JMIR Publications released four feature News and Perspectives articles on innovations and industry developments in clinical AI.

The Education University of Hong Kong (EdUHK), in collaboration with the University of Technology Sydney, Wuhan University, and Huazhong University of Science and Technology, has achieved a major breakthrough at the 43rd International Conference on Machine Learning (ICML) 2026. EdUHK's Chair Professor of the Department of Mathematics and Information Technology Professor Xu Guandong and his research team, including Assistant Professor at Centre for Learning, Teaching and Technology (LTTC) Dr Yu Yang and Research Assistant Mr Nitin Bisht, secured three full paper acceptances and publications, with one selected for an oral spotlight presentation—an honour awarded to only 168 papers out of 23,918 submissions, underscoring the exceptional quality of the team’s research.  

Researchers at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering believe they have found a new approach on CAR-T cells that offers hope of success against solid tumors. Their solution is called SHIFTERS. Instead of searching for a naturally occurring marker that may not even exist, the researchers developed a way to temporarily create one. Using focused ultrasound, physicians prompt tumor cells to briefly display CD19, a marker CAR-T cells already recognize. The work is described in the study,“Ultrasound Priming Gated by Solid Tumor Hallmarks to Guide CAR-T Therapy” in Science Advances. The idea behind SHIFTERS is surprisingly straightforward. Most solid tumors have characteristics that healthy tissue does not. One of those characteristics is low oxygen. As tumors grow rapidly, they often outgrow their blood supply, leaving pockets of cancer cells starved for oxygen.The USC researchers designed SHIFTERS to recognize that condition. But low oxygen alone isn’t precise enough to activate the system. Doctors must also apply focused ultrasound, a noninvasive technology that can precisely target tissue deep inside the body without surgery. The researchers first tested SHIFTERS in cancer cells grown in the laboratory. Next came three-dimensional tumor models that more closely resemble real tumors. Finally, they tested the technology in animal models carrying human brain and liver tumors. Across every stage, the results pointed in the same direction. Once ultrasound activated the temporary marker, CAR-T cells mounted a much stronger attack than they normally achieve against solid tumors. Tumors treated with ultrasound shrank dramatically, while untreated tumors continued to grow.