2012 Current Cancer Dedicated to bringing the latest news and information on cancer diagnosis, treatment and prevention.

News

  • FDA: New suppliers to ease 2 cancer drug shortages (AP):

    FILE - In this April 19, 2011 file photo, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Margaret Hamburg announces new prescription drug safety measures and a plan to fight prescription drug abuse, at the National Press Club in Washington. Federal regulators sid Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2012, they've approved new suppliers for two crucial cancer drugs, easing critical shortages — at least for the time being — that have patients worried about missing life-saving treatments. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)AP - Federal regulators said Tuesday that they've approved new suppliers for two crucial cancer drugs, easing critical shortages — at least for the time being — that have left patients and parents frightened about missing life-saving treatments.


    . Posted 22 February 2012 | 5:00 am
  • FDA Moves to Head Off Shortages of 2 Cancer Drugs (HealthDay): HealthDay - TUESDAY, Feb. 21 (HealthDay News) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced Tuesday what it called a series of steps to ensure the continued availability of vital cancer drugs that have been in dangerously short supply.. Posted 22 February 2012 | 4:47 am
  • FDA acts to stem shortages of two cancer drugs (Reuters):

    Staff walk among the new buildings at the the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland, November 5, 2009. REUTERS/Jason ReedReuters - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said it will resolve a potentially life-threatening shortage of two leading cancer drugs by allowing one of them to be imported from abroad and rushing approval for a new manufacturer to make the second.


    . Posted 21 February 2012 | 10:15 pm
  • Egyptian firm in fake Avastin scam proves elusive (Reuters): Reuters - The trail of counterfeit copies of the multibillion-dollar cancer drug Avastin leads to an address in a crowded Cairo suburb, with no sign of the firm named by international suppliers as the source of the product.. Posted 21 February 2012 | 8:24 pm
  • Female Cancer Survivors Report Worse Health Habits: Survey (HealthDay): HealthDay - MONDAY, Feb. 20 (HealthDay News) -- Female cancer survivors are more likely to smoke and have other unhealthy behaviors than women who have never had cancer, a new study finds.. Posted 21 February 2012 | 4:47 am
  • Fewer Melanoma Deaths in Counties With More Dermatologists (HealthDay): HealthDay - MONDAY, Feb. 20 (HealthDay News) -- Counties with more dermatologists have lower rates of deaths from melanoma, a new study finds.. Posted 21 February 2012 | 4:47 am
  • NJ girl in transplant visa flap leaves hospital (AP): AP - A 5-year-old New Jersey girl whose bone marrow transplant was in doubt at one point due to a visa dispute involving her older sister emerged from the hospital Monday, ready to begin the slow process of resuming a normal life.. Posted 20 February 2012 | 9:30 pm
  • Women in the U.K. May Lose Access to Important Breast Cancer Drugs (ContributorNetwork): ContributorNetwork - COMMENTARY | The Telegraph reports that the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) has decided that two drugs used to treat HER2 positive breast cancer are not cost-effective. As a result, it is possible that two drugs, Herceptin and Tykerb -- Tyverb in the U.K. -- may not be available much longer. Both drugs are used in combination with other drug therapies.. Posted 17 February 2012 | 8:38 pm
  • Men opting for costly new prostate cancer treatment, study shows (Reuters): Reuters - Men diagnosed with localized prostate cancer are more likely to be treated with proton beam therapy, a novel form of radiation therapy, if the technology is available nearby, a new study found.. Posted 17 February 2012 | 7:15 pm
  • Ohio couple get 8 years each in son's cancer death (AP):

    Monica Hussing, center is handcuffed after being sentenced to eight years in prison on involuntary manslaughter charges in Cleveland Thursday, Feb. 16, 2012. Their son, Willie Robinson, died from Hodgkin lymphoma in 2008. Prosecutors say he had begged his parents to take him to see a doctor but was rejected. Hussing's attorney is John Luskin, left. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan)AP - The parents of an 8-year-old boy who died from Hodgkin lymphoma after suffering for months from undiagnosed swollen glands were sentenced to eight years in prison Thursday following their guilty pleas to denying him medical treatment.


    . Posted 17 February 2012 | 5:24 am
  • Nerve-Sparing Prostate Surgery Helps Men Retain Sexual Function (HealthDay): HealthDay - THURSDAY, Feb. 16 (HealthDay News) -- Most men who have surgery for prostate cancer can still achieve orgasm if the nerves that surround their prostate gland are not removed, according to a new study.. Posted 17 February 2012 | 4:46 am
  • Ohio parents get prison in cancer death of son (Reuters): Reuters - A Cleveland judge sentenced two parents Thursday to eight years in prison after they pleaded guilty to failing to get medical help for their eight-year-old boy before he died from a treatable form of cancer.. Posted 16 February 2012 | 11:07 pm
  • Recent counterfeit drug warnings in US (AP): AP - The Food and Drug Administration is investigating fake vials of the cancer drug Avastin that may have been sold to doctors in three states. In recent years the agency has warned the public about several pharmaceutical counterfeiting cases:. Posted 16 February 2012 | 10:48 pm
  • FDA Warns Health Officials About Counterfeit Cancer Drug (ContributorNetwork): ContributorNetwork - The FDA announced on Tuesday that a counterfeit version of the drug Avastin has made its way into the U.S. market. Doctors, hospitals, and pharmacists are being urged to check their supply of the drug to make sure it was manufactured by Roche Group partner Genentech, the maker of the real Avastin.. Posted 16 February 2012 | 10:09 pm
  • Astra takes brand cancer drug straight to patients (Reuters): Reuters - AstraZeneca Plc is selling breast cancer drug Arimidex directly to U.S. patients, offering an option for people who want to pay for the brand instead of generic versions.. Posted 16 February 2012 | 9:58 pm
  • Government panel favors some WTC cancer claims (AP): AP - A $2.76 billion aid program for people sickened by World Trade Center dust should be expanded to include those who have at least some types of cancer, members of a government advisory panel said Thursday.. Posted 16 February 2012 | 9:54 pm
  • Sanofi recalls some Fludara chemotherapy drug (Reuters): Reuters - Sanofi said it has recalled some of its drug Fludara, a chemotherapy agent, due to quality control problems. The drug is used to treat adults with B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia who have failed to respond adequately to prior treatments.. Posted 16 February 2012 | 6:01 pm
  • Tasmanian Devil Cancer Traced Back to 'Immortal' Devil Girl (LiveScience.com): LiveScience.com - About 20 years ago, a female Tasmanian devil living in northeast Tasmania developed a facial tumor. When she eventually died, she left some of her cancer cells behind. Her tumor lived on to kill another day, and has been sweeping through the endangered Tasmanian devil population ever since.. Posted 16 February 2012 | 5:30 pm
  • Psychotherapy May Ease Hot Flashes After Breast Cancer (HealthDay): HealthDay - TUESDAY, Feb. 14 (HealthDay News) -- After breast cancer treatment, many women suffer from hot flashes and night sweats, but a type of "talk therapy" might relieve these symptoms for some women, British researchers suggest.. Posted 16 February 2012 | 4:47 am
  • Dietary Help Can Boost Cancer Patients' Nutrition, But Not Survival (HealthDay): HealthDay - WEDNESDAY, Feb. 15 (HealthDay News) -- Good dietary advice and supplements can boost nutrition while improving quality of life in malnourished cancer patients, a new study finds.. Posted 16 February 2012 | 4:47 am