Cancer advocates praise patient access program
VACAVILLE, Calif., May 29 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Patient advocates felt like they won a major battle in the war against cancer with the announcement of an expanded access program for oxaliplatin, part of a new treatment option for patients with advanced colorectal cancer.
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New, non-invasive colorectal cancer test could make screening more comfortable
WebMD - May 30, 2002 -- A new, non-invasive test may take some of the discomfort and fear out of screening for colorectal cancer. British researchers have developed a new fecal test that detects cancerous cells in stool samples. The results of the study are detailed in a research letter published in the June 1 issue of The Lancet (subscription only).
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Broccoli: The latest cancer killer? Research shows it may protect against stomach cancer, ulcers
May 28, 2002 (HealthScoutNews) -- Instead of driving to the pharmacist for a course of antibiotics, people infected with a common bacterium that causes stomach ulcers and stomach cancers may head one day to the supermarket for a dose of broccoli or broccoli sprouts.
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Drug may delay kidney cancer progression
ORLANDO, FLA - May 20, 2002 - (Reuters Health) - An experimental drug that chokes off the blood supply that feeds tumor cells can help delay the worsening of advanced kidney cancer, although it does not cause most tumors to actually shrink, new study findings show. While bevacizumab, being developed by Genentech under the brand name Avastin, delayed cancer progression by an average of a few months longer than inactive placebo, some patients are still alive after taking the drug for as long as 2 years. All standard treatments had previously failed in these patients. Avastin is also being studied for patients with advanced cancers of the breast, colon and lung.
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New way of attacking cancer improves symptoms in lung cancer victims
ORLANDO, Florida - May 18, 2002 (AP) - A once-a-day pill that slows cancer by jamming its internal growth signals shows encouraging benefits in terminally ill lung cancer patients, quickly easing symptoms for many. Research released Saturday showed that the drug, called Iressa, can shrink tumors in some patients who have failed all other therapy. But perhaps even more important for these patients, it relieves cancer symptoms in one-third or more of cases. The drug is also being studied as a treatment for many other cancers, including breast, prostate and colon.
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Study examines new way to test for colon cancer
EXETER, New Hampshire - May 15, 2002 (AP) - The radiologist peers into Pauline Morse's colon, pausing to inspect a fleshy fold before moving deeper into the shadowy twists and turns. The images were created with a virtual colonoscopy -- a new procedure that relies on a computer scan instead of a scope to reveal cancer or suspicious growths.
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Colorectal cancer screen in risky patients studied
NEW YORK - May 22, 2002 (Reuters Health) - People with a family history of colon cancer and who also have a personal history of polyps should probably have a colonoscopy at least once every 3 years, according to the results of a new study. Polyps are abnormal growths that line the surface of the colon and have the potential to become cancerous.
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Prognosis of Stage B colon cancer improves with higher lymph node recovery
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) May 15 - The overall and relapse-free survival associated with stage B colon cancer is improved when at least eight lymph nodes are recovered during surgery, according to a recent report.
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Research reveals role of vitamin D in preventing colon cancer
Scientific American - May 20, 2002 - Americans' penchant for fatty foods is thought to be one of the reasons the rate of colorectal cancer is so high in the U.S. (as a killer, it is second only to lung cancer in industrialized countries). Vitamin D has been shown to offer protection against the disease in rats, but the mechanism behind its beneficial effects was unclear. Now a report published in the current issue of the journal Science reveals that the vitamin helps to detoxify cancer-triggering chemicals that the body releases during the digestion of high-fat foods. The findings suggest that drugs capable of mimicking this beneficial action of vitamin D could help combat colon cancer.
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New drug regimen shows clear benefit for treating advanced colorectal cancer
NCI - May 18, 2002 - Initial results from a large, randomized clinical trial for patients with advanced colorectal cancer show that those who received a regimen containing the investigational drug oxaliplatin lived months longer than those who received a standard therapy. Patients on the oxaliplatin regimen, known as FOLFOX4, also had a longer time before their tumors progressed, a better response rate, and fewer severe side effects.
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New findings in colorectal cancer will change practice, say investigators
ASCO Daily News - May 18, 2002 - Today's Oral Abstract Presentation Session, Colorectal Cancer, will include late-breaking news about the comparative safety and efficacy of several multiagent chemotherapy regimens for patients with previously untreated advanced colorectal cancer. The presentation of abstract #511 includes an unanticipated update to the study, which is available today because of the release of the trial's results earlier than had been expected. "The data have the potential to change the standard of practice for the treatment of patients with advanced colorectal cancer in the United States," notes Richard M. Goldberg, MD, of Mayo Clinic, the study chair who will present the results.
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ASCO announces revised web site: Oncology.com
Alexandria, VA - Oct. 26, 2001-- The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and Pharmacia Corporation entered into an agreement in which ASCO has assumed ownership of the cancer information web site, Oncology.com, through a grant from the company. The site, after careful review of content and design, will be launched officially under a new name by ASCO in early 2002. ASCO's new patient information website, People Living With Cancer, will officially launch May 18, the first day of ASCO's Annual Meeting. Visitors to http://www.PeopleLivingWithCancer.org
or
http://www.plwc.org
will find a comprehensive website with cancer information that is accurate, timely, and oncologist-approved, according to an ASCO spokesperson.

Pharmacia is also providing ASCO with an educational grant over two years to hire the requisite staff, establish the needed infrastructure and conduct marketing to ensure the site is a success. ASCO has full editorial and operational control of the site.
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Ribozyme shares drop in wake of setbacks
BOULDER, Colo. (Reuters) April 30, 2002 - Shares of Ribozyme Pharmaceuticals Inc. fell as much 54 percent on Tuesday after the biotechnology company announced setbacks for two of its experimental drugs. Ribozyme said a mid-stage trial of its cancer drug Angiozyme failed to show it was effective as a stand-alone treatment for advanced breast cancer. Ribozyme, which is developing the drug in partnership with Chiron Corp., said it has completed enrollment in a second clinical trial of the drug in combination with chemotherapy for colon cancer. Results from that trial are expected by the end of the year.
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Lilly sponsors racing team
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) April 19, 2002 - With a new impotence drug awaiting government approval, Eli Lilly and Co. is trying to go wheel-to-wheel in motorsports marketing with the makers of Viagra. Lilly rival Pfizer Inc. capitalized on a high-octane mix of speed, sex and drugs -- the prescription kind -- two years ago when it paid to put its blue-and-white Viagra logo on NASCAR driver Mark Martin's car. Now, Lilly is shifting its marketing strategy as it waits for the Food and Drug Administration to approve the new impotence medication Cialis and three other drugs it expects to introduce this year. It is a departure for a company that has traditionally marketed to doctors rather than consumers. For now, the CART cars driven by Christian Fittipaldi and Cristiano da Matta sport the company's cursive "Lilly" logo. But it may not be long before the cars replace that emblem with one for Cialis. FDA rules bar Lilly from promoting Cialis pending government approval, which the company expects in the second half of this year.
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UK health groups cheer budget spending boost
LONDON (Reuters) April 17, 2002 - Healthcare groups, doctors and drugs firms united on Wednesday to welcome plans for the biggest injection of $153 billion into Britain's public health system. The new budget provided for annual National Health Service spending to rise 43% over the next five years. The NHS has suffered from decades of underfunding, a government report said. Research organisations said the extra money would not be enough on its own to solve the NHS's problems. British drugmakers welcomed the increased spending on healthcare and celebrated government plans to extend tax credits on research and development spending to larger firms. The proposal has come under criticism from sections of Britain's industry for favouring already wealthy firms.
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Researcher makes major discovery in colon cancer detection
Press release source: National Colorectal Cancer Research Alliance (NCCRA)
NEW YORK, LOS ANGELES and CLEVELAND, April 2, 2002 /PRNewswire/ -- Just two months after announcing its involvement in the discovery of a new genetic- based, non-invasive test for colon cancer detection -- and just weeks after celebrating its two-year anniversary -- the National Colorectal Cancer Research Alliance (NCCRA) announced its involvement in an advance in helping to unlock the genetic secrets of colon cancer.
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Abbott, NaPro get approval for generic cancer drug
ABBOTT PARK, Ill., May 8 (Reuters) - Abbott Laboratories Inc. and NaPro BioTherapeutics Inc. said Wednesday they received regulatory approval to market injectable paclitaxel, the mostly widely used anti-cancer drug in the United States. The product will be available on the market immediately, Abbott said. Paclitaxel is the generic equivalent to Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.'s Taxol, an anti-tumor product for treatment of metastatic carcinoma of the ovary or breast cancer after chemotherapy has failed.
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Katie Couric's on-air test prompts 19% rise in colonoscopies
WebMD - May 8, 2002 -- If Katie Couric is doing it in front of millions, it must be important and can't be all that bad. Researchers say that seems to be the message about colon cancer screening after the Today show co-host underwent a live, on-air colonoscopy. A new study shows the celebrity's March 2000 colon cancer awareness campaign prompted a nearly 20% rise in colonoscopies, creating what researchers are calling the "Couric Effect."
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ScienceDaily Magazine -- Mayo Clinic researchers develop 'cancer snitch'
ScienceDaily Magazine - May 8, 2002 - ROCHESTER, Minn. -- Mayo Clinic molecular medicine researchers have developed a 'cancer snitch'. The snitch is a new elite-force technology: a genetically engineered, trackable virus that can keep doctors informed about the progress of their offensives once they've penetrated a tumor. The snitch may become a new weapon in the strategic assault on cancer.
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Missed opportunities, errors undermine health care NEW YORK - April 16, 2002 (Reuters Health) - Americans are not getting the quality of care they should because of a lack of adequate systems to ensure proper diagnosis, prevention and treatment, the Commonwealth Fund asserts in a new report. In addition, the report documents many "missed opportunities" to improve patients' quality of life through proper preventive care and follow-up. The survey found, for example, that forty-one percent of men and women 50 and older had not been screened for colon cancer in the past five years.
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Human Genome Sciences wins OK to test cancer drug
NEW YORK, April 30 (Reuters) - Human Genome Sciences Inc. (HGSI) on Tuesday said U.S. regulators have given it the green light to begin human trials of an experimental cancer drug designed to cause tumor cells to destroy themselves. The Rockville, Maryland-based firm said its drug is a monoclonal antibody, or specialized immune-system protein, that binds to and thereby activates a suspected death receptor found on the surface of many types of cancer cells.
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Oxaliplatin combo may be better treatment for advanced colorectal cancer
National Cancer Institute - April 24, 2002 - Patients with newly diagnosed advanced (metastatic) colorectal cancer who received a multidrug regimen containing the investigational agent oxaliplatin appear to have fared significantly better than patients who received the current standard treatment, according to preliminary data from a randomized, Phase III clinical trial sponsored by the National Cancer Institute (NCI). The preliminary analysis showed that patients receiving the regimen known as FOLFOX (oxaliplatin, together with infusional fluorouracil and folinic acid) had a significantly longer time to disease progression, significantly better overall survival, a significantly higher response rate, and lower toxicity than patients receiving a regimen known as IFL (irinotecan, together with bolus fluorouracil and leucovorin). IFL (also known as the Saltz regimen) has been the standard treatment for advanced colorectal cancer since April 2000. The trial is known as N9741 2. The independent monitoring committee charged with oversight of the trial found the FOLFOX data promising enough to discontinue enrollment onto the IFL arm of the trial.
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