Briefly: Randomized research found that radiation treatment to the entire brain after surgery for tumors that had spread to the brain didn’t improve either survival or the time that patients remained able to function independently.  Mice with muscle wasting and fat loss from cancer benefited from a commonly used diabetes drug.

In other headlines, Katie Couric received an award from Fordham University and called her work with colorectal cancer awareness “her greatest achievement.”  A panel at the FDA has recommended approval of a new formulation of OxyContin that is less easy to tamper with. Online registration for the October 4th Strides for Life Walk/Run closes on October 1. Read the rest of this entry »

Research this week finds that people with severe cancer weight loss get less benefit from fentanyl pain patches and explores why people with Down Syndrome have less cancer.

In other headlines, shut-down of a Canadian nuclear reactor threatens the supply of medical isotopes used in many cancer tests.  Free drug samples may do more harm than good, and CT colonography finds cancers and other serious conditions outside the colon in about 2 or 3 out of 100 tests.  Finally, we provide a link to a Cancer.Net podcast with information about what to expect from your colonoscopy. Read the rest of this entry »