From improving screening for younger adults to advancing immunotherapy and vaccine strategies, UCLA researchers are making strides to detect, treat and prevent colorectal cancer more effectively.

DNA polymerase epsilon catalytic subunit A (POLE) gene plays a crucial role in DNA repair and chromosomal replication. Mutations in the POLE gene have been linked to cancer, particularly colorectal carcinoma (CRC). However, the genomic landscape and pathological significance of POLE mutant CRC remain underreported. This study aimed to characterize the clinicopathologic features and genomic landscape of CRC harboring POLE mutations and to investigate the implications of co-occurring genetic alterations.

Daily aspirin use does not offer a quick or reliable way to prevent bowel cancer in the general population and carries immediate risks of serious bleeding, a new Cochrane review finds.

Just before National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month begins in March, a new Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine/Morning Consult poll found that nearly half of Americans aren’t aware that eating processed meat increases the risk of developing colorectal cancer.

A study led by researchers from the A*STAR Genome Institute of Singapore (A*STAR GIS), together with the National Cancer Centre Singapore (NCCS), Singapore General Hospital (SGH), and KU Leuven, Belgium, has uncovered why some colorectal cancer cells become harder to treat and more likely to spread after chemotherapy. Published in Nature Cell Death & Disease, the findings reveal a biological “survival shift” that helps cancer cells withstand treatment and move more aggressively, and point to new ways to identify high-risk patients and potentially improve future treatment strategies.