Category: Cancer

Tumor cells, notorious for their adaptability and resilience during treatment, have met their match in a groundbreaking study led by experts at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH). Published in Cancer Discovery, the study introduces BipotentR, a cutting-edge computational tool designed to simultaneously cripple tumor energy sources and reinvigorate the immune system’s fight against cancer.

Dr. Keith T. Flaherty, Director of Clinical Research at the MGH Cancer Center, and his team harnessed the power of BipotentR to identify key proteins governing both cancer cell metabolism and immune response within tumors. This innovative tool not only pinpointed these crucial targets but also provided insights into patient outcomes following immunotherapy.

Radiation therapy stands as a vital treatment for cancer, but it often poses significant challenges due to its lengthy duration, allowing healthy cells to suffer collateral damage. Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania have made significant strides toward addressing this issue, presenting a promising solution to complete cancer treatment in seconds rather than weeks.

Killing individual cancer cells is relatively straightforward, achievable through radiation or medication. However, the real challenge arises when tumors hide amongst healthy cells, increasing the likelihood of damage to those healthy cells. Traditional radiation therapy, spanning several weeks, exacerbates the potential harm to healthy tissue. Enter FLASH radiotherapy, an emerging treatment approach that delivers in just one second the same radiation dose typically administered over several weeks. While its impact on cancer cells aligns with conventional radiation therapy, FLASH significantly reduces collateral damage to healthy tissue.

In a groundbreaking study that is causing ripples in the medical community, researchers have uncovered a remarkable avenue in cancer research – using bee venom to target and eliminate cancer cells. This revelation has the potential to revolutionize the future of cancer treatment.

For centuries, the humble European honeybee (Apis mellifera) has provided humans with valuable products such as honey, propolis, and venom. Now, scientists are delving deep into the molecular structure of bee venom, particularly in the context of combating one of the most prevalent forms of cancer afflicting women globally: breast cancer. The study aims to gain a comprehensive understanding of the molecular intricacies and target specificity of bee venom in combating cancer cells. This knowledge will serve as the foundation for developing and optimizing potent new therapeutics, harnessing a resource that is not only abundantly available but also economically viable for production in diverse communities worldwide.

Dell has joined forces with the University of Limerick (UL) in Ireland to propel cancer research into a new era using artificial intelligence (AI). Their collaboration will focus on enhancing cancer care for B-cell lymphoma patients, spanning the entire spectrum of diagnosis, treatment, and long-term outcomes.

Dell’s AI Platform Transforms Cancer Care

Dell has developed a cutting-edge AI platform, seamlessly integrated with the latest storage arrays and PowerEdge servers, to drive innovation in the field of cancer research. This platform has become an integral part of UL’s Digital Cancer Research Centre’s multicloud ecosystem and has the capability to create digital replicas of patients, known as digital twins.

Researchers from the Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials (KIMM) and the Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology (KRIBB) have achieved a groundbreaking advancement in cancer treatment through their innovative 3D bioprinting technology. This cutting-edge approach utilizes natural killer cells (NK cells) for highly effective immunotherapy against cancer.

In traditional immunotherapy methods, the intravenous injection of NK cells has faced challenges in effectively treating solid tumors due to their limited viability and targeting capabilities. However, the newly developed 3D bioprinting technique by Korean research institutes addresses these issues head-on. By encapsulating NK cells within 3D-printed hydrogels, the technology prevents cell loss and enables a large number of NK cells to specifically target tumor cells.

Cancer is a complex disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth and the ability to spread throughout the body. One unique feature of cancer cells is their adaptability and resistance to treatment. In a groundbreaking study published in the journal Oncogene, Professor Mohamed Bentires-Alj and his research team have made significant strides in the treatment of triple negative breast cancer, an aggressive form of carcinoma.

The researchers from the University of Basel and the University Hospital Basel explored the potential of differentiation therapy, a strategy previously successful in treating blood-borne cancers, but not yet applied to solid tumors. Differentiation involves transforming cancer cells into less harmful cells that cease their uncontrolled growth.

A new breakthrough technique could revolutionize the treatment of glioblastoma, a deadly brain cancer with a survival rate of only 6.8 percent within the first five years of diagnosis. The new technique involves the use of sound waves to permeate the blood-brain barrier, a line of defense that prevents toxins and pathogens from entering the brain, and allows chemotherapy drugs to reach the neurological tissues where the cancer can grow.

The technique was tested in a phase 1 in-human clinical trial with 17 patients who underwent surgery to remove their tumors and had an ultrasound device implanted. The device, a novel skull-implantable grid of nine ultrasound emitters made by French biotech company Carthera, repeatedly uses sound waves to permeate the barrier and reach the brain tumor. The chemotherapy drugs paclitaxel and carboplatin, which are typically unable to cross the blood-brain barrier, were then able to reach the brain.

Researchers have found that a single enzyme called PI5P4Kα can be targeted to kill prostate cancer. The discovery is the first of its kind and could help tackle treatment resistance in prostate cancer. Additionally, it could lead to better treatment options for other types of cancer, including those affecting the breast, skin, and pancreas.

A new study has identified a potential breakthrough in prostate cancer treatment. Researchers at the University of Virginia School of Medicine have discovered a way to kill resistant cancer cells by targeting a key enzyme. The enzyme, called DCTPP1, is crucial for the survival of cancer cells that have become resistant to chemotherapy and other treatments.

The team discovered that cancer cells with high levels of DCTPP1 were more resistant to chemotherapy and radiation. They then used a molecule called DT-010 to target and inhibit the enzyme. The molecule was effective at killing cancer cells, even those that were resistant to other treatments.

Scientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory apply CRISPR to the discovery of new cancer targets to develop medicine to fight the deadly disease.

Scientists are harnessing the power of CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) technology to fight cancer by modifying cells to target and destroy cancerous cells within the body. According to Dr. Michel Sadelain, Director of the Center for Cell Engineering at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, “CRISPR is the ultimate tool for manipulating life and health.”

The technique involves modifying the genes of a patient’s own T-cells, a type of white blood cell that plays a key role in the immune response, to express certain proteins that can recognize and attack cancer cells. The modified T-cells are then reintroduced into the patient’s bloodstream, where they can seek out and destroy cancerous cells.

While this approach has shown promise in early clinical trials, there are still many challenges to overcome. For instance, there is a risk of off-target effects where the modified cells may also attack healthy cells, and researchers are working to minimize this risk through careful design and testing.

Researchers at the University of Tokyo have used artificial DNA to target and kill cancer cells in a completely new way.

The method was effective in lab tests against human cervical cancer- and breast cancer-derived cells, and against malignant melanoma cells from mice.

The team created a pair of chemically synthesized, hairpin-shaped, cancer-killing DNA. When the DNA pairs were injected into cancer cells, they connected to microRNA (miRNA) molecules that are overproduced in certain cancers. Once connected to the miRNA, they unraveled and joined together, forming longer chains of DNA which triggered an immune response. This response not only killed the cancer cells but prevented further growth of cancerous tissue. This method is different from conventional anticancer drug treatments and is hoped to bring about a new era of drug development. 

The paper is published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society. This research still has many steps to go before a treatment can be made available, but the team is confident in the benefits of nucleic acids for new drug discovery.