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(Radiological Society of North America) A study has found that positron emission mammography, a new technique for imaging the breast, is not affected by either breast density or a woman's hormonal status, two factors that limit the effectiveness of standard mammography and MRI at detecting cancer.

(Radiological Society of North America) New research reveals that computed tomography colonography, also known as virtual colonoscopy, has the potential to screen for two diseases at once -- colorectal cancer and osteoporosis, both of which commonly affect adults over age 50.

Vical Incorporated (Nasdaq: VICL) announced the receipt of a $1.0 million milestone payment from Merck & Co., Inc. based on Merck's planned initiation of a Phase I clinical trial of an investigational plasmid DNA (pDNA) cancer vaccine. The candidate vaccine is based on Vical's DNA gene delivery technology and encodes human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT). hTERT is the subject of separate license agreement.

Chemoradiotherapy (CRT) can be considered an "effective" treatment for elderly patients with locally advanced oesophageal cancer, reports the British Journal of cancer. The French study, involving 109 consecutive patients with oesophageal cancer, suggests that characterising patients first with the "Charlson" score may provide useful criteria for deciding which subjects are suitable for treatment.

Like tuning a violin to produce strong, elegant notes, researchers at The Wistar Institute have found multiple receptors on the outside of the body's killer immune system cells which they believe can be selectively targeted to keep the cells in superb infection- and disease-fighting condition.

An enzyme that is overexpressed in pancreatic cancer cells may hold the key to successfully treating the disease with targeted immunotherapy, researchers from Thomas Jefferson University reported at the 2008 Annual Meeting of the Southern Surgical Association. Previous data show that a protein, indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO), is overexpressed in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas, according to Jonathan R. Brody, Ph.D.

With the most recent release of data from the National Oncologic PET Registry (NOPR), researchers may have reached the moment of critical mass by confirming the effectiveness of positron emission tomography (PET) in the monitoring of tumor activity across a wide range of cancers.

Ark Therapeutics Group plc (AKT: LSE) ("Ark" or "the Company") today announces that the Marketing Authorisation Application (MAA) for Cerepro®, Ark's novel gene-based therapy for operable malignant glioma (brain cancer), has been filed with the European medicines regulatory agency (EMEA). The MAA application for Cerepro®, filed following a pre-submission meeting with the EMEA, will now enter the validation stage, prior to commencing formal review.

The Prostate cancer Charity is launching a new strategy 'Transforming The Future For Prostate cancer' - which it believes could reduce mortality rates by 30 per cent. The strategy, which will be unveiled at a special event next Monday (1 December), outlines ambitious goals and targets for vital changes the Charity believes are necessary to improve men's experience of prostate cancer by 2020.

Jeremy Hughes, Chief Executive of Breakthrough breast cancer says: "The Cancer Reform Strategy (CRS) has made steady progress since its publication last year. Breakthrough is particularly delighted to see our Service Pledge for Breast Cancer - a tool developed to enable health professionals and patients work together towards improved breast cancer services - is highlighted in today's report.