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Blood Cancer Cancer Drug Gleevec Linked to Muscle Damage (HealthDay News-18/06/2008) French doctors have reported a possible new side effect associated with the cancer drug Gleevec (imatinib), widely used for the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia and gastrointestinal stromal tumors.
In a letter published in the June 19 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, the doctors describe the case of a 25-year-old woman who developed severe rhabdomyolysis while taking
imatinib. Rhabdomyolysis is the breakdown of muscle fibers resulting in the release of muscle fiber contents (myoglobin) into the bloodstream. The condition can cause kidney damage.
The woman was taking imatinib (daily dose of 400 mg) in a clinical trial for the treatment of aggressive fibromatosis (desmoid tumors) that couldn't be treated with surgery. Shortly after the start of drug treatment, the woman experienced symptoms of
rhabdomyolysis. After she stopped taking imatinib, her symptoms ceased. She then agreed to take the drug again while under medical surveillance. Twenty-four hours after she received the first daily dose of 100 mg, she suffered severe symptoms. The drug treatment was halted, and her symptoms disappeared in three days.
The woman's desmoid tumors were treated with radiotherapy, and she has not experienced any recurrence of rhabdomyolysis symptoms. Survivors Of Hodgkin's Lymphoma At Higher Risk Of Second Cancer
(Yahoo News-25/03/2007)
Roche launches cancer drug in Japan-(Times of India Online-14/09/2001) Roche Holding AG has
launched MabThera, its number two drug by sales, in Japan to treat non-Hodgkins
lymphoma, the most common form of blood cancer, the Swiss healthcare group
said. Drug to mop up cancer-causing genes –(Times of India Online-04/09/2001) In what could be a
significant step in finding cure for cancer, doctors at a private hospital
here are putting to test, for the first time in India, a drug to mop up
the very genes that cause Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia (APL), a rare form
of blood cancer. A team of haemato-oncologists at the Kothari Medical
Centre in Kolkata have used the arsenic drug Trisonex with "encouraging
results" on a 34-year-old woman, the first recipient of the drug in India,
suffering from APL. "Trisenox, chemically arsenic trinide, is simultaneously
being tried at the M D Anderson Hospital in USA as a first line drug along
with other anti-cancer drugs, eliminating the painful process of chemotherapy
so far used to cleanse the body of malignant cells," team leader Dr Asis
Mukherjee said. Blood cells created from stem cells –(Times of India Online-04/09/2001) US scientists have
for the first time turned human embryonic stem cells into blood cells,
a key step toward creating supplies of blood for medical therapies. Researchers
at the University of Wisconsin said the achievement will help scientists
better understand how blood cells develop and one day may lead to sources
of laboratory-grown blood for transfusions or treatments. Growing blood cells
from stem cells may someday help alleviate shortages of blood needed for
transfusions, or provide cells for blood or bone marrow transplants for
patients with leukemia or other cancers, Kaufman said. Leukemia
inhibitory factor in human milk-(Times of India Online That mother's milk
is a storehouse of beneficial compounds for the infant is well known but
now scientists have discovered a substance in it that protects the child
from tissue injury and septic shock. The leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF)
has been isolated from human milk samples by scientists in the Department
of Experimental Medicine and Biotechnology in the Post Graduate Institute
of Medical Science, Chandigarh. Leukemia fight aided by drug advance –(Cancer Info-13/08/2001) The launch of a new treatment for leukemia was yesterday hailed as another weapon in the battle against the illness. The drug, which will be used to treat the most common form of adult leukemia in the west, is the first to prove effective in the treatment of patients suffering from advanced forms of the disease, according to haematology experts. Schering Health Care, the pharmaceutical company which produces the MabCampath, claims it will offer a lifeline to patients with B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (B-CLL) who have failed to respond to conventional therapy. Around 2500 patients are diagnosed with the condition each year, with about 250 of these cases in Scotland. It is thought that the new drug could help up to 70% of those suffering from the condition, according to the Leukaemia Research Fund. B-CLL is an incurable blood disorder that occurs predominantly in people over 50 years of age. Abnormal white blood cells (B-lymphocytes) build up in the bone marrow, blood, and organs of the body, causing infection, bone marrow dysfunction, and enlargement of the lymph nodes, liver, and spleen. MabCampath is the first antibody produced from a single clone of cells, "monoclonal", to be approved and licensed for the treatment of B-CLL, according to Schering Health Care. Dr Peter Hillmen, consultant haematologist at Pinderfields General Hospital, Wakefield, West Yorkshire, hailed the drug as a major step forward. He said it was the first drug to prove effective in cases where standard chemotherapy had failed to help patients with advanced forms of B-CLL. "In trials, this drug has been shown to be effective in one-third of heavily pre-treated patients. It is a laboratory-manufactured monoclonal antibody that specifically targets the CD52 antigen present on 95% of normal and malignant B-lymphocytes. The drug binds to the antigen, marking it for destruction by the body's immune system." Record Sales for Umbilical Blood Storage –(Times of India Online-13/08/2001) An increasing number
of parents who want to do everything possible for their children's health
are paying more than $1,300 each to have umbilical cord blood, which is
rich in stem cells, stored in freezers. For-profit cord blood storage
companies report record sales of their blood extraction kits, which are
marketed as a sort of an insurance policy against diseases that newborns
might develop in the future. They also charge annual storage fees between
$45 and $95 to keep the blood frozen at minus 400 degrees. Expecting parents
hope the blood may one day be available for tailor-made therapies for
their children, banking on the knowledge that a body will be less apt
to reject treatments originating in cells it produced while in the womb.
Bush OKs Limited Stem Cell Funding-(Yahoo News-10/08/2001) President Bush said he will support federal funding for limited medical research on embryonic stem cells. Ending months of anguish on the divisive issue, Bush said his decision balanced concerns about ``protecting life and improving life. I have made this decision with great care and I pray it is the right one,'' Bush said in a prime-time speech from his Texas ranch. At issue was whether the government should support research on stem cells removed from embryos that are left over from fertility treatments. Supporters of such research see great potential for medical treatments. Opponents insist it is wrong to use human embryos for research. Bush, as a candidate, opposed federal funding for research that destroys human embryos. Citing the promise of breakthroughs in fighting diseases such as Alzheimer's and diabetes, Bush said he would approve federal funding, but only for existing lines of embryonic stem cells. That would restrict research to cells from embryos that already have been destroyed. The president, an opponent of abortion, said he would prohibit the use of federal funds to create any new lines of human embryonic stem cells. He said it was important that ``we pay attention to the moral concerns of the new frontier.'' Even though he sought middle ground on the complex political and moral issue, Bush's remarks triggered criticism, muted from supporters of research, forceful from opponents. ``The trade-off he has announced is morally unacceptable,'' said Bishop Joseph A. Fiorenza, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. ``It allows our nation's research enterprise to cultivate a disrespect for human life.'' Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., a supporter of research, welcomed Bush's decision as ``an important step forward.'' But, he added, ``it doesn't go far enough to fulfill the lifesaving potential of this promising new medical research.'' Stem cells are capable of developing into any of the body's organs but not into a complete individual. These cells form inside an embryo a few days after fertilization. By properly nurturing embryonic stem cells, experts believe they can grow new cells to restore ailing organs in chronically ill patients. For instance, new insulin-producing cells could be grown, perhaps to cure diabetes. Each stem cell line comes from an individual embryo that can be duplicated an infinite number of times. The procedure kills the embryo. Despite claims from some conservative critics, White House aides insisted the president had not broken a campaign pledge. Running for the White House, Bush said he ``opposed research that involves destroying a living human embryo.'' ``As I thought through this issue I kept returning to two fundamental questions,'' Bush said. "First, are these frozen embryos human life and therefore something precious to be protected? And second, if they're going to be destroyed anyway, shouldn't they be used for a greater good, for research that has the potential to save and improve other lives?" In reaching his decision, Bush sorted through conflicting advice from ethicists, anti-abortionists, advocates for the ill, researchers and Pope John Paul II. Major researchers in the field had estimated that there were only about a dozen stem cell lines in existence, and that some of those would not meet strict National Institutes of Health standards for research. Bush said, however, that there are more than 60 existing lines that met his criteria for research. Congress has banned government money for stem cell research that destroys embryos. But the Clinton administration ruled that such research could receive federal funding as long as private money financed the part of the process that actually destroyed the embryo - the extraction of the stem cells. Bush had delayed such funding while he reviewed the policy. Bone marrow transplants improved –(Times of India Online-01/07/2001) Bone marrow transplants have brought new hope to leukemia patients in recent years. Sometimes, though, the graft fails after a battle between the patient's body and the new tissue. A team of Canadian scientists has found a way to reduce graft-versus-host disease by targeting a specific antigen, a protein that causes an immune response. While their work so far has been limited to mice, experts say they are pointing the direction for research on human leukemia. Transplants have become the major leukemia therapy in the last two decades, with the patient first receiving radiation and chemicals to kill the leukemia cells in their bone marrow. Then marrow from a compatible donor is implanted and immune cells, called T cells, from the donor, kill off any remaining leukemia cells. But if the antigens in the host and donor are not well matched, graft-versus-host disease occurs as immune cells from the graft attack the patient. Perreault found that injecting bone marrow containing only T cells targeted against a single antigen called B6dom1 fought the leukemia without causing graft-versus-host disease. ``This was a surprise to us, to see that one single antigen would be sufficient,'' Perreault said in a telephone interview. The antigen targeted is one of a type known as a minor histocompatability antigens. Perreault said his team is now working on finding its human equivalent. Dr. Francesco Dazzi of the Imperial College School of Medicine, Hammersmith Hospital, London, said the results are applicable to humans in principle, ``as long as donor and recipient are carefully matched.'' The donor can produce T cells targeted specifically against a particular antigen, Dazzi said in a telephone interview. He said some antigens of a similar type have been identified in humans. Dr. Rupert Handgretinger, director of the stem cell transplantation department at St. Jude's Children's Hospital in Memphis, Tenn., said the research is pointing the way for studies of humans. ``The direction is good. It's surely not yet the final answer, but it's the direction we must go in the future,'' said Handgretinger. ``It's in mice and we never know how we can transfer it later into humans, but somewhere you have to start,'' he commented in a telephone interview. Neither Dazzi nor Handgretinger were part of the study team. Perreault said that in addition to seeking the human equivalent of the mouse antigen, his team is also testing to see if the same method can be used in treating solid tumors. He said he hopes that tests involving humans could begin within two years. Umbilical cord blood possible cure for leukemia-(Times of India Online-15/06/2001) Blood from umbilical cords can build new immune systems for adults with leukemia, offering a potentially lifesaving treatment for the many patients who cannot find suitable bone marrow donors. Until now, stem cells drawn from umbilical cord blood have been reserved mostly for treating children. Because an umbilical cord contains only one-tenth as many stem cells as a marrow donation, experts believed there was too little tissue to reconstitute the immune defences of an adult. However, new research shows that because the umbilical cord cells proliferate so rapidly, they can indeed be used to treat adults. In the first study of cord blood transplants in adults, researchers gave 68 adults cord blood transplants from unrelated donors. While infections, bleeding and other complications killed many of the patients within months, nearly one-third survived long term, about the same as with bone marrow transplants. Stem cells, collected from bone marrow or circulating blood in adults or from cord blood, are immature cells that can develop into any type of blood cell: oxygen-carrying red blood cells, clotting platelets or infection-fighting white blood cells. In patients with leukemia and other blood disorders, doctors destroy the cancer and the immune system with chemotherapy or radiation, then replace the patient's immune- and blood-forming system with a transplanted one. Cord blood stem cells are collected by hospitals before placentas are discarded and so do not involve the controversy over use of stem cells from fetuses. In addition, researchers noted that a cord blood stem cell match can be located and prepared within weeks rather than the months it takes to arrange a bone marrow transplant. And cells from newborns are unlikely to contain a virus dangerous to transplant patients that lurks harmlessly in most adults. It is expected that within five years, stem cells from cord blood will be used for repairing damaged blood vessels in heart and stroke patients, repairing brain tissue in Parkinson's disease patients and, in diabetics, replacing pancreas cells that are not producing enough insulin. Capriati’s overwhelming gesture-(Times of India-12/06/2001) Former Wimbledon doubles champion Corina Morariu, undergoing chemotherapy for leukemia, was overwhelmed when Jennifer Capriati dedicated her French Open victory to her. Morariu watched Capriati’s epic final win over Belgian Kim Clijsters from her hospital bed in Florida. She has been out of action for a month after being diagnosed with acute promyelocytic leukemia. She is undergoing IV and oral chemotherapy treatments. US approves Novartis cancer drug Gleevec-(Times of India-12/05/2001) US officials announced approval in record time for a breakthrough oral cancer drug that has shown dramatic power against a rare but deadly type of leukemia. The drug, Gleevec, helped about 90% of patients in early stage of chronic myeloid leukemia, a disease that causes a potentially lethal overproduction of white blood cells, maker Novartis AG said. FDA approves new leukemia drug-(Times of India Online-12/05/2001) Victims of a rare but deadly form of leukemia could have a new treatment available within a week following approval of a drug being hailed as a breakthrough in fighting cancer. Gleevec was approved by the Food and Drug Administration, winning regulatory clearance in record time after clinical trials showed it effective in 90 percent of patients. The drug, made by Novartis Pharmaceuticals, is specifically targeted at chronic myeloid leukemia, a disease that claims about 2,300 American lives annually. The drug is based on the principle of molecular targeting, killing leukemia cells while leaving normal white cells alone. Gleevec is a breakthrough not only for people with CML, but for patients suffering from other cancers, because the technology should provide a road map for future research. Gleevec is also being tested against about a dozen other forms of the disease and researchers are working on other similar drugs. Dr. Daniel Vasella, president of Novartis AG, the Swiss parent company, said he hopes to begin shipping the drug by Monday and to have it in pharmacies within a week. The one-pill-a-day regimen is expected to cost between $2,000 and $2,400 monthly, which company officials said is comparable to other cancer treatments. Vasella said the company is setting up a program to make sure it is available to uninsured, low-income people. Gleevec works by blocking chemical signals sent by cancerous cells and researchers hope it will also prove useful in treating stomach tumors and perhaps other cancers. The results of clinical trials of the drug, also known as STI-571 or imatinib mesylate, generated excitement among cancer researchers. It originally was to have been named Glivec, but that was changed to avoid confusion with a diabetes drug. Chronic myeloid leukemia is caused by an abnormal protein that leads to a huge increase in the number of white blood cells in the body, which can interfere with the functioning of other organs. In clinical trials financed by Novartis, more than 90 percent of patients in the first phase of CML saw their cancer go into remission within the first six months of taking the pill, according to findings presented in December at a meeting of the American Society of Hematology. A study of patients in the second phase of the disease showed more than 90 percent of those patients responded positively to the treatment, and in 63 percent, the cancer went into remission. The trials involved 530 first-phase and 230 second-phase patients. The early success has propelled researchers to test the drug on almost 3,000 patients around the world. Gleevec blocks a signal that the abnormal protein sends out, preventing the growth and production of other cancerous cells. It targets three specific signaling chemicals found in CML, some of which also are present in other forms of cancer. Currently the only treatments for CML are bone marrow transplants, which can be dangerous, and interferon, which can extend a leukemia patient's life by up to two years but can have side effects that cause about 20 percent of patients to stop using it. Gleevec has only been studied on humans for about two years, so how long it will prolong a patient's life is not yet known. But it has had few side effects. Scientists announce stem cell discovery-(Times of India Online-05/05/2001) US researchers announced they had identified adult stem cells in the bone marrow of mice that can transform themselves into almost any organ of the body. Stem cells, which have the potential to develop into any organ of the body in response to certain signals, had so far been identified only in embryos. "This is the closest adult derived stem cell to the embryonic stem cell, which can transform itself into any organ of the body. The adult bone marrow cell has remarkable plasticity," said Yale University researcher Diane Krause, co-author of a report appearing on Friday in the journal Cell. Krause said previous research had shown that the cell regeneration demonstrated in mice would also work in humans. "It is astounding that there are cells in our bone marrow that can become so many different cell types," he said. To identify the adult stem cell, researchers from Yale University, New York University and Johns Hopkins University, first used radiation to destroy the bone marrow in female mice. Stem cells from male mice, which carry the 'y' chromosome as a marker, were then transplanted into the female, allowing researchers to track any cells produced by the transplanted cells. Some 11 months later cells with 'y' chromosomes were found not only in the bone marrow and blood of the females, but also in tissue from the lungs, oesophagus, stomach, small and large intestines, liver and skin. "It had been thought that only embryonic stem cells had such wide-ranging potential," said Neil Theise of New York University, who co-led the study. Leukemia cases climb in Nevada Town-(Times of India Online-30/04/2001) Health officials in a small northern Nevada town confirmed the 13th case of childhood leukemia. State epidemiologist said the latest victim of acute lymphocytic leukemia, or ALL, is a three-year-old girl born in Fallon while her father was stationed at Fallon Naval Air Station. The family moved out of state last summer. The girl began undergoing chemotherapy this week. No one knows what causes ALL, the most common form of childhood leukemia. Suspected triggers include radiation exposure, electromagnetic fields or volatile organic compounds, such as benzene, solvents and fossil fuels. Normally, the rate of ALL cases would be about three in every 100,000 people. With thirteen cases among about 25,000 people living in Churchill County, which encompasses Fallon, the rate is far above normal. None of the cases has proved fatal. Investigations are being conducted by the state Health Division, which is working with federal investigators to find a common link among the children. Jet fuel spills or jettisons from Navy planes have been mentioned in discussions of possible causes of the leukemia cases. But Navy representatives said most flights are over unpopulated areas. Besides military fuels, other possible theories for the cases include viruses; high levels of naturally occurring arsenic in drinking water; and pesticides or fungicides used on area farms. Study finds link between Agent Orange, leukemia –(Cancer Info-20/04/2001) The children of veterans exposed to herbicides such as Agent Orange during the Vietnam War may be more likely to develop a certain type of leukemia, a study suggests. The analysis makes the first connection between the childhood disease and the pesticide, but stops short of saying the link is conclusive. The report has been termed "very serious." Legislation to provide assistance for children with the disease is under study. Acute myelogenous leukemia is a fast-spreading form of leukemia that originates in bone-marrow cells. It accounts for about eight percent of all childhood cancers, the report said. The report is the most recent in a series looking at the effects of the herbicides used in Vietnam. During Vietnam, thousands of veterans were exposed to Agent Orange, a defoliant used to clear areas of jungle so the Viet Cong could be seen and attacked from the air. The new study also reaffirms earlier findings linking herbicide exposure with the development of soft tissue cancer, Hodgkin's disease, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and chloracne in veterans. The committee said it based its finding on two studies published last year. While the studies lacked a direct measure of exposure to the herbicides, both were conducted with Vietnam veterans and an association was indicated with childhood AML, though not other forms of childhood leukemia. One study, for example, looked at 50,000 Australian veterans of the Vietnam War. It found 13 cases of AML in their children, while in a normal population that size the number of cases expected would be between zero and six. The strongest link was seen in children who developed the disease at the youngest ages, which suggests that the cause may stem from a parent, the report added. In addition, a third study found that childhood development of AML was more likely in the offspring of men who use pesticides or herbicides in their work. The committee listed the connection as suggestive rather than conclusive, saying that the evidence wasn't strong enough to be sure that chance or other factors didn't influence the results. Previous studies evaluated by the institute have found suggestive but not conclusive evidence of a link between herbicide exposure and respiratory cancers, prostate cancer, type two diabetes, spina bifida in children and other conditions. The National Academy of Sciences is an independent research organization chartered by Congress to provide advice to the government on scientific and medical topics. Leukemia drug marks 'Major Advance' against cancer-(Times of India Online-06/04/2001) An experimental drug that targets the genetic error responsible for chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) appears to be a safe and effective treatment for the disease, researchers report. Glivec's early success does more than offer hope for patients with this type of leukemia. It highlights the potential of drugs designed to target particular genetic defects linked to cancer. Now that the human genome, the basic blueprint for life, has been mapped, the hope is that scientists will be able to identify other cancer-causing genetic mutations and develop drugs to target them.
It is not known whether this drug will cure chronic myeloid leukemia, but the fact that Glivec is targeted specifically at the genetic mutation makes it a major advance forward. The hope is that a lot more of these targeted therapies may be right down the road.
The Philadelphia chromosome, discovered in 1960, is the genetic defect that causes CML. In patients with the defect, genetic material mixes between chromosomes, resulting in the production of an abnormal enzyme called BCR-ABL. This enzyme triggers excessive production of white blood cells, resulting in leukemia. Bone marrow transplant is the only cure for CML. But not all patients are eligible for transplant therapy, which also has life-threatening side effects. The drug interferon alfa can help some patients live longer, but also has considerable side effects, and most patients eventually become resistant to it. Glivec, which was originally called STI-571, was designed to block BCR-ABL, specifically the ABL portion of the enzyme. The drug has been submitted to the Food and Drug Administration for approval. Novartis Pharmaceuticals, the drug's maker, funded the current research. Several of the researchers involved have served as consultants for the company. In an ongoing study of 83 patients with CML who had failed the standard therapy, blood counts returned to normal within 4 to 6 weeks in 53 out of 54 patients given a 300-milligramme or higher dose of Glivec. The number of leukemia cells in bone marrow declined substantially in more than half of all patients taking the drug. And 13 per cent of patients went into complete remission, no longer showing any signs of cancer. In the second study, the drug helped patients in the most advanced stage of CML who had not responded to standard therapy. More than half responded to the treatment, and 11 per cent went into complete remission.
Even though most patients in the second study who initially responded to Glivec eventually relapsed, the treatment represents a ''major advance'' for patients with the most advanced form of CML, who have little chance of survival. The therapy appears to buy these people time. And unlike other therapies for CML, Glivec comes in pill form and causes virtually no side effects. The most common side effects found in the studies were nausea, muscle pain, swelling and diarrhoea, but even at higher doses, most side effects were mild to moderate. Glivec may prove to be the drug of choice for treating CML, but it is too soon to know for sure. Follow-up of patients given the drug is still very short, and there is no direct evidence that STI-571 prolongs life. For the time being, transplantation must remain a serious option for treating CML, especially in relatively young patients who have a chance of being cured. But the editorialists state that the role of transplantation should be re-examined if Glivec, either alone or in combination with other therapy, proves to cure a high percentage of patients or at least to prolong life more than the standard treatment, interferon alfa. The drug's benefits may not be limited to leukemia patients. Finnish researchers report the case of a woman with a rare type of gastrointestinal cancer whose tumour, which had not responded to chemotherapy, shrank after treatment with Glivec. But the findings do not mean that Glivec will work against many types of cancer. The tumour appears to have gotten smaller because Glivec, besides blocking the enzyme involved in CML, targets another cell signalling system involved in this particular type of gastrointestinal cancer. Pylons are Cancer Risk-(Times of India-13/03/2001) High voltage power cables have been officially linked to cancer for the first time. A study shows that children living near them run a small but significant increased risk of falling victim of the disease. Sir Richard Doll, the epidemiologist who discovered the link between smoking and lung cancer in the 1960s, warns that children living near electricity power lines are at an increased risk from leukemia. There may be a link with adult cancers, but that is unproven. The mechanism was uncertain but could be due to the high voltage lines emitting charged particles, ions, which may then be inhaled. The report emphasizes that more research is needed to confirm the mechanism. UK study links infection with childhood leukemia-(Times of India Online) Researchers say that 30 years' worth of population and leukemia statistics lends support to a link between infection and childhood leukemia. According to the study, population mixing (such as increased contacts between country and city dwellers) is associated with increased rates of leukemia in children. This, they suggest, is what would be expected if an infection caused the leukemia. The authors compared the number of leukemia deaths in Orkney and Shetland-the UK's northernmost islands-among children born during World War II with leukemia deaths among children born after the war. During World War II, it seems, these islands saw considerable population mixing, as military personnel, Irish construction workers and Italian prisoners of war outnumbered the native population by as much as two to one. Nine children born during World War II died from leukemia where only 2.5 leukemia deaths would be expected, based on the rates in the rest of Scotland. In contrast, the leukemia death rates among children born after the war were just as would be expected. This excessive rate of death from childhood leukemia, the researchers conclude, strengthens the theory that an as yet unidentified infection causes leukemia. Other researchers question this conclusion. The authors assume that infections cause the differences in leukemia deaths-still, their numbers are pretty small-where there could be any number of possibilities. The increased wartime activity could have brought more pollution, increased exposure to chemicals, or other factors that could increase the rate of leukemia. Noting that the study did not even report infection rates, they went on to explain, ''The mechanism is still an issue. Even if there were increased numbers of infections in the children who developed leukemia, that does not prove one causes the other. It may simply be that both infections and leukemia are linked to a common underlying problem, such as an immune defect.'' Bone marrow procedure offers hope-(Times of India Online) An unusual type of bone marrow transplant repaired defective immune systems in several people severely ill with a rare, inherited disease that kills most victims by their 30s, researchers say. While the approach offers hope for people with chronic granulomatous disease and other genetic disorders, three of the 10 patients died of the disease or treatment complications. Also, it is too soon to say whether the seven others are cured. But scientists said that 18 months later, the seven survivors have much stronger immune systems. Five survivors are children, with the other five patients are aged 18 to 36. In chronic granulomatous disease, gene mutations prevent a type of infection-fighting white blood cell from killing bacteria and fungi. That leaves patients vulnerable to life-threatening infections and inflammatory growths that damage the lungs, liver and other organs. Often, patients with the disease undergo high-dose chemotherapy and radiation to destroy their bone marrow, the body's factory for disease-fighting white blood cells. Then they receive bone marrow transplants from a sibling. The first step of the procedure is dangerous because patients lose most of their defences against disease. Under the newer procedure, which is considered safer, patients got low-dose chemotherapy that leaves some of their bone marrow intact. The approach previously had been tried mostly on people with leukemia or kidney cancer. In three children and two adults, the sibling's bone marrow took over and essentially created a new immune system. In the two other children, part of their immune system is still operating along with the transplanted one. The study shows that the transplant is feasible but should be limited for now to adults, because the disease is more likely to kill them soon. These new techniques may allow the cure of a wide range of inherited disorders in the next decade. Possible leukaemia cure uses body's own cells-(Cancer Info-17/01/01) Australian researchers are developing a revolutionary cure for leukaemia which uses the patient's own immune cells to fight the disease. News of the technique, the work of researchers at Melbourne's Alfred Hospital, follows British research that uses an injection to boost the body's immune system against the often fatal disease. British doctors are about to start trials on a one-off injection that strengthens the body's immune system and predict their technique could be widely used as a cure within five or six years. Work on a leukaemia cure had been underway for about five years and is currently at the pre-clinical stage. Researchers said they were trying to find a way to mass-produce the immune cells of a patient or a donor. The immune system or t-cells out of the patient or donor were trained to recognise the particular tumour antigen and kill the tumour cells. The t-cells are grown in a laboratory to useful or large numbers, their potency improved and injected them back into the patient. The technique could prevent leukaemia sufferers who undertook chemotherapy or bone marrow transplants from relapsing when small amounts of diseased cells survived therapy and then grew.
Britain recently passed a bill to allow embryonic stem cell research. France, too has announced that it will soon allow research on human embryos to help correct genetic birth defects and fight diseases.Stem cells are master cells that generate the 200-odd cell types in the human body. The cells found in the bone marrow or those circulating in blood can help generate all kinds of blood cells, including the white blood cells that are vital to our immune system. The controversy over this kind of research is not about using stem cells per se, it arises from fears that stem cells might be taken from very early stage human embryos which could adversely affect their growth into healthy babies.These virgin cells, a few days after conception, can be used to grow into any cell type such as bonem skin and organs. The potential this holds for healing is tremendous, it can considerably alleviate the sufferings of those with currently incurable diseases. Aggressive Leukemia Therapy Promising For Some Patients -(Cancer Info-15/12/2000) Fludarabine used as the initial treatment for chronic lymphocytic leukemia yields higher response rates and a longer duration of remission and progression-free survival than does chlorambucil, a study has found. Overall survival of the patient is not enhanced, however. Participants in this study were 509 previously untreated patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). All were randomly assigned to one of three treatments: fludarabine (25 mg/m2 of body-surface area, intravenously daily for five days every 28 days), chlorambucil (40 mg/m2, orally for 28 days), or fludarabine (20 mg/m2 per day for five days every 28 days) plus chlorambucil (20 mg/m2 every 28 days). Patients with an additional response at each monthly evaluation continued to receive the assigned treatment for a maximum of 12 cycles. The fludarabine-plus-chlorambucil treatment was stopped when interim analysis revealed excessive toxicity and a response rate no better than that with fludarabine alone. Between the other two groups, response rate was significantly higher for fludarabine alone than for chlorambucil alone. Of 170 patients treated with fludarabine, 20 percent had a complete remission (versus four percent with chlorambucil), and 43 percent had a partial remission (versus 33 percent with chlorambucil). A related editorial suggests that for relatively young patients-perhaps those less than 65 years of age-with advanced disease and for whom a cure is theoretically possible, doctors recommend a randomized trial of one of the aggressive new strategies. For older patients, or those with substantial coexisting conditions, the aim should be palliation. For this, the comment suggests, chlorambucil is preferable. As for patients who fit neither category, therapy decision may vary. Panel to review data on Millennium cancer drug-(Cancer info-06/12/2000) Millennium Pharmaceuticals Inc. will move a step closer to getting its first drug on the market this month when company officials present their data to the US Food and Drug Administration's Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee. The Dec. 14 session comes 12 months after the Cambridge genomics company and its partners first sought FDA approval of the drug, called Campath. It is an injectable drug to treat chronic lymphocytic leukemia, the most pervasive adult form of leukemia. Campath is aimed at the 10,000 to 15,000 patients who haven't responded to other therapies and don't have any other treatment options. The drug helps extend the life of seriously ill patients for a short time and relieves infections and pain. The review panel advises the FDA on whether to allow marketing of the product. FDA approval of Campath by year-end would provide a next-generation leukemia drug. The patents for the primary leukemia treatment, Fludara, will expire in a few years. Gaining FDA approval for Campath also will enable Millennium to begin testing Campath with Fludara. This combination will expand Campath's use beyond the most seriously ill leukemia patients to the estimated 120,000 people worldwide who have earlier forms of chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Electricity 'does not cause child cancer'(Cancer Info-15/11/2000) UK researchers say electrical power supplies are not linked to childhood cancer. The UK Childhood Cancer Survey has looked at the effect of living close to all kinds of electrical supply equipment, not just overhead power lines. It found no association between living close to underground cables, electrical substations and high-voltage lines and the development of cancers such as leukaemia. The study reinforces research published by the group a year ago which provided evidence that electromagnetic fields are not a cancer risk. The latest work involved collecting information about magnetic field exposure from 3,380 children with cancer and 3,390 healthy children. Previous work in Bristol had suggested that power lines concentrate the levels of carcinogenic pollution in the atmosphere. But Dr John Toy, medical director at the Imperial Cancer Research Fund, said he hoped the latest research would allay the fears of concerned parents living near electrical power lines, either overhead or underground. More than 400 children in the UK are diagnosed with leukaemia each year and around 300 with a brain tumour. However, new treatments mean that seven out of 10 children now survive cancer. Final Diagnosis-(Times of India-28/09/2000) A month after the death of power minister P R Kumaramangalam we are nowhere nearer the truth as to what exactly went wrong with the diagnosis of his illness. For all the hectic investigation into his medical history, some of the most eminent doctors in the country are still divided on whether he succumbed to non-Hodgkins Lymphoma, acute myeloid leukemia or some rare form of malaria. There is a growing incidence of cancer. With urbanisation and pollution, a variety of rare cancers are manifesting themselves about which our doctors are completely at sea. In the absence of adequate research, diagnosis is increasingly done by a process of elimination. The first step towards improving our diagnostic techniques is to admit that we have a lot to learn, something our medical fraternity is loath to do. Only then can we avoid the kind of lapses that led to his untimely death. Stem cell transplant helps save children with leukemia-(Times of India-19/09/2000) Aggressive cancer treatment for very young children with leukemia greatly improves heir survival, researchers report. In a study of children age 1 year or younger who had a relapse of leukemia, more than 60% were still alive and disease free 5 years after receiving high-dose chemotherapy and stem cell transplant. 26 infants first received high doses of chemotherapy to kill cancer cells as well as wipe out their immune systems. The infants then received transplants of stem cells which are immature cells circulating in the blood that have the potential to give rise to any type of blood or immune system cell. The aim of stem cell transplants is to help the body construct an immune system that can fend off cancer. More than 5 years after treatment 18 of the 26 children were still alive and almost all were free from cancer. Survival rates were similar regardless of whether the children received cells from their own bodies or from a donor. Stem cell transplants carry substantial risks including the chance of developing potentially fatal graft-versus-host disease, but none of the children died of transplant related complications. Study finds minor infections a help to kids-(Times of India-25/08/2000) Researchers have advice for parents. Relax your notions about minor infections, because they may actually be good for developing a child’s defence against allergies and asthma. Exposure to infection turns on important immune cells that in turn pave the way to a healthier immune system. Infections early in life stimulate more cells known as T-helper type, which create an immune environment that protects against allergy and asthma. Leukemia:Blame it on better living standards-(Times of India-08/08/2000) Leukemia cases among young children are increasing and doctors suspect improved living standards could be the cause. Youngsters are exposed to fewer common infections than they used to be so their immune systems are weaker and not as good at combating illnesses. Cases of ALL rose dramatically from 1980 to 1998. Most of the new cases were in children aged 1-4. This could be because their immune systems are becoming less good at warding off these infections. The theory that exposure to common infections early in life builds up the immune system is not new. Doctors also believe clean living is linked to dramatic rises in childhood asthma (see clipping dated 25/08/2000). The rate of the disease in young boys in Oxford is nearly three times higher than in boys of a similar age living in Bombay. For girls, the rate is 4 times higher. Novartis Struggles With a Drug That Performs Too Well (The Wall Street Journal-06/06/2000) For Novartis AG, the news from the laboratory early last year was extraordinary. In preliminary tests, a drug for a common form of leukemia had driven it into remission in more than 95% of patients with an early stage of the disease. Just as gratifying, side effects were few. Researchers began laying plans for a second and larger phase of testing. After that would come a final round of human trials that may last for years and then if all was well, an application to regulators for permission to market it. Word of the initial success quickly began to fly through cyberspace and patients from around the world were clamouring for the compound known only as STI-571. Politicians and celebrities lobbied Novartis on behalf of friends and relatives desperate to join a clinical trial. Yet Novartis had nowhere near enough of the substance to meet this demand, even if it wanted to. Scaling up production is an elaborate process especially for a complex, lab-invented compound like this. The company had calculated the amount of STI-571 needed for the early phases of testing by assuming that many patients would drop out when the drug stopped working. But with virtually every chronic phase patient continuing to respond after months of treatment, nobody could be removed from the drug, which limited the amount of STI-571 free for new patients. There was a great deal of pressure on Novartis to increase production. Besides being logistically difficult, this carried some financial risk and if the drug never became marketable, the costly effort would go to waste. Early last summer, Novartis Chairman Danial Vassella took personal charge of the situation. Output for the year was originally planned at just a few hundred kilograms. The new schedule calls for 20 tons. Novartis will proceed with elaborate phase III trials aimed at winning broader approval of STI-571 for patients whose CML is still in the initial, chronic stage. These trials will compare STI-571 with alpha interferon, the current standard treatment. This could take 3-4 years to yield statistically significant data. Long before that, Novartis hopes to have the drug on the market in the US for advanced cases. Immune System Switch Controls Destiny Of White Blood Cells-(Cancer Info-26/05/2000) By increasing or decreasing levels of a specific protein, researchers can control the developmental destiny of white blood cells. The finding represents the first evidence that mammalian immune system cells respond to such a dual control mechanism. The discovery raises the possibility that scientists might be able to use the developmental switch to manipulate the immune system to produce specific disease-fighting cells. Furthermore, throwing the switch by using drugs or gene therapy might jump-start the proper development of immature blood cells whose maturation is stalled in certain cancers. In an article in the May 26, 2000, issue of Science, it was reported that the concentration of the transcription factor PU.1 in progenitor immune cells determines whether those cells become macrophages or B cells. Transcription factors are proteins that activate genes to transcribe their information into messenger RNA. Macrophages are white blood cells that attack bacteria and other invaders by engulfing and digesting them; while B cells generate antibodies that tag pathogens bearing foreign proteins, marking them for attack by other immune cells. In previous studies it was shown that knocking out the PU.1 gene in mice eliminated the ability of such mice to make white blood cells. The scientists found that PU.1 switched on genes specific to progenitors of macrophages or B cells that were necessary for their normal differentiation into mature cells. This gave rise to the question that if this transcription factor is needed for development of different cell types in the immune system- each of which expresses very different sets of genes- how could a single factor participate in regulating these very diverse programs of gene expression? In exploring PU.1's role in development, the researchers created a method for isolating mutant mouse progenitor blood cells that lacked PU.1. Once they had harvested the PU.1-deficient cells, they used a viral vector to shuttle the PU.1 genes back into the cells. They found that these cells that were otherwise blocked from developing any further recovered their ability to differentiate properly into macrophages or B cells when they received the gene for PU.1. A striking result of this experiment was that the resulting macrophages expressed high concentrations of the PU.1 protein, while the B cells expressed low concentrations. Although there had been some reports that PU.1 levels were different in macrophages and B cells, no one had ascribed any functional significance to that difference. To explore the functional role of PU.1 levels in immune cell differentiation, the researchers next raised the level of PU.1 in normal progenitor cells. They found that higher PU.1 levels effectively caused the cells to become macrophages, rather than B cells. And in a third set of experiments, the scientists inserted a truncated form of the PU.1 protein into cells that lacked PU.1 and found that this "weakened" transcription factor efficiently rescued the development of B cells, but not of macrophages. It was thus shown that a lower concentration or a lower activity state translates into one developmental outcome for these cells, turning them into B cells and conversely, higher concentrations of the regulator produce macrophages. While the idea that differing concentrations of a transcription factor can control the development of different cell types from progenitors has been an attractive and commonly held view among developmental biologists, but it has been exceedingly difficult to show that this principle is actually valid in any given organism. Stemming Disease-(Times of India-17/05/00) Two children in France could go down in medical history as the first to be cured by gene therapy. Born with severe combined immunodeficiency disease, they are now reportedly healthy and normal, nearly a year after treatment started. Gene therapy involves introducing normal genes into cells in place of missing or defective ones in order to correct genetic disorders. In the infants case, the doctors first removed the bone marrow, then millions of stem cells were taken out, treated with a virus that carried the gene for a missing protein and reintroduced into the patients marrow. The marrow then began producing genetically corrected immune system cells, a process which will hopefully carry on for the rest of their lives. Recently, gene therapy came in for a lot of flak due to reports of several failed experiments. However, those suffering from immune deficiency and terminal illnesses like some forms of cancer in advanced stages are willing to subject themselves to such experimental treatment. Any proactive research is welcome, provided care is taken to minimize risk and side effects. Here independently constituted advisory bodies made up of professionals could play a significant role in monitoring such experiments. Moving towards safer bone marrow transplants-(Times of India-05/05/00)* By blocking an antibody needed to activate certain white blood cells known as T-cells, researchers at Seattle’s Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Centre have announced they were able to reduce or prevent the rejection of transplanted bone marrow in mice. This could lead to safer and more effective bone marrow and organ transplants. Researchers found that treatment with an anti-CD28 antibody could be used to limit reaction. CD28 is a T-cell surface structure, the function of which is pivotal to determine whether a foreign antigen induces immunity or tolerance. Drug for Acute Myeloid Leukemia Moves Toward FDA Approval - (Cancer Info-21/03/00) Mylotarg, an antibody-targeted chemotherapy drug, was recommended for approval for the treatment of some cases of acute myeloid leukemia in patients 60 years old or older in relapse at a meeting here of the Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee, an expert panel that advises the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The panel rejected a broader approval for the drug, but concluded that Mylotarg (gemtuzumab ozogamicin) should be made available to this subgroup of patients, who cannot generally tolerate the high-dose chemotherapy regimens that are used in this setting. There is no standard treatment for patients with relapsed disease. The panel did not believe there was sufficient evidence to show that the drug was as effective as multiple-drug chemotherapy. The panel's decisions are not binding, but the FDA usually follows their advisory committee's recommendations. Miracle Cord Blood: Banking on a healthy future – (Times of India – 14/03/00) Leukemia strikes more children than any other form of cancer and is the leading cause of death among children. Present day treatment is anchored on the use of anti metabolites, namely folic acid antagonists. Chemotherapy produces more injury to cancer cells than to normal cells. The physician has to adjust the dose of the drug to maintain a delicate balance to give enough medicine to destroy the leukemic cells without destroying too many healthy cells. Bone marrow transplant is another option. It can eradicate the disease but is not free of side effects. Cord blood derived stem cell transplant has distinctly lower side effects and lower cost. This approach has saved more than 2000 patients ranging between 2-28 years from lymphoblastic leukemia, Hodgkin’s disease, aplastic anemia and thalassemia. Unlike bone marrow transplant, which needs 6 out of 6 blood antigens to match, cord blood can be a match for 4 out of 6. The greatest chance of finding a match is to look for similar ethnic background. Greater access to cord blood collection services would allow more people to exercise their right to either store or donate the umbilical cord blood and opt to save a life in years to come. It is therefore unwise to throw away this precious biological resource. Complete remission - (Chicago Tribune- 28/2/00) When future historians look back, they may well divide the protracted war on cancer into the years before and after STI 571. For decades, cancer researchers have become adept at putting the best face on less than spectacular results. "Most people think that if you have a cancer treatment which will improve survival by two months, that that's a step forward," says the University of Colorado's Dr. Paul Bunn. But that was before STI 571, an orange capsule that has allowed its chief investigator, Dr. Brian Druker, to claim what no cancer researcher has before: complete remission in 100 percent of patients. Many scientists are in pursuit of tumor-killing molecules like STI 571. Scores of drugs, employing a variety of different mechanisms, already are being tested in patients. STI 571 is the first to prove the principal that underlies the current revolution in approaches to cancer therapy, and it may represent a blueprint for the conquest of many different cancers. Discover what makes the cells of a particular cancer different from all other cells. Then design a molecule that seeks them out and kills them, or at least keeps them from multiplying--in the case of STI 571, by blocking a specific protein found only in leukemia patients. The protein blocked by STI 571, bcr-abl, is only one of hundreds of molecules that relay growth signals within the cell and help regulate its reproductive cycle. STI 571 is a small molecule that may chart the future of cancer research. Druker, the Portland researcher, had been looking for ways to treat chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML), a blood cancer characterized by skyrocketing white blood cell counts since 1993. After curing mice in his lab, he took the most promising compound into a trial with human subjects in 1998. All patients in the trial are monitored regularly for signs of damage to their vital organs and other side effects. But, so far, the only problem detected has been mild nausea. STI 571 is now in second-round trials at Northwestern University Medical School and other sites around the country. The University of Chicago is set to start testing it in April. Dr. David Parkinson, vice president for clinical research at Novartis, says the drug will be tested in children, in adult patients at different stages of CML, and in other leukemia patients. It may also be tried on a number of other cancers. One of the reasons CML - a relatively rare leukemia that hits about 5,000 Americans a year - is among the first cancers to yield to a targeted therapy is that it appears to be caused by a single genetic mutation, the so-called Philadelphia chromosome. Nearly 40 years elapsed between the identification of the Philadelphia chromosome and the advent of STI 571. But new drugs can be developed much faster now that the scientific foundations for charting genetic abnormalities have been laid. Dr. Judith Karp, a cancer researcher at the University of Maryland, adds another caveat. "We know what these new agents do in a test tube, to some degree, but we're only just beginning to understand how they affect the human being as a whole entity," she says. "We've got that to learn. And we also have to learn what these things will do when we combine them with other types of drugs. It's really a brave new world out there." Scientists
Struggle to Unravel Baffling Rise in Lymphoma-(Cancer Info-14/02/2000) But there is good news: Doctors are testing highly promising new immunotherapies for non-Hodgkins lymphoma. They include a potent, but still experimental, "monoclonal antibody" called Bexxar that carries radiation straight to cancer cells, zapping them without hurting healthy tissue. There are also a number of new monoclonal antibodies coming forward to attack numerous varieties of lymphoma and scientists are developing experimental vaccines customized to patients' cancers in hopes of preventing hiddenlymphoma cells from staging a comeback after chemotherapy. Thousands of people around the world will be diagnosed this year with lymphoma, in which vital immune cells stored in the lymph system become malignant. Over 27,000 will die this year. Some 450,000 Americans are estimated to already be living with lymphoma, one of the few cancers still rising, and unlike many other cancers, doctors can offer no advice on preventing lymphoma and have no early-detection tests. About 7,400 of the new cases will be the often-curable Hodgkin's disease. The rest are non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, a catchall term that encompasses some 30 cancer subtypes whose prognosis and treatment all differ. Some are so slow-growing that patients survive many years, cycling between therapy and remission and yet more therapy. Others are highly aggressive and rapidly fatal. Still others fall in between. Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma is the type rising so dramatically. India needs bone marrow banks to tackle genetic blood disorders – (TOI-03/02/00) Medical research has enabled patients of genetic blood disorders like leukemia, thalasemmia and aplastic anemia to use matching bone marrow (BM) from another person or blood discharged during delivery for a complete cure. In the west, BM transplants and umbilical cord blood banks have been set up to provide succour to thousands of such people. However, in India there is no umbilical cord blood bank and only one bone marrow registry, which is in All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi. In six years of existence, only 2000 donors, mostly families of those in need, have been registered. In the US, 4 million donors have been registered. Indians require a lot of awareness and education for building such banks so that the chances of genetic matching increase and several lives could be saved. Cell Thrapeutics Acquires Cancer Treatment Rights-(Cancer Information and Support-12/01/00) Cell Therapeutics, Inc. (cti) has acquired the proprietary rights to Arsenic TriOxide (ATO), a novel treatment for leukemia and potentially for other cancers through its acquisition of PolaRx Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. (PolaRx), a privately held company. In a recent pivotal clinical trial, ATO induced a high rate of complete remission among patients suffering from acute promyelocytic leukemia who had relapsed after prior therapy had failed. The most common side effects in this trial were asymptomatic EKG changes, mostly managed in an outpatient setting and a differentiation syndrome, which was easily managed with steroids. Prevalence of Antibody to Human T-Cell Leukemia/Lymphoma Virus in Women Attending Antenatal Clinic in Southeast London: Retrospective Study-(Cancer Information and Support-12/01/00) Infection with human
T cell leukaemia/lymphoma virus (HTLV) type I occurs mainly in Japan,
central and west Africa, and the Caribbean basin. Infection confers a
lifetime risk of 2-4% for adult T cell leukaemia or lymphoma and 0.2-5%
for tropical spastic paraparesis. However, the incubation period for these
conditions after naturally acquired infection may be several decades.1
The virus is transmitted via infected lymphocytes, and in areas of high
prevalence breast feeding is an important route of transmission, particularly
if continued for over six months. The miracle of cord blood (TOI-30/11/99) Fetal blood from the placenta, cord blood, which is routinely thrown away after birth, is now being recognised as "miracle blood". Modern research has discovered that cord blood is teeming with stem cells, which form the key building blocks of blood components, WBC, RBC and platelets. They are also capable of generating a new immune system when transplanted into a patient. This is of use in treatment of leukemia patients who have undergone chemotherapy to kill cancer cells in their blood. Normally found in adult bone marrow, cord blood stem cells are "naïve" and less likely to reject the new host, a common problem in conventional transplantation. Banked cord blood ensures immediate availability, absence of donor risk, low risk of transmission of infectious diseases, absence of donor attrition and most significantly, a perfect match for the child which it is derived from and a significantly higher probability of serving as a close match for other members of the immediate family. In the past three years, more than 10,000 parents worldwide have opted to preserve the cord blood of their children at birth. However worldwide there are no samples from ethnic Indians. Donation of your child's cord blood to a registry could save someone's life, perhaps your own. For details on Bone Marrow Transplant, click here. Fresh evidence of cancer risk near power lines (TOI-28/11/99) A British scientist has produced the most powerful evidence yet of a link between cancer and electrical power lines. His study confirms that people living near them are exposed to radiation levels dozens of times greater than the legal limit. The research links power lines with childhood leukemia and other forms of cancer. E Coli to the rescue for multiple myeloma patients (Medivision-November, 99) The toxin produces by E Coli bacteria, which causes one of the most deadly form of food poisoning, may be used in the treatment of one of the most deadly types of cancer-multiple myeloma, a cancer of the blood. Studies have shown that the toxin kills only cancer cells but leaves normal stem cells used for autologous transplant alone. The method is very much experimental, but if it works, it can be used in other cancers as well. New technique to destroy cancer cells (Medivision-November, 99) A 24 year-old cancer patient from Dorset entered the record book of medicine when she became the first person in the world to receive a DNA injection to reprogramme her immune system to destroy lymphoma cells. The treatment is expected to alert the body's immune system so that it attacks the cancer cells. Although the treatment is being used for lymphoma initially, it may offer lifelong immunity from other common types of cancer with no side effects. Thalidomide in low doses combats cancer -Study (Medivision-September, 99) Thalidomide, a drug once dreaded for causing birth defects but now showing promise against cancer, might work in lower doses than previously tried, researchers have said. Tests on 20 patients with multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer, showed the drug could reduce the size of tumours, even when used in smaller-than-normal doses. The drug, being used against a range of diseases from leprosy to cancer, is believed to work by preventing tumours from growing blood vessels to feed themselves, a process known as angio-genesis. Leukemia breakthrough claimed in Australia-(Medivision, August 1999) Researchers in Australia announced what they claim is a significant breakthrough in the treatment of leukemia in older patients. Normal protocol used for younger patients involves high dose chemotherapy followed by bone marrow transplant. Older patients cannot tolerate the chemotherapy. The new treatment involves skipping chemotherapy and going straight to bone marrow transplant, effectively transplanting the immune system of a healthy donor into the cancer patient. It is believed that the technique will have a fundamental impact on the way cancer is treated in future. |
-20/08/2001)