A leukemia drug kills cancerous T-cells while sparing normal immunity

MA—Leukemic cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (L-CTCL) is a leukemia arising from T-cells, a type of white blood cell. This cancer can involve the skin and other organs, and patients often die within three years.

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New culprit discovered in T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia

A new study published in the journal Nature Medicine by NYU Cancer Institute researchers, shows how the cancer causing gene Notch, in combination with a mutated Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 (PRC2) protein complex, work together to cause T- cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL).

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Fish oil may hold key to leukemia cure

A compound produced from fish oil that appears to target leukemia stem cells could lead to a cure for the disease, according to Penn State researchers. The compound — delta-12-protaglandin J3, or D12-PGJ3 — targeted and killed the stem cells of chronic myelogenous leukemia, or CML, in mice, said Sandeep Prabhu, associate professor of immunology and molecular toxicology in the Department of Veterinary and Medical Sciences. The compound is produced from EPA — Eicosapentaenoic Acid — an Omega-3 fatty acid found in fish and in fish oil, he said.

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First comprehensive DNA study of mast cell leukemia uncovers clues that could improve therapy

Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y. – Cancer researchers at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) have carried out the first comprehensive study of the changes seen in the DNA of a patient with mast cell leukemia (MCL), an extremely aggressive subtype of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with a very poor prognosis.

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AML patients have high response rate with vorinostat added to treatment

Adding a drug that activates genes to frontline combination therapy for acute myeloid leukemia resulted in an 85 percent remission rate after initial treatment, researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center reported at the 53rd Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology.

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Penn researchers repair immune system in leukemia patients following chemotherapy

–– A new treatment using leukemia patients’ own infection-fighting cells appears to protect them from infections and cancer recurrence following treatment with fludarabine-based chemotherapy, according to new research from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. The new process is a step toward eliminating the harsh side effects that result from the commonly prescribed drug, which improves progression-free survival in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) but destroys patients’ healthy immune cells in the process, leaving them vulnerable to serious viral and bacterial infections. The drug’s effects on the immune system tend to be so violent that it has been dubbed “AIDS in a bottle.”

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Compound found in common wart treatment shows promise as leukemia therapy

A new potential leukemia therapy targets only cancer cells, while leaving healthy cells alone. Many current chemotherapy treatments affect cancer cells and healthy cells, causing significant side effects, such as fatigue, hair loss, nausea, anxiety and depression. This research is being presented at the 2011 American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS) Annual Meeting and Exposition in Washington, D.C., Oct. 23 – 27.

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New research validates clinical importance of leukemia stem cells

–Cancer scientists have long debated whether all cells within a tumour are equal or whether some cancer cells are more potent - a question that has been highly investigated in experimental models in the last decade. Research published today in Nature Medicine (10.1038/nm.2415) focuses on patients and shows that acute myeloid leukemia (AML) contains rare cells with stem cell properties, called leukemia stem cells (LSC), that are better at predicting clinical outcome than the majority of AML cells, showing for the first time that LSCs are significant not just in experimental models but also in patients.

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Researchers find new hope for treatment of chronic leukemia

New drug, in early clinical testing, offers some clues

Wednesday, August 17, 2011, Cleveland: While testing a new drug designed to treat chronic leukemia, researchers at Cleveland Clinic discovered new markers that could identify which patients would receive maximum benefit from the treatment.

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Unconventional hunt for new cancer targets leads to a powerful drug candidate for leukemia

The new therapeutic agent, which works against diverse leukemia subtypes, is expected to enter phase I clinical trial within 2 years

Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y. – Scientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) and five other institutions have used an unconventional approach to cancer drug discovery to identify a new potential treatment for acute myeloid leukemia (AML). As reported in Nature online on August 3, the scientists have pinpointed a protein called Brd4 as a novel drug target for AML, an aggressive blood cancer that is currently incurable in 70% of patients. Using a drug compound that inhibits the activity of Brd4, the scientists were able to suppress the disease in experimental models.

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