Research on chemotherapy and its side effects. Covers nerve-injury prevention, gold-nanorod therapy, less-intensive regimens, and combination treatments.
Scientists have found a way to protect hair follicles from chemotherapy, potentially preventing hair loss. Researchers used CDK4/6 inhibitors to halt cell division and reduce damage caused by taxanes, common anti-cancer drugs that can induce permanent hair loss.
The Impower131 Trial found that atezolizumab + chemotherapy improved overall survival by 3.9 months compared to chemotherapy alone, particularly among patients with high PD-L1 expression. Treatment-related side effects were common but manageable in both arms.
Patients taking nivolumab experience a significant five-fold increase in overall survival, with five-year rates of 13.4% compared to docetaxel's 2.6%. Long-term benefits and improved progression-free survival have been observed with nivolumab treatment.
The KEYNOTE-024 trial found that pembrolizumab significantly improved progression-free and overall survival in patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer. Patients treated with pembrolizumab had a median overall survival of 26.3 months compared to 14.2 months for those on chemotherapy.
Durvalumab plus chemotherapy significantly improved overall survival in patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer, with a median survival of 13 months compared to 10.3 months for the control group. The study found that 33.9% of patients receiving durvalumab were alive at 18 months.
Researchers studied the relationship between tumor mutational burden and response to immunotherapy with pembrolizumab. The study found that high or low TMB levels did not significantly impact overall survival, progression-free survival, or objective response rates for patients with metastatic nonsquamous non-small cell lung cancer.
Researchers found no significant correlation between tumor mutational burden and response rates, progression-free survival, or overall survival in patients treated with pembrolizumab plus carboplatin and pemetrexed. High objective response rates were observed in both TMB low and high subgroups.
Gold-based molecules have shown to be up to 24 times more effective at killing cancer cells than cisplatin and inhibit tumour growth by up to 46.9%. They also target an enzyme linked with cancer progression and have anti-inflammatory properties.
A new study links elevated levels of FAK to the survival of cancer stem cells and DNA repair in ovarian cancer tumors, making them resistant to platinum chemotherapy. Researchers found that FAK inhibition can improve treatment response in mice with chemo-resistant tumors.
Researchers found a threefold increase in cardiac events and tenfold increased risk for heart failure among childhood cancer survivors compared to cancer-free peers. Modifiable risk factors like diabetes, hypertension, and metabolic disorders contribute to the elevated heart disease risk.
Researchers at Mayo Clinic found that increasing PD-L1 expression in colorectal cancer cells can improve chemotherapy effectiveness. This discovery suggests a potential strategy to enhance treatment outcomes for patients with resistant colon cancer.
Oncologists suggest using nab-paclitaxel instead of paclitaxel prior to surgery for high-risk breast cancer patients, potentially improving long-term outcomes and reducing disease recurrence. This approach may be particularly beneficial for women with hormone receptor positive, HER-2 negative breast cancer.
Researchers have developed a drug that speeds up blood stem cell regeneration after exposure to radiation, accelerating the recovery of cancer patients. The new compound, DJ009, lifts molecular 'brakes' on blood stem cells, enabling them to recover faster and reducing the risk of infections.
A large population-based study found that novel oral androgen signaling inhibitor therapies increase the risk of death in patients with pre-existing cardiovascular conditions. Patients with three or more heart conditions experienced a 50% increase in mortality, while enzalutamide was associated with lower hospitalization rates.
A recent study found that certain molecules in chemotherapy drugs react differently to radiation when in water compared to gas. This affects the ionization process and can improve the way radiation is used for cancer treatment.
A breakthrough new drug CBL0137 has proven effective in mice treated with chemotherapy and is being tested as a potential treatment for all types of cancer, including solid tumours. The drug works by reactivating the body's P53 pathway to kill off damaged cells.
Microrobots, made of magnesium and gold, are designed to deliver medication to specific spots inside the body. They use photoacoustic computed tomography (PACT) to navigate to tumors and release their payload.
A new study published in Annals of Surgical Oncology suggests that delaying chemotherapy after breast cancer surgery can lead to poorer overall survival. The research found that patients who received postoperative chemotherapy within four months of diagnosis had better survival rates than those whose treatment was delayed.
Researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center found that metabolites associated with energy powerhouse mitochondria changed differently in patients who developed heart dysfunction compared to those who did not. Citric acid and aconitic acid levels differentiated the two groups of patients.
Researchers at the University of Nottingham have discovered that delivering chemotherapy drugs via a biodegradable paste during brain cancer surgery can lead to long-term survival. The treatment, using a combination of etoposide and temozolomide, was found to be effective in rat models with glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) tumors.
A stealthy new drug-delivery system has been developed that disguises chemotherapeutics as fat, allowing it to penetrate and destroy tumors while minimizing side effects. The system uses a long-chain fatty acid with two binding sites to attach to drugs, which are then carried by human serum albumin throughout the body.
Rutgers researchers created a portable device that combines artificial intelligence and biosensors to detect live cancer cells after treatment, providing rapid results for personalized interventions. The device achieves 95.9% accuracy in counting live cancer cells without staining, enabling further molecular analysis and instant detect...
Researchers discovered that a repurposed heart drug can overcome chemotherapy resistance in over a third of ependymoma patients. The study found that the presence of ABCB1, a protein pumping out chemotherapy drugs, is associated with poorer outcomes and lower survival rates.
Researchers have discovered the precise mechanism behind 5-Fluorouracil resistance in cancer, revealing a previously unknown protein called BOK as the key to understanding this phenomenon. Without BOK, cancer cells become dormant and can survive chemotherapy treatment before mutating into more aggressive forms.
A new study shows that niraparib can extend life for women with ovarian cancer who have undergone multiple rounds of chemotherapy. The study found that 27% of patients responded well to the drug and averaged 9.2 months until disease progression, offering hope for a meaningful treatment option.
DNA damaged by cisplatin is mostly fixed within two circadian cycles in noncancerous tissue, with repair of transcribed genes dominating the first 48 hours. This knowledge could aid the design of successful chronochemotherapies to reduce toxicity and target cancer cells.
Researchers have shown that high doses of cyclophosphamide stimulate an immune system attack on lymphoma cells, resolving long-standing questions about the drug's mode of action. The discovery suggests a novel way to spark an immune system strike on certain cancers, particularly those with aggressive characteristics.
A new diagnostic test has the potential to determine if breast cancer patients require chemotherapy, giving them control over their treatment. The test uses gene profiling to identify low-risk patients who may not benefit from chemotherapy.
A new clinical trial has successfully treated women with HER2-positive breast cancer who have no other treatment options by combining Herceptin with chemotherapy. The two-in-one treatment extended life for patients with high and low levels of the HER2 protein, offering a promising solution to drug resistance.
Researchers have developed a genetically modified virus that kills cancer cells and makes them sensitive to chemotherapy drugs, halting tumor progression in mice. The combination of p53 gene therapy and cabazitaxel resulted in full control of tumor growth, with an additive or synergistic effect.
Researchers have created a new chemoradiotherapy formulation that could reduce side effects in advanced stage head and neck cancer patients. The formulation, which stays within tumors, is predicted to be effective while minimizing harm to healthy cells.
A new multi-organ-on-a-chip system accurately captures chemotherapies' toxic effects on liver and other organs. The technology enables flexible testing of different organ systems, potentially leading to more accurate drug development and personalized therapies.
IDIBELL researchers have discovered a biomarker that predicts resistance to the chemotherapy drug docetaxel in triple-negative breast cancer. The study found that tumors with an amplified chromosome 12 region are more likely to develop resistance to docetaxel, but may be vulnerable to alternative treatment with carboplatin.
Mini-tumors of head and neck cancer can be grown in the lab for long-term study, allowing researchers to test novel and existing therapies. The tumors' response to radiotherapy and targeted therapies will help predict patient outcomes.
The NRG-GOG 0258 trial showed that carboplatin and paclitaxel chemotherapy alone resulted in comparable recurrence-free survival rates compared to combined modality treatment. The study found a reduced incidence of vaginal, pelvic, and para-aortic lymph node recurrences but increased distant recurrences with combined modality treatment.
Researchers from the University of Notre Dame have developed small drug-targeting molecules that can deliver potent drugs to desired sites of disease, including cancer. The molecules use a 'homing' cue to attract drug molecules to sites bearing a tumor, reducing toxic side effects.
Scientists have created a hydrogel that attracts chemotherapy drugs to tumors in mice, reducing side effects caused by the drugs acting on healthy cells. The approach uses cucurbituril to target therapies to a tumor, resulting in improved treatment outcomes and reduced toxicity.
A study led by Northwestern University found that radiation combined with chemotherapy did not increase recurrence-free survival in women with stage III/IVA endometrial cancer. Chemotherapy alone remains the standard of care for this type of cancer.
SMU researchers develop a new approach to treat drug-resistant prostate cancer cells using a protein inhibitor and chemotherapy. The method shows promising results, increasing sensitivity of cancer cells to chemotherapeutics without harming healthy cells.
Scientists have discovered a small molecule drug that can stop cancer cells from becoming resistant to chemotherapy. The compound, JH-RE-06, works by thwarting cancer's ability to survive and adapt to DNA damage caused by traditional chemotherapy drugs like cisplatin.
Researchers discovered a compound that blocks a DNA repair pathway, increasing cell killing with cisplatin and preventing mutations. In mouse models, tumors shrank more when treated with the combination of the compound and cisplatin, suggesting improved treatment outcomes.
A Phase II clinical trial conducted at MD Anderson Cancer Center revealed an 84.6% overall response rate and 38.5% complete response rate when combination targeted therapy was given prior to chemotherapy for newly diagnosed patients with a specific type of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. The findings suggest that patients who respond to...
A pre-specified secondary analysis of the TAILORx trial found that assessing a woman's recurrence risk based on classic clinical features adds prognostic information complementary to the 21-gene Recurrence Score test. This integration may help identify young women who can forego chemotherapy and those who may benefit from more effectiv...
The study found that partial breast irradiation (PBI) is more convenient than whole breast irradiation (WBI) for women with breast cancer who do not receive adjuvant chemotherapy. PBI participants reported less fatigue and were rated more convenient, but experienced slightly poorer cosmesis compared to WBI.
A new clinical trial shows that immunotherapy pembrolizumab is more effective than standard aggressive chemotherapy in treating people with recurrent head and neck cancer. The combination of pembrolizumab with platinum chemotherapy extended survival by 3.7 months, while the immunotherapy alone showed improved survival rates compared to...
A recent analysis of NRG Oncology/RTOG 9802 data suggests that both IDH-mutant subgroups of high-risk low-grade gliomas may benefit from the addition of PCV chemotherapy to radiotherapy. This finding is significant, as it enhances prognostic and predictive clarification of patients with low-grade glioma.
The study's primary endpoint showed that the total neoadjuvant therapy (TNT) approach was safe, associated with high rates of chemotherapy completion (>90%), but did not demonstrate a significant improvement in reducing cancer presence at surgery. Veliparib addition resulted in more side effects and reduced chemoradiation completion, y...
Researchers developed COXEN, a predictive tool that analyzes gene expression to predict response to chemotherapy in bladder cancer patients. The trial showed COXEN's ability to predict response using Gemcitabine-Cisplatin (GC) biomarker.
A novel protocol combining intensive chemotherapy, radiation therapy and blood-pressure drug losartan has allowed complete removal of tumors in 61% of participants with locally advanced pancreatic cancer. The treatment significantly improved survival rates and was found to activate immune system pathways.
A study at Children's National Hospital has successfully cryopreserved testicular tissue from 189 males, offering a potential fertility preservation option for younger boys. The research found undifferentiated spermatogonia in the testicular tissues of patients who had not yet received an ablative dose of therapy.
Researchers at NYU Abu Dhabi have developed metal-organic trefoil knots, which can deliver metals to cancer cells and induce oxidative stress. These nanoscale molecules showed high potency in vitro and in vivo against six cancer cell lines and zebrafish embryos.
Researchers used genetically modified fruit flies to test candidate treatments for a patient with KRAS-mutant metastatic colorectal cancer. The approach identified trametinib plus zoledronate as a promising combination that prolonged survival and reduced targeted tumors.
A Cancer Research UK-funded study found that less chemotherapy is as effective at controlling disease for elderly or frail patients with advanced stomach or oesophagus cancer. The study showed that lower doses of chemotherapy resulted in fewer side effects and improved quality of life.
Researchers developed molecules from the immune system of a parasitic sea lamprey that can deliver anti-cancer drugs directly to brain tumors. The matrix-targeting strategy allows drugs to accumulate in the extracellular matrix, sidestepping cell membrane problems and potentially increasing therapeutic doses.
A global study predicts a 53% rise in chemotherapy demand by 2040, with an estimated 15 million patients needing treatment annually. The study recommends expanding the chemotherapy workforce to 100,000 physicians by 2040 to deliver optimal treatment.
A recent clinical trial at the Stephenson Cancer Center found that patients with stage two, three, or four ovarian cancer can expect about 75 months of survival when their tumors are completely removed. The treatment regimen that caused fewer difficult side effects was just as effective as those with more severe side effects.
Researchers found that omitting chemotherapy in HER2 positive metastatic breast cancer can significantly shorten progression-free survival but not overall survival. The PERNETTA trial suggests that targeted therapy alone may be safe for patients with low-to-intermediate tumour burden.
A new multigene test called EndoPredict has been found to predict chemotherapy benefit in women with hormone receptor-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer. The test was successful in identifying patients who would benefit from chemotherapy and those who could opt out of the treatment.
Patients with advanced HER2-negative breast cancer treated with continuous chemotherapy showed improved survival rates and maintained quality of life compared to intermittent scheduling. The study also found that treatment holidays had a negative impact on physical quality of life scores, with a clinically meaningful decline at 24 months.
Researchers found that radiotherapy after chemotherapy improved survival in patients with large tumours, with a 7-10% survival benefit at three and five years. This trial suggests that radiotherapy should be considered for these patients to balance cure rates with toxic side effects.