Cancer Research Symposium Research Articles

The Management of Cancer Symptoms and Treatment-Induced Side Effects With Cannabis or Cannabinoids.

Cannabis and cannabinoids are increasingly being accessed and used by patients with advanced cancer for various symptoms and general quality of life. Specific symptoms of pain, nausea and vomiting, loss of appetite and cachexia, anxiety, sleep disturbance, and medical trauma are among those that have prompted patients with cancer to use cannabis. This conference report from the National Cancer Institute's "Cannabis, Cannabinoid and Cancer Research Symposium" on the topic of "Cancer Symptom/Treatment Side Effect Management" is an expert perspective of cannabis intervention for cancer and cancer treatment-related symptoms. The purpose of the symposium was to identify research gaps, describe the need for high-quality randomized prospective studies of medical cannabis for palliative care in patients with cancer, and evaluate the impact of medical cannabis on cancer survivors' quality of life. Further, education of clinicians and affiliated health-care providers in guiding cancer patients in using cannabis for cancer care would benefit patients. Together, these steps will further aid in refining the use of cannabis and cannabinoids for symptom palliation and improve safety and efficacy for patients.

Cannabinoid Cancer Biology and Prevention.

Plant-based, synthetic, and endogenous cannabinoids have been shown to control a diverse array of biological processes, including regulation of cell fate across cancers. Their promise as broad-based antitumor agents in preclinical models has led to the initiation of pilot clinical trials. Session 5 of the National Cancer Institute's Cannabis, Cannabinoids and Cancer Research Symposium provides an overview of this research topic. Overall, the presentations highlight cannabinoid signal transduction and specific molecular mechanisms underlying cannabinoid antitumor activity. They also demonstrate the broad-based antitumor activity of the plant-based, synthetic, and endogenous cannabinoid compounds. Importantly, evidence is presented demonstrating when cannabinoids may be contraindicated as a treatment for cancer, as in the case of human papilloma virus-meditated oropharynx cancer or potentially other p38 MAPK pathway-driven cancers. Finally, it is discussed that a key to advancing cannabinoids into the clinic is to conduct well-designed, large-scale clinical trials to determine whether cannabinoids are effective antitumor agents in cancer patients.

Periodic graphics: Platinum drugs for cancer

Chemical educator and Compound Interest blogger Andy Brunning examines the chemistry and impact of cisplatin and its sibling compounds To download a pdf of this article, visit http://cenm.ag/platinumdrugs. References used to create this graphic: The resurgence of platinum-based cancer chemotherapy Cisplatin celebration and cancer research symposium The Next Generation of Platinum Drugs: Targeted Pt(II) Agents, Nanoparticle Delivery, and Pt(IV) Prodrugs Mechanisms of platinum drug resistance The status of platinum anticancer drugs in the clinic and in clinical trials Pt-based drugs: the spotlight will be on proteins A Drug of Such Damned Nature.1 Challenges and Opportunities in Translational Platinum Drug Research A collaboration between C&EN and Andy Brunning, author of the popular graphics blog Compound Interest To see more of Brunning’s work, go to compoundchem.com. To see all of C&EN’s Periodic Graphics, visit http://cenm.ag/periodicgraphics.

Cancer research symposium in houston

Cancer research symposium in houston