The epigenetic changes examined highlight different patterns in DNA methylation, which involves the chemical modification of DNA and acts in the control of gene expression. While DNA methylation is a normal and necessary epigenetic process, breast tumors exhibit altered methylation patterns compared to normal breast tissue. Accordingly, atypical DNA methylation marks are recognized to precede cancer initiation…
A new study from MIT biologists has found that tumor cells with mutated p53 can be made much more vulnerable to chemotherapy by blocking another gene called MK2. In a study of mice, tumors lacking both p53 and MK2 shrank dramatically when treated with the drug cisplatin, while tumors with functional MK2 kept growing after treatment. The findings suggest that giving cancer patients a combination of a DNA-damaging drug and an MK2 inhibitor could be very effective, says Michael Yaffe, the David H. Koch Professor in Science and senior author of a paper describing the research in the Nov…
How can you tell if a breast tumor is malignant? This isn’t a question that ultrasound and X-rays, or even magnetic resonance scans, can answer alone. Doctors must often extract tissue samples from an affected area with a fine needle for detailed examination…
The study appears online in Nature Genetics. The discovery stems from a program at the U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center called Mi-ONCOSEQ in which patients with advanced cancer have their DNA and RNA sequenced to identify all types of genetic mutations that could play a role in the cancer. Researchers use the findings to help direct therapies they think will work best. But they also use the data to find new genetic links. …
The study, which appears online in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, was led by Sarah Primeau, MSW, research assistant in the department of general internal medicine at BUSM. Previous studies on healthcare barriers have shown that training individuals from the community, known as patient navigators, to provide emotional and logistical support to patients is an effective way to care for patients in a culturally sensitive way. However, these studies have not addressed whether patient navigators are also effective in addressing social service barriers such as financial problems, employment issues, health insurance, housing constraints and adult and child care. "Social barriers are more complex than other obstacles to healthcare such as transportation or language and will likely require interventions that healthcare providers and patient navigators aren’t traditionally trained to provide," said Primeau…
Mutant forms of the protein KRAS are found in approximately 30 percent of all cancers. They are responsible for many of the hallmarks of these cancers, and KRAS is, therefore, considered an important therapeutic target. However, attempts to develop clinically useful KRAS-targeted drugs have been unsuccessful. …
The investigators identified STAG2 as one of the most commonly mutated genes in bladder cancer, particularly in tumors that do not spread. The finding suggests that checking the status of the gene may help identify patients who might do unusually well following cancer treatment, says the study’s senior investigator, cancer geneticist Todd Waldman, MD, PhD, a professor of oncology at Georgetown Lombardi. "Most bladder cancers are superficial tumors that have not spread to other parts of the body, and can therefore be easily treated and cured. However, a small fraction of these superficial tumors will recur and metastasize even after treatment," he says. …
Researchers from Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center report their results in a study published online by the journal Oct. 7. The authors focus on a protein called RhoA, a GTPase that serves as a molecular switch in the cytoplasm of cells to control cell function. …
The report documents cancer as the leading cause of death among Hispanic Texans under the age of 76. Only three percent of Hispanic Texans are older than 75. Texas’s Hispanic population has more than doubled since 1990. Texans of Hispanic ethnicity now comprise 38 percent of the state’s population…
It is estimated that around 570,000 people are living with, or after, a diagnosis of breast cancer in the UK, and this number is expected to double by 2030. Breast cancer, therefore, remains a significant challenge. Over 100 specialist breast cancer scientists, clinicians and heath care professionals reviewed a wide range of issues and challenges involved in breast cancer research, prevention and treatment. Through facilitated discussions and consultation, including appraisal from experts and patients, they produced an account outlining ten major gaps and five strategic solutions. …