Stressed Out Every year, the world around us moves a little faster, and it’s easy to stumble and get stressed out as we try to catch up with it. Almost every fifth person in the United States has an anxiety disorder, costing the country more than $42 billion a year. Nearly half of those who suffer from...
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Increased α5β1 integrin could improve tumor cell-killing performance in geriatric patients
Research in the Journal of Leukocyte Biology suggests increased α5β1 integrin can improve tumor-killing behavior by CAR-T therapy in the aging population A new report in the Journal of Leukocyte Biology describes an important step toward developing cancer treatments involving the body’s immune system. Specifically, chimeric antigen receptor T cell (CAR-T) therapy involves collecting white blood cells...
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Cell mechanism discovery could lead to ‘fundamental’ change in leukaemia treatment
Researchers have identified a new cell mechanism that could lead to a fundamental change in the diagnosis and treatment of leukaemia. A team in the University of Kent’s pharmacy school conducted a study that discovered that leukaemia cells release a protein, known as galctin-9, that prevents a patient’s own immune system from killing cancerous blood...
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Researchers release first draft of a genome-wide cancer ‘dependency map’
In one of the largest efforts to build a comprehensive catalog of genetic vulnerabilities in cancer, researchers from the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have identified more than 760 genes upon which cancer cells from multiple types are strongly dependent for their growth and survival. Many of these “dependencies,” the...
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Long-sought mechanism of metastasis is discovered in pancreatic cancer
Cells, just like people, have memories. They retain molecular markers that at the beginning of their existence helped guide their development. Cells that become cancerous may be making use of these early memories to power their ability to metastasize, or spread to distant sites in the body, newly published research reveals. The research, appearing online...
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Molecular hitchhiker on human protein signals tumors to self-destruct
Powerful molecules can hitch rides on a plentiful human protein and signal tumors to self-destruct, a team of Vanderbilt University engineers found. Their research gives oncologists a better shot at overcoming the problems of drug resistance, toxicity to patients and a host of other barriers to consistently achieving successful gene therapy for cancer. It is...
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Study uncovers potential ‘silver bullet’ for preventing and treating colon cancer
In preclinical experiments, researchers at VCU Massey Cancer Center have uncovered a new way in which colon cancer develops, as well as a potential “silver bullet” for preventing and treating it. The findings may extend to ovarian, breast, lung, prostate and potentially other cancers that depend on the same mechanism for growth. Led by Massey’s...
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Drug combination shows better tolerance and effectiveness in metastatic renal cell cancer
A new cooperative research study including Norris Cotton Cancer Center’s Lionel Lewis, MB BCh, MD, finds that nivolumab plus ipilimumab therapy demonstrated manageable safety, notable antitumor activity, and durable responses with promising long term overall survival in patients with metastatic renal cell cancer (mRCC). The multi-institutional study known as the CheckMate 016 study evaluated the...
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Stanford study finds blood biomarkers linked to chronic fatigue syndrome
Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), or myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) as many sufferers prefer it called, is still one of the more mysterious ailments physicians grapple with. The disease has no known cure, is difficult to diagnose, and still to this day is debated by some as being more a psychological condition than a physical one. Researchers...
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Waterlogged brain region helps scientists gauge damage caused by Parkinson’s disease
Scientists at the University of Florida have discovered a new method of observing the brain changes caused by Parkinson’s disease, which destroys neurons important for movement. The development suggests that fluid changes in a specific brain area could provide a way to track that damage. The study, published in the journal Brain, was supported by the...