Scientists identify Achilles heel of lung cancer protein
Researchers have shown for the first time that a crucial interface in a protein that drives cancer growth could act as a target for more effective treatments.
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Researchers have shown for the first time that a crucial interface in a protein that drives cancer growth could act as a target for more effective treatments.
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Researchers at the University of Toronto's Donnelly Centre for Cellular and Biomolecular Research have found two enzymes that work against the chemotherapy drug gemcitabine, preventing it from effectively treating pancreatic ...
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The Organoid group at the Hubrecht Institute has identified a new link between FBXW7 mutations and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) signaling activity. The FBXW7 gene is commonly mutated in colorectal cancer and such ...
19 hours ago
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A new study has discovered that a type of bacteria commonly found in the body, which usually does not pose problems for healthy people, plays a significant role in causing stomach cancer, the fifth most common cancer in the ...
21 hours ago
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The MYCN oncoprotein (proteins related to the growth of cancer cells) plays a key role in starting, advancing and making it difficult to treat various human cancers. When MYCN is overactive, especially in high-risk neuroblastoma ...
Mar 15, 2024
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T cells are often called "assassins" or "killers" because they can orchestrate and carry out missions to hunt down bacteria, viruses, and cancer cells throughout the body. Mighty as they may be, recent research has shown ...
Mar 15, 2024
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Making a personalized T cell therapy for cancer patients currently takes at least six months; scientists at the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and the University Medical Center Mannheim have shown that the laborious ...
Mar 15, 2024
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Scientists have developed an improved technique for reading the genetic material associated with the body's immune response to cancer, making it possible to study tissue samples that have been stored in archives for decades.
Mar 15, 2024
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Researchers describe a newly observed role for the protein Cyclin Dependent Kinase 9 (CDK9) in regulating DNA repair during cellular division, where errors can become the origin of cancerous tumor growth. Through a process ...
Mar 14, 2024
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Medical image analysis using AI has developed rapidly in recent years. Now, one of the largest studies to date has been carried out using AI-assisted image analysis of lymphoma, cancer of the lymphatic system. Researchers ...
Mar 14, 2024
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Cancer (medical term: malignant neoplasm) is a class of diseases in which a group of cells display uncontrolled growth (division beyond the normal limits), invasion (intrusion on and destruction of adjacent tissues), and sometimes metastasis (spread to other locations in the body via lymph or blood). These three malignant properties of cancers differentiate them from benign tumors, which are self-limited, and do not invade or metastasize. Most cancers form a tumor but some, like leukemia, do not. The branch of medicine concerned with the study, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of cancer is oncology.
Cancer may affect people at all ages, even fetuses, but the risk for most varieties increases with age. Cancer causes about 13% of all human deaths. According to the American Cancer Society, 7.6 million people died from cancer in the world during 2007. Cancers can affect all animals.
Nearly all cancers are caused by abnormalities in the genetic material of the transformed cells. These abnormalities may be due to the effects of carcinogens, such as tobacco smoke, radiation, chemicals, or infectious agents. Other cancer-promoting genetic abnormalities may be randomly acquired through errors in DNA replication, or are inherited, and thus present in all cells from birth. The heritability of cancers are usually affected by complex interactions between carcinogens and the host's genome. New aspects of the genetics of cancer pathogenesis, such as DNA methylation, and microRNAs are increasingly recognized as important.
Genetic abnormalities found in cancer typically affect two general classes of genes. Cancer-promoting oncogenes are typically activated in cancer cells, giving those cells new properties, such as hyperactive growth and division, protection against programmed cell death, loss of respect for normal tissue boundaries, and the ability to become established in diverse tissue environments. Tumor suppressor genes are then inactivated in cancer cells, resulting in the loss of normal functions in those cells, such as accurate DNA replication, control over the cell cycle, orientation and adhesion within tissues, and interaction with protective cells of the immune system.
Diagnosis usually requires the histologic examination of a tissue biopsy specimen by a pathologist, although the initial indication of malignancy can be symptoms or radiographic imaging abnormalities. Most cancers can be treated and some cured, depending on the specific type, location, and stage. Once diagnosed, cancer is usually treated with a combination of surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. As research develops, treatments are becoming more specific for different varieties of cancer. There has been significant progress in the development of targeted therapy drugs that act specifically on detectable molecular abnormalities in certain tumors, and which minimize damage to normal cells. The prognosis of cancer patients is most influenced by the type of cancer, as well as the stage, or extent of the disease. In addition, histologic grading and the presence of specific molecular markers can also be useful in establishing prognosis, as well as in determining individual treatments.
This text uses material from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA