LONDON (Reuters) – A sensor made with gold nanoparticles can detect lung cancer in a patient’s breath and may offer a diagnosis before tumors show up on an x-ray, Israeli scientists said on Sunday. (Source: Reuters: Health)

A small molecule earlier found to have both anti-fat and anti-cancer abilities works as a literal turnoff for fat-making genes, according to a new report. (Source: ScienceDaily Headlines)

Authors: Ntaios G, Hatzitolios A, Savopoulos C

PMID: 19712837 [PubMed - in process] (Source: European Journal of Internal Medicine)

Authors: Garg PK, Choudhary D, Hadke NS

PMID: 19712839 [PubMed - in process] (Source: European Journal of Internal Medicine)

AFP – Scientists in Israel have devised a portable breath tester that detects lung cancer with 86 percent accuracy, according to a study released Sunday.

Reuters – A sensor made with gold nanoparticles can detect lung cancer in a patient’s breath and may offer a diagnosis before tumors show up on an x-ray, Israeli scientists said on Sunday.

The mainstay immune system protein TRAF6 plays an unexpected, key role activating a cell signaling molecule that in mutant form is associated with cancer growth, researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center report in the Aug. 28 edition of Science. “The mechanism that we discovered activates Akt and also contributes to hyperactivation of a mutant form of Akt found in breast, colon and other cancers,” said senior author Hui-Kuan Lin, Ph.D.

In view of low attendance rate for colonoscopy screening for colorectal cancer (CRC), it is necessary to establish effective intervention methods to increase colonoscopy compliance. Many studies have reported that subjective or objective barriers prevent high-risk subjects from undergoing colonoscopy examination, which indicates that barrier-focused intervention might be effective. However, such barrier-focused intervention has not been reported in China.

Recently, the potential of PPAR-γ as a target for the prevention and treatment of cancer has been widely studied. However, the potential therapeutic role of PPAR-γ agonists has been questioned, based on contradictory results. Studies using animal models of colon cancer found that PPAR-γ agonists increased the development of colon tumors.

Scientists in Switzerland have discovered a way to block the growth of human colon cancer cells, preventing the disease from reaching advanced stages and the development of liver metastases. The research, published today in EMBO Molecular Medicine, shows that blocking the so-called Hedgehog-GLI pathway can prevent the growth of tumours, metastatic lesions and cancer stem cells, the cells thought to lie at the root of cancer growth.