Colonoscopy screening intervals could be extended for people without a family history of colorectal cancer (CRC), research suggests, allowing them to avoid unnecessary invasive examinations. The decade-long interval between screenings could potentially be extended to 15 years for those whose first colonoscopy is negative for the cancer, without resulting in major adverse consequences. The study, published in JAMA Oncology, adds to an evolving body of evidence that supports extending the historical 10-year screening interval for individuals at average CRC risk. ‘This study provides evidence for ..read more

Researchers at the Medical College of Georgia (MCG) have found that targeting a specific receptor in the eye may benefit many patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration, who don’t respond well to current treatments.  Age-related macular degeneration is a leading cause of blindness worldwide and occurs mostly in the elderly and people with metabolic diseases, such as diabetes and obesity. It is characterized by increased blood vessel growth in the eye, damaging the macula at the back of the eye, which is essential for translating light into image signals.  Current trea ..read more

Researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) have discovered that a known network of inflammatory molecules could be used as biomarkers to calculate a person’s risk of developing cerebral small vessel disease, a common cause of stroke and cognitive decline.  In current clinical practice, the only way to understand a person’s susceptibility to developing cerebral small vessel disease is a combination of medical imaging techniques, family history, and assessing other risk factors. Moreover, physicians may only discover a person is at risk of having a stroke after they hav ..read more

Artificial intelligence can filter through electronic health records (EHRs) to identify patients with rare, undiagnosed diseases, research suggests. A machine-learning algorithm was able to spot more than half of individuals who went on to be diagnosed with the inherited disease of common variable immunodeficiencies (CVID). The group of immune disorders leaves patients susceptible to infections and autoimmunity and is characterized by antibody deficiency and impaired B cell responses. The findings are published in the journal Science Translational Medicine. “Immune deficiency patients elude di ..read more

Insights into fibrotic liver disease and a candidate drug to interfere with this process were uncovered in recent work by a team from the University of California San Diego. Their research describes a pathway that leads to fatty liver, they also designed a drug candidate to affect this pathway. This work applies to metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), which was formerly called NASH. Advanced MASH can lead to cirrhosis, liver cancer, and liver-related death. It’s estimated that a quarter of the U.S. population alone has MASH.  These results were published in Cell Metabo ..read more

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) has updated its breast cancer screening recommendations to include biennial screening mammography for all women aged 40–49 years, rather than individualizing the screening decision for women in this age group. The statement, published in JAMA, updates the 2016 recommendation for biennial screening mammography among women aged 50–74 years plus personalized decision-making, based on factors such as individual risk and personal preferences, for women aged 40–49 years. The USPSTF also updated the recommended primary screening modalities to reflect a ..read more

Researchers at the University of Florida report they have developed an mRNA cancer vaccine that quickly reprograms the immune system to attack glioblastoma in a first-ever human clinical trial of four adult patients. Their results published in Cell mirror those from preclinical mouse studies, and from a newly reported trial with the mRNA vaccine in 10 pet dogs that developed spontaneous brain tumors. The dogs’ owners had approved their animals’ treatment using the new vaccine as there were no other therapy options. The researchers say the aim is to progress the mRNA vaccine into an expanded Ph ..read more

Cancer screening rates are significantly lower at Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) compared to overall national rates, according to a study published in JAMA Internal Medicine. The study found screening use in FQHCs was 45.4 percent for breast cancer, 51 percent for cervical cancer and 40.2 percent for colorectal cancer, compared to cancer screening rates in the general population of 78.2 percent, 82.9 percent and 72.3 percent, respectively. One researcher called the results disheartening, but not surprising. “Our results matched what we were seeing on the ground: screening rates are ..read more

A team of researchers from around the world, who are part of the International Consortium of Blood Pressure, have discovered more than 100 new regions in the human genome that seem to influence a person’s blood pressure. These findings enabled the researchers to improve polygenic risk scores to be more predictive of blood pressure and hypertension risk.  Approximately 1.28 billion adults worldwide have high blood pressure, also known as hypertension. In addition to environmental factors, like increased salt intake, smoking, stress, and lack of exercise, hypertension also has underlying ge ..read more

Enlaza Therapeutics yesterday announced a $100 million Series A financing to further develop its proprietary covalent protein technologies and support advancement of its nascent pipeline to the clinic. The company’s aim is to bring covalency to biologic therapies. This approach could be useful in one of today’s most active areas of cancer drug development—antibody drug conjugates (ADCs). The global market for ADCs is already worth several billion dollars, and is expected to grow considerably over the next decade. There are over 100 of these drugs in clinical trials. Most of the ADCs developed ..read more