The American Lung Association is encouraging patients with lung cancer to take charge of their diagnosis and learn about clinical trials through the Lung Cancer Clinical Trial Call to Action campaign. This service provides personalized education to quickly identify trial options that match each patient’s specific diagnosis, stage, and treatment history. It is an easy-to-use resource that helps patients discuss with their doctor clinical trials that may be appropriate for them…

Being exposed to second hand smoke, also known as passive smoking - non-smokers breathing in smoke from lit cigarettes around them - may significantly increase the long-term risk of developing lung disease, such as lung cancer and COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), according to a report published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. The same applies to casual (occasional) smoking. This is the first study to demonstrate what passive or occasional smoking does to the body at a gene function level, say the authors. Study author, Dr…

Being exposed to second hand smoke, also known as passive smoking - non-smokers breathing in smoke from lit cigarettes around them - may significantly increase the long-term risk of developing lung disease, such as lung cancer and COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), according to a report published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. The same applies to casual (occasional) smoking. This is the first study to demonstrate what passive or occasional smoking does to the body at a gene function level, say the authors. Study author, Dr…

ArQule, Inc. (Nasdaq: ARQL) and Daiichi Sankyo Co., Ltd. (TSE 4568) announced that they will move forward with a Phase 3 clinical trial of ARQ 197, a small molecule inhibitor of the c-Met receptor tyrosine kinase, in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). In connection with this decision, the sponsor company, Daiichi Sankyo, will file a Special Protocol Assessment (SPA) with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for a trial comparing ARQ 197 plus erlotinib against erlotinib plus placebo…

A Michigan State University researcher is analyzing the immune system’s own ability to protect the body against lung cancer. The results of the work by Alison Bauer, an assistant professor of pathobiology and diagnostic investigation in the College of Veterinary Medicine, are expected to provide new approaches to prevent, identify and treat lung cancer. The research is funded by a $720,000 grant from the American Cancer Society…

A novel approach detects genetically abnormal cells in the blood of non-small cell lung cancer patients that match abnormalities found in tumor cells and increase in number with the severity of the disease, a research team led by scientists at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center report in the journal Clinical Cancer Research. Lung cancer patients in the study also had many times the number of these circulating abnormal cells than study volunteers in a closely matched control group…

A novel approach detects genetically abnormal cells in the blood of non-small cell patients with lung cancer that match abnormalities found in tumor cells and increase in number with the severity of the disease, a research team led by researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center report in the journal Clinical Cancer Research…….

Robert Figlin, M.D., F.A.C.P., a national leader in cancer research and treatment, has joined Cedars-Sinai Medical Center’s Samuel Oschin Comprehensive Cancer Institute as director of the Division of Hematology/Oncology and as associate director of the institute’s Academic Development Program. Figlin, a prolific researcher known for his work on new urologic and lung cancer treatments, will help manage the institute’s growing clinical trials program, in which more than 100 studies are being conducted…

Canadian lung cancer patients are likely to suffer significant stigma due to the disease’s link to smoking, a connection that may impact the care and treatment patients receive. According to a 16-country survey carried out by Ipsos MORI on behalf of The Global Lung Cancer Coalition, one in five Canadians admit feeling less sympathetic towards lung cancer sufferers because of its known association with smoking cigarettes and other tobacco products.i “This research supports what we have known for a long time; that lung cancer continues to carry the very heavy burden of stigma,” said Dr…

A new initiative to reduce concentrations of radon in UK homes has been launched by the Health Protection Agency. Radon, a naturally occurring radioactive gas, is the biggest source of human exposure to ionising radiation in the UK and is responsible for an estimated 1,100 lung cancer deaths a year. After reviewing the latest scientific evidence, as well as the costs and benefits of radon reduction measures, the HPA is retaining its Action Level of 200 becquerels per cubic metre (Bq m-3) - but introducing a new Target Level of 100 Bq m-3…