Artificial immune cells used to destroy tumours

Our immune system is tasked with guarding our body against foreign invaders such as bacteria or viruses. Less commonly known is that immune cells also keep a close eye on the way our body functions. Cells that go haywire are swiftly removed from the tissues and are consequently replaced by healthy cells. However, the immune system does not always recognize those cells that need to be cleared, and in such cases a tumour may arise: cancer cells have found a way to escape detection and can therefore proliferate and endanger our health. Scientists from the University of Pennsylvania have found a way to modify immune cells in such a way that they recognize and destroy tumours.

Better imaging to improve cancer detection

One of the most important parts of clinical oncology is to find the cancer before it does any real harm to the body. Speedy diagnosis significantly improves the chances for survival, and for that, we need proper imaging tools. At the University of California in San Diego, scientists have found a better way to detect so-called sentinel lymph nodes, which are important in cancer metastasis. A novel, radioactive molecule was shown capable of improving the detection of the spread of a tumour throughout the body, indicating that our ways of cancer detection can be improved, thus promoting survival.

Tuning gene expression up and down in individual cells

Control of biological mechanisms starts with modifying the action of genes. Genetics provides the blueprint for the production of all the cell's molecules and therefore determines cellular behaviour to a great extent. Scientists have found ways to shut genes off, or to make them more active. By doing that, we are able to treat diseases, or modify stem cells to behave the way we want them to. But sometimes, this is not enough; it would be handy if we had a mechanism that allowed us to precisely tune how much of an individual gene needs to be expressed in a particular cell. Such a refined piece of equipment has now been made available for human cells.

LED bandage is a personal treatment for skin cancer

Cancer treatment is intense and often results in severe side effects because anti-cancer drugs or radiotherapy can be quite toxic. For skin cancer, scientists discovered that treatment, in some cases, with light can be highly beneficial. Basically, that means skin cancer patients can be treated by prolonged exposure to a big lamp. This concept sparked the interest of some engineers that consequently developed a LED-based device that patients can use to provide themselves with a personal form of treatment.

Viral therapy 'completely destroys' cancer

Cancer is a disease that is hard to treat. Most therapies aim at stopping growth and attempting to decrease the size of the tumour, but there are hardly any treatments that actually cure the patient. Most famous is of course the conventional chemotherapy which kills cancer cells just a bit faster than that it kills healthy cells. Novel therapies are more targeted, and one way to achieve that is by recruiting viruses. Curiously, HIV seems effective as a treatment for cancer, but scientists are also working with other viruses, such as those that appear effective in brain cancer patients. Now, it appears science has seen another breakthrough, as a group of scientists from the University of Sheffield developed a viral therapy that 'abolishes' prostate tumours.

HIV shown to be promising as a treatment for cancer

A couple of months ago, a group of French scientists reported that they found a way to use HIV as a means to treat cancer. They showed some promising results in the lab, indicating that the virus could be a lot more effective than conventional treatments. Now, the first clinical trial has been performed with a similar technique, and it appears as if HIV may indeed be useful in the development of a decent cancer treatment.

A life-threatening disease does not make one religious

Religion has often been described as 'food for the soul' or 'opium for the masses', catering to a human need for an explanation of the unknown and a sense of consolation for difficult issues such as death. Scientifically speaking, discussions have revolved around the 'use' of religion for human well-being. For example, religion could help one get through a tough situation in life, such as a severely life-impeding disease. Scientists set out to uncover whether the onset of a life-threatening disease turns people religious, but found that this was not the case, indicating that atheists find their own ways for consolation or support.

Millions of cancer patients suffer unnecessary pain

Cancer is one of the worst diseases known to man, especially because many forms are hard to treat and are often lethal. Additionally, the disease itself, or even the treatment, can cause a lot of pain. Fortunately, pain can almost always be treated due to a vast arsenal of analgesics. A recent study has shown that despite the availability of painkillers, many cancer patients worldwide suffer from pain as a result from their cancer. According to the lead researcher, the study "paints a shocking picture of unnecessary pain on a global scale".

Predicting drug effect by 'putting the patient in a tube'

Some patients are easy to treat, while others can be very difficult. Even for patients that have the same disease, it is sometimes necessary to opt for a different treatment because of specific indicators that result in a lack of drug efficacy. In such cases, it is worthwhile to explore the use of other drugs, though it is not always clear which ones would work best, and it is of course unethical to use the patient as a guinea pig. A new method, used in oncology, works by taking some of the patient's healthy and diseased cells and putting them into a laboratory culture system. This allows for free drug testing without potentially harming the patient, and a first case study shows such lab predictions can aid treatment decisions by testing and selecting the right drug.

Using HIV to cure cancer

HIV and cancer are both awful and have serious health impacts. None of us would like to be affected by either one of those, but it seems that putting them together may actually result in something useful. Scientists from the French CNRS institute think we can transform HIV into a tool that helps us fight cancer. It is an interesting idea that helps make something good out of something bad.

Herbal tea as a drug to fight breast cancer

There are lots of old wives' tales and folklore when it comes to herbs or other natural products and their medicinal effects. Lots of the attributed effects are not scientifically proven and mostly rely on the so-called placebo effect. Of course, it would be too easy to just write all of them off as rubbish, which is why some scientists have taken a keen interest into scientifically analysing the effects of certain herbal treatments. As it turns out, some components in herbal tea may actually help to fight breast cancer.

Taking the social approach to beat cancer

Social phenomena are getting increasingly popular on the internet. Many people are registered on social networking sites and the concept is also being used more and more by companies. Even research projects benefit from social attempts. Now, scientists think cancer should also be treated with regard for its social features. According to researchers from the Tel Aviv University, regarding cancer cells as a micro-community with the ability to cooperate will enable us to develop new ways to treat tumours.

Side effects from chemotherapy can be greatly reduced

Treating cancer with chemotherapeutics is a double-edged sword. While it is proven to be very effective in killing cancer cells, it also harms healthy tissue, which means clinicians have to balance between an effective dose and the associated side effects. Despite our best efforts, getting rid of chemotherapy and replacing it with more specific treatments will take a while. That is why some scientists instead look at improving chemotherapy instead of finding replacements. Scientists from KU Leuven found that it is possible to greatly reduce the side effects by providing patients with an additional treatment.

Chemotherapy can sometimes increase cancer growth

Therapies for cancer are never very pretty. Scientists struggle with creating treatments that specifically target cancerous cells and leave healthy tissue alone. Radiation therapy, for example, can be targeted directly onto a tumour, but surrounding tissue suffers from it as well. Chemotherapy is another example: basically, it is poison that just kills malicious cells a bit faster than healthy cells. However, a recent study shows that chemotherapy can actually increase growth of tumour cells. Disturbing, but knowing the mechanism helps us to improve therapies.

Genes 'collaborate' in order to cause cancer

It is often said that cancer is a disease of the DNA. Indeed, tumours often start due to genetic modifications that alter the growth rate of cells. Scientists therefore spend a lot of time on genetics, in order to find specific mutations that tell us something about the foundations of the disease. Genetic alterations also help us predict future cases of cancer, and tell us something about possible treatment. Researchers from a Singaporean institute found a way to scan the DNA for modified genes that 'cooperate' in order to make a cell cancerous, while they would be harmless on their own. This new way of detecting harmful genetic changes enables doctors to more accurately predict cancer and disease progression.

Scientists banned after deadly probiotic treatment

Recently, scientists have begun experiments with bacteria as a new form of treatment. For some diseases it is hypothesized that administering bacteria can improve health, for example by providing patients with probiotic drinks. Despite a lack of conclusive evidence for its efficacy, scientists have been experimenting with probiotics for new patient groups, of which brain cancer is perhaps the most peculiar example. Needless to say, things can go wrong with experimenting. Two scientists that experimented with infecting patients suffering from brain cancer found their results a little off: instead of treating the tumour, the patients died from the supposedly beneficial infection.

Using lasers to fight cancer

There are many interesting new forms of cancer treatment that are currently being investigated and tested. Examples include the use of nanoparticles or magnetism to burn away tumours. Even breast milk or chickens can help us treat cancer, surprisingly. Yet another novel attempt makes use of lasers to destroy malicious and cancerous cells. The technology, developed by the University of Tennessee, goes on a "seek and destroy" mission.

Chickens provide clues for cancer treatment

There are many different methods that scientists have tried in order to come up with cures for cancer. Recent studies have shown that grape seeds or viruses may help us in fighting this awful disease; not something most of us would expect. Now, an international team of scientists has shown that chickens also hold clues for new treatments. A genetic study shows that a specific chicken protein has the capability to kill cancer cells.

Fast camera used to analyse cells for cancer

Cancer is a nasty disease and sadly takes the lives of millions of people each year. Even though various forms of cancer are treatable, or even curable, its prognosis deteriorates if the disease remains unnoticed for a long time. Ideally, diagnostic tools would provide us with a level of sensitivity that allows us to detect cancer even if only a few cells have yet gone bad. This is however not a realistic scenario: most equipment will not notice a tumour unless it has attained a certain size. A new screening attempt developed by the University of California in Las Vegas has developed a system that scans cells individually and thereby greatly increased sensitivity compared to conventional scanners. Their system relies on a high-speed camera that takes pictures of cells.

Exercise reduces the risk of breast cancer

A study conducted by a research group from the University of North Carolina has shown an interesting link between the occurrence of breast cancer and physical activity. It seems that exercise results in a rather dramatic decrease in breast cancer risk, which is relevant for those wishing to remain healthy. Although previous research already showed a correlation between exercise and breast cancer, the researchers from North Carolina made the effort to find out exactly what difference it makes.