In three decades with the National Forest Service and other federal agencies, Deb Shea helped fight forest fires and floods, mend broken limbs (including those of four-legged creatures), and save habitats across the country. She credits her grandfather for her love of all things outdoors, but when it comes to her ability to conquer new … Read more
From new immunotherapy treatments to improved understanding of the genetic mechanisms of pediatric tumors, the past year has brought many important advances against childhood cancers. We sat down with Scott Armstrong, MD, PhD, chair of Pediatric Oncology at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, to discuss some of these developments. CAR T-Cell Therapy for Relapsed ALL A CAR … Read more
Pediatric oncologist Kimberly Stegmaier, MD, draws on Dana-Farber’s network of experts to work together on new treatment options for children with cancer.
A recent discovery about prostate cancer suggests potential new targeted therapeutic strategies for this disease.
Support groups offer patients the opportunity to share their stories and the emotional impact of a cancer diagnosis among a group of people who can relate. So how do you find the one that’s right for you?
One doctor had initially forecast that Acra Samuels had no more than six months to live. Targeted treatment through Dana-Farber has almost certainly extended her life significantly.
Dana-Farber’s Geoffrey Shapiro, MD, PhD, answers common questions about clinical trials and how they help improve cancer treatment.
A common question, answered.
Boston-based researchers hope to optimize CAR T-cell therapies to target DIPG, aggressive and difficult-to-treat brain tumors, and other tough-to-treat cancers.
Common infections, such as those that cause the common cold, do not cause cancer or make cancer more likely to occur. However, infections with specific types of viruses, bacteria, or parasites can increase an individual’s risk for certain kinds of cancer.
So far, CDK4/6 inhibitors have been shown to be most effective in treating advanced estrogen-receptor positive, HER2-negative breast cancer.
As scientists map ever more of the epigenetic disruptions that occur in cancer, the implications for cancer therapy are becoming increasingly evident.
Cancer is largely a disease that affects older people. The median age of a cancer diagnosis is 66 years, and one-fourth of new cancer cases are diagnosed in people aged 65 to 74. Adults are most likely to develop solid tumors such as breast, lung, colorectal, prostate, and bladder cancers. In children and adolescents 20 years … Read more
CRISPR, a powerful new tool for editing the DNA instruction manual in animals and humans, is proving a boon to cancer research. Scientists say CRISPR has dramatically accelerated the process of making animal models of cancer and is speeding the search for new molecular targets for cancer drugs. The technique is also being used in … Read more
Judy Wilkins tried four different chemotherapy regiments over 18 grueling months to try to put her lymphoma into remission. Her team never could. But thanks to CAR T-cell therapy, an emerging immunotherapy treatment that is showing great promise in clinical trials nationwide, Wilkins is cancer-free. CAR (Chimeric Antigen Receptor) T-cell therapy is a form of cellular … Read more
While blood cancers known as adult histiocytic disorders are very rare and many patients do well with today’s treatments, researchers are working to improve outcomes with therapies targeted to newly discovered mutations – and they are about to begin testing immunotherapies, too. Histiocytic disorders involved overproduction of immune white cells, histiocytes, that attack tissues in … Read more
In the high-stakes contest of hide-and-seek between cancer cells and the human immune system, the advantage doesn’t always lie with the body’s defenders. A new approach to treatment, known as CAR T-cell therapy, may shift that balance of power. Cancer cells conceal themselves from the immune system not by barricading themselves in an impenetrable shell, … Read more
In March 2016, Ollie the pug, a therapy dog at Boston Children’s Hospital, paid a bedside visit to 7-year-old Carter Mock. Both dog and boy lost limbs to osteosarcoma, a cancer of the bone. Ollie’s left front leg was amputated at the shoulder. After removing the tumor in Carter’s left leg bone, surgeons fashioned a … Read more
Along with chemotherapy, radiation therapy is a common method for treating cancer; about half of patients receive the therapy, which uses high-energy radiation to shrink tumors and kill cancer cells, during the course of their treatment. While radiation therapy is effective against cancer cells, it also leaves its mark on any normal cells it comes … Read more
Felipe Estrela thought things couldn’t get tougher when he was diagnosed with a rare soft tissue cancer called biphasic synovial sarcoma in 2014. Then, shortly after having a tumor the size of a small football removed from his right leg, the 29-year-old faced a new challenge: an above-the-knee amputation. A husband and father of three … Read more