CNAs in CFSs were also frequent in the RP group, with 81 patients (53 percent) having a CNA in one or more location (median was 1, and the range was 0 -- 6). These results also correlated to decreased 5-year bRFR rates of 68 percent, compared to 82 percent for RP patients without genetic alterations in CFSs (HR = 1.79). Despite this strong trend, after adjusting for clinical factors in a multivariate model, a CNA in a CFS was not a statistically significant predictor of cancer recurrence (HR = 1.52, 95% CI: 0.77-3.02, P = 0.23).

"We thought that patients who have CFS breaks might be more sensitive to radiation therapy-induced DNA damage," said the lead author of the study, Robert G. Bristow, MD, PhD, a Professor within the radiation oncology and medical biophysics departments at the University of Toronto; and a Clinician-Scientist at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in Toronto. "We now think that the CFS breaks are a signal that the cancer cell has acquired numerous genetic changes that lead to more aggressive cancer cells that can spread early and outside the prostate gland. Our data suggest that the patients failing treatment are due to early metastatic (distant spread) disease. If we validate this study in similar, but larger groups of patients, we can develop a test based for CFS breaks; the results would allow us to place patients in one of two categories: those whose tumors do not have CFS breaks and who would likely do well with local treatment alone (e.g. radiotherapy or surgery); and, those patients whose tumors do have CFS breaks and would need a more complex treatment protocol, in addition to RT or surgery, to combat distant spread."

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Protecting specific area of the brain during radiation therapy substantially reduces memory loss

Sep. 23, 2013 — Protecting the stem cells that reside in and around the hippocampus -- a C-shaped area in the temporal lobe on both sides of the brain associated with the ability to form and store memories -- substantially reduces the rate of cancer patients' memory loss during whole-brain radiotherapy without a significant risk of recurrence in that area of the brain, a new study shows. Results of the Phase II clinical trial of patients with brain metastases are being presented today at the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) annual meeting.

"Memory loss, especially short-term recall, is an important consideration for patients receiving whole-brain radiotherapy," says the study's co-principal investigator, Minesh P. Mehta, M.B., Ch.B., professor of radiation oncology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. "We found that reducing the radiation dose to the stem-cell niches surrounding the hippocampus during treatment was clearly associated with memory preservation without an inordinate risk of relapse in that portion of the brain. The findings far exceeded our expectations."

Based on previous research, the predicted rate of cognitive decline at four months for patients receiving whole-brain radiation for brain metastases was 30 percent. Researchers designed the clinical trial so that a positive result would be a rate reduced by half, to 15 percent. The observed rate in the trial was actually 7 percent -- significantly better than the baseline rate of 30 percent. With a third fewer patients to evaluate, the rate of decline observed at six months was 2 percent, although comparable data from the historic control study were not available.

"These Phase II results, while not absolutely conclusive, offer very important insights which we hope to validate in a larger, randomized Phase III clinical trial," says Dr. Mehta, a radiation oncologist at the University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Cancer Center who chairs the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) brain tumor committee. The RTOG, which managed the Phase II trial, also plans to manage the Phase III Study.

Co-principal investigator Vinai Gondi, M.D., will present the findings at the plenary session at the ASTRO annual meeting in Atlanta. He practices at Central DuPage Hospital Cancer Center in Warrenville, Ill.

E. Albert Reece, M.D., Ph.D., M.B.A., vice president for medical affairs at the University of Maryland and the John Z. and Akiko K. Bowers Distinguished Professor and Dean of the University of Maryland School of Medicine, says, "Preserving neurocognitive function is extremely important in treating patients with brain metastases, and the results of this latest study on hippocampal-avoidance radiotherapy led by Dr. Mehta are very encouraging. This technique, if validated in a randomized clinical trial, will give physicians a significant new tool to help maintain patients' quality of life while aggressively treating their cancer."

Patients in the study, the majority of them with lung cancer that had spread to the brain, were treated with intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), which enabled doctors to shape the radiation beams to avoid the hippocampus. Researchers used a standardized cognitive function assessment -- the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test (HVLT) -- to measure patients' baseline memory, such as their ability to recall information immediately or after a delay, with follow-up at two, four and six months.

A total of 113 patients were recruited between 2011 and 2013; investigators were able to evaluate 42 patients at four months and 29 patients at six months. The median survival for the participants was 6.8 months. Three patients (4.5 percent) experienced progression of their disease in the hippocampal region, which was within the expected range.

Dr. Mehta says that the radiation affects cognitive function by damaging nerve cells as well as stem cells, which help to regenerate nerve cells that support memory formation. "These stem-cell niches are exquisitely sensitive to radiation and are involved in neurogenesis -- the process of generating new neurons, or nerve cells. Although we call it hippocampal-avoidance radiotherapy, we really are targeting the stem-cell niches in and around the hippocampus," Dr. Mehta says.

He notes that factors other than radiation may also contribute to cognitive decline in patients with brain metastases, including medicines to control seizures or swelling in the brain. The cancer itself may also have an effect.

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Does not reduce diarrhoea in patients receiving pelvic radiation therapy is sulfasalazine

Patients receiving pelvic cancer radiation therapy (RT) can experience negative side effects of diarrhea, radiation therapy. To treat inflammation of intestine sulfasalazine to decrease diarrhea and oral tablet pelvic irradiation (Killic 2001) in the 31 had been shown in patients with past trials. Sulfasalazine is, according to the study by researchers of the Mayo medical school and Mayo Clinic does not reduce diarrhea No. 55 annual meeting of American Society of radiation oncology (ASTRO). Research, drug than placebo risk of diarrhea and may be associated with determined.

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Proton therapy is cost effective for patients with pediatric brain tumor treatment.

Research affecting mainly children when healthy organs and tissues, spare the Proton line treatment cost effectiveness, external beam radiation therapy were compared with spinal cord and a standard photon radiation therapy, providing accurate tumor dose Proton, announced that the fast-growing brain tumor treatments in the 55 annual general meeting of the American Society of radiation therapy (Astro Boy) by researchers from the Mount Auburn hospital, according to Harvard Medical School (Dana Farber Cancer Institute component) of is a teaching hospital.

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External beam radiation therapy for breast cancer does not increase mortality risks

Sep. 24, 2013 — Early-stage breast cancer patients who receive external beam therapy (XRT) are not at higher risk for serious long-term side effects in the chest area, including increase in deaths from cardiac disease and secondary malignancies, according to research presented today at the American Society for Radiation Oncology's (ASTRO's) 55th Annual Meeting.

The study utilized patient information from the National Cancer Institute's Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database. It evaluated women identified as having primary Stage T1aN0 breast cancer (tumor of 5mm or less that has not spread to the lymph nodes), who received surgery, with or without post-operative radiation therapy, between 1990 and 1997. The analysis was done to determine if XRT was associated with increased mortality due to breast cancer, secondary cancer in the chest area or cardiac conditions for these patients; only patients with breast cancer (BC) identified as the first malignancy were included. The women had a median age of 55-59 and were divided into two groups: 2,397 who received XRT after surgery, and 2,988 who did not receive XRT after surgery.

Cause of death (COD) codes were used to identify cardiac mortality, breast cancer mortality, and deaths from secondary chest cancers in order to assess overall survival (OS), breast cancer survival (BCS), second-tumor specific survival and cardiac-cause specific survival (CCS), and then compared between the XRT and non-XRT groups. The incidence of mortality was compared between the XRT and non-XRT groups utilizing the Chi-Square test; and, the relative risk (RR) and associated 95 percent confidence interval (CI) were calculated. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and log-rank test were performed to assess OS, BCS, second-tumor specific survival and CCS.

At 10 years post-treatment, OS rates were 91.6 percent for the XRT patients and 87 percent for the non-XRT group; BCS rates were 97 percent for the XRT patients and 95.7 percent for the non-XRT group; and CCS was 96.7 percent for the XRT patients and 92.7 percent for the non-XRT group.

Analysis of the data further demonstrates that, with a median follow up of 14 years, there was no statistically significant difference in deaths from subsequent non-breast cancers in the chest area, the majority of which were lung cancers. The number of deaths from cardiac causes was not significantly higher for those patients treated with XRT for left-sided breast cancer, compared to those with right-sided breast cancer among the patient sample and time period reviewed. More women from the non-XRT group died from all causes, including cardiac causes, suggesting that those patients had worse general health conditions than the women who received radiation therapy.

"Breast conserving therapy, consisting of lumpectomy and XRT, has been an excellent approach to early breast cancer treatment, offering equivalent disease control and better cosmetic results compared to mastectomy as demonstrated by multiple randomized controlled trials in the past," said Jason Ye, MD, the study's presenting author and a second-year resident in radiation oncology at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City. "Our study's results suggest that serious long-term side effects of radiation therapy, such as increase in deaths from cardiac disease and secondary malignancies, are rare. Radiation therapy is an integral part of early stage breast cancer treatment for those who choose to have a lumpectomy instead of a mastectomy, with its benefits likely far outweighing the potential risks in majority of the cases. The field of radiation oncology is rapidly changing, with new technology constantly being introduced that may reduce these risks further. Continued long term follow up and additional studies are needed to monitor for potential long term side effects."

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Limited brain Mets with 50 more young adult cancer patients alone, has improved the survival of Stereotactic radiation therapy.

According to the study published in the 55 annual general meeting of the society for radiation oncology (ASTRO)-American whole brain irradiation (Stereotactic ）, adult brain cancer patients 50 years following when dealing with Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS), and found that there is improvement in survival rates cannot be used. Young patients (50 years old) was found despite the omission of new brain metastasis localization development of big risk with or without. University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, University of Southern California （ USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center home ） from the authors of the study are included.

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Adjust the cells of the USC scientists ID protein anticancer therapy, human trafficking and potential.

Molecular microbiologist South California University （ USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center home ） but could lead to treatment for cancer and other disease treatment within a cell complex control mechanisms have been found. Have significance over the years on basic understanding of cell biology, their findings appear in the journal nature cell biology.

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Protein identified that regulates cellular trafficking, potential for anti-cancer therapy

Sep. 22, 2013 — Molecular microbiologists at the University of Southern California (USC) have uncovered intricate regulatory mechanisms within the cell that could lead to novel therapeutics for the treatment of cancer and other diseases. Their findings, which have long-standing significance in the basic understanding of cell biology, appear in the journal Nature Cell Biology.

"Our research reveals a new regulatory mechanism that coordinates two distinct intracellular processes that are critical to cellular homeostasis and disease development," said Chengyu Liang, M.D., Ph.D., a member of the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center and principal investigator of the study.

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and Golgi apparatus are cellular organelles in eurkaryotic organisms where proteins are synthesized and packaged for secretion through the body. The trafficking of proteins between the ER and Golgi must be tightly modulated to maintain the health of the cell and prevent diseases like cancer from taking hold.

"Interest in the role of ER-Golgi network during cancer cell death has been gaining momentum," said Shanshan He, Ph.D., research associate at the Keck School of Medicine of USC and one of the study's first authors. "In this study, we identified a novel regulatory factor for the Golgi-ER retrograde transport and a new mechanistic connection between the physiological trafficking and the autophagic transportation of cellular material."

The researchers discovered that the UV irradiation resistance-associated gene protein (UVRAG), which has been implicated in the suppression of colon and breast cancer, coordinates trafficking of proteins between the ER and Golgi apparatus and also autophagy, the natural process of breaking down cellular components.

"Given that the ER-Golgi network is often dismantled in malignant conditions and that UVRAG is intensively involved in different types of human cancers, this study gives us a new avenue to investigate anti-cancer agents that target UVRAG and/or the ER-Golgi pathway in cancer and other relevant diseases," Liang said.

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Protein identified that regulates cellular trafficking, potential for anti-cancer therapy

Sep. 22, 2013 — Molecular microbiologists at the University of Southern California (USC) have uncovered intricate regulatory mechanisms within the cell that could lead to novel therapeutics for the treatment of cancer and other diseases. Their findings, which have long-standing significance in the basic understanding of cell biology, appear in the journal Nature Cell Biology.

"Our research reveals a new regulatory mechanism that coordinates two distinct intracellular processes that are critical to cellular homeostasis and disease development," said Chengyu Liang, M.D., Ph.D., a member of the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center and principal investigator of the study.

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and Golgi apparatus are cellular organelles in eurkaryotic organisms where proteins are synthesized and packaged for secretion through the body. The trafficking of proteins between the ER and Golgi must be tightly modulated to maintain the health of the cell and prevent diseases like cancer from taking hold.

"Interest in the role of ER-Golgi network during cancer cell death has been gaining momentum," said Shanshan He, Ph.D., research associate at the Keck School of Medicine of USC and one of the study's first authors. "In this study, we identified a novel regulatory factor for the Golgi-ER retrograde transport and a new mechanistic connection between the physiological trafficking and the autophagic transportation of cellular material."

The researchers discovered that the UV irradiation resistance-associated gene protein (UVRAG), which has been implicated in the suppression of colon and breast cancer, coordinates trafficking of proteins between the ER and Golgi apparatus and also autophagy, the natural process of breaking down cellular components.

"Given that the ER-Golgi network is often dismantled in malignant conditions and that UVRAG is intensively involved in different types of human cancers, this study gives us a new avenue to investigate anti-cancer agents that target UVRAG and/or the ER-Golgi pathway in cancer and other relevant diseases," Liang said.

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Potential immune therapy target for the treatment of malignant melanoma of the identification of seven

Use your own digital technology to count the NCI scientists and tumor tissue of small RNA molecules for identifying melanoma treatment of seven potential immune therapy target. Immunotherapy works by that increase the body's immune system or by using immune cells to attack the cancer cells of a particular type. Overexpression of the success of this treatment for melanoma and cancers of all forms, or very active, is contingent upon finding a protein target cancerous tumor cells have limited expression in normal tissues. 7 That is identified in this work meets the requirements of these gene target. The results of this study led by NCI Division of Cancer Research Center for tumor immunology, surgery branch Morgan Dr. Richard a. 9/10/2013, appeared in clinical cancer research.

Designed a genetic probe containing 97 Morgan and his colleagues looking for a target on the new treatment for malignant melanoma, 72, was considered immune therapy for potential candidate genes and gene sets. Genetic probes for each permit individual RNA molecules accurately count NCI research team, a unique fluorescent barcode had. 59 By using probe isolated researcher in melanoma tumor samples and genetic material RNA to protein, the code sets, and counted each time the barcode gene have been observed. The results of this experiment, scientists concluded 33 of 72 potential target genes overexpression of more than 20% of the malignant melanoma tumor samples. 20 And is expressed in normal tissue samples of tumors of those genes, different methods were identified. Based on this analysis, the researchers conclusions 7 gene warrant potential as a target for immunotherapy of further consideration: found high expression in a large percentage of CSAG2, MAGEA3, MAGEC2 and IL13RA2, PRAME, CSPG4, and SOX10, tumor samples that had limited expression in normal tissues.

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The rediscovered hyperthermia therapy of cancer

In the treatment of prostate cancer, a method is very successful, the so-called turf (Transurethral radio frequency therapy). For the treatment of cancer hyperthermia, uses a specific device, additional heat in an electric field of short radio waves is built.Short radio waves have the advantage to be less harmful to the healthy tissue that the previous used microwave ovens. Also short radio waves have a higher range.From hyperthermia inserts a catheter through the urethra, which carries a probe on. This probe sends short radio waves through the prostate tissue. The receivers are fixed to the thighs. Because of radiowaves which prostate tissue is heated, the spacecraft itself remains cold, avoiding injury to urethra.

Effect of hyperthermiaBecause of cancer cells of the primitive blood supply (compared with normal cells) may bring forth evil heat. Cancer cells that causes congestion of heat, which leads to under the provision of oxide.This is a symptom of deficiency disorders of important metabolic processes for prolieferation and repairsystems cells precipitate. So dead cells cannot be replaced, the consequence is that the cancer will die. Hyperthermia can be combined with radiotherapy or chemicaltherapy. This combination has proven to be effective, because even after treatment with chemo or radiation cancer can recover and be resistant to radiation and cytostatic. Heat cancercells hyperthermia DNA will be severely damaged. Cancer has no chance to regenerate. The temperature of Transurethral hyperthermia is roughly 48A° C 52A° C/° F° f 118A to 126A. Hyperthermia therapy is an experimental cancertherapy.

History of hyperthermiaFirst cited was the heeling effect of the ancient Egyptians (2400 BC), but physicians of ancient Greece have this therapeutic approach applied and named: overheating (Greece: Hyperthermie).Through the centuries many illnesses were fought with generation of fever with the help of pyrogen. This encroachments into the body and bodyfunction can call active hyperthermia. The passive hyperthermia is increased using a device from bodytemperature out. A pioneer of modern "Fevertherapy" Julius Wagner von Jauregg is that observed in a patient with random "Erysipel", which gets the healing because of the plague. Later, he developed the fevertherapy employing blood infected with malaria, also called "Malariatherapy". Von Jauregg won the Nobel Prize in medicine for the treatment of lues using "fevertherapy". The procedure has lost its importance with the rise of antibioticaltherapy, but is now rediscovered therapy as a cancer therapy.

This article was written by ErOn UG in partnership with a cancer expert from Hanover, Germany.

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