Estrogen-progestin tablets do not appear to reduce the risk of ovarian cancer and may even increase it, according to the federally funded Women’s Health Initiative Randomized Trial. The study was stopped in 2002 because of evidence that the combination hormone replacement therapy (HRT) raised the risk of breast cancer, heart attacks, and strokes. Researchers set [...]
At the conference of the American Society of Clinical Oncology in June 2004, researchers revealed that people who took statins for at least five years appeared to cut their risk of colon cancer by 50%. Earlier work with statins had shown reductions in breast and prostate cancer as well as general cancer risk. However, the [...]
Minimally invasive colon cancer surgery may be a safe and effective alternative to the traditional operation for most early-stage patients. Laparoscopy, in which surgeons insert a tiny video camera and surgical instruments through small abdominal incisions, involves less scarring and a shorter hospital stay than traditional surgery. A seven-year study was launched in response to [...]
In April 2004, the FDA granted fast-track status to BAY 43-9006 (sorafenib, Bayer). This anticancer agent is being co-developed with Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. BAY 43-9006 is intended to prevent tumor growth by inhibiting tumor cell proliferation and angiogenesis (new blood vessel formation). generic rimonabant
It is well known that at-risk patients are urged to get flu shots, but protection from influenza may be crucial for patients with cancer. Hospitalized patients with flu-related infections are 10 times more likely to die than the general population, say researchers from the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas. The very young and [...]
Cetuximab (Erbitux) is now approved for use in combination with radiation therapy to treat patients with un-resectable squamous cell cancer of the head and neck. It is manufactured by ImClone Systems and will be distributed and marketed by Bristol-Myers Squibb. prevacid drug This is the first drug approved for head and neck cancer that has shown [...]
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved temsirolimus (Torisel, Wyeth) for the treatment of advanced kidney cancer. In a clinical trial of 626 patients, one group received the study drug alone, another received a comparator agent (interferon alfa), and the third group received a combination of the two. The temsirolimus-alone group showed a significant [...]
