NEW STUDY. A study involving researchers at University of Gothenburg and Karolinska Institutet in Sweden has found that low levels of a protein called PDGFRb are associated with particularly good results of radiotherapy in women with early-stage breast cancer. The study, which is published in the journal Clinical Cancer Research, also suggests that the efficacy of radiotherapy can be improved with drugs that block this protein. Some 900 women in…
Serious form of melanoma gene-sequenced
STUDY. Researchers at Sahlgrenska Academy and Sahlgrenska University Hospital have mapped the genome of metastases from uveal melanoma, a rare but severe form of malignant melanoma that originates in the eye. The knowledge provided by this gene mapping includes new insights into how metastases arise and the nature of tumor-infiltrating immune cells. The study, now published in Nature Communications, provides hope for new approaches to combating this form of tumor.…
Advanced animal model can predict immunotherapy effects
NEW STUDY. Immunotherapy often does wonders for many patients with malignant melanoma, a form of skin cancer, after it has spread to other parts of the body. For some patients, however, this new treatment is totally ineffective against the tumors. A new study from Sahlgrenska Academy shows that an advanced animal model in which mice become carriers of patients’ tumors may be used to find out in advance which tumors…
Ruth Palmer named Cancer Researcher of the Year 2019 – see her attendance during the gala in TV4
APPOINTMENT. The other night, during the live TV-gala ‘Together Against Cancer’ in TV4, Ruth Plmers was appointed Cancer Researcher of the Year by the Cancer Foundation’s research board. Ruth Palmer, Professor of Molecular Cell Biology at Sahlgrenska Academy aims to find new treatment methods for neuroblastoma, a cancer that primarily affects children. The TV-gala Tillsammans mot cancer (‘Together Against Cancer’) was broadcasted live nationwide on Monday, January 7, 2019. You…
Splitting blood vessels offers new hope for old idea in cancer research
RESEARCH. Previous attempts to stop tumours from gaining access to new blood vessels have not been successful. But what if the blood vessels not only expand by branching out, but also by splitting lengthwise? The idea breathes new life into a 50-year-old idea in cancer research and offers hope of a better treatment for malignant melanoma, an aggressive form of cancer. Tumours need blood just as our organs do. As…