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Amrubicin improved response rate and progression-free survival vs. topotecan in Phase III trial

Lung cancer patients given amrubicin (Calsed) as a second-line therapy had a significantly improved response rate and longer progression-free survival than patients treated with topotecan (Hycamtin), according to research presented at the 14th World Conference on Lung Cancer in Amsterdam, hosted by the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC).

TEMLA shows higher diagnostic yield than EBUS or EUS in largest reported series to date

In the largest reported series yet to compare transcervical extended mediastinal lymphadenectomy (TEMLA) with endoscopic and surgical primary staging and restaging of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), TEMLA showed a significantly higher diagnostic yield, according to research presented at the 14th World Conference on Lung Cancer in Amsterdam, hosted by the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC).

Diagnostic yield refers to the likelihood that a procedure will provide the necessary information to establish a diagnosis.

Endosonography followed by surgical staging improves quality of life, according to ASTER study

Patients who underwent endoscopic testing prior to surgery for lung cancer had significantly better quality of life at the end of the staging process, with no significant difference in costs between the two strategies, according to data presented at the 14th World Conference on Lung Cancer in Amsterdam, hosted by the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC).

Cancer patients with blood clots gain no benefit from adding IVCF to fondaparinux

Cancer patients with blood clots -- which occur in one of every 200 cancer patients and are the second most common cause of death among cancer patients -- gain no benefit from the insertion of an inferior vena cava filter (IVCF) to the anticoagulant medication fondaparinux (Arixtra), according to research presented today at the 14th World Conference on Lung Cancer, hosted by the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer.

TGen presents lung cancer studies at Amsterdam conference

PHOENIX, Ariz. — July 7, 2011 — The Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) is presenting two key studies, including one today, at the 14th World Conference on Lung Cancer, July 3-7 in Amsterdam.

One study, presented July 4, involved a gene called GLI1, which may limit the effectiveness of the most common combination chemotherapy given to patients with small cell lung cancer (SCLC).

Southern US states lag in reducing death rates from colorectal cancer

PHILADELPHIA — Improvements in colorectal cancer mortality rates are concentrated in the northern part of the United States, while southern states continue to fall behind, according to a report in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

Ahmedin Jemal, D.V.M., Ph.D., vice president for surveillance research at the American Cancer Society, said the decrease in death rates ranged from about 37 percent in Massachusetts to no reduction in Mississippi.

Report finds large state disparities in progress against colorectal cancer

Progress in reducing colorectal cancer (CRC) mortality rates varies significantly across states, with rates in the Northeast showing the most progress and those in the South showing the least progress, according to a new study. As a result, the highest burden of CRC mortality shifted from the Northeast in the early 1990s to the southern states along the Appalachian corridor in the mid 2000s. The decrease in CRC mortality rates by state correlated strongly with uptake of screening.

London bombing memories explored

Los Angeles, CA (July 7th, 2011) - Six years on from the devastating 7/7 London bombings and in the wake of the inquest into the attacks, a special issue of the journal Memory Studies, published by SAGE, explores new research into our collective memories of this tragic event.

Women still in grip of idealized love and sex, purveyed by romantic fiction

Modern women are still heavily influenced by the idealised love and sex, purveyed by romantic fiction, says broadcaster and agony aunt Susan Quilliam in this month's Journal of Family Planning and Reproductive Health Care.

In some parts of the developed world, romance accounts for nearly half of all fiction titles purchased.

And while there is clearly a place for the genre, which can be enjoyable and fun, this rose-tinted view of relationships is not necessarily doing women any favours, argues Ms Quilliam.

Lack of clarity about HPV vaccine and the need for cervical cancer screening

The research will be presented today [Thursday 7 July] at the Annual Scientific Meeting of the Society of Academic Primary Care, hosted this year by the Academic Unit of Primary Health Care, University of Bristol.

New study: Cheap, common drug could dramatically reduce malaria transmission in Africa

(Deerfield, Ill., USA - July 6, 2011) A cheap, common heartworm medication that is already being used to fight other parasites in Africa could also dramatically interrupt transmission of malaria, potentially providing an inexpensive tool to fight a disease that kills almost 800,000 people each year, according to a new study published today in the July edition of the American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.

Gray whales likely survived the Ice Ages by changing their diets

Gray whales survived many cycles of global cooling and warming over the past few million years, likely by exploiting a more varied diet than they do today, according to a new study by University of California, Berkeley, and Smithsonian Institution paleontologists.

Combination therapy as good as old regimen to prevent full-blown TB in people with/without HIV

Johns Hopkins and South African scientists have further compelling evidence that new, simpler and shorter treatments with antibiotic drugs could dramatically help prevent tens of millions of people worldwide already infected with the bacterium responsible for tuberculosis, and especially those co-infected with HIV, from developing full-blown TB.

Study: Breastfeeding does not protect against MS relapses

ST. PAUL, Minn. – New research finds breastfeeding doesn't appear to protect against multiple sclerosis (MS) relapses, despite previous studies suggesting there may be a protective role. The research is published in the July 6, 2011, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology (AAN).

British Journal of Nutrition: Fat found in pistachios may not be readily absorbed by the body

Los Angeles – July 6, 2011 – A new study now appearing in the peer-reviewed British Journal of Nutrition, finds that fat in pistachios may not be completely absorbed by the body. The randomized controlled-feeding study, which is the first-of-its-kind research with nuts, indicates that pistachios may actually contain fewer calories per serving than originally thought.