NEW YORK, Nov 14, 2011 (BUSINESS WIRE) — ZIOPHARM Oncology, Inc. ZIOP +0.86% , a drug development company employing small molecule and synthetic biology approaches to cancer therapy, announced today promising clinical results from an ongoing multicenter Phase 1b, open-label, dose escalation study of intravenous (IV) palifosfamide (Zymafos(R) or ZIO-201) in combination with etoposide and carboplatin in patients with small cell lung cancer (SCLC) and other selected cancers. The data are being presented at the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics, being held November 12-16, in San Francisco.

Palifosfamide is a novel DNA cross-linker in class with bendamustine, ifosfamide, and cyclophosphamide. The ongoing Phase 1b study was designed to assess the safety and efficacy of palifosfamide in combination with carboplatin and etoposide (PaCE) in SCLC and other cancers in which carboplatin plus etoposide is considered an appropriate therapeutic option. A previous randomized study evaluating the addition of ifosfamide to cisplatin and etoposide in SCLC demonstrated improved survival, but with a disabling increase in toxicity with the combination. The rationale for substituting palifosfamide for ifosfamide in this three-drug regimen includes the abrogation of ifosfamide-metabolite related toxicities, an ability to increase the dose delivered over time, and avoiding resistance mediated by aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) overexpression. ALDH overexpression is associated with cancer cell stem-like potential in several tumor types and is thought to confer resistance to ifosfamide and cyclophosphamide.

Campaign Highlights Importance of Molecular Testing in Lung Cancer

NEW YORK, Nov 14, 2011 (BUSINESS WIRE) — –People with Lung Cancer Invited to Submit Their Personal Stories

Kathryn Joosten, two-time Emmy(R) Award-winning actress and star of Desperate Housewives and The West Wing, is opening up about her 10-year battle with lung cancer as part of a new national campaign, Lung Cancer Profiles. Lung Cancer Profiles aims to reduce the stigma associated with lung cancer by educating about the diversity of the disease inside and out. The campaign, created by Pfizer Oncology in collaboration with the nation’s leading lung cancer advocacy groups, also seeks to educate about the role of molecular testing and its potential to uncover the unique genetic drivers of each person’s cancer, which can help doctors devise an individualized treatment plan rather than using a one-size-fits all approach.

“I have lung cancer and it’s nothing to hide–anyone can get lung cancer, everyone’s cancer is different and it’s reassuring that the science is catching on,” Ms. Joosten said. “When my cancer returned after eight years, I was discouraged, but my doctor recommended I get my tumor tested to see if it would affect my treatment plan. We were able to identify my particular type of lung cancer and find a clinical trial designed specifically for people with my tumor type. I am passionate about this campaign because I know, first-hand, how hard it can be to learn you have lung cancer, how important it is to get tested and how impactful sharing my story might be on the lives of others with lung cancer.”

Scientists have discovered a mechanism that causes an aggressive type of lung cancer (small cell lung cancer) to re-grow following chemotherapy, offering hope for new therapies.

The study, conducted by an international team of researchers from Monash, Stanford and John Hopkins universities, represents not just the potential for new drugs, but a novel way of approaching cancer treatment.

Professor Neil Watkins, of the Monash Institute of Medical Research (MIMR) led the Monash research team of Dr Luciano Martelotto, MIMR, and Associate Professor Tracey Brown of the Department of Biochemisty and Molecular Biology.

Professor Watkins said while many current cancer treatments and trials focus on shrinking existing tumours, this research had a different focus.

“Some aggressive types of cancer respond very well to chemotherapy, but then the real challenge is to stop the tumour coming back. That’s what we investigated.”

CLEVELAND, Oct. 5, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — Advanced imaging with Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scans shows great promise in predicting which patients with inoperable lung cancer have more aggressive tumors and need additional treatment following standard chemotherapy/radiation therapy, according to new research.

Mitch Machtay, MD, of the Seidman Cancer Center at University Hospitals (UH) Case Medical Center and principle investigator for the study, presented the significant data today at 2 pm at the annual meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) in Miami Beach, Fla. The National Cancer Institute-funded trial, led by the American College of Radiology Imaging Network (ACRIN) in collaboration with Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG), enrolled 251 patients at 60 cancer centers around the country.

“Lung cancer remains the number one cancer killer in the United States. These findings have the potential to give cancer physicians a new tool to more effectively tailor treatments for patients with locally advanced lung cancer,” says Dr. Machtay, Chairman of Radiation Oncology at UH Case Medical Center and Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. “This cooperative group study determined that the PET scan can show us which patients have the most aggressive tumors, potentially enabling us to intensify their treatment.”

MILAN, ITALY, Sep 27, 2011 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) — MolMed S.p.A. (milan:MLM) presented new data from four clinical trials on its investigational anticancer drug NGR-hTNF at the European Multidisciplinary Cancer Congress, taking place in Stockholm on 23-27 September 2011. The Company reported updated interim results from a randomised Phase II trial in non-small-cell lung cancer, and follow-up data from two completed Phase II trials in recurrent ovarian cancer and relapsed small-cell lung cancer. The clinical development update also included results from a Phase I trial at high doses.

Claudio Bordignon, chairman and CEO of MolMed, comments: “The new interim randomised data in lung cancer look promising particularly in patients with the squamous cell histological subtype, a severe form of lung cancer with high need of new treatment options. As to new follow-up data from the two completed trials, the long-term clinical benefit in two poor-prognosis tumours such as relapsed ovarian and small-cell lung cancer, observed in patients presenting normal lymphocyte counts, confirms the dual mode by which NGR-hTNF exerts its effect, destroying the tumour vasculature and exploiting the effectors of the immune system. There is a growing need for tools, among which predictive biomarkers, to identify patients responding to a specific drug: for NGR-hTNF, a simple blood test such as lymphocyte counts correlates with clinical benefit. This parameter, together with others, might contribute in the future to the identification of patients more likely to get prolonged therapeutic benefit.”

From the Syndey Morning Herald

Biotechnology firm Alchemia has started to recruit patients for a phase II trial of its drug to treat small cell lung cancer.

Alchemia said on Friday that 40 patients will be recruited for the trial of the drug HA-Irinotecan, to be conducted at the Monash Cancer Centre and the Peninsula Oncology Centre in Melbourne.

This study will examine the effectiveness and safety of HA-Irinotecan.

Cancer biologists identify a driving force behind the spread of an aggressive type of lung cancer

A major challenge for cancer biologists is figuring out which among the hundreds of genetic mutations found in a cancer cell are most important for driving the cancer’s spread.

Using a new technique called whole-genome profiling, MIT scientists have now pinpointed a gene that appears to drive progression of small cell lung cancer, an aggressive form of lung cancer accounting for about 15 percent of lung cancer cases.

The gene, which the researchers found overexpressed in both mouse and human lung tumors, could lead to new drug targets, says Alison Dooley, a recent PhD recipient in the lab of Tyler Jacks, director of MIT’s David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research. Dooley is the lead author of a paper describing the finding in the July 15 issue of Genes and Development.

Over 90% Accuracy Identifying the Four Main Subtypes of Lung Cancer Using Small Tumor Quantities

PHILADELPHIA, PA and REHOVOT, ISRAEL–(Marketwire – Jul 14, 2011) – Rosetta Genomics (NASDAQ: ROSG), a leading developer and provider of microRNA-based molecular diagnostic tests, announces that it has launched miRview® lung, the Company’s advanced microRNA test that differentiates neuroendocrine tumors from non-small cell lung tumors (NSCLC), and then further subtypes neuroendocrine tumors into small cell lung cancer and carcinoid; and subtypes NSCLC tumors into squamous and non-squamous. miRview® lung will be marketed in the U.S. by Rosetta Genomics’ oncology sales team and will be available internationally through the Company’s various distribution partners.

Lung cancer patients given amrubicin (Calsed) as a second-line therapy had a significantly improved response rate and longer progression-free survival than patients treated with topotecan (Hycamtin), according to research presented at the 14th World Conference on Lung Cancer in Amsterdam, hosted by the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC).

“Amrubicin showed significant improvements in tumor shrinkage, symptom control and progression-free survival over topotecan without improving overall survival, the primary endpoint of the trial,” said principal investigator Dr. Joachim von Pawel, of the Asklepios Hospital Munich-Gauting in Germany. “However, for patients with the most difficult-to-treat small cell lung cancer, amrubicin offered an improvement in overall survival compared with topotecan.”

Research points to ability of these technologies to extend treatment options for a wide range of lung cancer patients

SUNNYVALE, Calif., July 7, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — Accuray Incorporated (Nasdaq: ARAY), the premier radiation oncology company, announced new clinical data highlighting the ability of its CyberKnife® Robotic Radiosurgery System and its TomoTherapy® Radiation Therapy System to treat a wide range of patients with lung cancer and lung metastases. The new outcome data was presented at the 14th World Conference on Lung Cancer, the leading global forum for lung cancer and thoracic oncology research and practice, which took place July 3-7, 2011 in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

The CyberKnife System, with its unique tracking and robotic correcting capabilities, is a dedicated radiosurgery system able to deliver destructive doses of radiation to tumors throughout the lung with the highest levels of accuracy, even for tumors close to critical structures such as the heart and esophagus. The TomoTherapy system has the ability to deliver both high quality intensity modulated radiation therapy for larger, complex tumors and ablative doses of radiation for smaller peripheral lung tumors that are away from critical structures, making it the premier hybrid radiation therapy system.

“The data presented this week at the World Conference on Lung Cancer demonstrate that CyberKnife and TomoTherapy deliver best-in-class radiation treatment options for a wide range of lung cancer patients,” said Euan S. Thomson, Ph.D., president and chief executive officer of Accuray. “The unsurpassed flexibility of these systems, combined with a growing body of clinical evidence demonstrating low toxicity and long-term tumor control, make Accuray’s technologies increasingly critical tools in treatment of even the most complex and advanced lung cancers.”