EurekAlert! In the Spotlight - Infectious Diseases

Welcome to In the Spotlight, where each month we shine a light on something exciting, timely, or simply fascinating from the world of science.

This month, we’re focusing on infectious diseases, a topic that affects lives and communities around the world. Here, you’ll find the latest research news, insights, and discoveries shaping how infectious diseases are being studied, prevented, and treated globally.

Latest News Releases

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 20-Jun-2026 09:16 ET (20-Jun-2026 13:16 GMT/UTC)

30-Jan-2026

New AI tool helps doctors treat cancer patients after heart attack

University of Leicester
Peer-Reviewed Publication

University researchers have pioneered a new tool to determine the risk of secondary heart attacks in cancer patients using Artificial Intelligence.

Journal: The Lancet

28-Jan-2026

Study identifies PARG as a new target to enhance chemotherapy in colorectal cancer

Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A study led by researchers from the Resistance, Chemotherapy and Predictive Biomarkers group at the IGTP, published in Clinical and Translational Medicine, provides new evidence on how to improve the efficacy of one of the most widely used chemotherapy combinations in clinical practice for the treatment of colorectal cancer: 5-fluorouracil and irinotecan (FUIRI).

Journal: Clinical and Translational Medicine

26-Jan-2026

How does lifetime alcohol consumption affect colorectal cancer risk?

Wiley
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Studies have demonstrated a link between alcohol consumption and an elevated risk of colorectal cancer. New research published by Wiley online in CANCER now reveals that higher lifetime alcohol consumption is also associated with a higher risk, especially for rectal cancer, and that quitting drinking can lower a person’s risk.

Journal: Cancer

22-Jan-2026

Discovery illuminates how inflammatory bowel disease promotes colorectal cancer

Weill Cornell Medicine
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A chain of immune reactions in the gut—driven by a key signaling protein and a surge of white blood cells from the bone marrow—may help explain why people with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have a higher risk of colorectal cancer, according to a preclinical study by Weill Cornell Medicine investigators. The findings point to new possibilities for diagnosis, monitoring and treatment.