Vaccine Against HPV-16 Effective for Vulvar Intraepithelial Neoplasia

November 6, 2009 — Researchers from the Netherlands have reported that vaccination with synthetic long-peptides against human papillomavirus (HPV)-16 was effective in treating vulvar intraepithelial neoplasia (VIN). The details of this study were published in the November 5, 2009 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Small HER2-positive Breast Cancers Have a Higher Risk of Recurrence

November 6, 2009 — Researchers from the M. D. Anderson Cancer Center and the University of Milan, Italy, have reported that women with Stage T1a,b, N0M0 HER2-positive breast cancers have a have a high recurrence rate without the administration of adjuvant chemotherapy or Herceptin® (trastuzumab). These data suggest that these women should be treated with Herceptin®-based adjuvant chemotherapy. The details of these two studies appeared in early online publications on November 2, 2009 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Alcohol May Reduce Risk of Thyroid Cancer

November 6, 2009 — Researchers affiliated with the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study have reported that alcohol intake may reduce the risk of thyroid cancer. The details of this study appeared in the November 4, 2009 issue of the British Journal of Cancer.

Health reform gets boost before vote

November 6, 2009 — WASHINGTON (Reuters) - With a close vote looming in the House of Representatives, President Barack Obama's push for healthcare reform was boosted on Thursday by the support of powerful lobbies representing doctors and seniors.

Even Small HER2-positive Breast Cancers Have a Higher Risk of Recurrence

November 5, 2009 — Among women with small, node-negative breast cancers, those with tumors that are HER2-positive have a higher risk of cancer recurrence. This suggests that consideration of HER2-targeted therapy such as Herceptin® (trastuzumab) may be important, even for women with small tumors. These results were published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Obesity causes 100,000 US cancer cases: report

November 5, 2009 — WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Obesity causes more than 100,000 cases of cancer in the United States each year -- and the number will likely rise as Americans get fatter, researchers said on Thursday.

Italy's waste woes taking toll on citizens' health

November 5, 2009 — NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Decades of illegal waste disposal in southern Italy may be having dire consequences for the health of people living in the area, new research shows.

Nanoparticles can damage DNA at a distance: study

November 5, 2009 — LONDON (Reuters) - Nanoparticles can damage the DNA of cells from a distance, even without crossing the cellular barriers that protect certain parts of the body, British researchers said on Thursday.

Continuous Daily Sutent® Palliative in Patients with Relapsed or Refractory Advanced NSCLC

November 5, 2009 — Researchers from several U.S. and Spanish medical centers have reported that single-agent daily Sutent® (sunitinib) was associated with a 25% disease control rate in patients with previously treated advanced non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The details of this study appeared in the November 4, 2009 issue of the British Journal of Cancer.

Dose-dense Chemotherapy for Disseminated Thymoma Reported

November 5, 2009 — Researchers from Japan have reported that dose-dense chemotherapy is effective for the treatment of patients with Stage IV thymoma. The details of this study appeared in the November 4, 2009 issue of the British Journal of Cancer.

Childhood Cancer Survivors at Risk for Thyroid Cancer

November 5, 2009 — Researchers from the UK have reported that survivors of childhood cancer are 18 times more likely to develop thyroid cancer than the general population. The details of this study appeared in the November 15, 2009 issue of the International Journal of Cancer.

Experimental vaccine cures pre-cancer vulvar growths

November 5, 2009 — BOSTON (Reuters) - An experimental vaccine cured nearly half of women with pre-cancerous growths on their genitals, producing major improvement in nearly four out of five, researchers in the Netherlands reported on Wednesday.

Red, processed meats linked to prostate cancer

November 5, 2009 — NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Men who eat a lot of red meat and processed meats may have a higher risk of developing prostate cancer than those who limit such foods, a large study of U.S. men suggests.

Rapamune™ May Improve Responses to Gleevec® in Patients with Chordoma

November 4, 2009 — Researchers from Italy have reported that the addition of Rapamune® (sirolimus, rapamycin) to Gleevec® (imatinib) may improve disease control in patients with chordoma resistant to Gleevec. The details of this study appeared in the November 2009 issue of the Annals of Oncology.

Low-dose Interferon-alfa Does Not Improve Outcomes of Patients with Renal Cell Carcinoma Receiving Nexavar®

November 4, 2009 — Researchers from the M. D. Anderson Cancer Center have reported that the addition of low-dose interferon-alfa (IFN) to Nexavar® (sorafenib) did not improve survivals of patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC). The details of this study were published early online in Cancer on October 27. 2009.