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Selenium-enriched diets may help ward off myeloid leukemia, and a new study led by researchers has described the mechanism by which this occurs. The findings eventually could help lead to drug therapies that target some types of leukemia—including acute myeloid leukemia (AML), the researchers said. Penn State scientists previously found that supplementing the diets of mice with selenium—a trace mineral naturally found in varying amounts in many foods—stimulated the production of compounds known as cyclopentenone prostaglandins, which appeared to kill or suppress leukemia stem cells. Their latest study shows that these prostaglandins, called CyPGs, bind to and activate a gene,...

Researchers have found a new method that within hours can predict if certain cancer patients will survive or not after chemotherapy. Acute myeloid leukemia is an aggressive blood cancer with poor survival. Although high rates of initial chemotherapy response, patients often relapse due to the selection and development of chemotherapy-resistant leukemic cells. "When treating patients with leukemia, it is challenging to quickly follow if the patient is responding to therapy or not," says Benedicte Sjo Tislevoll, researcher at the University of Bergen and leader of the new study. The response to therapy is currently measured after weeks to months of...

Nkarta said Monday that two experimental, off-the-shelf treatments, both made from engineered natural killer cells, induced complete responses in patients with advanced forms of blood cancer. The results marked the first reveal of clinical data from its research programs. In one of the clinical trials, three of five patients with acute myeloid leukemia achieved complete remissions. Two of those patients showed no evidence of residual disease — the best response possible following treatment with the highest-tested dose of the Nkarta engineered natural killer, or NK, cells.

An immunotherapy harnessing the immune system's "natural killer" cells has proven effective in treating acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in some adults whose cancers return. Now, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have shown, in a small clinical trial, that the same natural killer cells also can help some children and young adults with recurrent AML and few other treatment options. Results from the phase 1 trial, which included eight patients ages 1 to 30 years, are published online in the journal Blood. "All of the patients enrolled in this study had very aggressive AML," said first...

U.S. military sent 3 N-teams to offer help /snip After its deployment to Japan, the AFRAT checked radiation levels at places that included Sendai Airport, which was heavily damaged in the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, to secure the safety of U.S. military personnel. The AFRAT is now on standby at Yokota Air Base in Tokyo, which hosts the headquarters of U.S. Forces Japan. The Army's Area Medical Laboratory (AML), whose mission is to assess chemical, biological and nuclear hazards, was also dispatched to Japan in late March. It conducted surveys of radioactive contamination and returned to the United States....

prayers are needed for cousin who is the last sister in family

Many may remember that my son's daughter and only child at that time -- was a victim of Acute Myleogenous Leukemia (adult form), diagnosed when she was nine years old. I have been a strong proponent of bone marrow transplants, because Jennifer is living proof of the success of that procedure. This started just over 11 years ago and the transplant did not take place for about three years -- Jennifer had about a 50/50 chance of survival -- which rose and fell over that time. Jennifer is now engaged, an incredibly beautiful young lady and she is pregnant. This...