https://medicalxpress.com/cancer-news/ en-us Latest medical news and research in Oncology Flinders University researchers were part of an international team that conducted a scoping review that identified 2,441 records and found that just 32 studies examined how cancer patients, survivors and caregivers feel about generative AI being used in their care. The study is published in the European Journal of Cancer. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-people-affected-cancer-stronger-voice.html Fri, 04 Sep 2026 17:20:01 EDT news707722001 Pancreatic cancer remains one of the most aggressive malignancies, with a particularly poor prognosis even when diagnosed at a localized stage. In a paper published in Nature Reviews Gastroenterology & Hepatology, researchers from GIGA and Liège University Hospital, together with colleagues from Gustave Roussy (Paris, France) and Fox Chase Cancer Center (Philadelphia, U.S.), propose a new therapeutic perspective: viewing radiotherapy not merely as a treatment that destroys cancer cells but as a tool capable of stimulating the immune system and enhancing the efficacy of immunotherapy. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-rethinking-radiotherapy-boost-immunotherapy-pancreatic.html Fri, 04 Sep 2026 13:40:01 EDT news707746081 Artificial intelligence may help radiologists identify subtle signs of breast cancers that are missed during routine mammograms, and some AI systems may even identify patterns associated with an increased risk of cancer before it becomes visible on a mammogram, but there are still many significant limitations, according to a review led by investigators at the UCLA Health Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-ai-breast-cancers-mammograms-clinical.html Fri, 04 Sep 2026 11:40:08 EDT news707740081 Today, treatment decisions for patients with mantle cell lymphoma are heavily based on age alone, although the disease can range from slow-growing (indolent) to very aggressive. In a new journal article, Ingrid Glimelius and co-authors suggest that it is time to let the disease's biology also guide treatment—and provide more effective interventions earlier for those at the highest risk of aggressive disease, while avoiding unnecessarily intensive treatment for patients with indolent disease. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-tumor-biology-mantle-cell-lymphoma.html Fri, 04 Sep 2026 10:40:04 EDT news707736481 The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Takeda Pharmaceuticals' Mimrylo (rusfertide) as a new treatment for adults with polycythemia vera who have not achieved adequate control with existing therapies. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-fda-class-drug-polycythemia-vera.html Fri, 04 Sep 2026 08:00:01 EDT news707721533 People with lung cancer are more likely to have microplastics in their lungs and to have larger quantities of microplastics in their lungs, according to research that will be presented at the European Respiratory Society (ERS) Congress in Barcelona, Spain. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-patients-lung-cancer-microplastic-lungs.html Thu, 03 Sep 2026 18:10:02 EDT news707573882 Scientists from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) have developed microscopic peptide droplets that deliver large amounts of gene-silencing molecules into cancer and immune cells, reducing the growth of hard-to-treat colorectal tumors by about 67% in mice. The patent-pending system uses small interfering RNA, or siRNA, to disrupt the production of two proteins that cancer cells exploit to evade attacks by the immune system. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-microdroplets-colorectal-tumor-growth-potentially.html Thu, 03 Sep 2026 17:00:03 EDT news707665676 A review by University of Manchester scientists says sophisticated lab-grown tumors could help fast-track the search for new cancer treatments while reducing reliance on animal testing. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-hydrogel-grown-tumors-cancer-drug.html Thu, 03 Sep 2026 16:40:01 EDT news707665021 Caregivers play an essential role in helping children maintain adequate nutrition during their cancer treatment. But treatment-related side effects, such as nausea and poor appetite, can make feeding a child particularly challenging. Nutrition priorities also shift throughout treatment and beyond. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-caregivers-children-cancer-engage-culinary.html Thu, 03 Sep 2026 14:40:03 EDT news707656922 Imagine you're getting out of the shower one morning and notice a mole on your thigh that you've never seen before. It's reddish-brown, bumpy and surprisingly large. Is it a benign mole, or is it melanoma? https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-ai-skin-cancer-tools-people.html Thu, 03 Sep 2026 14:20:06 EDT news707656802 Molecules called reactive oxygen species, which include so-called "free radicals," have long been viewed as damaging byproducts of our body's metabolism—a reason antioxidant supplements have been considered a potential way to reduce cancer risk. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-cancer-cells-antioxidants-immune-destroying.html Thu, 03 Sep 2026 14:00:10 EDT news707488561 In a breakthrough study, researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center discovered that psilocybin given before chemotherapy prevented the onset of nerve injury in preclinical models, even after repeated treatment cycles. The findings could help prevent pain, numbness and other common chemotherapy side effects. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-psilocybin-chemotherapy-nerve-injury-symptoms.html Thu, 03 Sep 2026 14:00:07 EDT news707486341 A new Northwestern Medicine study has uncovered a biological mechanism that may explain why a subset of tumors unexpectedly grows at an accelerated rate after being treated with certain immunotherapies, according to findings published in the journal Cancer Discovery. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-uncovers-immunotherapy-tumors-faster.html Thu, 03 Sep 2026 07:20:03 EDT news707635322 People with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) who have several close relatives with colorectal cancer are significantly more likely to develop the disease themselves. This is demonstrated by a new Swedish registry study from Karolinska Institutet, published in the journal Gastroenterology. The findings raise the question of whether future cancer screening guidelines should place greater emphasis on the number of cancer cases in a patient's family. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-family-cancer-burden-patients-inflammatory.html Thu, 03 Sep 2026 02:00:01 EDT news707563561 A Global Burden of Disease analysis estimated that the annual number of alcohol-attributable cancer deaths in the U.S. increased from 11,361 in 1990 to 23,126 in 2023. The study also revealed that alcohol-linked cancer deaths are not limited to older adults or liver cancer. Among adults ages 20–54, colorectal cancer was the leading alcohol-attributable cancer death in men, while breast cancer ranked first in women. The study also showed a growing burden from colorectal, esophageal, pancreatic and other cancers. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-alcohol-linked-cancer-toll-liver.html Wed, 02 Sep 2026 19:30:01 EDT news707562362 Residential context has a stronger association with survival for Black than White women with epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC), according to a study published online Aug. 10 in JAMA Network Open. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-residential-context-larger-impact-ovarian.html Wed, 02 Sep 2026 17:40:04 EDT news707586661 Daraxonrasib, an oral RAS inhibitor therapy, achieved durable responses in pretreated patients with RAS-mutant non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in a phase 1/2 trial led by The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-daraxonrasib-antitumor-ras-mutant-lung.html Wed, 02 Sep 2026 17:00:05 EDT news707570222 Investigators from the Mass General Brigham Cancer Institute have found that adults with newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia (AML) receiving a less-intensive combination of azacitidine and venetoclax had more than twice as much time before treatment failed, the leukemia returned or worsened, or they died, compared with patients receiving intensive chemotherapy. Published in the New England Journal of Medicine, the findings could change the initial treatment approach for many patients with AML. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-intensive-drug-combination-effective-acute.html Wed, 02 Sep 2026 17:00:01 EDT news707494082 Melbourne researchers have uncovered a critical signaling pathway that controls the timing of brain development, shedding new light on how neurodevelopmental disorders may develop. The research, led by Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI) and published in Nature Communications, has revealed the genetic processes that shape brain development and what can happen when they are disrupted. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-genetic-pathway-insight-early-brain.html Wed, 02 Sep 2026 16:20:01 EDT news707583421 Liver cancer is difficult to treat because tumors vary greatly from patient to patient. Researchers at the University of Basel have captured this diversity by creating a collection of mini-tumors, which they use to systematically search for new treatment options. They tested more than 1,600 compounds using these organoids and used the results to develop promising drug combinations. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-mini-tumors-reveal-drug-combinations.html Wed, 02 Sep 2026 16:00:01 EDT news707582281 Northwestern Medicine scientists have developed a novel high-resolution spatial genomics platform that may enhance future research into how genome organization and genetic alterations contribute to disease development, including cancer, as detailed in a recent study published in Nature Methods. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-spatial-technology-cancer-biology.html Wed, 02 Sep 2026 15:40:08 EDT news707581621 A QIMR Berghofer-led team has developed a powerful tool to explore and understand the mysterious workings of the vast region of the human genome once dismissed as "junk DNA," discovering thousands of molecules that could hold the key to new precision cancer treatments. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-powerful-tool-reveals-potential-goldmine.html Wed, 02 Sep 2026 14:40:01 EDT news707572001 A scientist at Cincinnati Children's who has hunted for decades for ways to shrink the painful and disfiguring nerve tumors caused by neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) has made a new breakthrough in the quest. Nancy Ratner, Ph.D., and a team of nine co-authors are reporting that a novel class of medications—known as KRAS inhibitors—shows at least as much potential as FDA-approved MEK inhibitors in shrinking NF1 tumors. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-class-kras-inhibitors-nf1-nerve.html Wed, 02 Sep 2026 14:00:05 EDT news707563381 A new biomaterial developed by researchers from The University of Western Australia is providing fresh insights into the way cancer cells escape from tumors and spread through the body. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-small-spaces-stiffness-cancer-cells.html Wed, 02 Sep 2026 13:40:03 EDT news707571481 Children with one of the deadliest forms of brain cancer may benefit from an additional course of radiation therapy after their disease returns, according to new research from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. The study, published in Practical Radiation Oncology, is the first to examine the experience of giving three courses of radiation treatment to patients with diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) that has recurred. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-largest-courses-children-deadly-brain.html Wed, 02 Sep 2026 12:00:11 EDT news707567102 With a five-year survival rate of barely 5%, glioblastoma remains one of the deadliest brain cancers. First-line treatment consists of surgery to remove as much tumor tissue as possible. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-pre-surgery-immunotherapy-treatment-deadly.html Wed, 02 Sep 2026 11:40:01 EDT news707567822 Men diagnosed with nonmetastatic prostate cancer can generally expect to live for many years after their diagnosis. However, cardiovascular disease and other cancers remain important threats to their long-term health. For many survivors, this raises an important question: What can I do to live a longer, healthier life? https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-healthier-fats-linked-longer-survival.html Wed, 02 Sep 2026 11:00:10 EDT news707476561 New research has found that more than 9 in 10 patients with bladder cancer were identified through a noninvasive urine test after urgent referral. The study, led by the University of Birmingham and Nonacus Ltd., involved 964 patients across seven NHS urology departments to examine the real-world significance of testing for bladder cancer using a commercially available urine test. GALEAS™ Bladder, which tests genomic information from a patient's urine for traces of bladder cancer, detected 71 of 77 cancers (92.2%) among the nearly 1,000 patients. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-urine-ten-bladder-cancers-clinical.html Wed, 02 Sep 2026 10:00:09 EDT news707557312 A new form of proton therapy—designed to deliver cancer-killing radiation therapy in less than a second, through fewer sessions, with potentially less risk of damaging side effects—is now being tested in a phase 1 clinical trial at the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania. Known as FLASH proton therapy, the feasibility study represents the first time that the "conformal," or precise 3D targeting, version of the technique has been tested in human patients in the United States. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-human-clinical-trial-precision-proton.html Wed, 02 Sep 2026 08:20:06 EDT news707554092 Patients with breast and lung cancer are at increased risk of cardiotoxicity, or heart-related damage caused by cancer treatments, because of the proximity of the heart, lungs and breasts. Cardiotoxicity increases the risk of heart attacks, heart failure and other cardiac conditions. Looking for evidence of cardiac disease in these patients requires reading through hundreds of patients' health records, which is often too time-consuming to be practical. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-large-language-based-cardiac-event.html Wed, 02 Sep 2026 07:00:01 EDT news707541962