New Atlas

Medical Audio available

Lamprey molecules squirm into the brain to deliver cancer drugs

Michael Irving May 17, 2019

The lamprey is not something you’d normally want anywhere near your brain. But now, researchers have used molecules taken from the freaky fish’s immune system to deliver drugs inside the body – and even managed to sneak them into the brain.

Researchers have used molecules from the lamprey's immune system to help fight brain cancer

Medical Audio available

How scorpion venom is helping surgeons detect brain cancer

Rich Haridy May 9, 2019

A new imaging technique designed to help surgeons identify the location of malignant brain tumors during surgery is showing promising early clinical trial results. The technique combines a near-infrared camera with a special imaging agent synthesized from an amino acid found in scorpion venom.

A peptide in scorpion venom was found to selectively bind to brain tumor cells, so a ...

Health & Wellbeing Audio available

Massive study into link between cell phones and cancer is almost immediately irrelevant

Rich Haridy November 1, 2018

After over 10 years of research, the National Toxicology Program has released its report into the effects of radio frequency radiation on animals. The results suggest that high levels of exposure can cause some cancers, however the conclusions have been labeled as “weak” and unrelatable to humans.

The narrow conclusion of a 10-year study is that high levels of radio frequency radiation can ...

Medical

Nasal spray and ultrasound team up for direct-to-brain drug delivery

Michael Irving September 10, 2018

The blood-brain barrier is an effective shield against infection, but it’s not so helpful when you’re trying to get drugs in there. Nasal sprays could bypass the barrier, and now researchers have developed a way to use ultrasound pulses to drive the drugs to where in the brain they’re needed.

Drug nanoparticles could be delivered directly to the brain through a nasal spray, which is then ...

Medical

Mixed results for early human trial using poliovirus to treat deadly brain cancer

Rich Haridy June 26, 2018

Researchers have recently revealed the results from a Phase 1 trial investigating the efficacy of an experimental treatment using a genetically modified poliovirus to attack a lethal form of brain cancer. The results are mildly promising but don’t suggest this will be a magic bullet of a treatment.

The first wave of results present a mixed bag to a new treatment for brain cancer ...

Medical

Nanoparticles carry drug duo into the brain to fight cancer

Michael Irving May 25, 2018

Those diagnosed with glioblastoma don’t have many treatment options – and usually a median life expectancy of just over a year. Now, researchers at MIT have developed nanoparticles that could provide hope, crossing the blood-brain barrier and delivering two types of drugs to fight tumors.

An artist's rendition of MIT's new nanoparticles, which can carry two forms of drug to combat ...

Medical

New research into CAR-T cell therapy could extend its use to solid cancers

Alayna Hansen February 12, 2018

New research into CAR-T cell therapy has revealed crucial mechanisms that could help the immunotherapy technique, which is currently only effective against blood cancers, be adapted for the treatment of brain tumors and other forms of solid cancers.

Medical

The virus that can attack brain tumors and stimulate the immune system to do the same

Rich Haridy January 4, 2018

Remarkable new research from scientists in the UK has shown how a naturally occurring, and mostly harmless, virus is being recruited into attacking brain cancer and enhancing the tumor-targeting abilities of the body’s own immune system.

A new study is showing how a common virus can help the immune system find and ...

Medical

Zika enlisted for the fight against brain cancer

Rich Haridy September 5, 2017

For well over half a century, scientists have been working to harness the cell-destroying power of viruses in the battle against cancer. The latest addition to this arsenal comes from an unlikely source, the relatively new Zika virus, which could offer a new way to fight deadly brain cancers.

On the left are the brain cancer cells before being treated with the Zika virus and ...

Medical

Stem cells beat the clock for brain cancer

Michael Irving February 2, 2017

Glioblastoma is an aggressive form of brain cancer that kills most patients within two years of diagnosis. Tests on mice last year showed that stem cells can hunt down the tumors, and now the process has worked with human cells, and can be quick enough to beat the ticking time-bombs.

New research has shown that human skin cells can be transformed into stem cells, and used ...