Onco Actu du 13 avril 2016

	1.1 Biologie - Gènes
Mystery of the 13 people with 'superhero DNA' [NHS Choices] Ideally, the researchers wanted to find out what it was about these people that made them resistant to the disease mutations. However, they cannot re-contact the individuals because the study protocols stated that all survey data would remain anonymous.
	3.1 Tabac
We need a strategy to help people with mental health problems quit smoking [The Guardian] Smoking levels remain stubbornly high among the poorest and most vulnerable people in society. This inequity must be tackled.
Largest Study Yet Shows Mother’s Smoking Changes Baby’s Epigenome [NIH Directors's Blog] London is careful to point out that the new findings don’t confirm a direct causal connection between these observed epigenetic modifications and the health complications associated with maternal smoking. They do provide a potential mechanism that now warrants careful attention and further study.
	4.1 Dép., diag. & prono. - Prostate
Martin Roland: Who should have PSA testing for prostate cancer? [BMJ Blogs] The guidance statements, especially those from Prostate Cancer UK are likely to increase the number of men wishing to discuss PSA testing, but GPs are still faced with a poor test for an unpredictable disease.
	4.12 Biopsies liquides
New supersensitive biosensor for early cancer detection [PHG Foundation] By harnessing nanotechnology tools and coupling a microfluidic channel with an engineered material call a metamaterial, the Case Western Reserve University team produced a biosensor up to one million times more sensitive than existing methods.
	5. Traitements
Ovarian cancer and the case of elusive cure [Pharmafile] Here’s a quick look at the portfolio of ovarian cancer drug candidates in late to mid stage trials.
	5.10 Traitements - Essais
Head-to-head study demonstrating Giotrif® (afatinib) significantly improved clinical outcomes compared to Iressa® (gefitinib) in EGFR mutation-positive advanced non-small cell lung cancer published in The Lancet Oncology [Boehringer Ingelheim] After two years of treatment, more than twice as many patients on afatinib were alive and progression free than those on gefitinib (after 18 months; 27% vs 15% and after 24 months; 18% vs 8%).
Editorial: Making the Most of Clinical Trial Data [NY Times] Centralized databases that bring together data from a variety of trials on a particular disease or treatment would make analysis of shared data much easier. Research institutions could also form partnerships to validate and reanalyze one another’s work. More funding by government agencies like the National Institutes of Health and nonprofit groups could encourage such projects.
	5.12 Immunothérapies
Sean Parker Just Gave $250M to the Darling of Cancer Research [WIRED] The Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy won’t just give out money: It wants to bridge academic research and the pharmaceutical industry.
Sean Parker’s $250 Million Bet on Hacking the Immune System to Beat Cancer [MIT Technology Review] Parker rose to fame for cofounding the pirate music network Napster and later became Facebook’s first president, a role that netted the 36-year-old a fortune valued by Forbes at $2.4 billion.
Sean Parker sets up $250 million cancer immunotherapy collaboration [Reuters] The Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy will include over 40 laboratories and more than 300 researchers from six key cancer centers.
	5.2.2 Pharma - Fusions & Acquisitions
Medivation Said to Have Rebuffed Sanofi Takeover Approach [Bloomberg] Medivation, which focuses on treatments for hard-to-cure cancers, is seeking a higher price than initial proposals have indicated, the people said. Other suitors are also considering making an offer, they said.
	5.2.3 Pharma - économie
Drug industry lashes out at Massachusetts drug price transparency effort [FiercePharma] In a hearing, some drug industry officials pointed out that by focusing on development costs for specific drugs, the state is ignoring the outlay investors and companies must make for drugs that fail to make it to the market.
	5.3.4 Traitements - AMM (FDA, EMA)
Clovis Lung Cancer Drug Trashed at FDA Panel, CEO Exit Next? [TheStreet] If roci is jettisoned, Clovis could concentrate on the rest of its pipeline -- a PARP inhibitor in phase III for ovarian cancer and a phase II multi-kinase inhibitor. Neither of these remaining drugs is a cancer blockbuster but then Clovis' $250 million enterprise value is not exactly baking in much credit for the pipeline, either.
Clovis Oncology Provides Update on FDA Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee Meeting to Review Rociletinib for Treatment of Advanced T790M-Positive Mutant Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer [Clovis Oncology] “We are disappointed with today’s outcome, as we believe in the strength of the data we presented for rociletinib,” said Patrick J. Mahaffy, President and CEO of Clovis Oncology.
FDA panel votes against quick approval for Clovis cancer drug [Reuters] The panel voted 12-1 against giving the drug an accelerated approval, and recommended the FDA wait for the results from an ongoing late-stage trial that compares the drug's effect to that of chemotherapy.
	5.4 Traitements - Economie
New myeloma meds work better than the old, but they're far too expensive: Report [FiercePharma] In this report, the newer drugs are judged as significantly less cost-effective than standard Revlimid therapy.
	6. Lutte contre les cancers
Doctors Often Overestimate Promise of New Drugs [WebMD] A survey of nearly 700 doctors revealed that many tended to misinterpret "breakthrough." Doctors often believed the drugs were supported by stronger evidence than the law requires to achieve that designation, said lead author Dr. Aaron Kesselheim.
	6.1 Observation
Cancer survival rates higher at academic medical centers, study says [Miami Herald] The study, funded and produced by Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, analyzed survival and administrative data for about 750,000 Medicare patients treated for cancer in 2006 at hospitals throughout the country.
Obesity 'likely culprit' behind womb cancer rise [BBC News] Researchers acknowledge the science behind how extra weight is linked to cancer is not clear - but say hormones produced by extra fat may play a part. hey say more studies are needed.
Obesity epidemic is fuelling rise in womb cancer, charity warns [The Guardian] The number of new cases of womb cancer has climbed from about 4,800 a year in the early 1990s, when the annual death toll from the disease was about 1,500, to about 9,000 new diagnoses each year and 2,000 deaths today.
	6.10 Politiques
Q&A: Tech expert and cancer survivor to lead U.S. 1-million-person health study [Science] At Intel, I started funding grants on what we call m-health, or personal health technologies before NIH or anyone else was paying attention 15 years ago. And this PMI cohort effort is really about developing a data sharing platform.
	6.11 Patients
At A Conference On Cancer, Patients Take Notes Like Their Lives Depend On It [Forbes] Last weekend I attended the 10th annual metastatic breast cancer summit sponsored by Living Beyond Breast Cancer. The Philadelphia event drew several hundred attendees, mostly women – and a few men – who are living with metastatic breast cancer. I participated as moderator for an opening panel and stayed on, to listen and learn.
	6.6 Publications
Cancer researcher earns 3 more retractions following NIH misconduct investigation [Retraction Watch] There may be more changes to the literature — an editor at another cancer journal told us the journal is awaiting a decision from the Office of Research Integrity before deciding what to do with a paper by Watkins, given that she does not agree with the misconduct charges.
On Moose and Medians (Or Why We Are Stuck With The Impact Factor) [The Schorlarly Kitchen] Last year, Thomson Reuters unveiled two new metrics in its 2014 JCR: A Normalized Eigenfactor score and a Journal Impact Factor Percentile score. There are now 13 metrics provided in their panel of journal scores, but don’t expect median citation scores to come any time soon.
	6.7 DMP, Big Data & applis
IBM and American Cancer Society to Create Virtual Cancer Advisor [Fortune] The final format and capabilities of the cancer health advisor haven’t been confirmed. IBM and the American Cancer Society are aiming to have the service available early next year.
Society and IBM Collaborate to Create Virtual Cancer Health Advisor [ACS] IBM and the American Cancer Society today announced a partnership to create the first advisor for people fighting cancer, powered by Watson cognitive computing.