Scientists may have found a completely new way to treat depression by targeting inflammation instead of brain chemistry. A small clinical trial led by researchers at the University of Bristol suggests that targeting the immune system could help people with depression who do not improve with standard antidepressant medications. The findings, published May 20 in [...]

UCLA researchers gave T cells a protected supply of sugar, allowing them to attack solid tumors more effectively. UCLA researchers have developed a way to give immune cells a fuel supply that tumors cannot take away, sharply improving how well those cells survived and attacked solid tumors in preclinical experiments. The method, reported in the [...]

A new study reveals a possible way to make CAR T-cell therapy more durable and effective by targeting a single gene-regulating protein. CAR T-cell therapy is widely seen as a breakthrough in personalized cancer care. The treatment works by modifying a patient’s own immune cells so they can identify and attack cancer cells. Although the [...]

A new study suggests that Resmetirom may do more than treat fatty liver disease — it could also help stop liver cancer from developing. Resmetirom, a drug approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat metabolic dysfunction associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD), may offer benefits beyond reducing liver fat and fibrosis, according [...]

A common blood pressure drug may help a major class of cancer therapies work far better than expected. A widely prescribed blood pressure drug may have an unexpected second life as a cancer therapy booster. Researchers at Dartmouth Cancer Center (DCC) have discovered that telmisartan, an FDA-approved medication commonly used to treat hypertension, can significantly [...]

A study of a few patients, to be presented this week, showed promise for a type of therapy that has already cured some blood cancers.

A new approach to treating certain bowel cancers is showing long-lasting effects. Patients with a particular form of bowel cancer have remained cancer-free for nearly three years after receiving a short course of immunotherapy before surgery, rather than chemotherapy afterward. These findings come from the NEOPRISM-CRC clinical trial led by researchers at UCL and UCLH. [...]

A new strategy to strengthen the body’s natural immune defenses against cancer is showing early promise, particularly for patients with limited treatment options. Scientists have developed a new way to strengthen the cancer-fighting ability of natural killer (NK) cells, which serve as an early defense in the immune system. These cells can identify and destroy [...]

A long-term clinical study suggests that intervening before rheumatoid arthritis fully develops may significantly alter its trajectory. Treating people before rheumatoid arthritis (RA) fully develops may buy them something medicine rarely can: time. A new long-term study suggests that in people at high risk, early treatment with abatacept can push back the start of the [...]

A bacterium from frog gut microbiota eliminated tumors in mice by selectively colonizing tumors and triggering both direct cell killing and immune-driven anticancer responses. Researchers led by Prof. Eijiro Miyako at the Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (JAIST) have identified a bacterium with striking anticancer potential. The microorganism, Ewingella americana, was isolated…

Researchers have uncovered a previously hidden “internal brake” on immune cells that limits their ability to fight cancer, independent of tumor influence. Scientists developing next-generation cancer immunotherapies have uncovered a hidden weakness inside the immune system itself. A molecule known as SLAMF6, found on T cells, acts as a built-in shutoff switch that limits their [...]

A tiny implant may give cancer-fighting immune cells the boost they need to keep working longer. Immunotherapy has changed cancer care by turning the immune system into a weapon against disease. But there is a major weakness in that strategy: many lab-engineered immune cells lose momentum soon after they enter the body. That problem is [...]

A newly discovered cancer trick that weakens immunotherapy may be stopped by everyday statins. Cancer immunotherapy has reshaped modern cancer care by activating the body’s own immune defenses to fight tumors. Drugs known as immune checkpoint inhibitors, which target the PD-1/PD-L1 pathway, have produced long-lasting responses in some patients and created hope for sustained cancer [...]

A modified herpes virus boosted immune T cell infiltration in glioblastoma tumors and was associated with improved survival. Researchers from Mass General Brigham and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute report that a single dose of an oncolytic virus can help the immune system gain access to aggressive brain tumors. Oncolytic viruses are genetically engineered to infect and [...]

Scientists have found a way to turn cancer’s own immune bodyguards into weapons against it. Researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have developed an experimental immunotherapy that tackles metastatic cancer in an unexpected way. Rather than attacking cancer cells themselves, the treatment focuses on the cells that surround and shield them. [...]

Using a lower dose of melanoma immunotherapy may extend survival while reducing dangerous side effects. New research suggests that reducing the dose of a commonly used immunotherapy for malignant melanoma may actually improve treatment results while lowering the risk of side effects. Scientists at Karolinska Institutet reported the findings in the Journal of the National [...]

Scientists have identified a hidden barrier that prevents immunotherapy from working against a rare liver cancer. Immunotherapy, which activates the body’s own immune system to kill cancer cells, has transformed treatment for some cancers, but it has largely fallen short against a rare, aggressive liver tumor called fibrolamellar carcinoma. A Cornell University team now reports [...]

Scientists have mapped how genetics and life experiences leave lasting epigenetic marks on immune cells. The discovery helps explain why people respond so differently to the same infections and could lead to more personalized treatments. The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted just how differently people can respond to the same infection. Some individuals experience mild symptoms, while [...]

In the front lines of combat between scientists and bacteria, there's a notorious group of bugs that belong to a nefarious organization known as ESKAPE. These bacteria are particularly good at evading the effects of antibiotics, making them a major cause of hard-to-treat infections, often transmitted during hospital stays. The acronym that classifies them consists of the first letters of the six…

Researchers at Texas A&M are pairing a widely used ingredient with advanced medical technology to develop new treatments for chronic conditions. Could something as simple as coffee one day play a role in cancer treatment? Researchers at the Texas A&M Health Institute of Biosciences and Technology think it might. By pairing caffeine with CRISPR, a [...]