Recent Publications
Additive Effects of Cu-ATSM and Radiation on Survival of Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma Cells
Monday, November 4, 2024
Diffuse intrinsic pontine gliomas (DIPG) are highly aggressive and treatment-resistant childhood primary brainstem tumors with a median survival of less than one year after diagnosis. The prevailing standard of care for DIPG, radiation therapy, does not prevent fatal disease progression, with most patients succumbing to this disease 3-8 months after completion of radiation therapy. This underscores the urgent need for novel combined-modality approaches for enhancing therapy responses. This study...
Radiation-Induced Macrovessel/Microvessel Disease
Thursday, October 24, 2024
Radiation therapy (RT) is a cornerstone in cancer treatment (used in 50% of cases), yet challenges persist because damage to normal tissue through direct impact of radiation or bystander effects is inevitable. Injury of macrovessels by RT manifests as obstructive disease, which is akin to atherosclerotic disease. Historically observed in coronary arteries of patients treated for breast cancer and lymphoma, it also affects patients receiving contemporary therapy for lung and chest cancers....
A randomized trial of pharmacological ascorbate, gemcitabine, and nab-paclitaxel for metastatic pancreatic cancer
Sunday, October 6, 2024
CONCLUSIONS: P-AscH^(-) infusions of 75 g three times weekly in patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer prolongs overall and progression free survival without detriment to quality of life or added toxicity (ClinicalTrials.gov number NCT02905578).
Balanced Duality: H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub>-Based Therapy in Cancer and Its Protective Effects on Non-Malignant Tissues
Thursday, August 29, 2024
Conventional cancer therapy strategies, although centered around killing tumor cells, often lead to severe side effects on surrounding normal tissues, thus compromising the chronic quality of life in cancer survivors. Hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)) is a secondary signaling molecule that has an array of functions in both tumor and normal cells, including the promotion of cell survival pathways and immune cell modulation in the tumor microenvironment. H(2)O(2) is a reactive oxygen species (ROS)...
An Improved Postprocessing Method to Mitigate the Macroscopic Cross-Slice <em>B</em><sub>0</sub> Field Effect on R2* Measurements in the Mouse Brain at 7T
Friday, July 26, 2024
The MR transverse relaxation rate, R2*, has been widely used to detect iron and myelin content in tissue. However, it is also sensitive to macroscopic B(0) inhomogeneities. One approach to correct for the B(0) effect is to fit gradient-echo signals with the three-parameter model, a sinc function-weighted monoexponential decay. However, such three-parameter models are subject to increased noise sensitivity. To address this issue, this study presents a two-stage fitting procedure based on the...
Superoxide Dismutase Mimetic Avasopasem Manganese Enhances Radiation Therapy Effectiveness in Soft Tissue Sarcomas and Accelerates Wound Healing
Saturday, May 25, 2024
Soft tissue sarcomas (STSs) are mesenchymal malignant lesions that develop in soft tissues. Despite current treatments, including radiation therapy (RT) and surgery, STSs can be associated with poor patient outcomes and metastatic recurrences. Neoadjuvant radiation therapy (nRT), while effective, is often accompanied by severe postoperative wound healing complications due to damage to the surrounding normal tissues. Thus, there is a need to develop therapeutic approaches to reduce nRT...
Quantitative MRI Evaluation of Ferritin Overexpression in Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer
Saturday, February 24, 2024
Cancer cells frequently present elevated intracellular iron levels, which are thought to facilitate an enhanced proliferative capacity. Targeting iron metabolism within cancer cells presents an avenue to enhance therapeutic responses, necessitating the use of non-invasive models to modulate iron manipulation to predict responses. Moreover, the ubiquitous nature of iron necessitates the development of unique, non-invasive markers of metabolic disruptions to develop more personalized approaches...
Exploratory Analysis of Image-Guided Ionizing Radiation Delivery to Induce Long-Term Iron Accumulation and Ferritin Expression in a Lung Injury Model: Preliminary Results
Friday, February 23, 2024
CONCLUSIONS: A targeted lung irradiation model may be a useful approach for studying the long-term pathological effects associated with iron accumulation and RILI following ionizing radiation.
Iron-based biomarkers for personalizing pharmacological ascorbate therapy in glioblastoma: insights from a phase 2 clinical trial
Monday, January 29, 2024
CONCLUSIONS: This study analyzes iron-related biomarkers in the context of P-AscH^(-) therapy for glioblastoma. Integrating molecular, systemic, and imaging-based markers offers a multifaceted approach to tailoring treatment strategies, thereby contributing to improved patient outcomes and advancing the field of glioblastoma therapy.