While the incidence of colorectal cancer is decreasing among those over 50, it is rising at an alarming rate among younger individuals, sometimes as early as their thirties. A team from the University of Geneva (UNIGE) and the Geneva University Hospitals (HUG) has published the first national study on this phenomenon in Switzerland. Based on an analysis of nearly 100,000 cases over 40 years, the study reveals an annual increase of 0.5% in this population. Published in the European Journal of Cancer, the research also highlights the challenge of late diagnoses and calls for increased awareness.

A new study reveals that malignant transformation of intestinal stem cells (ISCs) and their supportive microenvironment (niche) drives colorectal cancer initiation, therapy resistance, and relapse. Targeting the ISC–cancer stem cell (CSC) ecosystem offers a breakthrough strategy to overcome treatment failure and develop next‑generation precision care for colorectal cancer patients.

In the study, the researchers identified two proteins that, when combined, could detect ovarian cancer, as well as a set of four proteins that could indicate colorectal and lung cancer. These protein markers performed comparably to, and in some cases better than, established blood- and stool-based cancer detection tests.

Men with severely reduced fertility are at greater risk of developing other health conditions later in life. A research team from Lund University in Sweden has now shown that these men are also more likely to develop colorectal cancer and thyroid cancer.