Tag: Cancer

Mechanisms of action of key genetic abnormality in Ewing sarcoma: Epigenome editing reveals how a fusion protein found in cancer cells enhances the expression of target genes

A Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) research team has used epigenome editing tools to investigate how the genetic abnormality that drives Ewing sarcoma — the second most common bone cancer in children and young adults — unleashes tumor growth. In their paper in the journal Genes & Development the researchers show that blocking the fusion protein

Acidic pH—the weakness of cancer cells

A new computational model has allowed researchers to identify new therapeutic targets that can attack cancer cells by lowering their intracellular pH. The study, which is the result of collaboration between IRB Barcelona, the Moffitt Cancer Center, and the University of Maryland, has been published in Nature Communications. Cancer cells are known to acidify their

To Boost Colon Cancer Screening, Use the Mail

TUESDAY, July 31, 2018 — Colon cancer is treatable if caught early. And sending screening tests in the mail might boost timely detection, a new study suggests. University of North Carolina (UNC) researchers found that Medicaid patients were more likely to get screened if they received stool-testing kits by mail instead of just reminders. “There

Working toward personalized cancer treatment

“We don’t just want to find the genes involved in cancer,” says Prof. Yardena Samuels of the Weizmann Institute of Science’s Department of Molecular Cell Biology, “we want to understand what those genes do. We want to reveal the complete picture of a cancer genome.” That is something of a tall order, considering that cells

How microchips could help detect prostate cancer

Professor of Electronic Engineering Andrew Flewitt is working with researchers at the Cancer Research UK (CRUK) Cambridge Centre on a more accurate PSA blood test to detect prostate cancer. At present, the test has limitations for diagnosis and has to be sent off to central labs for the results, a process which can take up

Scientists sharpen the edges of cancer chemotherapy with CRISPR

Tackling unsolved problems is a cornerstone of scientific research, propelled by the power and promise of new technologies. Indeed, one of the shiniest tools in the biomedical toolkit these days is the genome editing system known as CRISPR/Cas9. Whitehead Institute Member David Sabatini and his colleagues pioneered the use of this tool as a foundation

Study shows biomarker panel boosts lung cancer risk assessment for smokers

A four-protein biomarker blood test improves lung cancer risk assessment over existing guidelines that rely solely upon smoking history, capturing risk for people who have ever smoked, not only for heavy smokers, an international research team reports in JAMA Oncology. “This simple blood test demonstrates the potential of biomarker-based risk assessment to improve eligibility criteria

A study points to new therapeutic targets for tumors associated with chronic inflammation: A new study demonstrates that myeloid cells use p38 protein signalling to support inflammation-associated colon cancer

Scientists headed by ICREA researcher Angel R. Nebreda at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) report a new mechanism that contributes to the development of inflammation-associated colon cancer and points to new therapeutic targets. The study has been published in the journal EMBO Molecular Medicine. More than a million people worldwide are diagnosed

Attending Surgeon Influences Genetic Testing in Breast Cancer

WEDNESDAY, July 11, 2018 — The attending surgeon is associated with variation in the receipt of genetic testing after breast cancer diagnosis, according to a study published online July 3 in JAMA Surgery. Steven J. Katz, M.D., M.P.H., from the University of Michigan Medical School in Ann Arbor, and colleagues examined the correlation of attending

Researchers map DNA damage links to onset of skin cancer, melanoma

A critical link in mapping recurrent mutations of melanoma—the most serious form of skin cancer in humans—has been discovered by researchers at Washington State University School of Molecular Biosciences, in collaboration with researchers at Georgia State University. In a paper published July 6 in Nature Communications, researchers established that DNA binding by a specific set