New stem cell growth strategy could yield better way to treat brain lesions
Durham, NC — Researchers have found a new way to increase the survival of stem cells injected into the brain. The discovery might one day prove useful in developing new treatments for neurological disorders — especially brain lesions, which among other things can provoke seizures and indicate multiple sclerosis or certain forms of cancer.
The study was performed by Sushma Chaubey, Ph.D., and John H. Wolfe, V.M.D., Ph.D., of the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia’s Research Institute and the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine. It appears in the current issue of STEM CELLS Translational Medicine.
Reduced oxygen levels could double neural stem cells’ chance of survival
Durham, NC — Decreasing the amount of oxygen traditionally used when culturing stem cells for use in neurological therapies could drastically affect their survival rate. In fact, it could double it, according to a new study released today in STEM CELLS Translational Medicine.
“Cells are usually cultured in the lab in a 20 percent oxygen environment, a level far removed from the in vivo situation. This is particularly true in the central nervous system, where oxygen tensions — that is, the concentration of oxygen at a specific pressure — are normally around 3 percent,” said Sybil Stacpoole, M.D., Ph.D., lead author on the paper by a team of researchers from the Universities of Cambridge and Edinburgh.
Study: HIV infection does not adversely affect outcomes of liver transplantation for hepatocellular carcinoma
DURHAM, NC — Liver transplantation for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is feasible for HIV-infected patients, with no differences in post-transplant survival or HCC recurrence rates compared with liver transplantation for HCC in HIV-uninfected patients. The study, published in The Oncologist, was led by Dr. Fabrizio Di Benedetto, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Surgery, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy, and represents the largest multicenter study of liver transplant for HCC in HIV-infected patients to date.
Study: FOLFIRINOX followed by chemoradiation shows substantial activity in locally advanced pancreatic cancer
DURHAM, NC — Treatment with neoadjuvant 5-FU, oxaliplatin, irinotecan, and leucovorin (FOLFIRINOX) followed by chemoradiation shows substantial activity in patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer, with conversion to surgical resectability with curative intent in more than 20% of patients. In a retrospective study published in The Oncologist, Jason Faris, M.D., Medical Oncologist at the Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center in Boston, and colleagues described their institutional experience with the FOLFIRINOX treatment protocol in patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer.
Study shows dual targeting of HER2 and HR-positive metastatic breast cancer improves survival rates
DURHAM, NC — A new study published in The Oncologist shows targeting both hormone receptors (HRs) and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) in first-line treatment of metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patients significantly increased overall survival times.
A team of researchers lead by Debu Tripathy, M.D., of the University of Southern California (USC) Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center in Los Angeles, CA, looked at data provided by RegistHER, a prospective, observational study of 1,023 newly diagnosed HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer MBC patients. They found that hormonal therapy given with the anti-HER2 antibody trastuzumab (Herceptin) and chemotherapy is associated with improved survival and progression-free survival outcomes, compared to no hormonal therapy.
