CAR T cells’ superpower is to identify cancer-related targets on the surface of tumor cells and order an attack on those cells. But they lack anything resembling X-ray vision to detect nefarious protein targets within tumor cells. That shortfall has limited their effectiveness in diseases like acute myelogenous leukemia (AML), in which tumor cells display few surface … Read more
Results of several phase 3 trials and dozens of other studies led by Dana-Farber researchers were presented online and in person June 3-7 at the 2022 Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), the world’s largest clinical cancer research meeting. Some of the research reports presented by Dana-Farber investigators include: Improved progression-free … Read more
Every year, Nancy Demers celebrates two birthdays. The first marks the day she was born: August 6, 1943. The second — March 20, 2015 — is the day the then-71-year-old Connecticut resident received a stem cell transplant at Dana-Farber Brigham Cancer Center and the start of a healthy new life. Eighteen months prior, in September … Read more
What is hemoglobin? Hemoglobin is an essential protein in your red blood cells that carries oxygen to your body’s organs and tissues and transports carbon dioxide from your organs and tissues back to your lungs. Is hemoglobin affected by cancer? Anemia is essentially a blood condition marked by a low level of hemoglobin, and in some cases … Read more
When John Ferris was first diagnosed with follicular lymphoma in early 2017, he was told he had six to nine months to live. Later, while undergoing treatment that appeared to be halting his cancer, he received an amended diagnosis. “Cancer is not going to kill you, but your drinking could,” his oncologist told Ferris. “We … Read more
Patients with large B-cell lymphoma (LBCL) who did not respond to initial treatment or relapsed within a year may now receive the CAR T-cell product axicabtagene ciloleucel (Yescarta) as a second-line therapy, following approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) based on results of a recent clinical trial. Until now, the standard of … Read more
As an economist specializing in statistical analysis, Dan Rosenbaum has done everything from help the federal government use more evidence in its decision-making to assist several National Basketball Association (NBA) teams in finding and signing the best players. Research and number-crunching are his expertise, so when Rosenbaum learned he needed a life-saving stem cell transplant … Read more
For Duane Witter, the most difficult part of his cancer treatment was recovering from his stem cell transplant and having to step away from teaching and coaching high school basketball in Farmington, CT. “Before all this, I used to say that my superpower was to never miss a day of school,” he says. “Stepping away … Read more
A rare leukemia called BPDCN (blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell neoplasm) is three to four times more common in people with one X chromosome, for reasons that hadn’t been clear. Now, however, research led by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute scientists has identified a genetic factor that appears to explain a large part of the discrepancy, and also … Read more
Born on Jan. 1, Alan Morris is used to sharing a birthday with the New Year. Now the lymphoma patient also has a special day marking what he considers his rebirth — and a harbinger of hope. On Jan. 24, Morris, 58, became the first Dana-Farber Brigham Cancer Center patient to receive outpatient CAR T-cell … Read more
At Carolyn Kershaw and Darlene Musso’s first visit to Dana-Farber in July, Irene Ghobrial, MD, greeted them with some unexpected news. “We walked in and she said, ‘Did you know you two are famous in our lab?’” Kershaw recounts. Their local renown stems from their participation in the PROMISE study at Dana-Farber’s Center for the Prevention of Progression (CPOP), which … Read more
Adding the BCL-2 inhibitor drug venetoclax to a combination chemotherapy regimen significantly improved outcomes in Richter’s syndrome, a rare but deadly complication that develops in some patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), according to a study led by Dana-Farber investigators. The addition of the targeted drug venetoclax to a chemo regimen called R-EPOCH yielded the … Read more
When a clinical trial showed the targeted drug ibrutinib to be highly effective in patients with a form of lymphoma called Waldenström macroglobulinemia, the results were so compelling that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the drug for all patients with the disease, even though the trial included only patients previously treated with other … Read more
Dana-Farber scientists have found that a generic anti-microbial drug can block a key molecular driver of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) cells, and when tested in a small clinical trial of advanced CLL patients who had relapsed, the drug slowed disease progression in half of them. The drug, pyrimethamine, achieved stable disease in eight of the … Read more
Dana-Farber lymphoma patient John Babchak has a unique perspective on his treatment journey. More than two decades ago, in 2004, his late husband Richard Walsh was diagnosed with multiple myeloma. For the next five years, Babchak stepped into the role of caregiver, spending as much time with Richard as he could. “The most valuable thing … Read more
Finding a lump in the groin can be frightening, but it is rare for a lump under the skin to indicate cancer. Regardless, any changes in your body should be reported to a medical professional, who can help you determine the best course of action. Where exactly is the groin? The groin makes up the … Read more
As head of marketing for a leading international news agency, Kelly Ives routinely worked with journalists across the globe. When it came to chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), however, it was her own reporting skills that led Ives to a life-changing treatment. Ives was a 37-year-old mom with a career and three young children, including an … Read more
Although stem cell transplantation is the only current therapy with the potential to cure myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), it is rarely used as an initial treatment for older patients because it hasn’t been proven superior to other therapies. New research by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute investigators stands to overturn that practice. In a clinical trial involving 384 … Read more
Studies in large populations have shown that people who have a near relative with a form of lymphoma or chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) have an increased risk of developing these diseases themselves. Both lymphoma and CLL are relatively uncommon: the average person’s lifetime risk of developing CLL, for example, is 0.57%, according to the American … Read more
Although multiple myeloma is relatively rare — accounting for about 2% of all cancers — it is twice as common among African Americans as white Americans. Every year, nearly 35,000 new cases of the disease are diagnosed in the United States, according to the American Cancer Society. About 24% of those cases are in African … Read more