Researchers from Geneseeq and a network of Chinese academic hospitals have validated a blood test that can detect a broad range of cancers with high accuracy using cell-free DNA. A multi-cancer early detection (MCED) test identified cancer with 87.4% sensitivity and 97.8% specificity in an independent validation cohort, and it correctly predicted the tissue of origin around 83% of the time.
Early detection remains a critical challenge in cancer care. Current screening tools contribute to late diagnoses and poor outcomes, especially in cancers lacking established screening protocols.
Cell-free DNA (cfDNA) circulating in the bloodstream, shed by tumors, has emerged as a promising target for noninvasive detection. Sensitivity for early-stage and less common cancers has remained low, yet the non-invasive nature of the tests makes them a compelling area for improvement.
In the study, "Early detection of multiple cancer types using multidimensional cell-free DNA fragmentomics," published in Nature Medicine, researchers designed a whole-genome sequencing–based blood test to detect cancer signals and predict the tissue of origin using machine learning models trained on cfDNA fragmentation patterns.
Immunotherapy before surgery improves lung cancer survival in global clinical trial
by Trinity College Dublin
Results from a Phase III clinical trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine, show that patients with lung cancer who received an immunotherapy drug, nivolumab, along with standard chemotherapy before surgery had improved long term survival compared to those who received chemotherapy alone, at five years after completing treatment.
Prof. Patrick Forde of Trinity St. James's Cancer Institute (TSJCI), Trinity College Dublin School of Medicine presented the findings at the American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting in Chicago.
Self-propelled Protein-based Nanomotors for Enhanced Cancer Therapy by Inducing Ferroptosis June 4, 2025
Introduction:
(Eureklaert) A novel self-propelled ferroptosis nanoinducer developed by Southern Medical University was able to achieve deeper penetration into tumor tissues to show enhanced anti-cancer effects, while remaining considerable biocompatibility.
The work, reported in the International Journal of Extreme Manufacturing, lays the groundwork for developing biocompatible, multifunctional nanotherapeutics for cancer treatment.
Limited penetration depth into tumor tissues continues to hinder the development of nanotherapeutics for cancer treatment.
“Conventional nanoplatforms cannot achieve active penetration, leading to poor penetration depth and efficiency into tumor tissues,” said Yingfeng Tu, the corresponding author on the paper and a professor at the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Southern Medical University. “It might weaken the tumor inhibitory effect of the nanoplatform. Here we’re saying, why not design a nanotherapeutic that can actively penetrate deeper into tumor tissues via enhanced diffusion?”
Cancer is still a major killer threatening human health, with increasing mortality rates and a growing economic burden. Current clinical treatments such as surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy are often associated with significant systemic side effects.
We could be on the verge of a major cancer treatment breakthrough, with a new vaccine shown to completely obliterate pancreatic cancer cells in preclinical trials. This paves the way for it to move onto the human trial stage.
The pioneering work from Case Western Reserve University researchers targets pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), the most common cancer that plagues the organ. While pancreatic cancer may not be as prevalent as breast, prostate, lung and colorectal cancers, it's particularly insidious. It commonly remains undetected until it metastasizes, and then treatment is simply to buy more time. The five-year survival rate for this cancer is just 13.3%.
"Pancreatic cancer is super aggressive," said Zheng-Rong (ZR) Lu, a biomedical engineer at the Case School of Engineering. "So it came as a surprise that our approach works so well."
World-first "undruggable" cancer treatment enters human trial
By Bronwyn Thompson
June 13, 2025
A promising new treatment to combat "undruggable" cancers has been green-lit for a human trial in 2025. It's hoped the novel drug will be able to stunt the growth and enable the effective treatment of cancers driven by the MYC oncogene and its MYC protein.
MYC codes for the MYC protein – one that fuels tumorigenisis (tumor growth) and drives both the development and spread of cancer and renders many tumor-supressing treatments ineffective. Its overexpression can be found in around a third of prostate, pancreatic, liver, gastric and breast cancers, and nearly two thirds of all ovarian cancers.
“Approximately 70% of all cancers are fueled by abnormal MYC activity,” said hematologist and ANU professor Mark Polizzotto. “MYC is one of the most notorious cancer-causing genes, and tumors driven by MYC overexpression are often among the most aggressive and difficult to treat."
A research team from the School of Clinical Medicine of the LKS Faculty of Medicine of the University of Hong Kong (HKUMed) has pioneered the use of a 'dual immunotherapy' combination—nivolumab and ipilimumab (NIVO+IPI)—in the treatment of liver cancer patients since 2016.
This innovative treatment has proved to significantly improve survival rates and tumor control compared to current first-line treatments, lenvatinib and sorafenib. Recently it was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and China's National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) for global use, offering new hope to liver cancer patients worldwide.
The landmark study is published in The Lancet.
Liver cancer is the sixth most common cancer worldwide and the third leading cause of cancer mortality. In Hong Kong, it ranks fifth in annual cancer incidence and third in mortality. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the most common type of primary liver cancer, accounts for 90% of all liver cancer cases and is often diagnosed at an advanced stage. Treatment options are limited due to significant drug resistance, tumor diversity, and the absence of easily targetable mutations.
Using a newly discovered byproduct of dying cancer cells, University of Wisconsin–Madison researchers are developing personalized vaccines that could help keep aggressive tumors from recurring.
Led by Quanyin Hu, a professor in the UW–Madison School of Pharmacy, the research team has already found success slowing the recurrence of tumors in mouse models of triple negative breast cancer and melanoma. Currently, the long-term prognosis for human patients with these cancers is relatively poor. That's in part because the diseases have a tendency to recur after the initial treatments to remove the tumors.
The personalized vaccine approach is an extension of the team's recent discovery of pyroptotic vesicles, which are tiny sacs filled with the remnants of cancer cells when they undergo programmed cell death.
Capstan Therapeutics scientists demonstrate that lipid nanoparticles can engineer CAR T cells within the body without laboratory cell manufacturing and ex vivo expansion. The method using targeted lipid nanoparticles (tLNPs) is designed to deliver messenger RNA specifically to CD8+ T cells.
CAR T therapy has revolutionized the treatment of B-cell cancers, with lasting remissions in lupus, myositis, and leukemia and other B-cell–driven autoimmune disorders. The method requires the use of a patient's own T cells, reengineering those T cells in a lab, growing the population of the modified cells and placing them back in the patient.
More than 20 million U.S. patients living with autoimmune conditions remain without access to the treatment as it depends on costly personalized lab processes, available at only a few specialized centers.
A University of Alberta research team has identified a DNA structure that activates the immune system in cancer cells that are usually resistant to immunotherapy, offering hope of new, more effective treatments for colorectal and other cancers.
Principal investigator Kristi Baker, associate professor in the departments of oncology and medical microbiology and immunology, explains that 80% of colorectal cancers are resistant to currently available immunotherapies.
That's because they fail to activate a protein known as STING (stimulator of interferon genes) that is key to antitumor immune responses within cancer cells. In research recently published in Cell Reports, Baker's team identifies and sequences a DNA molecule shown to activate STING-resistant colorectal cancer cells.
City of Hope Leads AI-powered Health Care Innovations and Launches Generative AI Tool to Save Lives and Enable Nationwide Best-in-class Cancer Care June 24, 2025
Introduction:
(City of Hope via Eurekalert) LOS ANGELES — City of Hope®, one of the largest and most advanced cancer research and treatment organizations in the United States with its National Medical Center named a Top 5 “Best Hospital” in the nation for cancer care by U.S. News & World Report, is using generative artificial intelligence to create operational efficiency, enable AI-driven patient personalization, improve access to clinical trials and empower breakthrough research.
“With the rise of AI, health care systems like City of Hope are seizing the opportunity to transform physician workloads and fuel more focused, personalized patient care,” said Simon Nazarian, City of Hope chief digital and technology officer and system executive vice president.
• City of Hope has engineered, rigorously validated and fine-tuned a generative AI platform, leveraging the national cancer center’s extensive oncology data and expertise.
• The app, HopeLLM, removes the administrative burden of new patient onboarding, matches patients to clinical trials, enables generative AI responses that are personalized to individual patient records and extracts real-world data for research.
• HopeLLM enhances provider and patient experiences, accelerates breakthrough research and widens access to world-class cancer care, ultimately saving lives.
Releasing a Molecular ‘Brake’ May Help Immune Cells Fight Cancer June 27, 2025
Introduction:
(Eurekalert) GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (June 27, 2025) — Van Andel Institute scientists and collaborators have discovered a potential treatment target that may re-energize dysfunctional or “exhausted” immune cells in their fight against cancer.
The target is an immune checkpoint called PTGIR, which regulates the number and cancer-fighting powers of T cells, the soldiers of the immune system. Too much PTGIR puts a brake on T cells and reduces their ability to release cancer-killing molecules.
The findings, published in the journal Nature Immunology, could help improve cancer immunotherapies by paving the way for new immune checkpoint inhibitors or engineered T cell therapies that block PTGIR signaling and re-invigorate T cells.
“Immunotherapies are game changers for cancer treatment, but they don’t work for everyone or for all cancers,” said Michael Dahabieh, Ph.D., the study’s first author and a postdoctoral fellow in the lab of Russell Jones, Ph.D., at VAI. “Blocking PTGIR offers another opportunity to develop more targeted treatments that help the immune system fight disease.”
Immune checkpoints are molecules that pepper the outside of T cells and some cancer cells. In immune cells, checkpoints help the immune system do its job without accidentally attacking healthy cells. In cancer, checkpoints allow malignant cells to evade immune attacks. Medications that block checkpoints, called immune checkpoint inhibitors, have become powerful tools for treating cancer.
A collaboration of leading Chinese research institutions has developed an artificial intelligence-based method called GRAPE, demonstrating high accuracy in detecting gastric cancer from routine noncontrast CT scans.
Gastric cancer ranks among the most lethal malignancies worldwide, particularly in Asian populations. In China, Japan, and Korea, nearly three-quarters of new diagnoses and deaths cluster each year, reflecting limited early detection and treatment barriers. Endoscopy remains the benchmark for diagnosis, allowing clinicians to visualize the gastric mucosa and collect biopsies for confirmation.
In radiation therapy, precision can save lives. Oncologists must carefully map the size and location of a tumor before delivering high-dose radiation to destroy cancer cells while sparing healthy tissue. But this process, called tumor segmentation, is still done manually, takes time, varies between doctors—and can lead to critical tumor areas being overlooked.
Now, a team of Northwestern Medicine scientists has developed an AI tool called iSeg that not only matches doctors in accurately outlining lung tumors on CT scans but can also identify areas that some doctors may miss, reports a large new study.
75% of stomach cancer cases could be prevented with a simple treatment
By Paul McClure
July 07, 2025
Globally, stomach cancer is on the rise in young people, but new research shows that three-quarters of future cases could be prevented by screening for and treating a common bacterial infection: Helicobacter pylori.
Chronic infection with the bacteria Helicobacter pylori is the strongest known risk factor for gastric, or stomach, cancer. Importantly, it’s a preventable risk factor, treatable using a combination of antibiotics and proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), which reduce the amount of acid produced in the stomach.
Liquid biopsies are tests that detect signs of cancer through a simple blood draw. Unlike traditional biopsies, which require removing a piece of tissue, a liquid biopsy typically looks for mutations or modification changes in fragments of DNA from cancer cells circulating in the blood.
While liquid biopsies are a promising, non-invasive way to detect and monitor cancer as it progresses, they aren't as sensitive or accurate for the early stages of disease.
Researchers at the University of Chicago have now developed a more sensitive liquid biopsy test that uses RNA instead of DNA for detecting cancer.
Breast cancer screening tech has come a long way in recent years, with improvements in accuracy and convenience in new methods. Now, researchers at the University of Buffalo are hoping to make it even easier with a detection technique that only requires patients to press up against a window for a minute to get accurate results in 3D.
The team's detection system is dubbed OneTouch-PAT, referring to the automated dual photoacoustic and ultrasound imaging techniques used along with AI to deliver detailed breast tissue scans. The researchers' paper on this method appeared in the IEEE Transactions on Medical Imaging journal last month.
Reducing Multiple Tap Water Contaminants May Prevent Over 50,000 Cancer Cases July 8, 2025
Introduction:
(Eurekalert) WASHINGTON – Drinking water treatment that pursues a multi-contaminant approach, tackling several pollutants at once, could prevent more than 50,000 lifetime cancer cases in the U.S., finds a new peer-reviewed study by the Environmental Working Group.
The finding challenges the merits of regulating one tap water contaminant at a time, the long-standing practice of states and the federal government.
In the paper, published in the journal Environmental Research, EWG scientists analyzed more than a decade of data from over 17,000 community water systems. They found that two cancer-causing chemicals – arsenic and hexavalent chromium, or chromium-6 – often appear together in systems and can be treated using the same technologies.
If water systems with chromium-6 contamination also reduce arsenic levels to a range from 27% to 42%, it could avoid up to quadruple the number of cancer cases compared to just lowering chromium-6 levels alone, the study finds.
Treatment of drinking water for one contaminant, such as nitrate, has advantages for public health. But tackling multiple contaminants at once increases the health benefits. And those benefits can expand along with the number of pollutants treated at the same time.
As the article later points out, chromium-6 was “made infamous by the film ‘Erin Brockovich.’”
Anti-nausea drug lowers risk of death from aggressive breast cancer by 39%
By Paul McClure
July 16, 2025
A common anti-nausea drug used during chemotherapy may do more than ease discomfort, it could help women with aggressive breast cancers live longer, cutting the risk of death by up to 39% in some cases, according to a new study.
Nausea and vomiting are very common side effects of chemotherapy that can significantly affect a person’s quality of life. Thankfully, there are effective medications that can be administered alongside chemo to reduce the risk of this unpleasant side effect.
A new study by Australia’s Monash University and the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (NIPH) has found that using one such medication, aprepitant, during chemotherapy treatment for breast cancer was linked to a decreased risk of cancer spread and a lower risk of future cancer-related death.
“Very little is known about how and why aprepitant use could impact long-term survival outcomes in women with breast cancer, which is why we wanted to examine whether its use at the time of chemotherapy treatment may be linked with survival outcomes in a large population-based cohort of women with early-stage breast cancer,” said Dr Aeson Chang, from the Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences (MIPS).
The Evolution of Cancer Cells Decoded July 9, 2025
Introduction:
(Eurekalert) Cancer does not develop overnight. It can take decades for cancer-promoting changes in the genome to eventually lead to the formation of a malignant tumor. Researchers at the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) have now developed a method that allows for the first time to reconstruct the temporal development—the evolution—of cancerous cells from a single tissue sample. This special type of evolutionary research is still in its infancy. The researchers' vision is to use the new method to detect cancer at an early stage, with the ultimate goal of possibly even intercepting the process.
All of living nature is subject to evolution. Living organisms are exposed to selection pressure, which means that those that are best able to assert themselves survive. This natural selection process also takes place within the human body. Cells that are fitter, i.e., more resistant or more active in division, will spread. Others will be displaced. This so-called somatic evolution can have positive effects on the organism. However, cancer cells are particularly assertive, multiplying unchecked and displacing healthy tissue in the process.
Detecting aggressively growing clones at an early stage
DKFZ researcher Thomas Höfer and his team have set themselves the goal of understanding the evolution of cancer cells. "Our vision is a new type of early cancer detection. Decades can pass after the initial event – a mutation in the genome – before a visible tumor develops. This means that a lot of time passes during which it might be possible to intervene and stop the development of manifest cancer." This is still a long way off, but the DKFZ researchers have taken a first step in this direction with SCIFER, the method they have developed.
They have succeeded in reconstructing the evolution of cell clones, i.e., cell clusters derived from a single cell, in the human organism. SCIFER can detect aggressively growing clones at an early stage.
