Tumor

Researchers in Canada have discovered a new vulnerability in an enzyme considered the "Achilles' heel" of solid tumor cells, and demonstrated how it can be targeted to drive the cancer cells to a "catastrophic death."

Radiotherapy is one of the best treatments we have against cancer, but there's room for improvement. Now, researchers in Japan have developed nanoparticles that can penetrate tumors and kill them from within, after being activated by external X-rays.

The earlier cancer is detected, the better. MIT scientists have developed a diagnostic system that can be performed as a urine test to detect the presence of cancer, and if a positive is returned, a follow-up test can locate where it is in the body.

Cancer becomes far more dangerous when it spreads through the body, known as metastasis. A newly identified protein stops cells getting into the bloodstream – and tumor cells can ignore it, which may reveal a new drug target for cancer treatment.

Researchers at Karolinska Institute in Sweden have made a breakthrough in the arms race that is cancer immunotherapy. The team has blocked a protein that silences an important tumor-suppressing protein, allowing the latter to get back to work.

Immunotherapy is a promising avenue for cancer treatment, but it has trouble against solid tumors without triggering major side effects. Now, researchers have developed a new form of the treatment that supercharges a different type of immune cell.

Researchers at the Chinese Academy of Sciences have developed an intriguing new way to fight cancer by combining two types of experimental therapies. Their secret ingredient is creating a feedback loop using modified blood platelets.

A new article is reporting promising results from a Phase 1 human trial testing a vaccine designed to help a patient's immune system better target brain tumors. The data suggests the vaccine is safe and stimulates a significant immune response.

Researchers at Yale University have shown how skin cancer could one day be treated with a simple injection. The team found that they could shrink tumors by injecting them with adhesive nanoparticles loaded with chemotherapy drugs.

A gene known as Myc is linked to cancer growth, but has long been considered “undruggable." Now, researchers at Vanderbilt University have found a way to bypass it and shut down a protein that it interacts with, shrinking tumors in a matter of days.

A new Harvard study highlights missing pieces of the puzzle in the relationship between cancer and obesity. The team finds that cancer cells can use the higher fat availability to starve immune cells of fuel and prevent them from targeting tumors.

Dormant tumor cells can sit quietly for years but exactly what reactivates these sleeping cancer cells is unknown. A new study is offering a novel hypothesis, suggesting stress hormones can trigger a chain of events that reawaken these dormant cells.