New Lupus Genes Identified
Still unknown is how the genes contribute to the autoimmune
disease.
Three new genes linked to
the chronic autoimmune disease lupus have been identified by an international
team of researchers.
The analysis of more than
17,000 genetic samples from people of several ethnic groups also pinpointed
another 11 genetic regions that may be related to lupus and require further
study.
The researchers found that
the genes IRF8 and TMEM39a are associated with lupus in European-American,
African-American, Gullah (a distinctive group of African-Americans in Georgia
and South Carolina) and Asian patients. The gene IKZF3 is only significantly
associated with lupus in African-Americans and European-Americans.
The researchers said their
findings, which appear in the April 6 issue of the American Journal of Human
Genetics, show that the genes that cause lupus aren't always universal.
The next step is to study
the three genes to find out exactly what role they play in lupus, said lead
author Christopher Lessard, a scientist at the Oklahoma Medical Research
Foundation in Oklahoma City.
Lupus affects about 1.5
million Americans, and about 90 percent of patients are women. The disease
causes the immune system to become overactive and attack the body's own cells.
Symptoms include fatigue, fever, rashes and joint pain.
A combination of
environmental and genetic factors cause lupus. Learning more about genetic risk
factors may lead to improved diagnosis and treatment of the disease.
More information
The U.S. National Institute
of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases has more about lupus
.
Early Study Finds Some Promise for Lung
Cancer Vaccine
Although not a cure, it appeared to prolong life in some cases
of non-small cell disease.
A new therapeutic vaccine appears to lengthen the lives of
patients with a certain type of lung cancer, according to results of a small
phase 2 trial.
The drug,
belagenpumatucel-L (Lucanix), extended the lives of patients with
nonprogressive non-small cell lung cancer and increased the five-year survival
rate among some patients with moderately advanced cancer to 50 percent,
researchers found.
For the study, 75 patients
with stage 2, 3A, 3B or 4 cancer were randomly assigned to various doses of the
vaccine, which was derived from four lung cancer cell lines. Staging refers to
the severity of cancer. A stage 3 cancer has spread nearby, while a stage 4
cancer has spread to another organ.
Overall, the patients
survived an average of 14.5 months and the five-year survival rate was 20
percent, lead researcher Dr. Lyudmila Bazhenova, an associate clinical
professor at the University of California, San Diego Moores Cancer Center in La
Jolla, and colleagues noted.
Patients with stage 3B and
stage 4 disease who were given the two highest doses of the vaccine survived an
average of 15.9 months. In these patients, average one-year survival rates were
61 percent, two-year survival rates averaged 41 percent and five-year survival
rates were 18 percent.
But after chemotherapy,
vaccinated patients with stage 3B or stage 4 nonprogressive cancer had an
average survival of 44.4 months and five-year survival was 50 percent, which is
"unheard of for patients with non-small cell lung cancer," Bazhenova
said in a news release from the American Association for Cancer Research.
Patients whose disease
progressed after chemotherapy survived an average of 14 months and had a 9
percent five-year survival rate, the researchers reported.
"This is a novel
immunotherapy that appears to show unusually long survival in some
patients," Bazhenova stated in the news release. The study authors also
noted that a phase 3 clinical trial to confirm the results is currently under
way in eight countries.
Commenting on the findings,
Dr. Norman Edelman, chief medical officer of the American Lung Association,
said: "This is a most interesting and potentially important study, as
improving the survival rates of patients with relatively advanced lung cancer
remains an important but difficult-to-achieve goal."
Vaccines to treat cancer
have been around for a while with rather modest success so far, he said.
"While it is too early
to call this study a breakthrough, it certainly is quite promising," added
Edelman, who was not involved in the study.
A "randomized"
trial -- one that randomly assigns patients to receive either the active
vaccine or an inactive vaccine -- is needed to determine the real benefit of
the therapy before it can be used to treat patients, however, Edelman noted.
"It is important to
understand that this is prolongation of life and not a cure," Edelman
said. "If the randomized trial confirms the findings, the approach will
represent a significant contribution to the management of more advanced lung
cancers."
The study findings were
slated for presentation Wednesday at the American Association for Cancer
Research annual meeting in Chicago.
Because this study was
presented at a medical meeting, the data and conclusions should be viewed as
preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.
More information
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