News

FGFR4 is a Prognostic Marker and Therapeutic Target for Ova...

FGFR4 is a Prognostic Marker and Therapeutic Target for Ovarian Cancer

January 25, 2013

In the journal Clinical Cancer Research, a group of researchers, including current and past OCRF grantees Anil Sood and Gabriel Lopez-Berestein, evaluated the prognostic value of fibroblast growth factor receptor 4 (FGFR4) protein expression in patients with advanced-stage, high-grade serous ovarian cancer. They found that FGFR4 is a prognostic marker for the disease.  Furthermore, silencing FGFR4 significantly … Continued

Research

Interval Debulking Surgery Appears to Increase Risk of Plat...

Interval Debulking Surgery Appears to Increase Risk of Platinum Resistance

January 24, 2013

A study of 425 Stage III and IV ovarian cancer patients had either primary debulking surgery or interval debulking surgery. Interval debulking surgery did not appear to increase the risk of initial platinum resistance, but did appear to increase the risk of platinum resistance in the recurrent setting. See the abstract here

Research

Extended Breastfeeding Reduces the Risk of Ovarian Cancer

Extended Breastfeeding Reduces the Risk of Ovarian Cancer

January 23, 2013

In a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, researchers from Curtin University in Australia found that extended breastfeeding significantly reduces the risk of ovarian cancer in women. The study examined 493 Chinese women who had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer. The study found that women who breastfed for more than 13 months were … Continued

Research

High Blood Calcium Levels May Indicate Ovarian Cancer

High Blood Calcium Levels May Indicate Ovarian Cancer

January 23, 2013

A new study indicates a direct link between higher blood calcium levels and presence of ovarian cancer. Specifically, “women who were later diagnosed with ovarian cancer and women who later died of ovarian cancer had higher levels of calcium in blood than women who did not before their cancer diagnosis.” Read an article about the … Continued

Research

Examining Change in CA-125 Over Time to Identify Ovarian Ca...

Examining Change in CA-125 Over Time to Identify Ovarian Cancer Earlier

January 22, 2013

A new approach to monitoring CA-125, using an algorithm that looks at its change over time, is more effective at identifying ovarian cancer earlier than using a single-threshold number.

Research

Hormonal Risk & Tumor Aggressiveness

Hormonal Risk & Tumor Aggressiveness

January 16, 2013

In an analysis of more than 4,000 women with ovarian cancer, it appears that some hormonal and reproductive factors may affect tumor aggressiveness. The study showed that increased age was associated with greater risk of rapidly fatal disease use of oral contraceptives was associated with a decreased risk of rapidly fatal disease increased parity (having … Continued

Research

Phase II Study Shows No Improvement in PFS with Addition of...

Phase II Study Shows No Improvement in PFS with Addition of Pertuzumab

January 15, 2013

A study of 149 women with platinum sensitive ovarian cancer, half treated with carboplatin and paclitaxel or gemcitabine, half with that treatment plus pertuzumab, showed that the addition of pertuzumab to chemotherapy did not significantly increase progression free survival (PFS). However, the drug was described as “well-tolerated” and did not appear to increase the risk … Continued

Research

Ovarian Cancer Research Fund Awards Over $6 Million in 2013...

Ovarian Cancer Research Fund Awards Over $6 Million in 2013 Grants

January 10, 2013

OCRF receives record number of research grant applications; launches national patient support program with new educational grants New York, NY January 10, 2013 — Ovarian Cancer Research Fund (OCRF) has awarded over $5.9 million in scientific research grants for ovarian cancer this year. Additionally, two educational and support grants totaling $100,000 were given to new … Continued

OCRA News

Meet OCRF’s 2013 Research Grant Recipients

Meet OCRF’s 2013 Research Grant Recipients

January 10, 2013

OCRF has awarded nearly $6 million in grants for ovarian cancer research this year. After receiving over 170 applications – the highest number in its history, for the second year in a row – OCRF and its prestigious Scientific Advisory Committee endeavored first and foremost to fund the best science. The Committee evaluated each proposal … Continued

OCRA News

DNA from Pap Smears Could Help Detect Endometrial and Ovari...

DNA from Pap Smears Could Help Detect Endometrial and Ovarian Cancer

January 9, 2013

1/09/2013 Analyzing DNA from Pap smears could help detect endometrial and ovarian cancer, a new study published Jan. 9, 2013 in Science Translational Medicine reports. OCRF Scientific Advisory Committee member (and former grantee) Doug Levine, MD, was among the authors of the article, which was highlighted on the cover of the journal. The routine Pap smear, which allows … Continued

Research

New Research on Screening for Familial Ovarian Cancer

New Research on Screening for Familial Ovarian Cancer

January 3, 2013

1/3/2013 In the most recent edition of the Journal of Clinical Oncology, researchers in the UK published preliminary results from the United Kingdom Familial Ovarian Cancer Screen Study, a large trial testing the hypothesis that ovarian cancer screening may benefit women at familial risk.  Results showed that annual screening did lead to diagnosis at an earlier stage, … Continued

Research

Partner Member Profile: Bright Pink

Partner Member Profile: Bright Pink

January 2, 2013

Lindsay Avner founded Bright Pink in 2007, shortly after she learned that she carried a mutation in the BRCA gene. Just 22 years old when she was tested, Lindsay realized that she had nowhere to turn for advice on coping with her increased risk of breast and ovarian cancer. “There was nothing for women who … Continued

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