Researchers at The University of Sydney have identified a significant increase in melanoma-related death risk for patients with thin primary tumors measuring between 0.8 and 1.0 millimeters compared to those with thinner lesions.
Longstanding population-based data show thin cutaneous melanomas, usually defined as 1.0 millimeter or less, represent up to 72% of all melanomas by thickness. Australia, with the world's highest incidence of melanoma, has maintained extensive cancer registries for decades, providing a unique context in which thin melanomas are widely recognized and routinely monitored.
Knowing how subtle increments in thickness correlate with survival outcomes could provide a clinical assessment rationale for long-term monitoring and management.
In the study, "Risk of Death Due to Melanoma and Other Causes in Patients With Thin Cutaneous Melanomas," published in JAMA Dermatology, researchers conducted an analysis of Australian population-based registries from 1982 to 2014.
Low-dose Plasma Treatment: A New Hope for Cancer Therapy? December 18, 2024
Introduction:
(Eurekalert) A recent study led by Prof. HAN Wei at the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, has shown that low-dose Cold Atmospheric Plasma (CAP) treatment could effectively slow down tumor growth.
The research, published in Advanced Science, suggests that CAP could be a promising new way to treat cancer, offering a potential alternative to traditional treatments.
CAP, a type of ionized gas, has already gained attention for its ability to selectively target tumor cells without harming surrounding healthy tissue. While it has shown great promise in killing cancer cells, one challenge has been how deeply CAP can penetrate into tumors, as the active ingredients quickly lose their effectiveness in deeper tissues.
In this study, researchers developed a new way to measure the effects of CAP on tumors. They proposed an evaluation methodology for the biological effect of CAP in vivo by detecting the levels of oxidative damage and cell death in continuous depth layers in tumor tissues, which would help to figure out the actual effective depth of CAP treatment.
“Even low doses of CAP were effective in slowing down tumor growth,” said Dr. NIE Lili, a member of the team.
"100% successful" cancer drug gets landmark FDA approval
By Bronwyn Thompson
December 21, 2024
Hugely promising cancer drug dostarlimab is one step closer to being widely available, after the Food and Drug Administration granted it Breakthrough Therapy Designation status that, if successful, will expedite its path to market.
Dorstarlimab (brand name Jemperli) had some remarkable trial results in June, and the results of that research can be found in The New England Journal of Medicine. Dorstarlimab, a programmed death receptor-1 (PD-1)-blocking antibody, completely eradicated rectal cancer tumors without the need for surgery, radiation treatment or chemotherapy.
An effective immunotherapy would be life-changing for rectal cancer patients, with current treatments often resulting in a suite of negative outcomes in survivors, including loss of fertility and incontinence.
Microscopic Discovery in Cancer Cells Could Have a Big Impact December 20, 2024
Introduction:
(Eurekalert) In 2022 alone, over 20 million people were diagnosed with cancer, and nearly 10 million died from the disease, according to the World Health Organization. While the reaches of cancer are massive, the answer to more effective treatments may be hidden within a microscopic cell.
Led by Texas A&M University graduate students Samere Zade of the biomedical engineering department and Ting-Ching Wang of the chemical engineering department, an article released by the Lele Lab has uncovered new details about the mechanism behind cancer progression.
Published in Nature Communications, the article explores the influence the mechanical stiffening of the tumor cell’s environment may have on the structure and function of the nucleus.
“Cancer has proven to be a difficult disease to treat. It is extremely complex and the molecular mechanisms that enable tumor progression are not understood,” said Dr. Tanmay Lele, joint faculty in the biomedical engineering and chemical engineering departments. “Our findings shed new light into how the stiffening of tumor tissue can promote tumor cell proliferation.”
In the article, researchers reveal that when a cell is faced with a stiff environment, the nuclear lamina — scaffolding that helps the nucleus keep its shape and structure — becomes unwrinkled and taut as the cell spreads on the stiff surface. This spreading causes yes-associated protein (YAP), the protein that regulates the multiplication of cells, to move to the nucleus.
Scientists Destroy 99% of Cancer Cells in Lab Using Vibrating Molecules by David Nield
Updated December 25, 2024
Introduction:
(Science Alert) Scientists have discovered a remarkable way to destroy cancer cells. A study published last year found stimulating aminocyanine molecules with near-infrared light caused them to vibrate in sync, enough to break apart the membranes of cancer cells.
Aminocyanine molecules are already used in bioimaging as synthetic dyes. Commonly used in low doses to detect cancer, they stay stable in water and are very good at attaching themselves to the outside of cells.
The research team from Rice University, Texas A&M University, and the University of Texas, said their approach is a marked improvement over another kind of cancer-killing molecular machine previously developed, called Feringa-type motors, which could also break the structures of problematic cells.
"It is a whole new generation of molecular machines that we call molecular jackhammers," said chemist James Tour from Rice University, when the results were published in December 2023.
"They are more than one million times faster in their mechanical motion than the former Feringa-type motors, and they can be activated with near-infrared light rather than visible light."
firestar464 wrote: ↑Thu Dec 26, 2024 9:21 pm
(It was just that Caltrek had forgotten his link, so I just posted it there. I'd otherwise've posted the title.)
Working with a line of colon cancer cells, Korean researchers figured out a way to throw a few genetic switches to cause the cells to revert back to a healthy state. The technique could have major implications in the way we approach cancer treatment.
Most current cancer research and treatment involves finding ways to kill the rogue cells in our body to bring the disease under control. And there have been impressive strides made in this realm of investigation.
In traditional treatments though, most of the time, side effects arise because the body winds up losing cellular material and often, healthy cells and tissue die along with the damaged cancer cells. The collateral damage has typically been deemed worth it though, because when a treatment works, the cancer is destroyed and the patient lives.
Now though, researchers at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) have developed a different approach to combating the cells that cause cancer.
Researchers describe a new potential role for oleanic acid as a modulator of the DNA damage response following camptothecin treatment. Administration of oleanic acid in combination with camptothecin for cancer chemotherapy may reduce the amount of drug needed and increase the effectiveness of treatment. The findings are part of a novel research program focused on identifying new molecules for cancer therapy derived from natural extracts.
The study, titled "Oleanolic Acid Modulates DNA Damage Response to Camptothecin Increasing Cancer Cell Death," was published last week in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences.
The research group is led by Prof. Antonio Giordano, M.D., Ph.D., Director of the Sbarro Institute for Cancer Research and Molecular Medicine at Temple University, Professor of Pathology at the University of Siena, and Founder of the Sbarro Health Research Organization (SHRO), along with Dr. Luigi Alfano from the Istituto Nazionale Tumori Fondazione Pascale, Naples, Italy.
While tobacco and alcohol are known to increase the risk of head and neck cancer, new research has found the amount of coffee and tea we drink can have a protective effect, reducing the risk of developing these sorts of cancers. Yes, even decaf.
Head and neck cancer (HNC) is a collective term used to describe cancers that form in the mouth, throat, voice box, sinuses and nasal cavity, and salivary glands. HNC is commonly associated with tobacco and alcohol use, but more recently, there’s been a rise in human papillomavirus (HPV)-related throat cancers.
Tobacco and alcohol are established HNC risk factors, but less is known about the impact of dietary factors, including coffee and tea. A new study led by researchers from the University of Utah’s (the U) Huntsman Cancer Institute has examined the link between coffee and tea consumption and the risk of developing HNC.
Cancer is a deadly disease taking the lives of thousands of people worldwide, and researchers are constantly looking for better alternatives for treatment. One of the major breakthroughs is combination therapy—a treatment modality that uses two or more drugs for the treatment of cancer more effectively.
We have synthesized the combined drug TTFA-Platin as a more targeted cancer therapy. Our work is published in the Journal of Medicinal Chemistry.
Combination therapy: How it works
Cancer cells grow and divide continuously and spread to different parts of the body. It would be very difficult for one single drug to stop a cancer completely as it might target only one specific aspect of the cancer. But using two or more drugs combined in a single platform, forming prodrugs that can target different aspects of cancer, could end up being a very effective treatment strategy.
A new University of Cincinnati Cancer Center study has identified a particular strand of microRNA as a promising new target for overcoming breast cancer treatment resistance and improving outcomes. The research was recently published in the journal Cancers.
The Cancer Center's Xiaoting Zhang, Ph.D., said antiestrogen therapy is used for about 75% of breast cancers, but relapse and treatment resistance occur in about half of these patients at some point.
Zhang and his colleagues previously identified a protein called MED1 that is produced in much higher levels in 40% to 60% of breast cancers. MED1 plays key roles in mediating treatment resistance with estrogen receptors (ERs) and the protein HER2, but researchers did not know how it was produced at such a high level to cause treatment resistance.
"With this research, we mainly tried to understand why MED1 is expressing so high in these treatment-resistant breast cancers," said Zhang, professor and John and Gladys Strauss Endowed Chair in the Department of Cancer Biology in UC's College of Medicine.
An observational, multicenter, real-world study conducted at 12 screening sites in Germany has reported a 17.6% higher cancer detection rate among women aged 50–69 who received AI-supported double-reading mammography screenings compared to those who received standard double-reading. Recall rates remained unchanged.
Mammography screening programs often rely on double reading to identify breast cancer at earlier stages. Radiologists face substantial workloads interpreting mammograms, most of which include cases with no signs of cancer. Screening centers struggle to keep up with providing efficient and accurate assessments, a problem only getting more urgent with a growing shortage of trained radiologists.
Many breast cancers elude early detection only to be diagnosed at later stages, reflecting ongoing issues with current screening methods. False positive results burden both participants and health care systems with needless worry and unnecessary follow-up (recall) appointments. Efforts to boost early detection sensitivity and lower unnecessary false positives are top priorities.
Steam-blast treatment for prostate cancer investigated in clinical trial
By Michael Irving
January 09, 2025
Prostate cancer is usually treated with surgery and radiation therapy, but these can have drastic side effects. A new clinical trial is exploring the safety and efficacy of killing the cancer cells with a blast of steam.
Prostate cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed in men, and the second most common cancer in the world, and while the outlook can be hopeful if caught early, treatment can impact a patient’s quality of life. The prostate is a walnut-sized gland located between the bladder and the rectum, surrounded by nerves and muscles that control sexual and urinary function. As such, side effects of surgery and radiation therapy for prostate cancer often include incontinence, impotence and bowel dysfunction.
A new system from Francis Medical could treat prostate cancer without those side effects. It’s called the Vanquish Water Vapor Ablation System, and as the name suggests it involves "vanquishing" the cancer with hot water vapor delivered directly to the gland.
Under general anesthesia, a catheter is inserted up the patient’s urethra until it reaches the prostate. An ultra-fine needle is then deployed from the catheter into the tumor, which delivers a 10-second burst of steam into the affected cells.
The idea is that the steam moves quickly into the prostate tissue, before condensing back into water. This heats the local area effectively, killing off the cancer cells without harming surrounding healthy cells. Heat has been explored as a cancer treatment for years, but this is one of the most direct sources we’ve seen.
Stanford Medicine's AI Model Accurately Predicts Cancer Prognoses, Treatment Efficacy
The model is the first of its kind to use multiple types of imaging and language-based data to assess a cancer patient's health.
By Adrianna Nine January 15, 2025 https://www.extremetech.com/science/sta ... -treatment
Stanford Medicine has developed an artificial intelligence model that can accurately predict cancer patients' prognoses and responses to treatment. The first of its kind to leverage multiple types of imaging and language-based data, the model has already shown promise with several forms of cancer, including lung cancer, gastroesophageal cancer, and melanoma.
Over the last few years, researchers have created a range of experimental AI models that examine imaging data for tiny signs of cancer that doctors and radiologists might easily miss. Early tests show that these models are highly effective. Sybil, a model developed by MIT and the Massachusetts General Cancer Center, can predict patients' one-year lung cancer development with an 86% to 94% accuracy rate, while Harvard Medical School's pancreatic cancer prediction model can map a patient's three-year prognosis with 88% accuracy. Another MIT model even spots signs of the riskiest forms of breast cancer to shield patients from overtreatment.
Two new studies led by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have identified a possible way to block the progression of several forms of blood cancer using a drug already in clinical trials against breast cancer.
The studies—both conducted in patient samples and animal models—found that inhibiting a protein called RSK1 reduces inflammation and stops the progression of blood cancers called myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs) as well as an aggressive form of acute myeloid leukemia (AML). With the RSK1 inhibitor already in clinical testing, the path to expanded use as a treatment for blood cancers could be accelerated.
One study appears Jan. 16 in Nature Communications. The second is available online in Blood Cancer Journal.
In humans, MPNs can be slow-growing blood cancers that simmer for years. Doctors can monitor the disease and treat symptoms, but there is no reliable way to cure it or slow progression. Patients with MPNs are at high risk of developing a secondary AML that is very aggressive with no effective treatment options.
Multi-target Approach Counters Tumor Growth in Several Cancers January 16, 2025
Introduction:
(Eurekalert) New Haven, Conn. — The tissue adjacent to a tumor behaves differently than areas farther away: The tumor’s cancerous cells influence their surroundings, blocking the body’s immune defenses and creating a sort of haven in which the tumor can grow. Treatments that target some of these pro-tumor actions are effective in a number of cancers, but only for some patients; in others, these treatments have little effect.
Yale researchers have developed a new approach that simultaneously targets several of these pro-tumor actions at once, which they have demonstrated can effectively reduce tumor growth across several types of cancers.
Their new findings, published Jan. 16 in Nature Biotechnology, point to a potential new treatment that may benefit more patients than current therapeutic options.
“Traditional therapies target one molecule in the tumor microenvironment, but the microenvironment is so complex, targeting one thing doesn’t always work,” said Sidi Chen, an associate professor of genetics and neurosurgery at Yale School of Medicine and senior author of the study. “For example, the most well-known of these immunotherapies only benefits 20 to 30% of patients.”
Additional extract:
For their approach, Chen and his colleagues used a gene editing molecule called Cas13, which targets and degrades RNA. (Its more widely discussed counterpart, known as Cas9, targets DNA.) One benefit of Cas13 is its ability to target multiple genes with one molecular package. So the researchers identified several genes that can suppress immune responses and developed a Cas13 system that targeted each of them.
