December 20, 2013
14 The Weekly Sentinel
WS
Health & Fitness
MCF Announces Statewide Funding for “Virtual Clinical Trial” FALMOUTH Maine Cancer Foundation has released $212,000 in grant funding for a two-year, state-wide “virtual clinical trial,” seeking to find effective drug treatments for triple-negative breast cancer patients. The study will focus on validating the use of xenomorphs or “Avatar Mice” for clinical drug trials, rather than traditional human subjects. The study, initiated by
Dr. Carol Bult, Program Leader for the PDX/Avatar program at The Jackson Laboratory Cancer Center, will launch a collaborative effort between Maine Medical Center, Eastern Maine Medical Center and The Jackson Laboratory. The pilot program will collect live tumor samples from volunteer patients across the state and rush them to The Jackson Laboratory where they will undergo DNA sequencing before being implanted in
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has been extremely difficult for oncologists to treat requiring a “kitchen sink” approach to stop tumor growth. The lack of targeted drugs for triple-negative breast cancer has left patients with few reliable options. “We are particularly pleased to support this work because of the collaboration it will spark between Maine’s cancer researchers and clinicians,” says Hill. “We feel the academic institutions and the direct care ...NUTS from page 13 ground shells during processing. Aerosol cooking sprays that contain peanut oil also can produce a reaction. It is important to note that the smell of peanuts will not induce an allergic reaction. Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York found that peanut proteins can be detected in some people’s saliva after eating peanuts. A kiss could transfer some of the peanut allergens to another person. Sometimes an allergy is not
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“Avatar Mice.” The “Avatar Mice” have been specially developed to act as living hosts for cancer tumors, allowing researchers much greater flexibility in studying cancer growth and testing for effective drug treatments. A single tissue sample can be sub-divided and implanted in tens or hundreds of identical mice, allowing for multiple tests at the same time. “We have high hopes for this new approach,” says Tara Hill, Executive Director of Maine Cancer Foundation. “A traditional clinical trial requires volunteer patients and can take years to show results, just for a single drug test. A ‘virtual clinical trial’ using ‘Avatar Mice’ could drastically shorten the testing process and potentially identify treatments for cancer types we can’t currently target, such as triple-negative breast cancer.” Triple-negative breast cancer (so called because it lacks three key genetic characteristics found in other breast cancers)
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institutions both benefit when they work together on efforts like this. This project will convene a monthly Avatar Review Board to share data and refine the sampling and testing processes.” Hill also noted that, while this particular study will focus on triple-negative breast cancer, the technique may prove be applicable to many cancer types. For more information on the Maine Triple-Negative Breast Cancer study, visit www.mainecancer.org.
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really an allergy, but rather an intolerance to a certain food. A food intolerance does not involve the immune system. A person with a food intolerance can eat small amounts of the food with only mild symptoms, such as indigestion, rather than a severe reaction with a true allergy. While being diligent in reading food labels and asking what ingredients are in prepared foods at restaurants is key for people with peanut allergies, so is avoiding potential skin contact. This means thoroughly washing areas where peanuts or peanut butter may have been and ensuring other children wash up after lunch. Peanut allergies are foremost on the minds of parents and educators. Understanding what is involved in a peanut allergy can help everyone make informed decisions about protecting youngsters. This article was provided by MetroCreative. The Weekly Sentinel does not endorse any products or services suggested by MetroCreative articles.
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