Amsterdam, The Netherlands: The use of an intensified form of radiotherapy in patients with locally advanced head and neck cancers can improve overall survival rates compared with standard radiation therapy, according to results from a large study presented on Saturday at the 2013 European Cancer Congress (ECC2013) [1]. A comparison of altered fractionation radiotherapy (AFRT) […]
2013
Longest follow-up of largest number of melanoma patients treated with ipilimumab shows some survive up to ten years
Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Patients with advanced melanoma, who have been treated with the monoclonal antibody, ipilimumab, can survive for up to ten years, according to the largest analysis of overall survival for these patients, presented at the 2013 European Cancer Congress (ECC2013) [1] on Saturday. Professor Stephen Hodi (MD), Assistant Professor of Medicine at the […]
Anti-cancer drug T-DM1 benefits women with advanced breast cancer who have failed several previous treatments: results from TH3RESA trial
Amsterdam, The Netherlands: First results from a phase III clinical trial of the combination drug, T-DM1, show that it significantly improves the length of time before the disease worsens in women with advanced HER2 positive breast cancer whose cancer has recurred or progressed despite previous treatments, including trastuzumab and lapatinib. In a late-breaking presentation to […]
First randomised trial of targeted cancer medicine in all tumour types to be presented at ECC2013; results will pave the way for personalised treatment
A further step along the road to the personalisation of cancer medicine, where treatment is based on the individual molecular characteristics of tumours rather than their primary site, will be presented at the 2013 European Cancer Congress (ECC2013), which starts on Friday 27 September in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Dr Christophe Le Tourneau, Head of the […]
Length of human pregnancies can vary naturally by as much as five weeks
The length of a human pregnancy can vary naturally by as much as five weeks, according to research published online in Europe’s leading reproductive medicine journal Human Reproduction [1]. Normally, women are given a date for the likely delivery of their baby that is calculated as 280 days after the onset of their last menstrual […]
Large study reveals increased cancer risks associated with family history of the disease
A family history of cancer increases the risk of other members of the family developing not only the same cancer (known as a concordant cancer) but also a different (discordant) cancer, according to a large study of 23,000 people in Italy and Switzerland. The research, published in the leading cancer journal Annals of Oncology [1], […]
Study of over 73,000 patients with high blood pressure finds non-adherence to medication greatly increases risk of fatal and non-fatal strokes
People with high blood pressure, who don’t take their anti-hypertensive drug treatments when they should, have a greatly increased risk of suffering a stroke and dying from it compared to those who take their medication correctly. A study of 73,527 patients with high blood pressure, published online in the European Heart Journal [1], found that […]
People’s perception of the effect of stress on their health is linked to risk of heart attacks
People who believe that stress is having an adverse impact on their health are probably right, because they have an increased risk of suffering a heart attack, according to new research published online in the European Heart Journal [1]. The latest findings from the UK’s Whitehall II study, which has followed several thousand London-based civil […]
Death rates from heart disease continue to decline in most of the EU, but some countries are ‘cause for concern’
Death rates from heart disease in the European Union have more than halved in many countries since the early 1980s, according to new research published in the European Heart Journal [1]. In the majority of countries, there have been ongoing steady reductions in heart disease death rates in both sexes and most age groups, including […]
Long-distance cross-country skiers at increased risk of heart rhythm disturbances
Cross-country skiers who take part in one of the world’s most challenging ski races, the 90 km Vasaloppet in Sweden, are at increased risk of developing arrhythmia – problems with the rate or rhythm of their heart beat – according to a study of nearly 53,000 race participants published online in the European Heart Journal […]