Biology of Cancer - Cancer Currents Blog
Cancer biology research news, with context from experts at NCI and elsewhere. Topics include cancer metastasis, the tumor microenvironment, and new targets for cancer therapies.
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Cancer Immunotherapies Don’t Work for Everyone: HLA Gene May Explain Why
A specific form of the HLA gene, HLA-A*03, may make immune checkpoint inhibitors less effective for some people with cancer, according to an NCI-led study. If additional studies confirm the finding, it could help guide the use of these commonly used drugs.
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Can mRNA Vaccines Help Treat Cancer?
The success of mRNA vaccines for COVID-19 could help accelerate research on using mRNA vaccine technology to treat cancer, including the development of personalized cancer vaccines.
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Tumors May Shed Protein to Create Barriers that Block Immune Cells
Cancer cells can shed a protein called DDR1 that helps collagen proteins create dense barriers around tumors. A study in mice showed these barriers can prevent immune cells from entering and killing tumors.
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Studies Delve Deep into the Protein Machinery of Cancer Cells
A research team has identified common interactions between cancer-related proteins in cancer cells. They also created a map of how these protein complexes function in those cells and identified a promising treatment target for head and neck cancer.
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Does Too Much Fructose Help Colorectal Cancers Grow?
Excess fructose can promote obesity and colorectal cancer, a new study shows. In mice, the study found that the sweetener, a component of table sugar and high-fructose corn syrup, increased how long normal and cancer cells in the intestines live.
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Extra or Missing Chromosomes May Help Cancer Cells Survive Treatment
Aneuploidy—when cells have too many or too few chromosomes—is common in cancer cells, but scientists didn’t know why. Two new studies suggest that aneuploidy helps the cells survive treatments like chemotherapy and targeted therapies.
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Gut Microbes May Influence How Well Radiation Therapy Works against Cancer
New research suggests that fungi in the gut may affect how tumors respond to cancer treatments. In mice, when bacteria were eliminated with antibiotics, fungi filled the void and impaired the immune response after radiation therapy, the study found.
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Can an Antibiotic Treat Cancers that Become Resistant to PARP Inhibitors?
In lab studies, the antibiotic novobiocin showed promise as a treatment for cancers that have become resistant to PARP inhibitors. The drug, which inhibits a protein called DNA polymerase theta, will be tested in NCI-supported clinical trials.
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Pattern of DNA Damage Links Colorectal Cancer and Diet High in Red Meat
Researchers have discovered a consistent pattern of DNA damage in colorectal tumors that may explain how a diet high in red and processed meat can help cause colorectal cancer.
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Avasopasem Shields Normal Cells from Radiation, Helps Kill Cancer Cells
A drug called avasopasem manganese, which has been found to protect normal tissues from radiation therapy, can also make cancer cells more vulnerable to radiation treatment, a new study in mice suggests.
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Discovery of Tumor Suppressor Suggests New Cancer Treatment Strategies
Researchers have shown that the loss of a protein called AMBRA1 can cause tumors to form in mice and is linked with worse outcomes in some human tumors. The new research may lead to strategies for re-sensitizing cancer cells to CDK4/6 inhibitor drugs.
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Researchers Create Modified Antibodies to Target RAS and p53 in Cancer
Researchers have developed synthetic antibodies, called diabodies, that block the activity of two of the most notorious cancer-related proteins, RAS and p53. In experiments in mice, the synthetic antibodies shrank tumors with these mutated proteins.
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PDX Mouse Models Are Reliable Stand-Ins for Human Tumors, Study Finds
A large study from an international group of researchers provides reassurance that cancer models, known as PDX mice, largely retain the genetics of the human tumors from which they were created. PDX mice are increasingly used in cancer research.
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Obesity May Help Tumors Survive and Grow, Mouse Study Suggests
Obesity changed the relationship between cancer cells and nearby immune cells in ways that helped tumors survive and grow, a study in mice showed. But altering tumor cell metabolism helped immune cells once again recognize and infiltrate tumors.
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Study Suggests a Link between Stress and Cancer Coming Back
Cancer cells that are leftover after treatment can go into a “dormant” state for years. A new study in mice suggests that stress hormones may trigger a chain reaction that wakes up dormant cancer cells, causing tumors to form again.
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Nanoparticle Trains Immune Cells to Attack Cancer
Researchers have developed a nanoparticle that trains immune cells to attack cancer. According to the NCI-funded study, the nanoparticle slowed the growth of melanoma in mice and was more effective when combined with an immune checkpoint inhibitor.
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Why Is Colorectal Cancer Rising Rapidly among Young Adults?
Diagnoses of colorectal cancer continue to increase in younger adults. In September 2020, more than 400 leading scientists and patient advocates participated in an NCI/NIEHS-sponsored symposium to identify research priorities that address important questions about this concerning trend.
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A More Treatable Kind of Metastatic Cancer?
People with oligometastatic cancer have only a few metastatic tumors. Researchers are studying whether treating these individual tumors directly with surgery or stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBTR or SABR) can help patients live longer or improve their quality of life.
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Study Reinforces Treatment Idea for Cancer with Microsatellite Instability
Cancer cells with a genetic feature called microsatellite instability-high (MSI-high) depend on the enzyme WRN to survive. A new NCI study explains why and reinforces the idea of targeting WRN as a treatment approach for MSI-high cancer.
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Melanoma Cells Are More Likely to Spread after a Stopover in Lymph Nodes
Melanoma cells that pass through the lymphatic system before entering the bloodstream are more resistant to cell death and spread more readily than cells that enter the bloodstream directly. The finding could lead to new treatment approaches.