Cancers progress and continuously adapt, making them challenging to treat. As cancer cells replicate and evolve, distinct cellular lineages, or subclones, compete to dominate and drive tumor progression. Researchers led by I-Lin Ho, Ph.D., and Andrea Viale, M.D., developed a new model for pancreatic cancer to study subclone evolution within tumors and metastases. They found that subclones undergo continuous fluctuations in representation during tumor growth, even without any external treatment, with dominant subclones suddenly collapsing...

Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) typically differentiate to replenish peripheral immune cells and undergo self-renewal to retain an adequate supply of parent cells, but the mechanisms regulating HSCs and preventing uncontrolled dysfunction are poorly understood. The STAT3 protein facilitates the maturation of immune system cells, but its role in HSCs is difficult to study because STAT3 deficiency or deletion in hematopoietic cells can induce systemic inflammation, impacting HSC activity. To address this, researchers led by Stephanie Watowich, Ph.D.,...

A groundbreaking study by researchers at the University of Texas Medical Branch is shedding light on a promising development in the battle against highly fatal hemorrhagic diseases caused by orthoebolaviruses, including the notorious Ebola virus.   The research highlights the strong protective efficacy demonstrated by Obeldesivir when administered orally, providing solutions to challenges faced in treating these viruses, particularly in resource-poor areas where intravenous therapies can pose significant logistical hurdles.   “People are also much more likely...

A new addition at Quentin Mease Health Center, a Harris Health System specialty facility rededicated in 2023, promises to provide patients with more early cancer detection and prevention procedures. Through the Harris Health Endoscopy Center at Quentin Mease, staff will perform colonoscopies and other diagnostic exams for cancer.   The 8,000-square-foot center features eight procedure suites, 11 pre-operative beds and 18 post-operative beds. It recently opened with two procedure suites with plans to increase operations...

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center announced it has acquired certain assets from Bellicum Pharmaceuticals, Inc. related to the CaspaCIDe® switch platform and the GoCAR® platform. The transaction also includes clinical-grade stocks of rimiducid, an agent used to trigger the switches.   As a result of this acquisition, MD Anderson may incorporate these platforms into its own cell therapy programs. The institution also intends to make the technology widely available via non-exclusive licenses to other academic institutions and to biopharmaceutical...

Patients with relapsed or refractory (R/R) acute myeloid leukemia (AML) marked by high expression of CD123 have few effective treatment options. In a new multicenter Phase I/II trial, researchers led by Naval Daver, M.D., and Hagop Kantarjian, M.D., evaluated pivekimab sunirine, a novel CD123-targeting antibody-drug conjugate, in 91 patients with CD123+ R/R AML. This first-in-human dose-escalation and expansion study had a primary endpoint to determine the maximum tolerated dose and the recommended Phase II dose....

SMARCA4, which normally functions as a tumor suppressor, is one of the most commonly mutated genes in human cancers, including roughly 30% of germinal center (GC)-derived Burkitt lymphomas. Germinal centers are temporarily formed zones where B cells expand, but the role of SMARCA4 in promoting lymphoma development is unclear. To provide further insights, researchers led by Michael Green, Ph.D., examined the normal role of SMARCA4in GC B cells and how altering its function via mutation contributes to...

Interferon gamma (IFNγ) plays several roles in immune system regulation, inflammation and tumor surveillance. However, recent research led by Hussein Abbas, M.D., Ph.D., found that patients with newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia (AML) have elevated levels of IFNγ, leading to an immunosuppressed bone marrow microenvironment. In a new study from the Abbas laboratory, researchers sought to characterize the role of IFNγ in the AML microenvironment. They discovered that T and NK cells are the main producers of IFNγ, suggesting that AML cells exploit this...

Patients with soft-tissue sarcoma treated with neoadjuvant, or pre-surgical, immunotherapy had very little residual tumor at the time of surgery and promising long-term survival, according to Phase II trial results by researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. After treatment with a combination of immunotherapy and radiation followed by surgical removal of the residual mass, 90% of patients with undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma (UPS) had less than 15% viable tumor cells remaining, better than what has historically been seen...

Though opioid overdose remedies are approved for over-the-counter usage, many Houston pharmacies have not made the life-saving medication available.   Narcan, a naloxone nasal spray that reverses an opioid overdose, and its generic equivalent were both approved for over-the-counter (OTC) sale last year by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Making naloxone available this way is meant to increase accessibility and even encourage potential bystanders to carry this life-saving medication.   In the Houston area,...