An Akron hospital is among the first in the country using a high-tech robot to remove cancerous lobes in some patients’ lungs without spreading open their chests. Summa Health System recently became one of several hospitals nationwide offering a robotic procedure to remove an entire cancerous lobe of a lung for some patients with early-stage lung cancer. The less invasive version of the lung surgery allows doctors to operate through small incisions rather than using openings as large as 10 inches to expose the chest cavity. For those who qualify, the less-invasive option means less pain, fewer infections and quicker recovery, which allows patients to leave the hospital and potentially start curative chemotherapy and radiation treat…
“Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) for patients with early-stage non-small-cell lung cancer is associated with lower stress responses and potentially improved outcomes, as compared with thoracotomy. The goal of our study was to examine the cellular components of the postoperative immune response,” scientists in the United States report. “Specifically, we assessed the cytotoxic capacity of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of patients undergoing lobectomy for non-small-cell lung cancer by either VATS or thoracotomy. We performed a prospective cohort study of lobectomy patients undergoing either VATS or thoracotomy. We isolated PBMCs from perioperative blood samples, and performed cytokine analysis on plasma fractions. U…
New research in an animal model suggests that a diet high in inorganic phosphates, which are found in a variety of processed foods including meats, cheeses, beverages, and bakery products, might speed growth of lung cancer tumors and may even contribute to the development of those tumors in individuals predisposed to the disease. The study also suggests that dietary regulation of inorganic phosphates may play an important role in lung cancer treatment. The research, using a mouse model, was conducted by Myung-Haing Cho, D.V.M., Ph.D., and his colleagues at Seoul National University, appears in the first issue for January of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, published by the American Thoracic Society. “Our…
Nicotine gum has been in use for over 20 years to help smokers quit abruptly yet close to two-thirds of smokers report that they would prefer to quit gradually. Scientists from the University of Pittsburgh and GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare have now observed that smokers who are trying to quit gradually can also be helped by nicotine gum. The results of the first study to test the efficacy and safety of using nicotine gum to assist cessation by gradual reduction are reported in the February 2009 issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine…….
Cancer and cell biology experts at the University of Cincinnati (UC) have identified a new tumor suppressor that may help researchers develop more targeted drug therapies to combat lung cancer. The study, led by Jorge Moscat, PhD, appears in the January 2009 issue of Molecular and Cellular Biology. Proto-oncogenes are genes that play a role in normal cell growth (turnover of cells and tissue) but, when genetically modified, can cause the out-of-control cell division that leads to cancer. Prior research had established that Ras, a proto-oncogene, is abnormally expressed in up to 25 percent of human lung cancers; however, scientists did not understand the specific cellular events by which abnormal Ras expression leads to transformation……..
While examining patterns of DNA modification in lung cancer, a team of international scientists has discovered what they say is a surprising new mechanism. They say that “silencing” of a single gene in lung cancer led to a general impairment in genome-wide changes in cells, contributing to cancer development and progression……..
New research in an animal model suggests that a diet high in inorganic phosphates, which are found in a variety of processed foods including meats, cheeses, beverages, and bakery products, might speed growth of lung cancer tumors and may even contribute to the development of those tumors in individuals predisposed to the disease……..
Individuals with particular variants of certain genes involved in metabolizing the most potent carcinogen found in cigarette smoke have an increased risk of developing lung cancer. That is the conclusion of a new study reported in the February 1, 2009 issue of CANCER, a peer-evaluated journal of the American Cancer Society. The study’s results may help shed light on how lung cancer develops and could have important implications for preventing smoking-related cancers……..
Canadian scientists are trying to answer why some smokers develop lung cancer while others remain disease free, despite similar changes in lifestyle. Results were presented at the American Association for Cancer Research’s Seventh Annual International Conference on Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research……..
Patients treated for locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer who receive chemotherapy and proton beam treatment have fewer instances of bone marrow toxicity than patients who receive the standard therapy of intensity-modulated radiation (IMRT) and concurrent chemotherapy, as per scientists from The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center……..
Patients operated on by surgeons who do not routinely remove cancer from the lungs may be at a higher risk for complications, as per a research studyconducted by scientists at Duke University Medical Center. “Our study observed that hospitals that do higher volumes of these types of surgeries have correspondingly lower mortality rates than those who do fewer of the procedures,” said Andrew Shaw, M.D., an anesthesiologist at Duke and lead investigator on the study……..
Oncologists at the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) in La Jolla are hoping to stave off the relentless march of advanced lung cancer by treating patients with a novel kind of cancer vaccine. While a number of vaccines attempt to pump up the immune system to fight off a cancer, the new vaccine, Lucanix, is genetically engineered to also trick the cancer into turning off its immune system-suppressing activities……..
For decades now, cigarette makers have marketed so-called light cigarettes which contain less nicotine than regular smokes with the implication that they are less harmful to smokers’ health. A new UCLA study shows, however, that they deliver nearly as much nicotine to the brain. Reporting in the current online edition of the International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology, UCLA psychiatry professor Dr. Arthur L. Brody and his colleagues observed that low-nicotine cigarettes act similarly to regular cigarettes, occupying a significant percentage of the brain’s nicotine receptors……..
Individuals with particular variants of certain genes involved in metabolizing the most potent carcinogen found in cigarette smoke have an increased risk of developing lung cancer. That is the conclusion of a new study published in the February 1, 2009 issue of CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society. The study’s results may help shed light on how lung cancer develops and could have important implications for preventing smoking-related cancers. Tobacco-specific nitrosamine 4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanone (NNK) is a component of cigarette smoke that has been shown to cause lung cancer in rodents. Certain enzymes act to protect the body from this type of chemical by turning it into nontoxic forms or by…
A new study by researchers at UC Berkeley and Harvard claims that trucking industry workers who have been regularly exposed to diesel vehicle exhaust have an elevated risk of lung cancer with each increasing year of work. Although an elevated risk of lung cancer has long been attributed to diesel exhaust exposure, previous studies specifically implicating diesel exhaust as a carcinogen were limited due to a lack of exposure measurements and work records relating job title to exposure-related job duties, the study’s authors said. “Our results suggest that lung cancer mortality in workers with a previous history of regular exposures to particulate from diesel exhaust and other mobile sources is elevated and increases with increasing exp…
WASHINGTON — Researchers at University of Texas have determined that a mutation in a gene known for its role in defending the lungs against invading pathogens is responsible for some inherited cases of a lethal lung disease affecting older adults. The same mutation may also be associated with lung cancer, the researchers reported in the January 2009 issue of American Journal of Human Genetics. This is the third gene that has been linked with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, or IPF. In the United States, about 200,000 patients have IPF, and about 40,000 patients die from the disease each year, according to the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation. The disease typically strikes people in their 50s and older, causing severe sc…
TORONTO — The drug company Hoffman-La Roche is informing doctors about new safety information for one of its drugs used by lung cancer patients. It says liver function needs to be closely monitored by the doctor in patients who currently or recently have taken Tarceva. The drug Tarceva (erlotinib) is used to treat patients with non-small cell lung cancer at an advanced stage when chemotheraphy has not helped to stop the disease. But the letter issued by Hoffman-La Roche says a study of patients with advanced cancer and moderate liver impairment found that a number of patients died during treatment or within 30 days of the last dose, compared to patients with normal liver function. Patients on the drug need to consult their doct…
LONDON and CAMBRIDGE, MA — Cancer drug developer Antisoma plc announces that the British Journal of Cancer has today published the results of a randomised phase II trial of ASA404 in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Positive data from this trial supported the progress of ASA404 into phase III development. ASA404 is a Tumour-Vascular Disrupting Agent (Tumour-VDA) that attacks tumours by selectively destroying the tumour blood vessels on which they depend to survive and grow. In the trial published today, 73 patients receiving their first treatment for NSCLC were randomly assigned to receive either ASA404 plus standard chemotherapy or standard chemotherapy alone. Patients in the ASA404 group had a median survival of…
MAYWOOD, Ill. — Lung cancer surgery prolongs survival without progression of the cancer, but does not dramatically improve overall survival, U.S. researchers found. Lead author Dr. Kathy Albain of Loyola University Health System’s Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center and colleagues said patients who did appear to have a major benefit from surgery were those in whom a section of the lung was removed, rather than the entire lung. The study included patients with non-small cell cancer, which accounts for about 80 percent of all lung cancers. The patients had stage III cancer, in which the cancer had spread to lymph nodes in the center of the chest. This type of stage III cancer accounts for about 30 percent of all non-sma…
MINNEAPOLIS — A new website launched today that helps patients who have been told they have a spot on their lung learn about options for the next step in their health care process – getting a diagnosis. The website www.spotonyourlung.com provides information in easy-to-understand terms and educates patients about options for diagnosis so they can discuss with their physician which option may be best for them. While there are several organizations and medical centers that provide support and information to patients on lung cancer, www.spotonyourlung.com speaks to the options available for diagnosis after learning you have a lung spot, which doesn’t always mean a diagnosis of lung cancer. There is little information avai…
OSI Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Genentech, Inc. announced that SATURN, a pivotal Phase III study of Tarceva (erlotinib), met a key secondary endpoint of extending overall survival in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who received Tarceva immediately after initial chemotherapy. A statistically significant improvement in overall survival was seen in this pre-planned final analysis of the total patient population. The new data will be presented during the 13th World Conference on Lung Cancer to be held July 31 to August 4, 2009 in San Francisco. Treating patients immediately following first-line chemotherapy versus waiting for the cancer to grow or spread before giving additional treatment represents a new approach in…
Radiation from natural radon gas concentrated in homes raises the risk for lung cancer, a UN scientific committee has established in a report presented Tuesday in Vienna. The gas is normally present in the air, but can become trapped in buildings especially in the Northern hemisphere, where windows are often kept closed. “Radon is a typical health risk no one wants to accept or take note of,” said Wolfgang Weiss, Vice Chairman of the UN Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR). The small but detectable risk was especially relevant for smokers who are already at a higher risk, Weiss told journalists. Based on the report, the World Health Organizations and other organizations were in the pr…
CanBas Co., Ltd. (Numazu, Shizuoka, “CanBas”) and Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (Osaka, “Takeda”) together with Takeda’s wholly-owned subsidiary Millennium: The Takeda Oncology Company (Cambridge, MA, “Millennium”) announced the advancement of CBP501 into Phase II clinical trials for the treatment of patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Current pre-clinical data suggest that CBP501 has the potential to induce cancer cell death through a mechanism of action that blocks the ability of cancer cells to transition through the cell cycle. Data from a previous Phase I study indicate that CBP501 may enhance anti-cancer cytotoxic activity when combined with selected chemotherapeutic drugs. CanBas and Takeda signed a collabora…
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Alimta (pemetrexed), the first drug available for maintenance therapy of advanced or metastatic lung cancer. Patients with cancer often receive maintenance therapy to prevent the disease from progressing after their tumor has shrunk or the disease has stabilized in response to chemotherapy. Alimta disrupts metabolic processes that are dependent on the B-vitamin folate, a necessary ingredient for cell replication. ‘This drug represents a new approach in the treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer,’ said Richard Pazdur, M.D., director, Office of Oncology Drug Products in the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. ‘Typically, patients whose tumors respond to chemother…
A new imaging technique can monitor, in living mice, the HER2 protein found in above-normal amounts in many cases of breast cancer as well as some ovarian, prostate and lung cancers. This new approach, once validated in mice and pending further experiments, could provide a real-time noninvasive method for identifying tumors in humans who express HER2 and who would be candidates for targeted therapy directed against this protein. It may also provide real-time information that will help clinicians optimize treatment for individual patients. The study, published in the July 2009 issue of The Journal of Nuclear Medicine, was conducted by researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the National Institute of Biomedica…
WASHINGTON — Landmark legislation giving the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) the power to regulate tobacco products was signed into law at a White House ceremony today. The federal government can now regulate the amount of nicotine in tobacco products, ban flavorful additives, require every chemical ingredient to be detailed on the label and prohibit deceptive marketing and ads that target the young. Lung Cancer Alliance President Laurie Fenton-Ambrose said, “This puts us on a whole new track in helping current smokers to quit and in preventing new generations of young people from ever becoming addicted in the first place.” “And, hopefully,” said Fenton, “this will also mark a new track for lung cancer research…
Women continue to be under-enrolled in cancer clinical trials, according to a new review, published in the July 15, 2009 issue of CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society. The study’s results suggest that greater efforts are needed to ensure that oncologists know the true effects of treatments and medical procedures in female patients. In 1993, the National Institutes of Health called for clinical trials to include adequate representation of women. To define better the representation of women as subjects in the full range of high-impact, clinical cancer research published currently, Reshma Jagsi, MD, DPhil of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and colleagues reviewed cancer clinical research appearing in eight…
A lung cancer treatment that inhibits nicotine receptors was shown to double survival time in mice, according to Italian researchers. The results of the early phase animal model study were reported in the June 15 issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. Changes in genes encoding nicotine receptors are strongly associated not only with the tendency to smoke, but with susceptibility to lung cancer. Nicotine exposure also heightens the expression of the nicotine receptors, which leads to increased cell proliferation and inhibition of apoptosis, further setting the stage for cancer. Patrizia Russo, Ph.D. and Laura Paleari, Ph.D. of the Lung Cancer Unit of the National Cancer Research Institute in Genoa,…
WASHINGTON — Today, the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly endorsed the U.S. Senate version of the FDA tobacco regulation bill with a 307-97 vote — an emphatic exclamation point for the successful conclusion of a decade long battle. The final stop is the President’s desk and a signing ceremony is expected to be held next week. Lung Cancer Alliance President Laurie Fenton Ambrose called its passage an historic moment in public history. “This legislation recognizes that nicotine is a highly addictive drug that tobacco companies have deliberately used fraudulent and deceptive marketing to hook new smokers as young as possible, and must be regulated as the dangerous drug it is.” she said. “Hopefully this…
A national Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) study led by a Medical College of Wisconsin Cancer Center physician at Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee has found that a course of radiation therapy to the brain after treatment for locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer reduced the risk of metastases to the brain within the first year after treatment. The study was presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting in Orlando, June 1. “With improved treatments for non-small cell lung cancer, patients are living longer and we are seeing more brain metastases,” says study author Elizabeth Gore, M.D. “This study compared the efficacy of prophylactic (preventive) cranial irradiation (PCI) vs. observation in these pati…
Lung Cancer | admin October 24, 2011 | 
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