A new target has been found for wild-type and pediatric GIST. GISTs without mutations in either of the two genes commonly mutated in GIST typically respond poorly to Gleevec. Andrew Godwin, Ph.D. of Fox Chase Cancer [...]
After months of waiting rooms, medical tests, consultations, a couple of bad doctors and a few hospital stays, I was diagnosed with a golf ball-sized tumor in my small intestine.
Last week, The Life Raft Group’s very first local chapter met again to discuss coping and GIST education.Those in attendance were: (Front row left to right) Bill Buchanan, Friend of the LRG, Vince Coccia, Lucy [...]
The Manse on Marsh Street was the location of the first GIST gathering on January 10, 2010 in San Luis Obispo, California. Chris Skiff owner/developer of The Manse on Marsh Street, an up scale [...]
When Morty Wagman underwent surgery to remove a gastrointestinal stromal tumour (GIST) in 2008 with his wife Judi by his side, he was faced with a concerning 55 percent chance that his cancer would return. Then, his oncologist told him about Gleevec (imatinib), a treatment that could greatly reduce the risk of his cancer returning, and Wagman felt empowered and hopeful. Today, he and his wife applaud Health Canada for approving Gleevec for patients with this potentially life-threatening condition, at an earlier stage in the disease.
The fourth bi-annual NIH Pediatric & Wildtype GIST Clinic at the National Institutes of Health on January 20 was, once again, a great success. Click here to view a video or listen to a podcast of Dr. [...]
STA-9090 is a synthetic, small molecule HSP90 inhibitor. It has a unique chemical structure different from earlier HSP-90 inhibitors that, like IPI-504, are first generation drugs based on a family of antibiotics called ansamycins. As a result, STA-9090 is likely to have a different toxicity profile.
For the past eight years, Gleevec has been the first-line treatment for adult patients with c-Kit (CD117)-positive, unresectable and/or metastatic malignant GISTs. But for some patients, Gleevec is not the answer to their prayers. A small percentage, five to 15 percent, do not benefit from Gleevec from the outset. Others develop a resistance to the drug or cannot tolerate the side effects.
Written by Jim Hughes Updated five year adjuvant Gleevec trial: Phase II now open at 21 sites in the United States. NCT00867113 Updated MP470 trial in solid malignancies: Phase I updated to Ongoing as of 11/3/2009. NCT00894894 Added [...]
KIT exon 11 and exon 9 mutations represent the two most common types of mutations (wild-type GIST is technically not a type of mutation but a lack of mutations) found in GIST patients. About 60 to 65 percent of GIST patients have a KIT exon 11 mutation and about 10 to15 percent have a KIT exon 9 mutation.
