http://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. (Phys.org)—Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have shown how to synthesize in the laboratory an important set of natural compounds known as terpenes. The largest class of chemicals made by living organisms, terpenes are made within cells by some of the most complex chemical reactions found in biology. http://phys.org/news267698187.html Chemistry Mon, 24 Sep 2012 09:36:45 EST news267698187 A critical step in advancing medical treatment is the development of novel drug delivery methods. While a simple tablet, taken by the patient with a sip of water, may be the easiest way to administer a drug, this may not always be the most suitable. Some drugs are subjected to degradation by the body, while others, such as cancer medications, can be more effective if they are delivered directly to the diseased tissue site. Such a delivery could improve the effectiveness of the treatment and potentially reduce side effects. http://phys.org/news243847444.html Chemistry Fri, 23 Dec 2011 07:50:02 EST news243847444 (AP) -- A panel of cancer experts has ruled for a second time that Avastin, the best-selling cancer drug in the world, should no longer be used in breast cancer patients, clearing the way for the government to remove its endorsement from the drug. http://phys.org/news228474114.html Medicine & Health Tue, 28 Jun 2011 10:02:15 EST news228474114 In a study published today in Science (e-publication ahead of print), a global research team reports that the cancer drug Taxol (Paclitaxel) promotes the regeneration of injured nerve cells in the central nervous system (CNS) after spinal cord injury. Scientists from the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology in Germany and the Kennedy Krieger Institute’s International Center for Spinal Cord Injury in Maryland, together with colleagues at the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands and University of Miami in Florida, found that the drug reduces the major obstacles to neural cell repair in the spinal cord of injured rats. http://phys.org/news215372369.html Medicine & Health Thu, 27 Jan 2011 18:06:21 EST news215372369 Scientists are reporting successful application of the technology used in home devices to clean jewelry, dentures, and other items to make anticancer drugs like tamoxifen and paclitaxel dissolve more easily in body fluids, so they can better fight the disease. The process, described in ACS' journal, Langmuir, can make other poorly soluble materials more soluble, and has potential for improving the performance of dyes, paints, rust-proofing agents and other products. http://phys.org/news215267937.html Chemistry Wed, 26 Jan 2011 12:50:01 EST news215267937 Results of the GeparQuinto study, randomized Phase III efficacy data on the use of bevacizumab plus chemotherapy to treat women with early breast cancer will be presented at the 33rd Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium. http://phys.org/news211230083.html Medicine & Health Fri, 10 Dec 2010 19:01:33 EST news211230083 Ipilimumab used in combination with paclitaxel/carboplatin for stage IIIb/IV non-small cell lung cancer showed superior results in progression free survival when compared to paclitaxel/carboplatin alone, according to research presented at the 2010 Chicago Multidisciplinary Symposium in Thoracic Oncology. This symposium is sponsored by the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO), the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (ISLAC) and the University of Chicago. http://phys.org/news211110587.html Medicine & Health Thu, 09 Dec 2010 10:10:01 EST news211110587 A popular cancer drug could be produced cheaply and sustainably using stem cells derived from trees, a study suggests. http://phys.org/news207220839.html Biology Mon, 25 Oct 2010 10:20:52 EST news207220839 Adding topotecan to carboplatin plus paclitaxel, the standard treatment for ovarian cancer, does not improve progression-free survival in patients and leads to greater toxicity, according to a study published online October 11 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. http://phys.org/news206035988.html Medicine & Health Mon, 11 Oct 2010 18:50:02 EST news206035988 (PhysOrg.com) -- MIT researchers and collaborators from Tufts University have now engineered E. coli bacteria to produce large quantities of a critical compound that is a precursor to the cancer drug Taxol, originally isolated from the bark of the Pacific yew tree. The tree's bacteria can produce 1,000 times more of the precursor, known as taxadiene, than any other engineered microbial strain. http://phys.org/news205075259.html Chemistry Thu, 30 Sep 2010 14:21:27 EST news205075259 Chemotherapy is the best broad defense against cancer recurrence after surgical resection. However, it is difficult to predict which patients will benefit from which regimen of anticancer drugs, if at all. Building on existing knowledge, a study published in the September edition of the Journal of Thoracic Oncology (JTO), analyzed the usefulness of adjuvant chemotherapy for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) based on the histoculture drug response assay (HDRA). http://phys.org/news202454945.html Medicine & Health Wed, 01 Sep 2010 00:00:03 EST news202454945 The June edition of the Journal of Thoracic Oncology features a study aimed at determining the optimal dose of the chemotherapy drug nab-paclitaxel with carboplatin as a first-line therapy in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Results will provide researchers with a data needed to guide a phase 3 trial. http://phys.org/news195825330.html Medicine & Health Tue, 15 Jun 2010 12:55:45 EST news195825330 Scientists and engineers have used uniform magnetic fields to drive iron-bearing nanoparticles to metal stents in injured blood vessels, where the particles deliver a drug payload that successfully prevents blockages in those vessels. In this animal study, the novel technique achieved better results at a lower dose than conventional non-magnetic stent therapy. http://phys.org/news190815881.html Nanotechnology Mon, 19 Apr 2010 15:00:07 EST news190815881 Scientists may have uncovered a mechanism for resistance to paclitaxel in ovarian cancer, microRNA-31, suggesting a possible therapeutic target for overcoming chemotherapy resistance. http://phys.org/news187509245.html Medicine & Health Thu, 11 Mar 2010 06:30:02 EST news187509245 (PhysOrg.com) -- After suffering heart attacks, patients often receive stents designed to hold their arteries open. Some of these stents release drugs that are meant to halt tissue growth in arteries, but can have life-threatening side effects such as increasing the likelihood of blood clots and heart attacks. http://phys.org/news178969480.html Medicine & Health Wed, 02 Dec 2009 10:20:01 EST news178969480 Nanoparticle delivery of diphtheria toxin-encoding DNA selectively expressed in ovarian cancer cells reduced the burden of ovarian tumors in mice, and researchers expect this therapy could be tested in humans within 18 to 24 months, according to a report in Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research. http://phys.org/news168149704.html Medicine & Health Thu, 30 Jul 2009 05:21:34 EST news168149704 Gastroenterologists at Rush University Medical Center are studying the safety and efficacy of a new system for delivering chemotherapy for patients with esophageal cancer, a rare, but deadly disease that attacks the throat. The unique drug therapy delivers a highly concentrated dose of chemotherapy injected directly on to the hard-to-reach tumors in the esophagus non-surgically. Researchers at Rush are trying to determine if the gel treatment can reduce the size of the cancerous tumors. http://phys.org/news159031314.html Medicine & Health Wed, 15 Apr 2009 16:22:25 EST news159031314 Research by Michigan State University chemist Kevin Walker is paving the way for potentially cleaner, more efficient production of cancer-fighting paclitaxel -- better known as the blockbuster drug Taxol. http://phys.org/news157912267.html Chemistry Thu, 02 Apr 2009 17:31:37 EST news157912267