Ulrich Steidl, M.D., Ph.D., has finalized his Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center (MECCC) senior leadership team, just six months after stepping into the role of MECCC Director and Vice President of Cancer Medicine at Montefiore Einstein.

“Today marks a new chapter as we elevate elite colleagues who have significant research accomplishments and leadership experience to principal posts at MECCC,” said Dr. Steidl. “They are recognized “all-stars” in their fields, and together, working at one of the nation’s top cancer centers, we will move the needle in not just helping people survive advanced cancers but identifying the factors that drive certain cancers from occurring in the first place.”

Keck Medicine of USC has launched a clinical trial to evaluate whether a blood test can help detect breast cancer earlier than mammograms alone.

Umbilical cord blood is more than a source of stem cells for transplantation. A review in Science China Life Sciences examines how its diverse cells and bioactive components are being explored for cancer immunotherapy, inherited disorders and tissue repair. The authors connect these opportunities with advances in cell expansion, gene engineering and manufacturing, while identifying barriers to clinical translation. They emphasize that many emerging applications still require further evidence of safety, effectiveness and durable benefit.

A nationwide ChinaHEART cohort of 4,258,033 adults found that no single obesity measure provided consistently strong discrimination across all major chronic diseases. Relatively higher discrimination was observed for the Chinese visceral adiposity index (CVAI) in cardiovascular disease, the triglyceride-glucose index (TyG) in diabetes, and the a body shape index (ABSI) in COPD, while discrimination for cancer was generally limited. All measures showed limited discrimination for cancer, supporting disease- and population-specific risk assessment beyond BMI.

An international collaborative research study led by investigators from the LKS Faculty of Medicine of the University of Hong Kong (HKUMed) and the University of California San Diego, has found that exposure to Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori), a bacterium known to cause stomach ulcers and gastric cancer, may be associated with approximately 22% of colorectal cancer cases globally. The findings highlight the potential public health benefits of H. pylori screening and eradication programmes, which would help prevent gastric cancer and reduce the risk of colorectal cancer. The study was published in eGastroenterology.