News From The Journal Of Clinical Investigation: Jan. 24, 2012
NEPHROLOGY: Understanding acute kidney injury to identify potential therapeutics Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a life-threatening condition that frequently complicates the care of hospitalized patients. There are no specific therapies to treat AKI other than kidney replacement therapies such as dialysis. Better understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying AKI is needed if effective new therapies are to be developed. In this context, a team of researchers led by Holger Eltzschig, at the University of Colorado Denver, Aurora, has now dissected the role of the molecule adenosine in mice exposed to AKI caused by transient obstruction to the blood flow to the kidney, the most common cause of AKI in patients.
Removal And Storage Of Ovarian Tissue Enables Birth After Cancer Treatment
For the first time in Germany, a woman has given birth to a child after removal and preservation of tissue from one of her ovaries. This course of action was necessary to avoid infertility owing to chemo- and radiotherapy. Andreas MГ ller and his colleagues report the case in the current issue of Deutsches Arzteblatt International (Dtsch Arztebl Int 2012; 109[1-2]: 8-13). The majority of young female patients who need radio- or chemotherapy for treatment of a tumor express concerns about fertility.
Erlotinib Dose-Adjusted For Smoking Status Effective As First Treatment For Head And Neck Cancer
Head and neck cancers respond well to the anti-cancer drug erlotinib when it is administered before surgery and a stronger dose is given to patients who smoke, according to a study presented at the Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancer Symposium, sponsored by AHNS, ASCO, ASTRO and SNM. Erlotinib is an oral anti-cancer drug that can slow a tumor's growth and spread by inhibiting specific growth receptors on the surface of the cancer cells. Early detection of a patient's response to EGFR inhibitors, such as erlotinib, is critical to personalizing head and neck cancer treatments.