Written by Thomas Lukas Schneider
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
A small primary tumor does not necessarily correspond to a favorable prognosis. We hypothesized that stage IV breast cancers with very small primary tumors accompanied by extensive lymph node metastases may reflect an aggressive tumor biology. Data spanning 2010 through 2015 were collected in a retrospective manner from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database. Eligible cases were limited to women with unilateral metastatic invasive ductal carcinoma classified as T1 or T2.
Written by Emily Carter
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
Increasing evidence indicates that abnormal circRNA expression contributes significantly to gastric cancer progression; therefore, understanding the underlying biological roles and molecular mechanisms of these dysregulated circRNAs is essential for the discovery of novel therapeutic strategies. To screen for circRNAs associated with metastasis and immunotherapy response in gastric cancer, a circRNA expression profiling analysis was performed on primary tumors, distant metastatic lesions, and tu
Written by Noor Aisyah Abdullah
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
The 2018 release of the 8th edition of the AJCC staging system for medullary thyroid cancer (MTC) aimed to standardize prognosis assessment. However, its effectiveness in predicting patient outcomes is still debated. Patient records were extracted from both the SEER database and multicenter cohorts. The study’s main endpoint was overall survival (OS). Prognostic performance of different staging models was evaluated using the concordance index (C-index). A total of 1450 MTC cases were included fr
Written by Maximilian Anton Huber
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
Everolimus (EVE) combined with exemestane (EXE) is currently approved for treating patients with metastatic hormone receptor–positive breast cancer (mHRBC) who no longer respond to nonsteroidal aromatase inhibitors (NSAIs). Notably, the BOLERO-2 trial, which supported this approval, did not include patients who had previously received CDK4/6 inhibitors (CDK4/6is), now widely used as first-line therapy for mHRBC. Therefore, the benefits and clinical outcomes of EVE plus EXE in patients with prior
Written by Niels Henrik Rasmussen
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
Metastasis is a key contributor to poor survival in gastric cancer patients, yet the underlying molecular mechanisms remain largely unclear. In this study, we investigated the potential role of cystatin SN (CST1), a cysteine protease inhibitor, in facilitating gastric cancer metastasis. We proposed that CST1 might drive cancer progression by influencing GPX4 and regulating ferroptosis. Transcriptome-wide analysis revealed that CST1 levels were markedly higher in metastatic tumors, and patients w
Written by Ivan Sergeevich Mikhailov
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
Cysteine dioxygenase 1 (CDO1) is frequently silenced in various cancers, including gastric cancer (GC), due to promoter hypermethylation, yet its functional role and underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. In this study, we show that low CDO1 expression correlates with poor prognosis in GC patients. Restoration of CDO1 expression in GC cells significantly suppresses cell proliferation both in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistic investigations reveal that CDO1 inhibits proliferation by elevati
Written by Hiroshi Nakamura
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
The TRIBE and TRIBE-2 trials established that first-line treatment with FOLFOXIRI combined with bevacizumab yields superior efficacy over FOLFIRI or FOLFOX plus bevacizumab in metastatic colorectal cancer, though it is associated with increased toxicity. In the present study, we investigated the occurrence and temporal patterns of neutropenia and febrile neutropenia (FN) in these trials, with the aim of determining their clinical impact, quantifying the effects attributable to FOLFOXIRI/bevacizu
Written by James Robert Henderson
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
Potent and selective inhibitors of dihydroorotate dehydrogenase (DHODH), a critical enzyme in the de novo synthesis of pyrimidine ribonucleotides, are being tested in clinical trials for autoimmune disorders, viral infections, and various cancers. A limitation of these DHODH inhibitors (DHODHi) is their immunosuppressive activity, which may dampen antitumor immune responses, highlighting the need for strategies that improve their therapeutic index in oncology. In this study, we explored methods
Written by Grace Wanjiku Mwangi
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
Inflammation is increasingly recognized as a key contributor to the onset and progression of prostate cancer (PCa). In this study, we investigated the molecular mechanisms by which the NLR family pyrin domain-containing protein 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome influences PCa malignancy. NLRP3 expression in PCa tissues and cell lines was measured using quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). To explore its functional role, we performed gain- and loss-of-function
Written by William James Clark
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
Circular RNAs (circRNAs), which belong to the category of non-coding RNAs, play an important role in the development and spread of cancer. They are thought to function primarily as sponges for microRNAs or as platforms that facilitate interactions with protein complexes, yet their complete spectrum of biological roles is still not fully understood. In recent studies, certain circRNAs have been discovered to possess the ability to encode proteins. To determine the involvement of circular RNAs in
Written by Filip Adam Novak
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
Genomic stability relies on an effective DNA damage response (DDR), which serves as a critical barrier against tumor development. Yet, how cellular metabolism adapts to DNA damage remains largely unexplored, limiting opportunities to develop metabolism-targeted cancer therapies [Ref]. Emerging evidence suggests that DDR is closely linked to metabolic control, particularly through the restriction of glutamine (Gln) import into mitochondria, a process that supports both cell cycle arrest and DNA r
Written by Sarah L. Johnson
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
Breast cancers have traditionally been considered estrogen receptor (ER)-positive when at least 1% of tumor cells express ER. Recent ASCO/CAP guidelines, however, introduce a distinct category—ER-low-positive—for tumors with 1%–10% ER expression, reflecting the limited evidence on how low ER levels influence prognosis and treatment response. This study investigates whether ER-low tumors differ from ER-positive and ER-negative tumors in terms of outcomes and examines their predictive value for re
Written by Isabel Cristina Mendez
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
I The presence of both metachronous and synchronous tumors creates considerable diagnostic and therapeutic complexity, particularly when one exhibits rare neuroendocrine features. We describe a patient with sarcoidosis who had previously undergone treatment for endometrial and ovarian tumors and later developed recurrent lesions with two different histologies: adenocarcinoma and high-grade neuroendocrine carcinoma, both characterized by microsatellite instability–high (MSI-H) status. Comprehensi
Written by Marco De Santis
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
An increasing body of research suggests that abnormal circRNA expression contributes significantly to cancer development and progression, including CRC. Despite this, the clinical implications and mechanistic roles of novel circRNAs in CRC have not yet been fully elucidated. Candidate circRNAs associated with colorectal cancer were first screened using computational approaches and subsequently confirmed in patient-derived samples by quantitative real-time PCR and in situ hybridization. Functiona
Written by Peter Nilsson
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
Ovarian cancer is still the most deadly cancer among gynecologic tumors, mainly due to the frequent development of resistance to cisplatin that greatly reduces treatment effectiveness. Gaining deeper insight into the molecular basis of this resistance is vital for creating improved therapies. Our RNA sequencing analysis identified MEF2C as a differentially expressed gene associated with the acquisition of cisplatin resistance. We confirmed this observation using RT-qPCR, which revealed significa
Written by James O'Leary
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
Prostate cancer (PRAD) represents a significant health burden for men globally. By integrating publicly accessible datasets with immunohistochemistry, this investigation found that ACTC1 expression is markedly elevated in PRAD. In vitro experiments demonstrated that forced overexpression of ACTC1 stimulated cellular proliferation and migratory capacity, whereas its silencing inhibited these aggressive traits. These observations were corroborated in vivo, where xenograft models revealed that ACTC
Written by Lukas Weber
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
Simultaneous blockade of the immune checkpoints LAG-3 and PD-1 is thought to potentiate the effects of cancer immunotherapy by producing synergistic benefits. This study investigates the safety profile and therapeutic activity of IBI110, a novel anti-LAG-3 monoclonal antibody, when combined with sintilimab, an anti-PD-1 antibody, among Chinese individuals with advanced solid tumors. An open-label phase I clinical trial was performed, incorporating a phase Ia dose-escalation assessment of IBI110
Written by Maria Gonzales
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
Malignant plasma cells accumulating in the bone marrow trigger the development of lytic bone lesions in 80% of patients suffering from multiple myeloma. These lesions often lead to fractures and are notoriously difficult to treat surgically. Myeloma cells that remain viable after treatment within the protective milieu of these bone defects continue to disrupt normal bone metabolism, thereby preventing proper healing. Such residual activity likely contributes to the frequent disease recurrence ob
Written by Patrick O'Connor
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
Hepatic metastasis secondary to colorectal cancer (CRC) remains a formidable clinical problem that dramatically shortens patient survival. Myofibroblastic cancer-associated fibroblasts (myCAFs) are among the most abundant stromal populations in the CRC tumor microenvironment and actively facilitate tumor growth and metastatic colonization by secreting exosomes. Single-cell profiling demonstrated a prominent accumulation of myCAFs within colorectal cancer liver metastases (CRLM). Sequencing of ex
Written by Gabriel Costa
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
As many as 65% of individuals with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) who receive imatinib therapy do not attain a sustained deep molecular response, a critical requirement for attempting treatment-free remission. Asciminib represents the sole approved BCR::ABL1 inhibitor that selectively binds to the ABL myristoyl pocket. This novel mode of action facilitates its use in combination with ATP-competitive tyrosine kinase inhibitors, thereby helping to overcome resistance mechanisms and augment therape
Written by Luca Ferraro
Published in Vol 5 Issue 2, 2025
Amulirafusp alfa (IMM0306) consists of a fusion protein that incorporates the CD47-binding domain derived from signal-regulatory protein alpha (SIRPα) fused to a CD20 monoclonal antibody on each of the heavy chains. This investigation examined the safety profile and initial therapeutic activity of amulirafusp alfa in individuals with relapsed or refractory (r/r) B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (B-NHL). Eligible participants included those with CD20-positive r/r B-NHL who had progressed after at lea
