Pancreatic cancer is considered one of the most deadly of cancers. The statistics are grim, as 95 percent of patients diagnosed with pancreatic cancer do not survive, and 50 percent of patients die within six months after the cancer is diagnosed. There might be some hope in an allergy medication that has been around for 40 years.

According to University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center researchers, the allergy medication cromolyn reduced pancreatic tumor growth in mouse model studies, and when the drug was combined with the chemotherapy drug gemcitabine, the standard chemotherapy treatment was three times more effective. They are reported to be in the process of starting a clinical trial.

The study's lead author, Craig Logsdon, Ph.D. is quoted as saying, "The study demonstrates in mouse models of human pancreatic cancer that the cromolyn-gemcitabine combination reduced cancer growth by 85 percent compared to control animals. Cromolyn used alone actually had a good effect on reduction of tumors compared to control animals, which surprised us. It reduced tumor growth by 70 percent, compared to growth reduction of 50 percent when gemcitabine was used as a single agent."

"Our goal is to offer longer life to these patients, and the combination of these two agents may well do that."

To learn more about pancreatic cancer, visit the pancreatic cancer category here and the National Cancer Institute's What You Need To Know About Cancer of the Pancreas.

While most are celebrating the new blooms of Spring, my aunt is stocking up on antihistamines for another season of itchy eyes and sneezing. According to University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center researchers, that might not be a bad thing, as allergies and asthma seem to offer protection from the development of brain tumors.

"It appears that allergies and asthma rev up the immune system," said Michael Scheurer, the study's lead author and a postdoctoral fellow in M.D. Anderson's department of epidemiology. "They seem to produce enough inflammation in the brain to keep immune system cells active and working to prevent cancer from beginning to develop." Before I call my aunt to give her the good news though, researchers also said that antihistamine use might increase the chances of brain tumor development by taking away the protection offered by allergies. They are not absolutely sure of this fact -- no one is certain of the reasons leading to brain cancer.

The researchers are now looking to discover a gene susceptibility to developing brain tumors, and if they can find one, people who have the gene that indicates a higher risk of developing a brain tumor could be warned about using antihistamines. I am guessing even if my aunt had the faulty gene, she would still use antihistamines for allergy relief. Unless you are an allergy sufferer, or watch someone who is suffering the misery of allergies, you might not fully understand why someone would throw caution to the wind and take a calculated risk, if there is one. In the case of asthma, not being able to breath seems riskier than the vague possibility of a brain tumor.