Scientists use salmonella bug to kill cancer cells
Reuters – 8/11/10 – Treating tumors with salmonella bacteria can induce an immune response that kills cancer cells.

Publication Alert: Caltech biologists discover microRNAs that control function of blood stem cells
ScienceBlog – 8/4/10 – CRI Postdoctoral Fellow Ryan O’Connell is first author on a paper describing a novel role for microRNA-125b in controlling blood stem cell fate.

FDA Grants Orphan Drug Status for Personalized Cancer Vaccine, BiovaxID®, Targeting Mantle Cell Lymphoma
MarketWatch – 7/26/10 – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted orphan drug status for Biovest’s cancer vaccine, BiovaxID®, for mantle cell lymphoma.

BMS Files Ipilimumab With FDA And EMA, Positioning It for Launch Next Year
The Pink Sheet Daily – 7/22/10 – Bristol-Myers Squibb submitted regulatory filings for the melanoma immunotherapy ipilimumab with the U.S. FDA and European Medicines Agency at the end of June.

CRI Investigator Named to Top Position at U.K. Immunology Research Group
Cancer Research Institute – 7/21/10 – Cancer Research Institute clinical investigator Vincenzo Cerundolo, a professor of immunology at the Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine at the University of Oxford, U.K., has been named director of the Medical Research Council (MRC) Human Immunology Unit

Cervical cancer vaccine 'may prevent more cases than initially thought'
Cancer Research UK – 7/14/10 – A study by scientists at the Health Protection Agency, the University of Manchester, and the Manchester Royal Infirmary suggests that the cervical cancer vaccine could prevent even more cases of the disease than previously thought.  (Click here for more information on the cervical cancer vaccine and CRI’s role in it.)

Test could predict which children with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia are best candidates for clinical trials of new therapies
Dana-Farber – 7/19/10 – CRI Investigator Adolfo Ferrando, M.D., Ph.D., at Columbia University, named as co-author on publication in the Journal of Clinical Oncology on this discovery of a new genetic marker that enables doctors to predict, for the first time, which children with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) are unlikely to benefit from standard chemotherapy.

CRI Scientific Advisory Council Member Dr. Richard Lerner to be Honored by University of Warwick
University of Warwick – 7/15/10 – University of Warwick to award twelve honorary degrees during its Summer degree ceremonies next week, including an Honorary Doctor of Science to CRI Scientific Advisory Council member Dr. Richard Lerner.

Medicare to Weigh Coverage for Dendreon Drug
Wall Street Journal – 6/30/10 – The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services will conduct a year-long analysis to weigh national coverage for Dendreon’s new prostate cancer vaccine Provenge®, which was approved by the FDA in April 2010.  In the meantime, regional providers can determine whether or not to cover it. (Click here for more CRI news on Provenge and prostate cancer.)

Pancreatic Cancer Vaccine Advances
CBS News – 6/30/10 – Video: Researchers at Johns Hopkins Medical Center report progress on a pancreatic cancer vaccine.

CRI Fellow Jesse D. Bloom, Ph.D., Provides Molecular Explanation for the Evolution of Virus Resistance to Tamiflu
Nano Patents and Innovations – 6/6/10 – CRI Fellow Jesse Bloom, Ph.D., at the California Institute of Technology identified molecular changes that helped facilitate the global spread of resistance to the antiviral medication Tamiflu (oseltamivir) among strains of the seasonal H1N1 flu virus.

CRI Scientists James Allison, Ph.D., and Jedd Wolchok, M.D., Ph.D., featured on ABC
WABC – 6/23/10 – CRI scientists James Allison, Ph.D., and Jedd Wolchok, M.D., Ph.D., featured in ABS news story on the new immunotherapy for melanoma, ipilimumab.  (Click here for more CRI news on ipilimumab and melanoma.)

New Cancer Immunotherapy Helps Patients with Metastatic Melanoma Live Longer
CRI – 6/7/10 – A new treatment for melanoma "takes the brakes off the immune system" and extends survival

CRI Announces 2010 William B. Coley Award Winners
CRI – 6/7/10 – Three scientists will receive the prestigious Coley Award for contributions to tumor immunology that have bolstered efforts to create vaccines to treat, control, and prevent cancer.

First FDA Approval of a Therapeutic Cancer Vaccine a Milestone Victory for the Field
CRI – 4/30/10 – Yesterday's announcement of the FDA approval of a therapeutic cancer vaccine heralds the start of a new era in cancer treatment, CRI scientists say. 

MEDIA ALERT: 28th Annual Through the Kitchen Party at The Four Seasons
CRI – 4/13/10 – Called 'one of the most memorable parties of 2009' by the New York Times, "Through the Kitchen" is a festive evening that raises funds to support young postdoctoral researchers working in leading immunology and tumor immunology laboratories around the world.

Eating vegetables doesn't stop cancer
NY Times – 4/7/10 – A diet rich in fruits and vegetables was associated with only a small reduction in cancer risk, according to researchers who studied the eating habits of more than 400,000 people for nearly nine years.

New technology from CRI scientists improves immune monitoring of therapeutic cancer vaccines
CRI – 4/7/10 – Measuring a key immunology indicator of successful treatment with a therapeutic cancer vaccine just got easier, thanks to a new test established by a collaboration of scientists in France and Switzerland.

Researchers see a revolution in cancer vaccines on the horizon
Fierce Vaccines – 4/7/10 – A number of therapeutic cancer vaccines in development are steadily advancing toward possible FDA approval, the vanguard of a new wave in cancer treatment.

CRI's Cancer Vaccine Consortium changes name to Cancer Immunotherapy Consortium
CRI – 3/18/10 – CRI's association of biopharmaceutical companies and academic institutions has changed it name to reflect better the program's scope and services to members developing immune system-based treatments for cancer.

Diagnostic tests planned to select patients most likely to benefit from skin cancer immunotherapy
GenomeWeb – 3/8/10 – GlaxoSmithKline and Abbott Molecular announced last week that they will work together to develop and commercialize a diagnostic test to select patients for an investigational skin cancer immunotherapy.

CRI researcher’s cancer immunotherapeutics formulation remains stable, potent
PharmaLive – 3/8/10 – Cancer-fighting bacterial vaccines from Advaxis maintain potency after long periods of storage, company reports.

Potential vaccine for rare cancer found safe
AHN – 3/4/10 – Researchers in the Netherlands say they have demonstrated the safety of a possible vaccine against mesothelioma, a lung cancer linked to asbestos exposure.

HPV vaccines may reduce a wide range of genital diseases
NewsRx – 3/4/10 – Vaccines that prevent infection by the human papillomavirus may result in rapid reduction of HPV-associated diseases, including cervical, vulvar, and vaginal cancers.

No meeting on Provenge prostate cancer vaccine needed, says FDA
AP – 3/2/10 – Shares of biotechnology company Dendreon Corp. jumped Tuesday after federal regulators said they don't plan to hold a public meeting on the company's prostate cancer treatment, possibly leading to quicker approval for the drug.

First therapeutic cancer vaccine approvals in 2010 “realistic expectation”
GenEngNews – 3/1/10 – Biopharma industry wonks expect the first therapeutic cancer vaccine approval to be among key advances in 2010.

CRI researchers report new technology that reveals how the immune system “sees” cancer
CRI – 3/1/10 – CRI researchers have taken a major step forward in identifying what the immune system “sees” on cancer cells, opening up new targets for cancer immunotherapy

Vaccine extends life of metastatic prostate cancer patients
BiotechDaily – 2/24/10 – In a newly published clinical trial, patients with metastatic prostate cancer who received a vaccine of harmless poxviruses engineered to trigger an immune system attack on prostate tumor cells lived considerably longer than patients who received a placebo vaccine.

CRI researchers detect an unexpected link between Hodgkin Lymphoma and reproductive germ cells
CRI – 2/24/10 – A new study by CRI scientists implicates genes active at the first stages of fetal development in the progression and spread of cancers.

CRI Young Philanthropists team up with Saks Fifth Avenue for spring event
CRI – 2/16/10 – The upcoming Spring Into Style benefit at Saks Fifth Avenue, organized by the CRI Young Philanthropists, fosters charitable giving and awareness among young professionals.

CRI announces new immune-related response criteria
CRI – 12/24/09 – An international collaboration of scientists from academia and industry have defined a new set of criteria that more accurately judges the therapeutic activity of immunological cancer treatments.

Patients respond to tumor-targeting drugs
USA Today – 12/11/09 – Drugs that target tumors are showing promise in advanced breast cancer.

Gene testing may improve cancer treatment
Web MD – 12/11/09 – Individualized care for ovarian cancer patients may stand to benefit from new genetic testing.

Spices may improve cancer treatment
US News – 12/11/09 – Pepper and turmeric contain compounds that have been shown to target tumor-promoting stem cells.

Breast cancer survivors may need to limit alcohol consumption
CNN – 12/10/09 – Breast cancer survivors who drank moderately had a higher risk of recurrence, a new study says.

Loneliness, isolation may impact cancer outcome
Time – 12/8/09 – The findings suggest that a cancer patient’s treatment should be a holistic approach.

Soy product, breast cancer link re-looked
CNN – 12/8/09 – In a new study, estrogen-rich soy products were shown to have a positive effect on breast cancer patients.

6-year decline in cancer deaths
BusinessWeek – 12/7/09 – The decline is attributable to early detection, decreases in smoking and improved treatments.

Cancer Research Institute profiled on Pathology.Org
CRI – 11/18/09 – Pathology.org, a Web site sharing health information on a range of subjects, has profiled CRI

Mammograms not recommended between ages 40 and 50
ABC News – 11/18/09 – The United States Preventative Services Task Force is butting heads with doctors and organizations, like the American Cancer Society, on screening for breast cancer.

Cancer is not so genetically easy to define
New York Times – 11/18/09 – An Icelandic human genome researcher has discovered that major diseases do not have a simple genetic pattern.

Ghostwriting and the manipulation of scientific literature
New York Times – 11/18/09 – A senator asks medical schools to explain their ghostwriting practices, a process that could be considered to some as plagiarism.

Targeting normal cells in or near tumors slows cancer growth
The Wistar Institute – 11/16/09 – CRI-funded researchers at The Wistar Institute show that taking the "soil" away from the cancer "seed" can slow its growth.

New Act passed to protect from genetic testing
New York Times – 11/16/09 – The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act will ban employers and insurers from using genetic testing to discriminate against an employee.

HDL cholesterol found to cut cancer risks
Bloomberg – 11/15/09 – The cholesterol that flushes clogged arteries also reduces the rate by which cancer develops.

Call for better, faster, and cheaper drug development
New York Times – 11/15/09 – Drug development is being relooked in order to save investors billions of dollars and years of development time.

Finding could reduce breast cancer metastasis
US News – 11/12/09 – Researchers have found a new target that may reduce the spread of breast cancer to the bone.

Gene therapy aims at cancer weakness
Science Blog – 11/12/09 – By inactivating a DNA repair gene, researchers have been able to take away certain tumor cells’ ability to repair themselves.

Spreading the news about clinical trials
ABC News – 11/10/09 – When the mainstream media picks up stories about new treatments for cancer, it has the potential to help more patients.

Breakthrough study - HPV vaccine
Cancer Research Institute – 11/9/09 – A breakthrough study reports complete and partial remissions after vaccinations.