Doggy Wants a Bone...Transplant

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.

Finding may pave way for new AIDS treatments

(AP) - The virus that causes AIDS can hide in the bone marrow, avoiding drugs and later awakening to cause illness, according to new research that could point the way toward better treatments for the disease. Finding that hideout is a first step, but years of research lie ahead. Dr. Kathleen Collins of the University of Michigan and her colleagues report in this week's edition of the journal Nature Medicine that HIV can infect long-lived bone marrow cells that eventually convert into blood cells. More»

Just 3% of adult patients take part in studies

(NEWSER) - Cancer death rates have changed little in the past 40 years, and one big reason often goes unremarked on, experts say: only 3% of adult cancer patients participate in studies of treatments, the New York Times reports. More than a fifth of trials sponsored by the National Cancer Institute couldn’t enroll a single subject, doctors found. “We can’t improve survival unless we test new treatments against established ones,” says one doc. More»

(NEWSER) - A team of University of North Carolina scientists are working to bring X-ray technology into the 21st century, the Economist reports. The X-ray machines commonly used today rely on vacuum-tube technology little changed from a century ago, but physicist Otto Zhou and his colleagues have used nanotechnology to create smaller, far more efficient machines with a wealth of uses in cancer research and treatment. More»

Tossing sharp sticks at canines not so smart after all, UK vet says

(NEWSER) - Chasing sticks leads to as many doggy injuries as running around on roads, a leading British vet tells the Times of London. With their pointy ends, erratic trajectories, and tendency to break apart, nature's fetch toys can cause all sorts of canine injuries, from stab wounds to paralysis to slow deaths from infected splinters. More»