June 27th, 2009
A recent study in the journal Nutrition and Cancer finds that curcumin—a compound in turmeric—halts the growth of pancreatic cancer, particularly when combined with omega-3 fatty acids.
Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest of all cancers. “One major challenge is the lack of appropriate technologies for early diagnosis, and most pancreatic cancer patients will be diagnosed at a very late stage,” explains Chinthalapally V. Rao, PhD, professor in Medical Oncology and Director of the Cancer Chemoprevention Program at the University of Oklahoma Cancer Institute.
Currently chemotherapy with gemcitabine is the main treatment for pancreatic cancer, but doctors are anxious to find new therapies that will improve survival and reduce side effects. Read the rest of this entry »
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June 27th, 2009
Reported at the 33rd Congress of the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) in Stockholm, a new chemotherapy agent – called cationic lipid complexed paclitaxel (EndoTAG-1) – was founded. Researchers report that EndoTAG-1 can destroys new blood vessels growing around the tumor. Very well result found in phase II trial of patients with inoperable pancreatic cancer.
European investigators led by Prof. Matthias Löhr, from the Karolinska Institute, Sweden, evaluated the efficacy and safety of three different doses of cationic lipid complexed paclitaxel (EndoTAG-1) administered twice weekly, in combination with weekly infusions of gemcitabine, compared to gemcitabine alone, in 200 patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma. Read the rest of this entry »
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June 27th, 2009
Scientists at the Burnham Institute for Medical Research in Orlando, analyze the possibility of colon and pancreatic cancer cure in sponge species called Aphrocalistes beatrix.
Previous research showed that the active compound in the sponge known can zap the cancer cells in lab test. The next goal is to improve on nature to make it more potent, yet less toxic, so it someday can be tested as a drug for cancer patients.
The sponge itself only has very tiny quantities of the material,” said Gregory Roth, Burnham’s director of medicinal chemistry and exploratory pharmacology. Read the rest of this entry »
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June 27th, 2009
Administering radiation therapy prior to surgery nearly doubles survival in pancreatic cancer patients with operable tumours, according to a study in the November 15 issue of the International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology and Physics.
“Patients who received presurgical radiation had almost double the overall survival compared with similar patients who didn’t undergo radiation, and survived significantly longer than patients who received radiation after the tumour was removed,” said senior author David Sherr, MD, Weill Cornell Medical College and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center, New York, New York. Read the rest of this entry »
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June 27th, 2009
Rexin-G was well tolerated and there was no dose-limiting toxicity. At dose level I, three patients achieved stable disease with no tumor progression; and at dose level II, one patient had a 37% decrease in tumor size and five patients exhibited disease stabilization with no tumor progression.
Importantly, Rexin-G improved patient survival in a dose-dependent manner: At dose level I, median progression-free survival was three months, and median over-all survival was five months, while at dose level II, median progression-free survival was greater than three months, and median over-all survival was greater than nine months, the company said. Read the rest of this entry »
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