Initial results from a large, randomized clinical trial for patients with multiple myeloma, a cancer of the blood and bone marrow, showed that patients who received the oral drug lenalidomide (Revlimid, also known as CC-5013) following a blood stem cell transplant had their cancer kept in check longer than patients who received a placebo. The clinical trial, for patients ages 18 to 70, was sponsored by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), and conducted by a network of researchers led by the Cancer and Leukemia Group B (CALGB) in collaboration with the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) and the Blood and Marrow Transplant Clinical Trials Network (BMT CTN). The BMT CTN is co-sponsored by NCI and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, both parts of the National Institutes of Health.
Drug for Multiple Myeloma Demonstrated to Significantly Extend Disease-Free Survival
Gene Linked to a Rare Form of Progressive Hearing Loss in Males is Identified
A gene associated with a rare form of progressive deafness in males has been identified by an international team of researchers funded by the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. The gene, PRPS1, appears to be crucial in inner ear development and maintenance. The findings are published in the December 17 early online issue of the American Journal of Human Genetics [1].
NIDA Director Honored By French Government With Top Science Award for Addiction Research
Dr. Nora D. Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health, has been awarded the International Prize from the French Institute of Health and Medical Research (Inserm) for her pioneering work in brain imaging and addiction science. Dr. Volkow will receive the award at a Dec. 17 ceremony at the College of France learning center in Paris.
Amyloid Deposits in Cognitively Normal People May Predict Risk for Alzheimer’s Disease
For people free of dementia, abnormal deposits of a protein associated with Alzheimer’s disease are associated with increased risk of developing the symptoms of the progressive brain disorder, according to two studies from researchers at Washington University in St. Louis. The studies, primarily funded by the National Institute on Aging (NIA), part of the National Institutes of Health, linked higher amounts of the protein deposits in dementia-free people with greater risk for developing the disease, and with loss of brain volume and subtle declines in cognitive abilities.
NIDA News Scan #64
NewsScan #64 includes summaries of eight NIDA-funded scientific studies on a variety of topics, including brain imaging of sensation-seeking individuals, the role of glial cells in morphine’s effects in the brain, awareness deficits among marijuana abusers, the effects of two drugs on reducing opioid withdrawal symptoms, the behavioral effects of salvinorin A in non-human primates, drug abuse risk factors for traumatic brain injury survivors, use of marijuana among those with a subtype of testicular cancer, and environmental cues associated with nicotine.
