Cancer immunotherapy pioneers win medicine Nobel

http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2018/10/cancer-immunotherapy-pioneers-win-medicine-nobel

Bacterial injections into tumors show early promise for treating cancer

http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2018/10/bacterial-injections-tumors-show-early-promise-treating-cancer

MR-Linac Radiation Therapy: new cancer treatment technology at Froedtert Hospital, Milwaukee

MR-Linac Radiation Therapy
-One of only two sites in the U.S. offering this capability.

Non-hallucinogenic cannabinoids are effective anti-cancer drugs

Non-hallucinogenic cannabinoids are effective anti-cancer drugs -- ScienceDaily

Bioengineered decoy protein may stop cancer from spreading

Directed evolution: Bioengineered decoy protein may stop cancer from spreading -- ScienceDaily

Carcinoid lung tumors – incidence, treatment and outcomes: a population-based study

Carcinoid lung tumors – incidence, treatment and outcomes: a population-based study
Anne Naalsund, Hans Rostad, Erik Heyerdahl Strøm, May Brit Lund, and Trond-Eirik Strand
Eur J Cardiothorac Surg (2011) 39 (4): 565-569 doi:10.1016/j.ejcts.2010.08.036

Learning about Carcinoid Syndrome

CarcinoidLink

Educational resources offered by Novartis Oncology.  If you're new to the issue of carcinoid tumors or carcinoid syndrome I suggest viewing the videos.

Adjuvant vinorelbine plus cisplatin versus observation in patients with completely resected stage IB–IIIA non-small-cell lung cancer

Adjuvant vinorelbine plus cisplatin versus observation in patients with completely resected stage IB–IIIA non-small-cell lung cancer (Adjuvant Navelbine International Trialist Association [ANITA]): a randomised controlled trial : The Lancet Oncology

CRISPR/Cas technique allows precise modification of genome

Exclusive: 'Jaw-dropping' breakthrough hailed as landmark in fight against hereditary diseases as Crispr technique heralds genetic revolution - Science - News - The Independent

• David Adams, a DNA scientist at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in Cambridge, said that the technique has the potential to transform the way scientists are able to manipulate the genes of all living organisms, especially patients with inherited diseases, cancer or lifelong HIV infection.
  
  “This is the first time we’ve been able to edit the genome efficiently and precisely and at a scale that means individual patient mutations can be corrected,” Dr Adams said.

Research shows how medicine for the brain can be absorbed through the nose

Research shows how medicine for the brain can be absorbed through the nose
-University of Southern Denmark. "Research shows how medicine for the brain can be absorbed through the nose." Medical News Today. MediLexicon, Intl., 27 Sep. 2013. Web. 27 Sep. 2013.

Editor's notes:
There may be a wonderful use for nasal administration in the treatment of medically resistant pituitary prolactinomas.  These are commonly treated medically by oral administration of the dopamine agonists cabergoline (CAB) or bromocriptine (BRO).  But in some patients normalization of PRL (prolactin) levels is not achieved with even unusually high doses of CAB or BRO. If CAB or BRO can be delivered effectively to the brain via nasal administration, it may be possible to produce higher therapeutic levels of the drug at the pituitary tumor while avoiding the undesired increased exposure to other systems which may be affected: such as the kidneys, pancreas, and immune system.

Cref: Dopamine -Wikipedia

Post-surgical follow-up of primary hyperparathyroidism associated with MEN1

Post-surgical follow-up of primary hyperparathyroidism associated with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1

-Flavia L. Coutinho, Delmar M. Lourenco, Jr.,I Rodrigo A. Toledo, Fabio L. M. Montenegro, and Sergio P. A. Toledo
Clinics (Sao Paulo). 2012 April; 67(Suppl 1): 169–172.
doi: 10.6061/clinics/2012(Sup01)28. PMCID: PMC3328812

• In patients with hyperparathyroidism and MEN1, parathyroidectomy in most cases "was able to restore normal calcium/parathyroid hormone levels and ultimately lead to discontinuation of calcium and calcitriol supplementation."
  

Selective parathyroidectomy: a conservative surgical option for MEN1–primary hyperparathyroidism

Minimally invasive parathyroidectomy provides a conservative surgical option for multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1–primary hyperparathyroidism -Mark Versnick, et al.
Surgery, Volume 154, Issue 1 , Pages 101-105, July 2013

• MIP (minimally invasive hyperparathyroidectomy) "provides an acceptable outcome for patients with MEN1."
  
• "It is accepted that recurrent disease is inevitable in these patients; however, such recurrence may take decades to occur and may be able to be dealt with by a further focused procedure."

Link discovered between MEN1 and much-studied Hedgehog signal pathway

Menin Epigenetically Represses Hedgehog Signaling in MEN1 Tumor Syndrome
-Xianxin Hua, MD, PhD, Buddha Gurung, PhD, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania
Cancer Research April 15, 2013 73:2650-2658; Published OnlineFirst April 15, 2013;

Link discovered between MEN1 and much-studied cell pathway
A research team led by Xianxin Hua, MD, PhD, associate professor of Cancer Biology at the Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute, report in Cancer Research that menin suppresses signaling in the much-studied Hedgehog pathway in endocrine organs.

• "This study uncovered a new layer of regulation of pro-proliferative genes by menin via the Hedgehog signaling pathway," Hua says.
  
• "These pro-replication genes are regulated through GAS1 and PRMT5."
  
• The GAS1 protein promotes Hedgehog signaling.
  
• Menin interacts with the methylating enzyme PRMT5, and binds to the promoter of the Gas1 gene, inhibiting Gas1 gene transcription.
  
• By inhibiting Gas1 expression, menin and PRMT5 inhibit the pathway's tendency towards cell proliferation.
  
• Mutant menin proteins are impaired in their ability to interact with PRMT5, and lead to increased Hedgehog signaling and cell proliferation.
  
• Hua's team found that treating a mouse model of human MEN1 with a Hedgehog pathway inhibitor called Erivedge reduced proliferation of tumor cells and blood insulin levels. Hua says that this suggests a potential new treatment for MEN1 patients.
  

Men1 mouse studies claim pre-clinical proof-of-concept for gene replacement therapy in pituitary NETs.

Clinical and pre-clinical studies of neuroendocrine tumours (NETs) in multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN1), and evaluation of MEN1 gene replacement therapy for MEN1-associated NETs.
-Gerard Walls, Paul Newey, et al.
Endocrine Abstracts (2013) 31 YEP1.1 | DOI:10.1530/endoabs.31.YEP1.1

MEN1 -overview and treatment

Multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN1)
-Richard W. Carroll
Asia-Pacific Journal of Clinical Oncology,Wiley Online Library, 2012
doi: 10.1111/ajco.12046

DCA (dichloroacetic acid) - a possible future cancer treatment?

Dichloroacetic acid - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

There are wild rumors that DCA (dichloroacetic acid) "cures" cancer. Ignoring what seem to be premature and extreme claims, the facts about DCA are interesting to consider. Perhaps DCA may have a future in cancer treatment.

MEN Syndrome and M.E.N. 1: Parathyroid, Pituitary, Pancreas, Thyroid Tumors and MEN type 1 Syndrome - Disorders of the Parathyroid, Pituitary, and Pancreas

MEN Syndrome and M.E.N. 1: Parathyroid, Pituitary, Pancreas, Thyroid Tumors and MEN type 1 Syndrome - Disorders of the Parathyroid, Pituitary, and Pancreas

An overview of MEN1, its treatment, and what patients can expect.

By James Norman MD, FACS, FACE
Norman Parathyroid Center
http://www.parathyroid.com/Parathyroid-Surgeon.htm

MD Anderson Cancer Center announces "Moon Shots Program"

"The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center is launching a multibillion-dollar initiative on Friday aimed at reducing cancer deaths over the next decade, saying a flurry of recent advances in genomics and other technologies has laid a foundation for making major new strides against the disease.

The effort, which the institution calls the Moon Shots program, is expected to spend as much as $3 billion over 10 years in a bid to reduce the toll of eight different cancers, and to develop an infrastructure and strategies for collecting and analyzing data that leaders of the effort say will be applied to other cancers as well."

Wall Street Journal, 21 September 2012

See the full Moon Shots News Release

MEN1 gene replacement therapy reduces proliferation rates in a mouse model of pituitary adenomas

MEN1 gene replacement therapy reduces proliferation rates in a mouse model of pituitary adenomas
-G Walls, M Lemos, et al.
Journal of Cancer Research, OnlineFirst August 21, 2012; doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-12-1821

• "In this study, we conducted a preclinical evaluation of MEN1 gene therapy in pituitary tumors of Men1+/- mice, using a recombinant non-replicating adenoviral serotype 5 vector..."
  
• "Menin expression was higher in the Men1.rAd5-treated mice when compared to other groups. Daily proliferation rates assessed by BrdU incorporation were reduced significantly in Men1.rAd5-injected tumors relative to control treated tumors."
  
• "Our findings establish that MEN1 gene replacement therapy can generate menin expression in pituitary tumors, and significantly reduce tumor cell proliferation."
  

Testing Of New Drug For Patients With Neuroendocrine Tumors

Testing Of New Drug For Patients With Neuroendocrine Tumors

• "Pasireotide is a novel multireceptor-targeted somatostatin analogue that binds to four of the five known somatostatin receptor subtypes... Because of its binding ability, it may offer symptom reduction for patients who have eventually failed to respond to traditional therapy."
  
• The multicenter clinical trial, conducted at sites in the United States and Europe, enrolled 89 patients and evaluated 44 for efficacy and 45 for tolerability. Pasireotide "effectively controlled symptoms." Evaluation of tumor response in 23 patients showed 13 with stable disease and 10 with progressive disease. The drug was "effective and well-tolerated" and adverse events, most commonly gastrointestinal, were "mild or moderately severe."
  
• A Phase III study evaluating pasireotide versus octreotide is ongoing for patients with advanced NET whose disease-related symptoms have been inadequately controlled.