Abstract: Dramatic progress in the treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) has led to an early and aggressive treatment strategy, combining DMARDS with biological agents. Since these therapies are able to induce initial clinical control, attention has shifted toward the maintenance of this state. Tools to maintain long-term remission are still lacking but may be found in the ability to establish immunological tolerance. Tolerance can be induced in several specific and nonspecific ways, including manipulation of costimulatory signals, induction of regulatory T cells, and tolerization to heat shock proteins. Induction of disease control with the current combination therapies, followed by progressive withdrawal in parallel with re-establishing immunological tolerance, may be an attractive approach in the near future. ... Read more

Abstract: Late stage hormone refractory prostate cancer (HRPC) is presently incurable. Novel alternatives such as cytoreductive Gene Directed Enzyme Prodrug Therapy (GDEPT) offer great hope: The potential for in situ amplification of cytotoxicity due to GDEPT-associated "bystander effects" has special appeal for patients with prostate cancer, the prostate being dispensable. In this overview, recent developments in various GDEPT systems for treating prostate cancer are described. Research related to the enhancement of in situ GDEPT delivery and prostate cancer-targeting of viral vectors, is reviewed. The scope and progress of synergies between GDEPT and other treatment modalities, traditional and alternate, are discussed. ... Read more

Abstract: Dietary studies of men throughout the world have identified certain foods/food-derived substances that are correlated to prostate cancer risk. While radical modification of cultural dietary habits with the goal of preventing prostate cancer remains challenging, supplementation with certain foods and/or food-derived substances identified as having potential chemopreventative properties may be a feasible approach, particularly for Western cultures. Before such chemopreventative strategies can be recommended to patients, their benefits must be rigorously demonstrated in appropriately designed clinical trials. This paper discusses several agents currently under scientific scrutiny for prostate cancer chemopreventative activities and the data available, thus far. ... Read more

Abstract: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a major public health problem around the world and it is estimated that there are about 200 million infections globally. The majority of HCV infected patients develop chronic infection, which can progress to liver cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma, and liver failure. Since the discovery of the virus in 1989, impressive progress has been made in the treatment of HCV hepatitis. However, the actual standard of care in treating HCV infection, represented by the combination therapy of pegylated interferon alpha 2a or 2b with ribavirin, fails to cure near half of treated patients. This paper aimed to trace a brief overview of the progress made by interferon-based treatments for HCV hepatitis since their introduction in the early 1990s, and to highlight the results of recent clinical studies concerning new and emerging drugs. ... Read more

Abstract: Why chronic inflammatory reactions persist in specific sites, such as rheumatoid arthritis in the joints, remains a mystery. Current models of inflammation have concentrated upon the responses of lymphocytes such as B and T cells to specific antigens, and have attempted, often unsuccessfully, to address the causative agent. However recent studies have shown that stromal cells such as macrophages, endothelial cells, and fibroblasts play important roles in the switch that turns a spontaneously resolving acute inflammatory response within a tissue into chronic and persistent disease. Therapeutic manipulation of the stromal microenvironment has been particularly effective in treating cancer and is likely to provide novel therapies to achieve improved control of chronic inflammatory disease. ... Read more

Abstract: With the human genome sequence at hand, it is now possible to sequence coding regions of cancer cell genomes to identify the mutated genes that drive tumor formation. The clinical importance of breast and colorectal cancer, together causing 14% of yearly cancer deaths, make these two tumor types suitable initial candidates for cancer genome sequencing. We recently surveyed more than half of the known human genes for somatic mutations in eleven breast and eleven colorectal cancers, and defined 122 and 69 genes, respectively, as candidate cancer genes in these two diseases. The study design provides a blueprint for future cancer genome sequencing efforts, validated by its ability to detect known and novel cancer genes. The findings shed light on heterogeneity between and within tumor types and provide novel research avenues for cancer biology. ... Read more

Abstract: Early detection of colorectal tumors through the identification of mutant DNA in serum or plasma could have a substantial impact on morbidity and mortality. Somatic mutations are specific biomarkers for neoplastic cells, but their detection requires sensitive assays, as the number of circulating mutant molecules is small compared to the number of normal DNA molecules. A newly developed method can provide this sensitivity and at the same time precisely quantify the fraction of mutant molecules present in the clinical sample. Using this technology, it has been found that more than half of patients with early stage disease contain mutant DNA in their circulation. ... Read more