tumor growth

Researchers have discovered what promises to be the on-off switch behind several major diseases. They report how the GPR91 receptor contributes to activate unchecked vascular growth that causes vision loss in common blinding diseases.

These findings could also have wide-ranging and positive implications for brain tissue regeneration.

Researchers have identified TEM1 as a specific genetic marker for the vascular cells associated with tumor growth, a finding that could aid in diagnosis and treatment of ovarian cancer.

A blue curing light used to harden dental fillings also may stunt tumor growth, Medical College of Georgia researchers say.

By restoring two small molecules that are often lost in chronic lymphocytic leukemia, researchers were able to block tumor growth in an animal model.

The study also uses human CLL cells to show that the two molecules, called miR-15a and miR-16-1, affect 70 genes, most of which are involved in cell growth, death, proliferation and metabolism.

This reveals how the molecules normally protect against cancer and suggests a possible new CLL treatment strategy.

A novel molecule, GDC-0449, shrinks tumors for patients with advanced basal cell carcinoma with limited side effects, suggesting a viable new treatment option for patients with the advanced form of this cancer.

"Basal cell carcinoma affects about one million people a year, and a very small fraction of these patients have disease that is not curable with surgery.

We currently do not have any treatments that can effectively slow tumor growth in these advanced patients.

This finding has enormous implications in this population," said one of the physicians involved with the research.

Low-molecular-weight heparins block the formation of new blood vessels and prevent tumor growth, according to the results of a study.

Angiogenesis -- the development of new blood vessels -- fuels cancer cell reproduction. The use of low-molecular-weight heparins (LMWHs) has been shown to extend survival in cancer patients by reducing the clotting action of blood.

However, the mechanism is unclear.

Treatment with sunitinib slows tumor growth and reduces the risk of metastasis in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma, an aggressive cancer of the liver, researchers report.

Prostate tumors grew more quickly in mice who exercised than in those who did not, leading to speculation that exercise may increase blood flow to tumors, according to a new study.

The researchers want to caution men against interpreting these findings as an endorsement for not exercising for fear of getting or exacerbating cancer.

By increasing production of a blood pressure-regulating enzyme in mice, researchers have found they can enhance the mouse immune system's ability to sense tumor growth.

When scientists engineered mice that make more angiotensin-converting enzyme in white blood cells called macrophages, the mice could more effectively limit the growth of injected tumors.

Researchers have developed a new algorithm for ranking abnormal genes according to their likelihood of contributing to a cancer.

They also show that a gene identified by the algorithm as a likely restrainer of tumor growth does indeed play that role in a common type of brain cancer, and is not a mere "bystander" to another restrainer gene.