Many patients with cancer develop a serious and currently incurable condition called cachexia, which is characterized by rapid weight and muscle loss and is responsible for nearly one-third of cancer-related deaths. Cachexia is driven in part by inflammation affecting the parasympathetic nervous system and liver function. Since the vagus nerve regulates the parasympathetic nervous system, Xiling Shen, Ph.D., and colleagues examined its role in cancer-associated cachexia. Preclinical models and patient blood samples showed that cancer progression...

Many patients with advanced cancer are significantly impacted by agitated delirium, but there are conflicting results on treating this condition with medication. To provide insights, David Hui, M.D., and colleagues examined the effects of different medications on treating delirium in 111 patients with advanced cancers. The researchers examined patient responses to haloperidol and lorazepam – both separately and combined – compared to a placebo, with patients receiving scheduled doses every four hours. Follow-up results show that lorazepam, alone or with...

A significant challenge in developing treatment plans for patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is deciding whether to use immune checkpoint inhibitors alone or in combination with chemotherapy. Monotherapy is effective for many patients and is associated with fewer adverse effects. However, for patients who do not respond, the crucial time lost could lead to tumor progression. Unfortunately, there is a lack of reliable data to guide clinicians in this area. A team led by Jia...

Many patients with advanced ovarian cancer treated with frontline therapies still end up with clinically undetectable amounts of cancer cells afterward, called minimal residual disease (MRD), leading to high likelihood of recurrence. However, there are no reliable tests to detect MRD, and its biological features remain understudied. Residual cancer cells escape the effects of surgery and chemotherapy and are the reason why cure rates for advanced ovarian cancer have remained low for many decades. To provide insights, researchers led by Amir Jazaeri,...

Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are a group of diseases in which the bone marrow does not produce enough healthy blood cells. The erythroid predominance (EP) subtype, marked by 50% or more erythroid cells (red blood cell precursors) in the bone marrow, has distinct biology, prognoses and drug sensitivities. To study this, researchers led by Guillermo Montalban Bravo, M.D., evaluated an MDS cohort of 371 patients, 18% of whom had EP MDS. They discovered EP MDS has unique genetic patterns...

CDK4/6 inhibitors are targeted therapies commonly used as first-line treatments for patients with hormone receptor-positive HER2-negative (HR+/HER2-) metastatic breast cancer. However, some patients stop responding to CDK4/6 inhibitors, and the mechanisms behind this acquired resistance are poorly understood. In a new study led by Khandan Keyomarsi, Ph.D., researchers discovered that the inflammatory protein IL-6 becomes elevated in these patients, which then triggers another protein – STAT3 – that helps tumors progress. This highlights the potential of monitoring...

Four years after pre-surgery treatment with a novel combination of immune checkpoint inhibitors, nivolumab and relatlimab, 87% of patients with stage III melanoma remained alive, according to new results from a study led by researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. Long-term follow-up data from this Phase II study demonstrate this combination provides long-term benefits to patients when given before and after surgery, and identified unique biomarkers associated with better outcomes and lower chance of recurrence....

In a major step forward for pandemic preparedness and vaccine development, scientists at the University of Texas Medical Branch and Moderna have developed and tested a groundbreaking mRNA vaccine that provides full protection against the deadly Marburg virus and the closely related Ravn virus in a preclinical animal model.   “The fact that we achieved complete protection in all vaccinated animals is a major leap,” said Dr. Alexander Bukreyev, co-senior author of the study and professor...

New targeted therapies have improved treatment options for elderly patients with IDH-mutant acute myeloid leukemia (AML) who are not eligible for intensive chemotherapy, with two double therapy regimens approved as frontline therapies. However, most patients either do not benefit or will experience a relapse. Therefore, researchers led by Courtney DiNardo, M.D., evaluated new triplet regimens in 60 newly diagnosed, elderly patients with IDH-mutated AML who were ineligible for chemotherapy, including:   Azacitidine, venetoclax and ivosidenib for patients with IDH1 mutation Oral decitabine, venetoclax and ivosidenib...

Many patients with brain metastases receive stereotactic radiation therapy (SRT) – a targeted high dose of radiation – after surgery to remove the metastases. Studies have suggested that pre-surgical SRT may be comparable to standard post-surgical SRT, but little is known about both methods from clinical trials. To address this, researchers led by Debra Nana Yeboa, M.D., conducted a Phase III clinical trial examining the logistics and short-term safety of both pre- and post-surgical SRT in 103 patients with resectable brain metastases. Compared...