Manitoba government announces new rural cancercare hubs, new front-line staff for faster cancer testing, treatment

To ensure cancer patients receive the fastest treatment in Canada, the provincial government in Manitoba is adding 50 new health professionals and launching four new regional CancerCare hubs, Premier Greg Selinger has announced. Building on the first CancerCare hub launched in Morden/Winkler in 2011, the four new hubs are part of an expansion of 16 rural chemotherapy sites throughout the province, said Selinger. The four new hubs, which will be opened over the next year, will better co-ordinate testing, referrals, diagnosis and treatment for rural Manitobans. Read more here.

Pharmacare 2020 symposium, Vancouver, 26-27 February 2013

Pharmacare 2020 is a national symposium on the future of prescription drug coverage in Canada: an evidence- and experience-informed conversation on issues of innovation, equity, and affordability. It will bring together diverse participants from across Canada to explore the policy pharmaceutical challenges and innovations of today and map out what Canadians want from the system in the future. Pharmacare 2020’s lineup of high profile panelists will kick off an essential national debate on Canada’s future drug coverage system. It will bring together academics, policy makers, stakeholders, and patients in a unique forum designed with many opportunities for participation. Read more here.

Steep cigarette tax hike could save lives, money: report

A 50-cent increase in the U.S. tax on cigarettes could have a big impact on public health, though the benefits for the national wallet are less clear, new estimates from the U.S. Congressional Budget Office show. Reporting in the New England Journal of Medicine, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that such a steep hike in the federal cigarette tax could result in more than 3 million more nonsmokers by 2085 -- by either spurring people to quit or keeping would-be smokers from ever lighting up. Read more here.

Study mentioned: Baumgardner JR, et al. Cigarette taxes and the federal budget--report from the CBO. N Engl J Med. 2012 Nov 29;367(22):2068-70. PMID: 23190219

Connect to the full CBO report, Raising the excise tax on cigarettes: effects on health and the federal budget, here.

Obesity complicates lung cancer surgery: study

Lung cancer surgery takes longer and is more costly if a patient is obese, a new study shows. Researchers analyzed data from more than 19,000 U.S. patients who had a portion of lung surgically removed due to lung cancer between 2006 and 2010. For every 10-unit increase in body-mass index, the time required in the operating room rose by 7.2 minutes. This was true even in hospitals experienced in caring for obese patients, according to the study, which was published in the December issue of the journal Annals of Thoracic Surgery. Read more here.

Study mentioned: St Julien JB, et al. Obesity increases operating room time for lobectomy in the society of thoracic surgeons database. Ann Thorac Surg. 2012 Dec;94(6):1841-7. PMID: 23040822

COUP-TFII sparks prostate cancer progression

Prostate cancer presents a dilemma for patients and the physicians who treat them. Which cancers are essentially indolent and present no risk and which are life threatening? Which can be watched and which need aggressive treatment? Drs. Ming-Jer and Sophia Tsai, both professors in the department of molecular and cellular biology at Baylor College of Medicine, think a receptor called COUP-TFII that they have long studied may point the way to an answer. In a study that appears online in the journal Nature, they show that high levels (overexpression) of COUP-TFII can overcome a natural barrier to progression of prostate cancer, allowing tumor cells to grow and spread throughout the body. Read more here.

Study mentioned: Qin J, et al. COUP-TFII inhibits TGF-β-induced growth barrier to promote prostate tumorigenesis. Nature. Published online 28 November 2012.

Combined RB and PTEN loss identifies DCIS primed for invasive breast cancer

The combined loss of two tumor suppressor genes, retinoblastoma (RB) and phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) was shown to be strongly associated with progression of DCIS to invasive breast cancer, according to a study published November 28 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Read more here.

Study mentioned: Knudsen ES, et al. Retinoblastoma and Phosphate and Tensin Homolog Tumor Suppressors: Impact on Ductal Carcinoma In Situ Progression. J Natl Cancer Inst. Online first November 28, 2012.

Refusal of the marketing authorization for romidepsin

On 19 July 2012, the European Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) adopted a negative opinion, recommending the refusal of the marketing authorization for the medicinal product romidepsin (Istodax), intended for the treatment of peripheral T-cell lymphoma. The company that applied for authorization is Celgene Europe Ltd. The applicant requested a re-examination of the opinion. After considering the grounds for this request, the CHMP re-examined the initial opinion, and confirmed the refusal of the marketing authorization on 15 November 2012. Read more here.

More cancers may be missed under latest US mammogram guidelines

The contentious U.S. guidelines that recommend fewer mammograms for most women could lead to lower screening rates and a dip in breast cancer detection, two new studies suggest. The two new studies, to be presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America in Chicago, tried to look at the potential impact of the task force guidelines. Read more here.

Aspirin may reduce risk of liver cancer, death from liver disease

Aspirin use seems to be associated with a decreased risk of liver cancer and death from chronic liver disease, according to a large new study. This study included more than 300,000 people aged 50 to 71, who reported their aspirin and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) use and were followed for 10 to 12 years. During that time, more than 400 participants died from chronic liver disease and 250 were diagnosed with liver cancer. Read more here.

Boys with undescended testicles at higher risk for testicular cancer: study

Boys whose testes have not descended at birth have an increased risk of developing testicular cancer later in life, a new study says. The findings raise the question of whether these boys should be regularly monitored to lower their potential risk for testicular cancer, the researchers said. Read more here.

New DNA-based blood test may spot signs of cancer

A new study raises the possibility of a DNA-based blood test that doctors could routinely use to determine whether a patient has cancer. There are many caveats. The research is preliminary, and the test is not cheap. Even if it does detect cancer, the test -- like the one currently used to detect prostate cancer -- could raise big questions about how to deal with the results. Even so, a genetic test for cancer would be a major advance, experts say. Read more here.

Study mentioned: Leary RJ, et al. Detection of Chromosomal Alterations in the Circulation of Cancer Patients with Whole-Genome Sequencing. Sci Transl Med 28 November 2012.

Quality care cancer advances: news from the 2012 Quality Care Symposium

This newsletter provides the latest cancer research news presented at the 2012 Quality Care Symposium held November 30 – December 1 in San Diego, California. This new ASCO symposium brings together top leaders in the field to share strategies and methods for measuring and improving the quality of cancer care. Read more here.

Ponatinib acts against the most resistant types of chronic myeloid leukemia

A previously invincible mutation in chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) has been thwarted by an investigational drug in a phase I clinical trial reported in The New England Journal of Medicine. All 12 patients in the trial with chronic phase CML and the T315I mutation had a complete hematologic response (absence of CML cells in the blood) after treatment with ponatinib. Eleven had a major reduction in CML cells in the bone marrow and nine achieved a complete cytogenetic response – no cells in the marrow. Read more here.

Study mentioned: Cortes JE, et al. Ponatinib in Refractory Philadelphia Chromosome–Positive Leukemias. N Engl J Med 2012; 367:2075-2088.

Most women who have double mastectomy don't need it

About 70 percent of women who have both breasts removed following a breast cancer diagnosis do so despite a very low risk of facing cancer in the healthy breast, new research from the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center finds. “Women appear to be using worry over cancer recurrence to choose contralateral prophylactic mastectomy. This does not make sense, because having a non-affected breast removed will not reduce the risk of recurrence in the affected breast,” says Sarah Hawley, Ph.D., associate professor of internal medicine at the U-M Medical School. Hawley will present the findings Nov. 30 at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s Quality Care Symposium. Read more here.

Researchers report first success of targeted therapy in most common genetic subtype of non-small cell lung cancer

A new study by an international team of investigators led by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute scientists is the first to demonstrate that chemotherapy and a new, targeted therapy work better in combination than chemotherapy alone in treating patients with the most common genetic subtype of lung cancer. Published in The Lancet Oncology, the combination of chemotherapy and the targeted drug selumetinib was more effective than chemotherapy alone in a clinical trial involving patients with a form of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) that carries a mutation in the gene KRAS – a variety that represents about 20 percent of all NSCLC cases. Read more here.

Study mentioned: Jänne PA, et al. Selumetinib plus docetaxel for KRAS-mutant advanced non-small-cell lung cancer: a randomised, multicentre, placebo-controlled, phase 2 study. The Lancet Oncology, Early Online Publication, 28 November 2012.

New mechanism for cancer progression discovered by UNC and Harvard researchers

University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center and Harvard researchers have discovered an alternative mechanism for activating Ras that does not require mutation or hormonal stimulus. In healthy cells, Ras transmits hormone signals into the cell that prompt responses such as cell growth and the development of organs and tissues. A mutation on the RAS gene can chronically activate those signals, leading to tumor initiation and progression. In an article published on-line in a November issue of Nature Structural and Molecular Biology, the UNC and Harvard teams discovered that modification of Ras at a specific site with a small protein known as ubiquitin can also lock Ras into an active signaling state. Read more here.

Study mentioned: Baker R, et al. Site-specific monoubiquitination activates Ras by impeding GTPase-activating protein function. Nat Struct Mol Biol. 2012 Nov 25. [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 23178454

KRAS and BRAF mutation screening in metastatic colorectal cancer costly in relation to benefits

Researchers report that screening for KRAS and BRAF mutations can reduce the cost of anti-EGFR treatment for metastatic colorectal cancer but with a very small reduction in overall survival according to a new study published on November 28 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Read more here.

Study mentioned: Behl AS, et al. Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Screening for KRAS and BRAF Mutations in Metastatic Colorectal Cancer. J Natl Cancer Inst. First published online November 28, 2012.

Health Canada says thermography machines not approved for breast cancer screening

Health Canada is warning Canadians and their health-care providers that thermography machines are not approved for use in Canada for breast cancer screening. The department says it is not aware of any scientific evidence that supports use of the thermal imaging machines as a screening tool for early detection of breast cancer. Read more here.

Patient’s own immune cells may blunt viral therapy for brain cancer

Doctors now use cancer-killing viruses to treat some patients with lethal, fast-growing brain tumors. Clinical trials show that these therapeutic viruses are safe but less effective than expected. A new study led by researchers at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute shows that the reason for this is in part due to the patient’s own immune system, which quickly works to eliminate the anticancer virus. The findings, published in the journal Nature Medicine, show that the body responds to the anticancer virus as it does to an infection. Read more here.

Study mentioned: Alvarez-Breckenridge CA, et al. NK cells impede glioblastoma virotherapy through NKp30 and NKp46 natural cytotoxicity receptors. Nat Med. 2012 Nov 25. [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 23178246

Possible new treatment for a childhood cancer

Discovery of a new drug with high potential to treat Ewing sarcoma, an often deadly cancer of children and young adults, and the previously unknown mechanism behind it, come hand-in-hand in a new study by researchers from Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI) at the University of Utah. The report appears in today’s online issue of the journal Oncogene. “Ewing sarcoma is almost always caused by a cancer-causing protein called EWS/FLI,” said Stephen Lessnick, M.D., Ph.D. Read more here.

Study mentioned: Sankar S, et al. Mechanism and relevance of EWS/FLI-mediated transcriptional repression in Ewing sarcoma. Oncogene. 2012 Nov 26. [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 23178492

Provocative questions in cancer research: National Cancer Institute science writers’ seminar

Join the National Cancer Institute for a science writers' seminar December 10, 2012, to discuss various aspects of one of NCI’s signature efforts -- the Provocative Questions project. Discussion will focus on the scientific research that surrounds some of these questions. The seminar will allow ample time for Q&A and interaction during the talks. Read more here.

Metabolic protein launches sugar feast that nurtures brain tumors

Researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have tracked down a cancer-promoting protein's pathway into the cell nucleus and discovered how, once there, it fires up a glucose metabolism pathway on which brain tumors thrive. They also found a vital spot along the protein's journey that can be attacked with a type of drug not yet deployed against glioblastoma multiforme, the most common and lethal form of brain cancer. Published online by Nature Cell Biology, the paper further illuminates the importance of pyruvate kinase M2 (PKM2) in cancer development and progression. Read more here.

Study mentioned:  Yang W, et al. ERK1/2-dependent phosphorylation and nuclear translocation of PKM2 promotes the Warburg effect. Nat Cell Biol 2012 Nov 25. [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 23178880

European Medicines Agency recommends a new indication for abiraterone in the treatment of metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer

The European Medicines Agency Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) has adopted a positive opinion recommending a variation to the terms of the marketing authorization for the medicinal product abiraterone (Zytiga). The CHMP adopted a new indication as follows: "ZYTIGA is indicated with prednisone or prednisolone for: the treatment of metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer in adult men who are asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic after failure of androgen deprivation therapy in whom chemotherapy is not yet clinically indicated". Read more here.

Researchers identify physiological evidence of 'chemo brain' by PET/CT brain imaging

Chemotherapy can induce changes in the brain that may affect concentration and memory. Using positron emission tomography combined with computed tomography (PET/CT), researchers were able to detect physiological evidence of chemo brain, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). The chemo brain phenomenon is described as 'mental fog' and 'loss of coping skills' by patients who receive chemotherapy. According to Rachel Lagos, DO, diagnostic radiology resident at the West Virginia University School of Medicine and West Virginia University Hospitals in Morgantown, USA, because this is such a common patient complaint, healthcare providers have generically referred to its occurrence as 'chemo brain' for more than two decades. Read more here.

Study: chest CT scans may increase breast cancer risk

Use of medical imaging has surged in the past decade, and now a new study suggests the trend carries a risk: Having multiple cardiac and chest CT scans may increase the chances of breast cancer, researchers report.

The risk appears higher for younger women, the preliminary research showed. For example, for a girl or young woman under age 23 who has two high-dose cardiac or chest CT scans, the risk of developing breast cancer in the next 10 years doubles, the researchers found. 

The study, scheduled for presentation Tuesday, November 27, 2012, at the Radiology Society of North America annual meeting in Chicago, included data on radiation exposure from the Group Health insurance database. The researchers reviewed CT scan-dose data on more than 1,600 females between 2000 and 2010, and used a statistical modeling technique to estimate the average radiation doses they received.

Read more here. 

Women with dense breasts open to additional cancer screening: study

Women with dense breasts who undergo routine mammograms would be open to additional screening tests for breast cancer, a new study finds.

The researchers questioned 105 women undergoing a routine mammogram at a radiology clinic. The women were asked if they knew whether or not they had dense breast tissue. After informing the women about the link between dense breasts and breast cancer, they were asked if they would be interested in additional screening for breast cancer, such as automated whole-breast ultrasound or contrast-enhanced mammography, if they were told they had dense breasts.

The research was to be presented at the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) annual meeting, in Chicago. 

Read more here.

The danger of combining grapefruit juice and certain anti-cancer agents

Eating a grapefruit or consuming its juices while taking certain medications could lead to gastrointestinal bleeding, kidney failure, depressed breathing and sudden death, warns a new paper in the Canadian Medical Association Journal. More than 40 drugs, including anti-cancer agents, heart drugs and central-nervous-system drugs used to treat pain, schizophrenia and other conditions, can lead to significant problems if people on them consume grapefruit. Read more here.

Study mentioned: Bailey DG, et al. Grapefruit-medication interactions: forbidden fruit or avoidable consequences? CMAJ. Online first November 26, 2012.

Notice of Decision for OxyNEO™

Health Canada has issued a Notice of Compliance to Purdue Pharma for the drug product OxyNEO. OxyNEO contains the medicinal ingredient oxycodone hydrochloride which is an opioid analgesic. Oxycodone is a semi-synthetic opioid analgesic which exerts an agonist effect at specific, saturable opioid receptors in the central nervous system (CNS) and other tissues. Read more here.

A new discovery about DNA packaging

A new discovery from researchers at Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI) at the University of Utah concerning a fundamental understanding about how DNA works will produce a “180-degree change in focus” for researchers who study how gene packaging regulates gene activity, including genes that cause cancer and other diseases. The discovery, by Bradley R. Cairns, PhD, Senior Director of Basic Science at HCI and a professor in the Department of Oncological Sciences, is reported in this week’s online issue of the journal Nature. Read more here.

Study mentioned: Clapier CR, Cairns BR. Regulation of ISWI involves inhibitory modules antagonized by nucleosomal epitopes. Nature. 2012 Nov 11. [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 23143334

Pathway identified in human lymphoma points way to new blood cancer treatments

A pathway called the "Unfolded Protein Response," or UPR, a cell's way of responding to unfolded and misfolded proteins, helps tumor cells escape programmed cell death during the development of lymphoma. Research, led by Lori Hart, Ph.D., Constantinos Koumenis, Ph.D., and Davide Ruggero, Ph.D., shows for the first time that the UPR is active in patients with human lymphomas and mice genetically bred to develop lymphomas. Read more here.

Study mentioned: Hart LS, et al. ER stress-mediated autophagy promotes Myc-dependent transformation and tumor growth. J Clin Invest. 2012 Nov 12. [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 23143306