Researchers have found a marker on head and neck tumor cells that indicates which cells are capable of fueling the cancer’s growth. The finding is the first evidence of cancer stem cells in head and neck tumors.
Researchers from the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Cancer Center have found that AZD2171 (RECENTIN(tm)), a new angiogenesis inhibitor, can significantly reduce the size of the deadly brain tumors called glioblastomas and has the potential of improving the effectiveness of other therapeutic techniques.
Researchers at the University of Alberta have shown that a nontoxic molecule shrinks cancers tumors, including lung, breast and brain. The results of the research will be published in the journal Cancer Cell.
Brain tumors appear to arise from cancer stem cells (CSCs) that live within microscopic protective “niches” formed by blood vessels in the brain; and disrupting these niches is a promising strategy for eliminating the tumors and preventing them from re-growing, according to results of a study by investigators at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. CSCs are cells that continually multiply, acting as the source of tumors.
The increasing number of tuberculosis cases detected annually in Thailand is an ongoing challenge for the government, the Nation reports. According to Somchai Pinyopornpaitch, deputy director-general of the Department of Disease Control, TB cases have increased for several years despite health officials’ efforts.
Scientists at ProXara Biotechnology Limited have identified a way of switching off one of the key mechanisms that leads to the development and growth of a tumour. Under the Wellcome Trust’s Seeding Drug Discovery initiative, the researchers hope to use their findings to develop a drug that could be used to fight cancer. The funding will be used to develop the drug to a point at which it is close to entering a clinical trial.
Surveyors of anti-aging elixirs tout human growth hormone as a remedy for all things sagging-from skin to libidos — and claim it can even prevent or reverse aging. But researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine say there’s no evidence to suggest that this purported fountain of youth has any more effect than a trickle of tap water when it comes to fending off Father Time.
A review of published data on use of human growth hormone by healthy elderly people found that the synthetic hormone was associated with small changes in body composition but not in body weight or other clinically important outcomes. Further, people who took GH had increased rates of unhealthy side effects such as soft tissue swelling, joint pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, and, in men, abnormal breast development and were also somewhat more likely to develop diabetes.
A review of published data on use of human growth hormone by healthy elderly people found that the synthetic hormone was associated with small changes in body composition but not in body weight or other clinically important outcomes.
The Cancer Council, New South Wales, Australia, has new guidelines on soy and cancer. Cancer Council recommends soy foods as part of a healthy diet but warn against high-dose supplements for people who have breast or prostate cancer.