EurekAlert! Cancer Research - News Releases

News Releases

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 14-Aug-2025 11:11 ET (14-Aug-2025 15:11 GMT/UTC)

Medicaid expansion improves timely lung cancer treatment and access to high-volume hospitals

The Society of Thoracic Surgeons
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A new study published in The Annals of Thoracic Surgery, the flagship journal from The Society of Thoracic Surgeons, suggests that Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act has significantly improved access to timely treatment and high-volume hospitals for patients with early-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). These findings underscore the critical role of healthcare policy in delivering quality oncologic care.

Journal: The Annals of Thoracic Surgery

While AI could be the game changer in predicting health outcomes it should not be the only method

University of Maryland School of Medicine
Peer-Reviewed Publication

With the advent of artificial intelligence (AI), predictive medicine is becoming an important part of healthcare, especially in cancer treatment. Predictive medicine uses algorithms and data to help doctors understand how a cancer might continue to grow or react to specific drugs—making it easier to target precision treatment for individual patients. Now, researchers at the Institute for Genome Sciences at the University of Maryland School of Medicine set a foundation in two commentaries out this week for going beyond AI to find the best treatments for patients, as well as ethically data sharing to promote reproducible science.

Journal: Nature Biotechnology

New study reveals how to make prescribed forest fires burn safer and cleaner

Stanford University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Scientists estimate that reducing harmful chemical emissions could cut cancer risks from smoke exposure by over 50%.

Journal: Atmospheric Pollution Research

Saliva test plus AI could flag chemotherapy risk, early study results suggest

Virginia Tech
Reports and Proceedings

Virginia Tech researchers developed a saliva-based AI screening method that could flag patients at risk for dangerous side effects from a widely used chemotherapy drug. The drug, 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), has been in use since the 1950s — making it one of the oldest chemotherapy agents still used today. It remains a cornerstone of cancer treatment, used in nearly a third of chemotherapy treatments for colorectal, breast, head and neck, pancreatic, and stomach cancers.

Journal: Journal of Clinical Oncology
Meeting: ASCO GI

Gut microbes release cancer-fighting bile acids that block hormone signals

Weill Cornell Medicine
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Bacteria naturally present in the human intestine (known as the gut microbiota) can transform cholesterol-derived bile acids into powerful metabolites that strengthen anti-cancer immunity by blocking androgen signaling, according to a preclinical study led by Weill Cornell Medicine investigators. The study was published on April 15 in Cell.

Journal: Cell

Armoring CAR T cells to prevent self-sabotage and better fight cancer

University of Pennsylvania
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Wei Guo of the University of Pennsylvania's School of Arts & Sciences and colleagues from the Perelman School of Medicine, School of Veterinary Medicine, and School of Engineering and Applied Science have teamed up to uncover how solid tumors’ complicated microenvironments can manipulate cancer-fighting CAR T cells through extracellular vesicles, causing the engineered CAR T cells to commit fratricide—essentially turning against each other instead of attacking the cancer.

Journal: Nature Cancer

Screening history, stage at diagnosis, and mortality in screen-detected breast cancer

JAMA Network
Peer-Reviewed Publication

About The Study: In this cohort study of older women with screen-detected estrogen receptor–positive or human epidermal growth factor receptor 2–negative breast cancer, prior screening mammography was associated with earlier stage at breast cancer diagnosis and lower breast cancer mortality. These findings support the potential for routine screening to improve breast cancer outcomes. As with all observational studies, this study is limited by the potential effects of other differences between the screening and nonscreening groups.

Journal: JAMA Network Open

Research Spotlight: Innovating kidney care in patients with cancer

Mass General Brigham
Peer-Reviewed Publication

This is the first study to document the creation of a dedicated inpatient onconephrology service. The researchers highlight some of the challenges and future directions as well.

Journal: Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology

MDI bio lab patents, publishes novel method to inhibit melanin production

MDI Biological Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Bar Harbor, Maine — A new study led by MDI Biological Laboratory identifies ML233 as a potent inhibitor of melanin production, offering promise for development of new treatments for pigment-related skin disorders and one melanoma subtype. The compound showed strong effects at low doses in zebrafish, mouse and and human cell models, highlighting potential for dermatological therapies.

Journal: Communications Biology

Poor agreement between diagnostic tests for breast cancer-related lymphedema

Wolters Kluwer Health
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Various tests – ranging from a tape measure to sophisticated imaging technology – show only low to moderate agreement in diagnosing breast cancer-related lymphedema (BRCL), reports a study in Rehabilitation Oncology, official journal of APTA Oncology, an academy of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA). The journal is published in the Lippincott portfolio by Wolters Kluwer.

Journal: Rehabilitation Oncology