D-Cure (Diabetes Care in Israel), a $30 million program launched last month, is meant to bolster Israel's drive to become a world leader in diabetes research. According to a report by "Israel21c.com", sixty of the world's leading diabetes experts and 400 Israeli specialists were on hand in Jerusalem for the official launch of the program, which was part of the Russell Berrie International Diabetes Symposium.
D-Cure president Professor Itamar Raz said that the agreement with the Russel Berrie Foundation would triple the current level of research of the disease and involve more than 300 researchers from medical and scientific centers around the country. Prof. Raz is also president of the Israel Diabetes Association and head of the Diabetes Center at Hadassah University Medical Center in Jerusalem.
As quoted by Israel21c, Prof. Raz said, "Israel -- despite its small size -- can become one of the world's leading centers - provided there is interdisciplinary cooperation among the researchers here and abroad as well as a significant increase in funding. With the signing of the agreement with, we have met both criteria." Even now, before the new cooperative program is fully underway, Raz noted, "In many fields in diabetes research, Israel is leading the world...."
In the important global research aimed at fighting another serious disease - cancer - Israel is also on the frontlines. Two new research breakthroughs highlighted by Israel21c illustrate this.
Researchers at Tel Aviv University have shown that Prozac, generally prescribed as an antidepressant, can be used to safely increase the effectiveness of chemotherapy against cancerous tumors in mice. In a second, similar discovery, an Israeli researcher, working with American scientists, has discovered that a drug for treating gout can reduce the risk of developing cancer of the colon and rectum.
The significance of the two discoveries is in their potential future application as alternative drug treatments for cancer patients whose metabolism rejects conventional anti-cancer drugs.
The Tel Aviv University findings were reported in the October 15th issue of Cancer Research.
While the discovery by Tel Aviv scientists is related to cancer treatment, the second aforementioned discovery is related to cancer prevention. Israeli and American researchers found that if taken for at least five years, a simple drug for treating gout can reduce the risk of getting colorectal cancer by 66%.
The research was presented at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research in Seattle last month.
"It only raises the suggestion that this is an interesting alley to investigate further. But it looks pretty promising," Dr. Gad Rennert told Reuters.
D-Cure president Professor Itamar Raz said that the agreement with the Russel Berrie Foundation would triple the current level of research of the disease and involve more than 300 researchers from medical and scientific centers around the country. Prof. Raz is also president of the Israel Diabetes Association and head of the Diabetes Center at Hadassah University Medical Center in Jerusalem.
As quoted by Israel21c, Prof. Raz said, "Israel -- despite its small size -- can become one of the world's leading centers - provided there is interdisciplinary cooperation among the researchers here and abroad as well as a significant increase in funding. With the signing of the agreement with, we have met both criteria." Even now, before the new cooperative program is fully underway, Raz noted, "In many fields in diabetes research, Israel is leading the world...."
In the important global research aimed at fighting another serious disease - cancer - Israel is also on the frontlines. Two new research breakthroughs highlighted by Israel21c illustrate this.
Researchers at Tel Aviv University have shown that Prozac, generally prescribed as an antidepressant, can be used to safely increase the effectiveness of chemotherapy against cancerous tumors in mice. In a second, similar discovery, an Israeli researcher, working with American scientists, has discovered that a drug for treating gout can reduce the risk of developing cancer of the colon and rectum.
The significance of the two discoveries is in their potential future application as alternative drug treatments for cancer patients whose metabolism rejects conventional anti-cancer drugs.
The Tel Aviv University findings were reported in the October 15th issue of Cancer Research.
While the discovery by Tel Aviv scientists is related to cancer treatment, the second aforementioned discovery is related to cancer prevention. Israeli and American researchers found that if taken for at least five years, a simple drug for treating gout can reduce the risk of getting colorectal cancer by 66%.
The research was presented at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research in Seattle last month.
"It only raises the suggestion that this is an interesting alley to investigate further. But it looks pretty promising," Dr. Gad Rennert told Reuters.