Drug Combos Hailed as Big Breast Cancer Breakthrough

Breast cancer, ovarian cancer, melanoma yield to new approaches

(NEWSER) - New treatments for cancer—breast, ovarian, and skin—raised hopes at this weekend's meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology in Chicago. The findings aren't enough for Robert Langreth of Forbes , who sees "serious questions about whether big drug companies may be rushing too fast." Judge for yourself.

• A single dose of radiation administered at the site of tumor removal deterred recurrence of breast cancer as well as the standard grueling course of radiation on the entire breast, the Chicago Tribune reports.

First-of-its-kind drug slows, stops tumor growth

(NEWSER) - A first-of-its-kind drug has been developed to fight genetic breast cancer, with an initial round of human trials showing “very promising” results, reports the Times of London. The drug Olaparib works by blocking a protein that makes cancer cells containing the genetic default unable to repair themselves. The drug shrank tumors or stopped their growth in 40% of cases studied. More»

Sticking to advised limits would prevent thousands of cases

(NEWSER) - Drinking leads to at least 13,000 cases of cancer in Britain each year, a study finds—and thousands could be avoided if people would stick to alcohol guidelines. That UK-centric finding comes from a study that examined the tie between diet and cancer in eight European countries. Researchers discovered that among men, more than half of the cases of cancer of the upper digestive tract, colorectum, and liver attributed to alcohol in 2008 resulted from having more than two drinks daily; in women, more than 80% resulted from having more than one drink per day, the Guardian reports. More»

Natural drug discovery on the decline

(NEWSER) - Halaven, the new breast cancer drug the FDA approved in November, has an origin that’s rare in today’s pharmaceutical industry: It’s natural. Halaven is derived from halichondrin B, a chemical found in a species of black sponge that lives off the coast of Japan, the Wall Street Journal reports. Once that wouldn’t have been so remarkable, but lately large pharmaceutical companies have focused almost entirely on synthetic, targeted drugs. More»

New use for old test: early diagnosis of deadly disease

(NEWSER) - Combining an existing blood test for ovarian cancer with a new screening protocol may lead to a reliable way to diagnose the deadly disease in its early stages, a new study says. "This is an important step forward," the lead researcher tells the Houston Chronicle . " This may be pointing the way toward developing a 'mammogram' if you will for ovary cancer, " another oncologist says in an interview with Reuters . More»