Liquid Lasers May Better Detect Genes Linked To Cancer
Using a liquid laser, University of Michigan researchers have developed a better way to detect the slight genetic mutations that might predispose a person to a particular type of cancer or other diseases. Their results are published in the current edition of the German journal Angewandte Chemie. This work could advance understanding of the genetic basis of diseases. It also has applications in personalized medicine, which aims to target drugs and other therapies to individual patients based on a thorough knowledge of their genetic information.
Breast Cancer Surgery Often Repeated To Take Out More Tissue
22.9% of breast cancer patients who undergo partial mastectomies need further operations to remove more tissue, researchers reported in JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association). The authors, from Michigan State University, added that rates of reexcision vary considerably between surgeons and clinics/hospitals; this variation does not appear to be caused by patients' clinical characteristics. "Excision" means the surgical removal of something, which in this text means a tumor. "Reexcision" means additional surgery in the same area.
News From The Journal Of Clinical Investigation: Feb. 1, 2012
ONCOLOGY: Answers to age-old questions surrounding fat cell cancer Myxoid round cell liposarcoma (MRCLS) is a cancerous tumor that typically arises in deep fat tissues of the limbs or abdomen. It was shown almost 20 years ago to be characterized by a chromosomal change that generates a fusion protein known as TLS:CHOP. Despite this, neither the cell from which MRCLS arise nor the mechanism(s) by which TLS:CHOP induces tumor formation have been definitively determined. A team of researchers led by Igor Matushansky, at Columbia University, New York, has now provided some answers to these questions;