Young Metastatic Breast Cancer Survivor Faces Challenges Head-On
After treatment at Dana-Farber, Dena Ofengeim was able to get on her bike, train with her friends, and complete the Pan-Mass Challenge.
Dana-Farber Staff
Cell Therapy Advances with Lift from Cell Manipulation Core Facility
A recent phase 1 trial of a form of cellular gene therapy for sickle cell disease (SCD) conducted at Dana-Farber/Boston Children’s Hospital showed promise that led to an ongoing nationwide phase 2 initiative. Among the authors of the paper describing the results were six unsung heroes whose behind-the-scenes efforts made such a trial possible. Those unsung heroes … Read more
Patient of Dana-Farber Founder Reflects, Gives Back
Patti Keenan was a senior in high school before learning that the mysterious disease she was treated for twice as a young girl in the 60s was, in fact, a rare form of cancer. Her parents, not wanting to frighten Patti at a time when pediatric cancer survival rates were much lower, kept their daughter’s … Read more
Lessons Learned as My Mother’s Cancer Caregiver
By Julia Segovia By the time I found out that my mother, Melbey Segovia, had stage III ovarian cancer, she had already had a hysterectomy and started chemotherapy. It was three months after her Feb. 2016 diagnosis. At first I felt a lot of anger around Mom not telling me sooner, but then I understood … Read more
Hearing Loss and Cancer Care: Important Facts and Resources
Treatments used for many forms of cancer, as well as certain rare types of cancer that directly affect the ear(s), can affect your hearing. It’s important to understand the possibilities and know what to look for because, in some cases, early action can help. If you are affected by hearing loss, there are also resources … Read more
New Targeted Treatments Emerge For Gastric and Esophageal Cancer
For years, patients with advanced forms of gastric and esophageal cancer have had relatively few treatment options. Most patients with inoperable tumors would receive chemotherapy, usually a combination of fluorouracil, oxaliplatin and leucovorin (known as FOLFOX). While this regimen is often effective, patients eventually develop resistance to the treatment and their tumors progress. Now, the … Read more
What is the Cell Cycle and How Is It Related to Cancer?
The cell cycle is the series of steps by which living cells grow, duplicate their DNA, and divide into two identical daughter cells, each receiving one copy of the doubled material. The cycle is complete when each daughter cell is sealed in its own membrane, ready to start the cycle again. The cycle occurs in … Read more
How Far Women in Science Have Come, and How Far We Have to Go
By Laurie H. Glimcher, MD, Dana-Farber President and Chief Executive Officer Earlier this month, I along with three Dana-Farber colleagues – Judy Garber, MD, MPH; Donna Neuberg, ScD; and Kornelia Polyak, MD, PhD – had the honor of being named by Research.com as being among the best female researchers in the world. It’s a proud … Read more
How to Manage Digestive Issues During and After Chemotherapy
It’s quite common to experience digestive troubles while undergoing chemotherapy and even for some time after treatment. Since many chemotherapies target fast-growing cells, like cancer cells, they can disrupt the growth of some cells involved in digestion. In some cases, vomiting, nausea, diarrhea, and constipation can be the result, all of which can be uncomfortable … Read more
Stem Cell Transplant and CAR T-cell Therapy: When Are They Used for Lymphoma and Multiple Myeloma?
For many patients with lymphoma or multiple myeloma, a stem cell transplant with their own stem cells (an autologous transplant) or CAR T-cell therapy can extend life significantly or even cure the disease. A variety of factors influence which of these two treatments is recommended, including: What is the difference between stem cell transplant and … Read more
Not Just Living, But Thriving with Targeted Therapy
When Bekah Cunningham completed the final mile of the Appalachian Trail in November 2019, it was the culmination of an incredible journey of far more than the nearly 2,200 miles she’d covered over seven months. It was even more incredible considering that three years earlier, the then-29-year-old was told she had lung cancer and only … Read more
Can Plant-Based Diets Help Prevent Breast Cancer?
Plant-based diets have many known health benefits, but can they reduce the risk of breast cancer? In fact, some evidence suggests that people who eat rich in non-starchy vegetables may be at lower risk of some kinds of breast cancer. However, Dana-Farber physician and researcher Jennifer Ligibel, MD, cautions that the evidence that consuming a … Read more
Study Identifies Markers of Response to CAR T-Cell Therapies
It may be the quintessential question about cancer therapy: why does a particular treatment work well in some patients and not others with the same disease? The question is especially relevant for immunotherapies known as CAR T-cell therapies precisely because they’re so promising. The therapies, which are made by genetically engineering a patient’s own immune … Read more
Pediatric Oncology Pharmacist Stays On the Job With Colorectal Cancer
As a pediatric pharmacist located in Dana-Farber’s Jimmy Fund Clinic, Patrick never tires of seeing smiling, young cancer patients enjoying the clinic’s playroom. The resilience they display throughout infusions, blood draws, and other procedures not only inspires him, but it also serves as a source of resolve he carries into his ongoing cancer care. Patrick, … Read more
What is the Difference Between Endometrioid and Non-Endometrioid Uterine Cancer?
Uterine cancer — also known as endometrial cancer — has traditionally been classified as endometrioid or non-endometrioid based on the appearance of the tumor cells under a microscope. Now, as scientists learn more about the molecular makeup of the disease, uterine cancers are increasingly identified by the specific genetic alterations within them. Endometrioid uterine tumors … Read more
Community-Focused Navigator Offers Historically Marginalized Patients a Path to Care
Throughout her nearly 20-year career at Dana-Farber, Judy Thyme has enjoyed forming close bonds with patients. Most recently, she has been making these connections earlier than ever — in some cases ensuring new patients make it to their first appointment. Thyme is a community-focused patient navigator, a position developed during the past two years as … Read more
What’s New in Research and Treatment for Rectal Cancer?
The rectum is a six-inch-long portion of the large intestine, which is about five feet in length, but it is the starting point of about one-third of the 145,000 cases of colorectal cancer diagnosed in the United States each year. About 5% of people will develop rectal cancer at some point, and about 11% will … Read more
Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors for Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia: What to Know
Drugs known as tyrosine kinase inhibitors, or TKIs, have revolutionized the treatment of chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML), a type of cancer in which the bone marrow produces too many semi-mature white blood cells. Prior to the introduction of these drugs in the early 2000s, standard first-line treatments for the disease reduced CML levels in only … Read more
Team Beyond Colorectal Cancer Members Ensure Another Excellent Jimmy Fund Walk
The team representing Dana-Farber’s Young-Onset Colorectal Cancer Center called Team Beyond CRC (colorectal cancer) is looking forward to the fast-approaching Boston Marathon® Jimmy Fund Walk presented by Hyundai taking place on Sunday, October 2. Team Beyond CRC will be among 90 other employee-led teams participating in the Jimmy Fund Walk. This longtime annual event brings … Read more
Study Shows How PARP Inhibitors Can Be Empowered in Breast Cancer
Logic said that drugs known as PARP inhibitors would work as well — and perhaps even better — in breast cancer marked by BRCA gene mutations than in ovarian cancer carrying the same abnormalities. Clinical results said otherwise. Patients with relapsed, BRCA-mutated ovarian cancer survive longer, overall, with PARP inhibitor treatment than any other therapy. … Read more