(Posted: 04/03/2013) - The enzyme PKCζ acts as a tumor suppressor by keeping the pro-tumor c-Myc gene in check, in both mice and humans. Researchers from the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute have identified how an enzyme called PKCζ suppresses prostate tumor formation. The finding, which also describes a molecular chain of events that controls cell growth and metastasis, could lead to novel ways to control disease progression.

(Posted: 04/02/2013) - A research team jointly led by scientists from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and the University of California, Los Angeles (home of the Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center), have enhanced a device they developed to identify and “grab” circulating tumor cells, or CTCs, that break away from cancers and enter the blood, often leading to the spread of cancer to other parts of the body. If more studies confirm the technology’s effectiveness, the NanoVelcro Chip device could enable doctors to access and identify cancerous cells in the bloodstream, which would provide the diagnostic information needed to create individually tailored treatments for patients with prostate cancer.

(Posted: 04/01/2013) - Estrogen plus progestin use is linked with increased breast cancer incidence. In addition, prognosis is similar for both users and nonusers of combined hormone therapy, suggesting that mortality from breast cancer may be higher for hormone therapy users as well, according to a study published March 29 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Authors on this report included scientists from UCLA, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, University of Pittsburgh, Stanford University, State University of New York, Stony Brook; University of Tennessee, University at Buffalo, University of California at Davis, University of California, Sacramento.

(Posted: 04/01/2013) - Baldness was associated with an increased risk of prostate cancer among African-American men, and risk for advanced prostate cancer increased with younger age and type of baldness, according to data from the University of Pennsylvania (home of the Abramson Cancer Center) published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

(Posted: 03/29/2013) - A new study by researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (home of the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center) and the Shanghai Cancer Institute found women who ate more soy food prior to a diagnosis of lung cancer lived longer than those who consumed less. The study, conducted in Shanghai, China, was published in the March 25 issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

(Posted: 03/29/2013) - Researchers have identified genetic risk factors that may accelerate a teen's progression to becoming a lifelong heavy smoker. The team of scientists from the U.S., the U.K., and New Zealand examined earlier studies by other research teams to develop a genetic risk profile for heavy smoking. Then they looked at their own long-term study of 1,000 New Zealanders from birth to age 38 to identify whether individuals at high genetic risk got hooked on cigarettes more quickly as teens and whether, as adults, they had a harder time quitting. Duke University researchers developed a new "genetic risk score" for the study by examining prior genome-wide associations (GWAS) of adult smokers. Duke is home to the Duke Cancer Institute.

(Posted: 03/28/2013) - Dana-Farber Cancer Institute scientists and colleagues have discovered that pancreatic cancer cells' growth and spread are fueled by an unusual metabolic pathway that someday might be blocked with targeted drugs to control the deadly cancer. A study published today in Nature reveals that pancreatic tumor cells are dependent on an amino acid, glutamine, which they utilize via a molecular pathway that has no apparent backup system.

(Posted: 03/28/2013) - Smokers have a higher probability of quitting smoking and a better overall cessation experience when taking varenicline (Chantix) compared to bupropion (marketed under various trade names as antidepressants and smoking cessation aids) and to placebo – unmedicated assisted smoking cessation – according to a University of Texas MD Anderson study published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry.

(Posted: 03/28/2013) - In a laboratory study pairing food chemistry and cancer biology, scientists at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center tested the potentially harmful effect of foods and flavorings on the DNA of cells. They found that liquid smoke flavoring, black and green teas, and coffee activated the highest levels of a well-known, cancer-linked gene called p53.

(Posted: 03/28/2013) - Over 80 regions of the genome that can increase an individual’s risk of breast, prostate and ovarian cancers have been found in the largest ever study of its kind. The scientists were looking for genetic variations – called single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) – linked to an increased risk of developing cancer. By studying the DNA make-up of over 100,000 people with cancer and 100,000 people from the general population, they found alterations that were more common in people with prostate, breast or ovarian cancers.