cancer
Discovery aids search for cancer biomarkers
Apr. 12, 2019—A report by researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center has shattered conventional wisdom about how cells, including cancer cells, shed DNA into the bloodstream.
Cancer’s SOS
Apr. 4, 2019—Stephen Fesik and colleagues have uncovered more details about how a crucial component of RAS proteins, which trigger about a third of all tumors, work. This finding will help advance the discovery of new cancer therapies.
Like racecars and geese, cancer cells draft their way to new tumor sites
Mar. 25, 2019—The finding gives a boost to the field of metabolomics, the next big thing in fighting cancer. It can complement immunotherapies, which use the body’s natural defenses to kill cancer cells.
Study finds patient messages help predict medication adherence
Jan. 31, 2019—Zhijun Yin and colleagues have found that breast cancer patients who message their doctors about certain topics are more likely to discontinue hormone therapy than others--which enables doctors to better predict which patients are at risk of stopping their treatment early.
Trans-institutional team documents potential new treatment path for breast cancer
Jan. 16, 2019—A team led by biomolecular engineer John Wilson and cancer biologist Rebecca Cook have found a way to trigger an immune response that targets breast cancer cells.
Study identifies novel genetic factors for colorectal cancer risk
Jan. 10, 2019—A large-scale study conducted among East Asians and led by Vanderbilt researchers has identified multiple, previously unknown genetic risk factors for colorectal cancer.
Breast cancer-killing RIG
Dec. 19, 2018—New research led by Rebecca Cook demonstrates that an antiviral receptor called RIG-I has potent immunogenic and therapeutic effects in breast cancer.
Philip’s liver cancer research receives V Foundation support
Dec. 13, 2018—The grant will support Mary Philip's research to develop an organoid model — a miniature cell model of a functioning organ — of the liver to enable three-dimensional observation of immune-cancer interactions at the single-cell level at the earliest stages of cancer development.
Lung cancer survival signal
Nov. 30, 2018—New research by Jonathan Lehman and Pierre Massion have identfied a bioimarker that suggests poor prognosis for small-cell lung cancer, as well as potential target for new therapies.
Vanderbilt study suggests way to prevent rare lung disease
Nov. 15, 2018—Pulmonary hypertension may be treated by targeting a bone marrow cell that normally promotes the growth of new blood vessels, according to new research by David Merryman.
Mary Kay Foundation grant to bolster immunotherapy research
Oct. 26, 2018—The grant will allow Charles Caskey to lead research into using ultrasound as an image-guided therapy for drug delivery.
Grant enhances study of new chemotherapy targets
Oct. 19, 2018—Vanderbilt chemists have been awarded $7.2 million over the next five years from the National Cancer Institute to lead an initiative to better understand how a combination chemotherapy for breast cancer targets DNA.