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Press Releases

2006

• December 20, 2006
  One in five women with early stage, hormone-sensitive breast cancer may not follow hormonal therapy treatment plan, study finds

  Postmenopausal women with early-stage, hormone-sensitive breast cancer have a lower risk of disease recurrence when their treatment includes a new class of hormone therapy drugs, yet one out five women prescribed the drugs may not take them regularly, according to a study conducted by researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals. read more

• December 19, 2006
  Estrogen study provides new impetus for development of colon cancer drugs

  The female hormone estrogen may hold important clues for scientists working on new therapies for colon cancer, a study by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute researchers suggests. read more

• December 11, 2006
  Drug combination proves effective against myeloma in Phase I trial

  Two new generation drugs for the bone marrow cancer multiple myeloma may work even better together than they do individually, according to the results of a multicenter Phase I clinical trial to be presented by Dana-Farber scientists at the annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology in Orlando, Fla. read more

• December 5, 2006
  Black Americans less likely to recognize overweight and obesity, study shows

  Overweight black Americans are two to three times more likely than heavy white Americans to say they are of average weight — even after being diagnosed as overweight or obese by their doctors, according to a new study led by Dana-Farber researchers. read more

• November 14, 2006
  Dana-Farber/Harvard Medical School receive initial $20 million from Ludwig Fund to establish center to research and develop targeted cancer treatments

  Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School have been awarded an initial $20 million grant from the Virginia and D. K. Ludwig Fund for Cancer Research to establish the Ludwig Center at Dana-Farber/Harvard Medical School to support and accelerate laboratory and translational research of targeted cancer treatments. read more

• October 23, 2006
  November is National Marrow Awareness Month

  November is National Marrow Awareness month, and Dana-Farber is encouraging people to help save lives by registering to be a potential donor. read more

• October 20, 2006
  Scientists identify switch for brain's natural anti-oxidant defense

  Scientists at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute report they have found how the brain turns on a system designed to protect its nerve cells from toxic "free radicals," a waste product of cell metabolism that has been implicated in some degenerative brain diseases, heart attacks, strokes, cancer, and aging. read more

• October 2, 2006
  Molecular atlas provides new tool for understanding estrogen-fueled breast cancer

  Lurking in unexplored regions of the human genome are thousands of previously unknown on/off switches that may influence how the growth of breast cancer is driven by estrogen, new research by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute researchers has revealed. read more

• September 29, 2006
  Dana-Farber researcher receives prestigious NIH Director's Pioneer Award

  Dana-Farber Cancer Institute researcher Rosalind Segal, MD, PhD, has been awarded a 2006 NIH Director's Pioneer Award, a prestigious five-year, $2.5 million grant to support her research of the way complex sugars work to maintain neural stem cells in the developing and adult brain. Segal was one of only 13 researchers to receive the grant. read more

• September 29, 2006
  Scientists use "universal language " of gene signatures to match cancer and other diseases with potentially effective drugs

  In one of the most ambitious spinoffs of the human genome project, researchers at Dana-Farber, Children's Hospital Boston, the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, and other collaborating centers have unveiled a new, systematic approach to drug discovery that matches diseases with potential treatments using a universal language based on cells' distinctive gene activity profiles, or "signatures. " read more

• September 29, 2006
  New England Patriots Charitable Foundation to host blood drive at Dana-Farber Field House

  The New England Patriots continue their efforts to increase awareness of the importance of blood donation with a fall kick-off blood drive. The blood drive will be held Saturday, October 21, at the Dana-Farber Field House at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass. read more

• September 27, 2006
  Online questionnaire helps determine patients' probability of having gene mutations linked to colon cancer

  Researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Dana-Faber Cancer Institute have developed an online questionnaire to help physicians determine whether patients at risk for colon cancer are likely to carry mutations in two genes linked to the most common hereditary form of the disease. read more

• September 20, 2006
  New insight into skin-tanning process suggests novel way of preventing skin cancer

  Findings from a study led by researchers at Dana-Farber and Children's Hospital Boston have rewritten science's understanding of the process of skin tanning – an insight that has enabled them to develop a promising way of protecting fair-skinned people from skin cancer caused by exposure to sunlight. read more

• September 19, 2006
  New multiple myeloma drug proves more potent than thalidomide and less toxic

  A designer drug significantly less toxic than thalidomide has shown impressive activity in prolonging survival of patients with advanced multiple myeloma, report researchers from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. read more

• September 18, 2006
  Step into Rockport Shoes to walk all over cancer

  This October, pink is the new black. In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Rockport has created a special-edition Santa Inez shoe in pink kid suede. It is not only stylish, but also extremely comfortable. read more

• September 7, 2006
  Study uncovers mechanism of drug resistance in form of lung cancer

  Dana-Farber Cancer Institute researchers and their colleagues have demonstrated that a genetic error so scarce it can't be detected with some standard screening equipment is often responsible for the loss of effectiveness of front- line drugs against non-small cell lung cancer. read more

• August 23, 2006
  Scientists identify a region of the human genome leading to an elevated prostate cancer risk in African American men

  Researchers from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School have found a region of the human genome that accounts for the higher risk of prostate cancer in black Americans. read more

• August 18, 2006
  Cancer survivors at risk for suicidal thoughts, attempts

  A survey of adult survivors of childhood cancers found that more than one out of eight reported having suicidal thoughts or previous attempts to take their lives many years after they were treated, say scientists at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. read more

• August 15, 2006
  Adverse effects and costs of chemotherapy greater than previously thought

  Researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School have found that breast cancer patients 63 years of age or younger may experience more chemotherapy-related serious adverse effects than reported in clinical trials, according to a new study in the August 16 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. read more

• August 15, 2006
  Dunkin' Donuts store owners raise more than $1M for cancer research in one day

  Dunkin' Donuts store owners in New England yesterday raised more than $1 million for the "Rising Stars" of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute's Jimmy Fund through proceeds generated from the 9th Annual Dunkin' Donuts George Mandell Memorial Golf Tournament and auction. The event is consistently the Jimmy Fund's highest grossing fund-raising tournament. read more

• July 27, 2006
  Study suggests TV-watching lowers physical activity

  A study of low-income housing residents has documented that the more television people say they watched, the less active they were, researchers from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and colleagues report. read more

• July 21, 2006
  Kennedy: Funding vital for cancer research

  With praise for Dana-Farber's contributions to the fight against cancer, U.S. Senator Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts used the 10th annual Andrew H. Weinberg Memorial Lecture - delivered at Dana-Farber on July 21 - to sound a warning about the impact of proposed reductions in federal funding for cancer research. read more

• July 17, 2006
  Scientists isolate leukemia stem cells in a model of human leukemia

  Researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Children's Hospital Boston and their colleagues have isolated rare cancer stem cells that cause leukemia in a mouse model of the human disease. The leukemia stem cells isolated proved to be surprisingly different from normal blood stem cells – a finding that may be good news for developing a drug that selectively targets them. read more

• July 13, 2006
  Moderate exercise improves survival rates for colon cancer survivors

  People who have been treated for colon cancer can substantially reduce the risk that the disease will return and improve their overall chance of survival by engaging in regular exercise, according to new research by Dana-Farber scientists. read more

• July 7, 2006
  Sheryl Crow visits Dana-Farber patients

  Before entertaining tens of thousands of fans at Fenway Park, the home of the Boston Red Sox, cancer survivor Sheryl Crow made a quiet visit today to Dana-Farber. read more

• June 29, 2006
  Mouse model aids discovery of novel melanoma metastasis gene

  Researchers from Dana-Farber have identified a novel gene that facilitates the spread of malignant melanoma, a life-threatening skin cancer, using a technique they say can speed the discovery of hard-to-find cancer genes. read more

• June 21, 2006
  Dana-Farber offers tips to reduce your cancer risk while grilling

  Summer is officially here and it's time to fire up the grill. But there's something you should know about some of your summertime favorites. All that barbecuing could be cooking up chemicals that may increase your risk of cancer. According to the American Institute for Cancer Research, these chemicals may be linked to breast, stomach, prostate, and colon cancer. read more

• June 13, 2006
  Scientists tie several cancers to common "oncogene engine"

  Researchers at Dana-Farber report that a common "oncogene engine" – a small family of malfunctioning cell growth switches – drives several seemingly unrelated, lethal forms of cancer, including malignant melanoma. The finding suggests that it may be possible to attack these different cancers with the same therapy. read more

• June 6, 2006
  Drug advertisements aimed at cancer patients difficult to read, make more appeals to effectiveness than safety

  Oncology drug advertisements that ran in patient-focused cancer magazines presented the drugs' benefits differently — earlier in the advertisement text and in larger type size — than their side effects or risks, according to an analysis by researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston. read more

• June 5, 2006
  Three-drug regimen improves survival in advanced head and neck cancers

  The addition of docetaxel (Taxotere) to an initial chemotherapy regimen for inoperable head and neck cancers reduced mortality by nearly 30 percent over three years following treatment compared to the standard two-drug combination, researchers from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston reported at the American Society of Clinical Oncology's annual meeting in Atlanta. read more

• June 5, 2006
  Despite increasing hospice use, terminally ill patients continue to receive aggressive treatment at end of life

  The increasing use of chemotherapy and intensive hospital treatment for cancer patients in their last two weeks of life continued at least into the late 1990s despite the growth of the hospice movement that emphasizes comforting personal bonds and controlling pain and discomfort, say researchers at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston. read more

• June 5, 2006
  New targeted therapy shows promise in children with metastatic Gastrointenstinal Stromal Tumor (GIST)

  Children with a rare digestive-tract cancer that is resistant to front-line therapy have benefited from a newer targeted therapy that has been shown effective in adults, according to data from a small pilot study that Dana-Farber Cancer Institute researchers presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology's annual meeting in Atlanta on June 4. read more

• June 5, 2006
  Sharing clinical trial results strongly favored by participants, though misunderstanding and anxiety are risks

  Researchers from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston say that participants in a clinical trial of breast cancer treatment were overwhelmingly glad to learn the study's outcome, although some women were initially confused, and one in four became more anxious about their disease. read more

• May 18, 2006
  Study offers new hope for preventive vaccine for AIDS

  New research by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute scientists suggests that it may one day be possible to immunize healthy individuals against HIV-1, the virus that causes AIDS. read more

• May 1, 2006
  Dana-Farber offers tips to keep you safe in the sun

  As the weather grows warmer, New Englanders' thoughts turn to enjoying the sunshine and outdoor activities. Dana-Farber Cancer Institute physicians and nurses are encouraging people when they are outside, whether they are spending a day at the beach or a few hours working in their yard, to be aware of the dangers of overexposure to the sun and to practice sun safety. read more

• April 25, 2006
  A. Oliver Sartor, MD, national prostate cancer expert, joins Dana-Farber

  A. Oliver Sartor, MD, a nationally renowned prostate cancer specialist, has accepted a position with Dana-Farber Cancer Institute's Lank Center for Genitourinary Oncology. read more

• April 12, 2006
  Advances in chemotherapy improve outcomes in select breast cancers

  Recent advances in chemotherapy have significantly reduced the risk of disease recurrence and death in breast cancer patients whose tumors are not hormone sensitive, according to a study by researchers at Dana-Farber and 10 other institutions. read more

• April 10, 2006
  Scientists discover new genetic subtypes of common blood cancer

  Scientists at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and collaborators have identified four distinct genetic subtypes of multiple myeloma, a deadly blood cancer, that have different prognoses and might be treated most effectively with drugs specifically targeted to those subtypes. read more

• March 24, 2006
  Two new studies reveal benefits of laparoscopic surgery for uterine cancer

  In a pair of studies presented today at the Society of Gynecologic Oncologists 37th Annual Meeting on Women's Cancer, researchers have found in a large randomized trial of laparoscopy versus laparotomy for surgical treatment of uterine (endometrial) cancer that laparoscopy is safe, and when successfully completed reduces hospital stay by 50 percent, and contributes to a better quality of life from the patient's perspective. read more

• March 24, 2006
  Study shows rituximab effective in treating chronic graft-versus-host disease

  A study by Dana-Farber researchers offers the strongest evidence yet of the effectiveness of a novel therapy for chronic graft-versus-host disease, a potentially life-threatening complication of donor bone marrow and stem cell transplants. read more

• March 20, 2006
  Stuart Weitzman Fashion Show to raise funds for ovarian cancer research at Dana-Farber

  Ovations for the Cure is presenting Boston's first annual Stuart Weitzman Fashion Show on Friday, April 7, at the Westin in Waltham, Mass., to raise funds for ovarian cancer research at Dana-Farber and awareness of the symptoms of this often-fatal disease. read more

• March 16, 2006
  Regular colorectal cancer screenings save lives

  Every four minutes someone will be diagnosed with colorectal cancer. This year, more than an estimated 148,000 Americans will be diagnosed with colorectal cancer and another 55,000 likely will die from the disease. read more

• March 6, 2006
  Lisa Diller, MD, named chief medical officer of Dana-Farber/Children's Hospital Cancer Care, New England's largest pediatric cancer program

  Lisa Diller, MD, has been named chief medical officer of Dana-Farber/Children's Hospital Cancer Care (DF/CHCC) and clinical director of Pediatric Oncology at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Children's Hospital Boston. read more

• February 21, 2006
  Hall of Fame broadcaster Curt Gowdy was great friend to Jimmy Fund, Dana-Farber

  Dana-Farber Cancer Institute President Edward J. Benz Jr., MD, and the entire Dana-Farber and Jimmy Fund family mourn the loss of Curt Gowdy, the former Boston Red Sox radio and TV broadcaster who went on to national prominence in a variety of sports. Gowdy, who died yesterday at age 86 from acute leukemia at his winter home in Palm Beach, Fla., always made time to help the Jimmy Fund and was an honorary trustee of Dana-Farber. read more

• February 15, 2006
  Treatment of milk-duct growths requires more than surgery, study finds

  Surgery alone does not adequately lower the chances of relapse for women with small, early-stage growths in the milk ducts of the breast, a new study by Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center researchers has found. read more

• January 27, 2006
  Sunitinib controls tumors and lengthens survival of patients with gastrointestinal stromal tumor that is resistant to Gleevec, study finds

  Researchers from Dana-Farber will report on a Phase III clinical trial in which the targeted drug sunitinib (originally called SU11248 and now known as Sutent™) was given to control gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) in patients whose tumors had become resistant to the frontline drug imatinib (Gleevec™). read more

• January 19, 2006
  Drug combination shows promise for treatment of advanced neuroendocrine tumors

  A combination of an oral chemotherapy agent and a drug to prevent blood vessel growth has shown encouraging results in advanced neuroendocrine tumors, rare cancers of hormone-making cells that usually resist chemotherapy, researchers say. read more

• January 17, 2006
  New cellular flaw found in some virulent breast cancers

  Researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have identified a molecular interaction that triggers a particularly aggressive form of breast cancer, and suggest that attacking this target with selective drugs might improve treatment. read more

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