In the current issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers from Nationwide Children’s Hospital describe a new paradigm for treating transcription factor-driven cancers. The study focuses on Ewing sarcoma and how the EWS/FLI transcription factor drives the malignancy – and suggests ways to disrupt the process. Transcription factors are involved in the process...
Post
Altitude training for cancer-fighting cells
Mountain climbers and endurance athletes are not the only ones to benefit from altitude training – that is, learning to perform well under low-oxygen conditions. It turns out that cancer-fighting cells of the immune system can also improve their performance through a cellular version of such a regimen. In a study published in Cell Reports, Weizmann...
Post
Theranostics: Paintball targeting of cancer cells combined with precision therapy
The Journal of Nuclear Medicine‘s September 2017 supplement shines a spotlight on theranostics and its increasingly important role in the delivery of precision medicine. Theranostics refers to the combination of a predictive biomarker, identified through diagnostic imaging using radiolabeled ligands (which lock onto the specific cancer cell receptor/biomarker), with precise therapy targeted on the now-marked...
Post
Jet lag drug may aid cancer patients
Painful side effects from cancer medicines could be tackled with a drug that eases the effects of jet lag, research suggests. The drug – known as melatonin – appeared to prevent pain caused by chemotherapy damage to nerves. It blocked harmful effects on nerve health, the study with rats shows. Experts say the findings help scientists understand...
Post
FDA approves first biosimilar drug for cancer
Mvasi (bevacizumab-awwb) was found to be biosimilar to the drug Avastin (bevacizumab), the FDA said Thursday in a news release. Avastin was approved in 2004. Mvasi is approved to treat certain colorectal, lung, brain, kidney, and cervical cancers. The most common side effects of Mvasi include epistaxis, headache, hypertension, rhinitis, proteinuria, changes in taste, and...
Post
Natural molecule appears to shut off cancer cells’ energy source
The Warburg Effect describes a phenomenon in which cancer cells voraciously consume glucose for energy—something scientists have long known, yet have had little success exploiting as a way to stunt tumor growth. Now researchers at Duke Cancer Institute have not only untangled an unusual wiring system that cancer cells use for carbohydrate metabolism, but also identified a natural...
Post
Giving Migraine Treatments the Best Chance
If you’ve never had a migraine, I have two things to say to you: 1) You’re damn lucky. 2) You can’t begin to imagine how awful they are. I had migraines – three times a month, each lasting three days — starting from age 11 and finally ending at menopause. Although my migraines were not...
Post
Exercise may stem kidney damage in lupus patients
The autoimmune disease causes the body to attack and damage vital organs such as the kidneys. Singer Selena Gomez put lupus in the spotlight last week when she received a kidney transplant because the disease had ravaged her own kidneys. But the new research, which included two mice trials and a slightly different human trial, offers new strategies that...
Post
Why lupus sufferers may need kidney transplants: As Selena Gomez reveals going under the knife, we explain the disease’s paralyzing side effects
The 25-year-old singer revealed on Instagram that her best friend donated her kidney for her this summer Selena admitted to her chronic illness in 2015 and how she has struggled with it Lupus is an illness where the body’s immune system attacks healthy tissues and organs such as the skin, joints, kidney and brain People...
Post
Does biotin for hair growth work?
Biotin, or B7, is an essential B vitamin that helps the body get energy and nutrients from carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. Gastrointestinal bacteria usually produce enough biotin to meet bodily needs. Many foods also contain small amounts of biotin, including whole wheat, egg yolks, nuts, and legumes. Biotin and hair growth While biotin has become popular for...