Scientists at Trinity College Dublin have made an important breakthrough in understanding how cancer cells can evade the cell-killing effects of chemotherapy and enter a “zombie-like state," called premature senescence, that can attract the wound healing properties of the immune system. The scientists also found that senescent cells formed in response to chemotherapy are highly dependent on Inhibitor of Apoptosis Proteins (IAPs) for their continued survival. Accordingly, compounds which neutralised IAPs (called IAP antagonists) selectively eliminated senescent cells by reactivating the self-destruct programme within these cells.

The activity of six different genes can help determine patient survival of acute myeloid leukemia (AML), according to a study published today in Science Advances. The findings by researchers at the Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG) in Barcelona lay the foundations for new ways of predicting how patients will fare with a type of blood cancer that has widely variable outcomes from one patient to the next.

Learn how researchers at St. Jude, led by Hai Dao, PhD, discovered the mechanisms behind PARP1-mediated DNA repair. 

Prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA)-targeted radiopharmaceutical therapy is safe and effective for patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) in routine clinical practice, consistent with outcomes from the landmark VISION trial. An analysis of outcomes from a French early-access program, the largest real-world cohort of patients studied to date, confirms the benefit-risk profile of the therapy, while also shedding light on patient selection and use trends. This research was published in The Journal of Nuclear Medicine.

In a new study from researchers at the University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center, an online resource and phone-based coaching both helped increase rates of genetic testing, suggesting that innovative ways to deliver information combined with motivational messaging could help move the needle in getting more eligible patients tested.