Press Officer and Head of Press and Public Relations
Im Neuenheimer Feld 280
69120 Heidelberg
Phone: +49 6221 422854
Fax: +49 6221 422968
E-Mail: s.seltmann@dkfz.de
or presse@dkfz.de
Recent Press Releases
Ependymoma Awareness Day celebrating breakthroughs in cooperative ependymoma research
Ependymoma is a rare but aggressive brain tumor that occurs in both children and adults. Only large international collaborative efforts such as the Cooperative Ependymoma Research Network (CERN) and the Ependymoma Consensus Conference Series enable researchers and clinicians worldwide to decipher the biology, design innovative clinical trials, and ultimately improve survival of patients suffering from this devastating disease. Scientists at the German Cancer Research Center have significantly contributed to the latest breakthroughs in ependymoma research.
Plant compound protects healthy cells from chemotherapy drugs
Chemotherapy drugs attack not only cancer cells but more generally rapidly dividing tissues. This can cause side effects ranging from hair loss to nausea to deadly infections. Scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, DKFZ) have now discovered that the plant compound rocaglamide protects healthy cells from the toxic effects of chemotherapy drugs. This discovery may help reduce the side effects of cancer therapies.
Abnormal blood stem cells reprogram their environment
Blood arises from stem cells in the bone marrow; in patients with a myelodysplastic disorder (MDS), defective stem cells reprogram their neighbors in the marrow to create a “niche” that promotes their own survival. A recent report by scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, DKFZ) in collaboration with colleagues from the University Medical Centre Mannheim, suggests that blocking the molecules involved in this process may lead to an effective therapy against this life-threatening blood disorder.
