Applying a machine learning technique using algorithms that learn transcriptome information from artificial organoids derived from actual patients instead of animal models, researchers from the Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH) in South Korea say they have successfully increased the accuracy of anti-cancer drug response predictions. The team, led…

In a finding that bolsters the field of personalized medicine, a new large-scale study from the Mayo Clinic reports that one in eight cancer patients they followed had an inherited mutation that increases their risk of developing a malignancy. Further, the study showed that more than half of all patients…

Preliminary findings from a trial involving cancer patients taking immune checkpoint treatment with PD-L1 inhibitors reveal that simultaneous treatment with angiotensin receptor II blockers (ARBs) improve patients’ responses. The results were presented by Julius Strauss, co-director of the clinical trials group at the Laboratory of Tumor Immunology and Biology, at…

Human cells have twenty-three pairs of chromosomes but in cancer, genes can be amplified in chromosomes or in circular extrachromosomal DNA (ecDNA), whose frequency and functional significance are not yet understood. Now researchers at the University of California (UC), San Diego, report that ecDNA is a common event in human…

CRISPR, while a facile and potentially powerful tool in therapeutics is often hampered by its off-target effects. Using CRISPR in the the fight against cancer has proven to a challenge as the enzyme often can’t distinguish between a malignant cell and a healthy cell. Yet, researchers at the ChristianaCare’s Gene…

A study of a new blood test detected more than 50 types of cancer, along with their location in the body, with a high degree of accuracy. The test analyzes the arrangement of methyl groups on circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA) released from cancer cells. In cancer cells, the placement of…

Scientists in the Netherlands, U.K., and U.S. report on study results suggesting that a common strain of Escherichia coli gut bacteria could be contributing directly to bowel cancer by releasing a toxin, colibactin, that causes mutations in cells lining the gastrointestinal tract. The studies showed that cells in cultured human…

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute researchers report the development of a new blood test that has shown the ability in a multi-center trial to screen for numerous types of cancer with a high degree of accuracy. The team discussed the novel test and presented the results of the trial during a recent…

LabCorp’s Integrated Oncology specialty laboratory announced it added therascreen PIK3CA PCR mutation analysis, a new companion diagnostic from QIAGE. The CDx identifies postmenopausal women and all men with hormone receptor positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 negative (HR+/HER2-), PIK3CA-mutated, advanced or metastatic breast cancer who could benefit from the Novartis…

Natera’s Signatera test has shown potential in a newly-published survey for guiding treatment decisions after surgery by identifying colorectal cancer recurrence at an average of 8.7 months earlier than radiologic imaging by detecting traces of tumor DNA in the blood after surgery. The prospective, multicenter study enrolled 130 patients with…

Digging deeper than previous cancer genomic studies, the PanCancer Initiative has released an analysis of 33 types of cancer across more than 10,000 patients. The new analysis shows that all 33 cancer types, based on their cellular and genetic makeup and independent of their anatomic site of origin, could be…

Global Gene said it will partner with The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC-James) to study rare cancers in South Asian and Indian populations. Global Gene, a genomics data platform and applications developer, said it will offer…

MDxHealth and QUT bluebox, the commercialization arm of the Queensland University of Technology (QUT), said today they will partner to develop a liquid biopsy epigenetic assay designed for early detection of oral cancer. The value of the collaboration was not disclosed. The test will evaluate abnormal DNA methylation changes, an…

MDxHealth and Ghent University in Belgium have announced a licensing and collaboration deal to further develop the methylation in situ hybridization (MISH) diagnostic platform for urological cancers. The molecular diagnostic technology developed by the university allows for the direct visualization of cancer-related epigenetic changes in tissue and liquid samples. Under…

Tempus said today it is partnering with breast cancer specialist and research teams at the University of Chicago Medicine and Biological Sciences (UCM) to detect novel patterns that can predict how patients will respond to treatment. The collaboration, whose value was not disclosed, is designed to improve and personalize treatment…