https://medicalxpress.com/gastroenterology-news/ en-us Latest medical news and research in Gastroenterology A new preclinical study from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center has identified a gut bacterium that, when combined with short-term fasting, helps prepare the small intestine to regenerate more effectively after radiation damage. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-fasting-primes-gut-microbiome-intestinal.html Fri, 10 Jul 2026 10:00:05 EDT news702889630 Researchers identified a six-gene signature in microscopic colorectal cancer (CRC) liver metastases that may help predict recurrence after treatment. The findings suggest these tiny, often undetectable tumor deposits could serve as a tissue-based marker of residual cancer cells, recurrence risk and chemotherapy resistance. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-hidden-metastases-reveal-clues-colorectal.html Thu, 09 Jul 2026 15:00:05 EDT news702822159 A study led by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis suggests that an intestinal disorder linked to malnutrition and stunted growth may be transmitted from one generation to the next via the small intestinal microbiome. Analyzing mouse models of the disorder using bacteria cultured from children who themselves suffer from stunting and its detrimental effects, the researchers identified specific bacteria responsible for the inflammatory chemical signals that are characteristic of the disease, which damages the lining of the intestine and impairs nutrient absorption. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-gut-bacteria-linked-malnutrition-younger.html Wed, 08 Jul 2026 19:00:01 EDT news702746022 Each year, thousands of patients in the United States wait for a liver transplant, while transplant teams must make rapid, difficult decisions about whether donor organs are suitable for use. Many of those livers, particularly from older or medically complex donors, require careful evaluation before transplantation, and current assessments often sample only a small region of the organ. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-portable-ps-oct-scanner-reveal.html Wed, 08 Jul 2026 18:00:07 EDT news702741466 A research team at McMaster University has developed a targeted approach to treating inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) using bacteriophages, viruses that infect specific bacteria, to disarm harmful microbes without disrupting the broader gut ecosystem. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-phages-curb-crohn-linked-gut.html Wed, 08 Jul 2026 14:00:15 EDT news702700664 Researchers at the University of Gothenburg have identified clear links between the composition of gut bacteria and frailty in older women. In cases of high frailty, with an increased risk of illness and death, gut bacterial diversity is lower and function is impaired. The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, is based on a population of 2,081 Swedish women ages 75–80. The study demonstrates that frailty is linked to lower diversity and poorer functional capacity of the gut microbiota. These results are largely confirmed by an independent Chinese cohort comprising 1,448 older men and women. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-diversity-poorer-function-gut-bacteria.html Wed, 08 Jul 2026 12:00:07 EDT news702724275 Widely recognized as the face of food poisoning, salmonella bacteria lurk in raw meat and poultry, on pets, and in unpasteurized dairy products. If untreated, extreme cases can lead to full-body infections, like typhoid fever. UIC researcher Kiwook Kim wondered why some salmonella infections remain in the intestine, causing uncomfortable but nonfatal symptoms like vomiting and diarrhea, while others evolve into life-threatening infections. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-immune-cells-gut-mesentery-salmonella.html Tue, 07 Jul 2026 16:40:01 EDT news702657931 A protein produced by gut immune cells orchestrates both immune protection against pathogens and immune tolerance of gut bacteria, according to a study led by Weill Cornell Medicine investigators. The discovery illuminates the complex biology of the gut immune system and could lead to better-targeted treatments for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-key-gut-protein-immune-tolerance.html Tue, 07 Jul 2026 13:00:05 EDT news702646991 The presence of certain bacteria in the gut microbiota, and fluctuations in a person's metabolism, can be seen in people who go on to develop type 2 diabetes years later. This has been shown in a large Swedish study led by researchers at Chalmers University of Technology. The study is published in the journal Cell Reports Medicine. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-gut-microbiota-diabetes-years.html Tue, 07 Jul 2026 08:00:05 EDT news702627655 Ongoing research provides evidence that readily available and sustainable oyster meat extract may have powerful anti-inflammatory effects on human intestinal cells. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-oyster-meat-sustainable-solution-intestinal.html Tue, 07 Jul 2026 03:00:01 EDT news702538077 Emerging discoveries in liquid biomarker research promise to transform the early detection, diagnosis and treatment monitoring of colorectal cancer (CRC), according to a new study, offering less invasive alternatives to traditional methods that often require surgical interventions or tissue biopsies. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-biomarker-colorectal-cancer.html Mon, 06 Jul 2026 08:40:02 EDT news702543874 Psychological stress is increasingly recognized as a risk factor for certain health conditions, including cardiovascular disease and diabetes, especially when paired with an impaired immune response. In a study in Cell Stem Cell, researchers describe a mechanism in mice that explains this association: Psychological stress speeds aging-like changes in the body's blood-forming stem cells in the bone marrow—called hematopoietic stem cells—by altering the intestinal microbiota. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-psychological-stress-gut-microbes-ages.html Thu, 02 Jul 2026 11:00:03 EDT news702142441 Researchers at VIB and KU Leuven, with international partners, have uncovered how fatty liver disease can fuel the most aggressive form of metastatic colorectal cancer. The findings, which appear in the journal Nature, not only explain why some patients face dramatically poorer outcomes but also highlight how metabolic conditions such as fatty liver disease may directly influence cancer progression, paving the way for more precise therapies tailored to a patient's metabolic health. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-fatty-liver-dangerous-colorectal-cancer.html Wed, 01 Jul 2026 16:40:07 EDT news702135721 A team led by researchers from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and the HI-STEM Stem Cell Institute has discovered a promising new approach to treating advanced colorectal cancer. The study, published in Nature, identifies a key marker of particularly aggressive and treatment-resistant colorectal cancer cells. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-trop2-relapse-colorectal-cancer-cells.html Wed, 01 Jul 2026 11:00:12 EDT news702049621 Around 3 million people worldwide struggle with chronic pancreatitis, a condition in which the pancreas becomes inflamed, scarred and painful. There is no cure for chronic pancreatitis, and it is difficult to alter the disease trajectory after onset. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-personalized-disease-dish-pancreatitis-patient.html Tue, 30 Jun 2026 14:40:06 EDT news702048901 Few areas of the body face more daily stress and potential damage than the stomach, which must manage everything we swallow. Along with this constant strain, the stomach also produces acid that can damage its own lining and increase the risk of ulcers. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-uncovering-gene-based-clues-disrupted.html Tue, 30 Jun 2026 11:00:06 EDT news701971442 Breast milk helps shape the gut microbiota for longer than previously thought. Researchers from DTU and Rigshospitalet have discovered that sugars in breast milk, which are nondigestible by the infant—so-called human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs)—influence which bacteria thrive in the gut during the transition to solid food, and that this influence persists later in life. The findings have been published in Nature Communications. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-breast-gut-bacteria.html Tue, 30 Jun 2026 10:40:06 EDT news702032041 Northwestern Medicine scientists have demonstrated that a highly sensitive blood test can detect traces of pancreatic cancer missed by standard testing, potentially helping physicians identify patients whose disease is more likely to return even when scans appear reassuring. The sensitive blood test focuses on KRAS, a genetic mutation that drives more than 90% of pancreatic cancers. The findings come as a new revolutionary drug targeting KRAS is showing substantial survival benefits and nearing FDA review. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-blood-hidden-pancreatic-cancer-treatment.html Tue, 30 Jun 2026 10:00:01 EDT news701966453 Salmonella, an infection that causes diarrhea, fever and abdominal pain, is the most common form of bacterial food poisoning in the U.S., sickening more than a million people each year. Although most healthy people recover without medical treatment, Salmonella infection can spread throughout the body in young children, the elderly, and immunocompromised individuals and become life-threatening. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-intestinal-cells-starve-salmonella-essential.html Mon, 29 Jun 2026 10:40:05 EDT news701947621 Each unit of cost invested in Helicobacter pylori screening can generate approximately a fivefold return in gastric cancer prevention benefits. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-pylori-screening-fivefold-gastric-cancer.html Fri, 26 Jun 2026 20:20:01 EDT news701691039