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The National Cancer Institute's research programs are extensive and contain many innovative initiatives. I invite you to explore our Web site to find out more about the exciting work being conducted here at NCI and by NCI-supported scientists throughout the country. You will also find valuable cancer-related information of all kinds. For the general public, patients, and health professionals, we offer consumer-oriented information on a wide range of topics as well as comprehensive descriptions of our research programs and clinical trials. Scientists will find detailed information on specific areas of research interest and funding opportunities.

"December 17, 2009 (San Antonio) - A new targeted cancer drug has been shown to shrink tumors in women with metastatic breast cancer after an average of seven other drugs, including Herceptin, failed. The new drug, called T-DM1, combines Herceptin with a potent chemotherapy drug. It's a Trojan horse approach, where Herceptin homes in on cancer cells and delivers the cancer-killing agent directly to its target. Tumors shrank in one-third of women with metastatic breast cancer given T-DM1, says Ian Krop, MD, of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston. In another 12%, tumors stopped growing for at least six months. The women remained cancer-free for an average of seven months -- results unheard of in patients this sick, he says. All the women, who had breast tumors for an average of three years, had cancer that had metastasized, or spread to other parts of the body. They had been treated with an average of seven different therapies, including Herceptin, Tykerb, and Xeloda, and each had failed."

A ground-breaking Canada-wide clinical trial led by Dr. Katherine Borden, at the Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer (IRIC) of the Universit de Montral, has shown that a common anti-viral drug, ribavirin, can be beneficial in the treatment of cancer patients. Published in the journal Blood (First Edition), the study demonstrates that ribavirin suppresses the activities of the eIF4E gene in patients. This gene is dysregulated in 30 percent of cancers including breast, prostate, head and neck, colon and stomach cancer.

D structure of the virus, known as Seneca Valley Virus-001, reveals that it is unlike any other known member of the Picornaviridae viral family, and confirms its recent designation as a separate genus "Senecavirus." The new study reveals that the virus's outer protein shell looks like a craggy golf ball¬-one with uneven divets and raised spikes-and the RNA strand beneath it is arranged in a round mesh rather like a whiffleball. "It is not at all like other known picornaviruses that we are familiar with, including poliovirus and rhinoviruses, which cause the common cold," says the study's senior author, Associate Professor Vijay S. Reddy, Ph.D., of The Scripps Research Institute. "This crystal structure will now help us understand how Senecavirus works, and how we can take advantage of it." The Senecavirus is a "new" virus, discovered several years ago by Neotropix Inc., a biotech company in Malvern, Pennsylvania. It was at first thought to be a laboratory contaminant, but researchers found it was a pathogen, now believed to originate from cows or pigs. Further investigation found that the virus was harmless to normal human cells, but could infect certain solid tumors, such as small cell lung cancer, the most common form of lung cancer.

...has been the number one Google search term leading people to the blog this week - and that worries me. As I wrote about a week ago, dichloroacetate, or DCA, is the molecule tested recently by a team at University of Alberta for its ability to slow the growth of human lung cancer in immunocompromised rats. Among DCA's action is the ability to prevent cancer cells from producing lactic acid via aerobic glycolysis, a process used by more than half (but not all) tumors. Scientists continue to debate whether this process is a cause of cancer, or just a byproduct of malignant cell transformation. I am deeply concerned that desperate cancer patients may be trying to purchase dichloroacetate (DCA) and self-treat for cancer based on this highly-hyped single paper. To the credit of the researchers and their institution, who have set up a website to address the intense interest, they discourage such practice:

Higher blood levels of selenium may reduce the incidence of skin cancer by about 60 per cent, according to a new study from Dutch and Australian researchers. Writing in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, the researchers report that the mineral was associated with reduced risks of both basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). On the other hand, blood levels of carotenoids and alpha-tocopherol (vitamin E) were not associated with any influence on skin cancer risks, report the researchers from Queensland Institute of Medical Research, the University of Queensland, and Maastricht University.

But, she said, the institute has identified three steps people could take to dramatically affect the chances of developing cancer: - Eat a mostly plant-based diet. - Maintain a healthy weight. - Exercise regularly. "The data is pretty clear that we can make a significant drop in the cancer rate with these three changes," Collins said. "We can prevent about one-third of cancers with these changes. And if you add tobacco prevention, which reduces about 30 percent of cancers, over half of today's cancers could be prevented."

Not enough vitamin D: health consequences for Canadians. Schwalfenberg G. Can Fam Physician. 2007 May;53(5):841-54. Review PMID: 17872747 Conclusion Low levels of VTD are considered a major public health problem in Canada, especially during the winter. Those with risk factors should be screened for low 25(OH)D levels and repletion therapy instituted if needed. Researchers have estimated that the oral dose of vitamin D3 to attain and maintain 25(OH)D levels >80 nmol/L is 2200 IU/d if baseline levels are 20 to 40 nmol/L, 1800 IU/d if levels are 40 to 60 nmol/L, and 1160 IU/d if levels are between 60 and 80 nmol/L.64 We need to ensure that patients have healthy blood levels of 25(OH)D to prevent levels of parathyroid hormone from rising and to maximize absorption of calcium, magnesium, and phosphate. Positive effects on bone are marginal at best unless patients consume at least 800 IU/d of VTD. The emerging and exciting role of the VTD receptor and the actions of VTD in maintaining health in other cell types have become more apparent during the last decade.

Below is a list of publications covering the research being done by UW and other institutions on artemisinin and cancer. The list is organized into two categories: publications related to the effects of artemisinin and its analogs on cancer and artemisinin pharmacology and pharmacokinetics. You may find them useful when consulting with your personal physician. We have also compiled a comprehensive list of artemisinin-related articles (more than 350 publications) that you may also find useful.

"ScienceDaily (Oct. 8, 2009) - Women with breast cancer should be given high doses of vitamin D because a majority of them are likely to have low levels of vitamin D, which could contribute to decreased bone mass and greater risk of fractures, according to scientists at the University of Rochester Medical Center." Scientists funded by the NCI analyzed vitamin D levels in each woman, and the average level was 27 nanograms per milliliter; more than two-thirds of the women had vitamin deficiency. Weekly supplementation with high doses of vitamin D -- 50,000 international units or more -- improved the levels, according to Peppone's study. The U.S. Institute of Medicine suggests that blood levels nearing 32 nanograms per milliliter are adequate.

"For years, it's been the perfect excuse for secret admirers to steal a kiss with the object of their desire. But research suggests mistletoe could do much more than just ignite Christmas passions. Scientists have found an extract of the plant could help to fight bowel cancer, which affects 37,500 a year in the UK. Patients who had the mistletoe treatment regularly injected into their blood had fewer side-effects from toxic chemotherapy and radiotherapy and survived longer than those who did not. The extract is thought to help the body's immune system fight tumours and speed up the disposal of toxic 'debris' left by chemotherapy. Researchers led by Professor Kurt Zanker from the German Institute of Immunology and Experimental Oncology, concluded: 'The results suggest convincing evidence that there is a significant benefit from treatment with mistletoe extract.' The scientists treated 429 cancer patients with the mistletoe jab and compared them with 375 receiving conventional care. The results, published in the journal of The Society For Integrative Oncology, showed only 19 per cent of those in the mistletoe group suffered side-effects from toxic treatments, compared to 48 per cent in the other group. They were also 32 per cent more likely to still be alive five years after starting therapy."

In situ hybridization (ISH) may not be a new phrase for today's Biological world. It has not been in this industry for long, but its promising future, without any doubt, is recognized by more biologists and institutions. In situ hybridization (ISH) is a technology being made up of combinations of molecular biology, histochemistry and cytology.

Medical Journal (cancer related)

Medical Journal (cancer related)

The National Cancer Institute Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program recently announced $8 million in new contract funding opportunities to assist small businesses with cancer research and technology development.

beta-glucan A polysaccharide isolated from the cell walls of bacteria, plants, and fungi with immunostimulant and antineoplastic activities. In a solubilized form, beta-glucan binds to a lectin site within complement receptor 3 (CR3) on leukocytes, priming the receptor to trigger cytotoxic degranulation of leukocytes when leukocyte CR3 binds to complement 3 (iC3b)-coated tumors. Thus, the attachment of beta-glucan to CR3 of circulating leukocytes simulates leukocytes to kill iC3b-coated tumor cells in the same way as they kill iC3b-coated yeast. Check for active clinical trials or closed clinical trials using this agent. (NCI Thesaurus)

Phase I Study of White Button Mushroom Extract in Preventing the Recurrence of Breast Cancer in Postmenopausal Women Who Are Breast Cancer Survivors. This is a dose-escalation study. Patients receive oral white button mushroom extract twice daily for 12 weeks in the absence of a second primary ductal carcinoma in situ, invasive breast cancer, or unacceptable toxicity.ble toxicity.\n