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SAN ANTONIO — Metastatic breast cancer patients who had circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in their blood before or after high-dose chemotherapy (HDCT) followed by autologous stem cell transplantation had poor outcomes, according to researchers from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

San Antonio - Metastatic breast cancer patients whose blood contains circulating tumor cells (CTCs) before or after treatment with high-dose chemotherapy and blood stem cell transplant have shorter survival periods, according to a new study by researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.

The findings were presented today in a poster session at the 33rd Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.

Scientists have discovered how a network of repair proteins enables bacteria to prioritise the repair of the most heavily used regions of the DNA molecules that carry the instructions necessary for living cells to function.

The research, carried out by academics at the University of Bristol and published in Molecular Cell (Dec. 2010), reveals that there are greater similarities between the DNA repair systems of bacteria and humans than had been suspected.

A gene target for drug resistance, a triple-drug cocktail for triple negative breast cancer, and patients' risk for carpal tunnel syndrome are among study highlights scheduled to be presented by Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center scientists during the 33rd Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, held Dec. 8-12. The information is embargoed for the time of presentation at the symposium.

TRIO OF DRUGS MAY COMBAT "TRIPLE NEGATIVE" BREAST CANCER(Presentation # PD01-05)

A gene target for drug resistance, a triple-drug cocktail for triple negative breast cancer, and patients' risk for carpal tunnel syndrome are among study highlights scheduled to be presented by Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center scientists during the 33rd Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, held Dec. 8-12. The information is embargoed for the time of presentation at the symposium.

SIMPLE FINGERTIP TEST MAY IDENTIFY BREAST CANCER PATIENTS AT RISK FOR CARPAL TUNNEL SYNDROME(Presentation # P2-14-09)

Children with ADHD can sometimes have more difficulties on math and reading tests compared to their peers. A new study published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, used identical and fraternal twins to look at the genetic and environmental influences underlying ADHD behaviors, reading, and math skills in children in an attempt to better understand the relationship among them.

Up to 20% of professional boxers develop neuropsychiatric sequelae. But which acute complications and which late sequelae can boxers expect throughout the course of their career? These are the questions studied by Hans Förstl from the Technical University Munich and his co-authors in the current issue of Deutsches Ärzteblatt International (Dtsch Arztebl Int 2010; 107[47]: 835-9).

Despite threats of violence, imprisonment and death, writers around the world continue to fight to make their voices heard. The latest issue of Index on Censorship pays tribute to one of the world's longest running campaigns for free expression, English PEN's Writers in Prison Committee (WiPC). Founded in 1960, the WiPC supports and protects writers facing persecution around the globe. Contributors to Beyond Bars – including award-winning authors Margaret Atwood, Sir Tom Stoppard and William Boyd – highlight the vital role writers can play in supporting their colleagues.

LEBANON, NH - Kathy Niedzwiecki of Pelham, NH, and Ken Crowder of St. Louis are experiencing renewed life and health thanks to the generosity of two living kidney donors.

The strain of cholera currently sweeping through post-earthquake Haiti originated in South Asia, conclude scientists who did a rapid genetic analysis of bacteria collected from Haitian patients. The finding supports the notion that the cholera bacteria fueling the outbreak arrived on the island via recent visitors.

SAN ANTONIO — A combination of lapatinib, trastuzumab and paclitaxel significantly improved tumor response rates than either agent alone among patients with HER2-positive breast cancers, according to data presented at the 33rd Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, held Dec. 8-12. Full results were presented at the symposium during a press briefing on Dec. 10, 2010, at 8:00 a.m. CT.

Reporters who cannot attend in person can participate using the following call-in information:

SAN ANTONIO — Researchers presented Phase III efficacy data from the GeparQuinto study, a head-to-head comparison of neoadjuvant lapatinib and trastuzumab in combination with chemotherapy for patients with early breast cancer, at the 33rd Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, held Dec. 8-12.

SAN ANTONIO — The combination of pertuzumab and trastuzumab had superior antitumor activity in women with early HER2-positive breast cancer, according to Phase II study results of the NeoSphere neoadjuvant trial.

Details of these study results were presented at the 33rd Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, held Dec. 8-12.

San Antonio, Tex. -- A drug that shows promise for preventing breast cancer in postmenopausal women with an increased risk of developing the disease, appears to reduce mammographic breast density in the same group of women. Having dense breast tissue on mammogram is believed to be one of the strongest predictors of breast cancer. The preliminary analysis from the small, phase II study was presented today at the 33rd Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium in Texas.