Researchers at Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy have developed a set of novel, first-in-class drugs that inhibit hypoxia-inducible factors 1 and 2, a pair of transcription factors considered to be “master regulators” of cancer progression. The study, to be published April 2 in the Journal of Experimental Medicine (JEM), shows that these drugs, when combined with immunotherapy, can completely eliminate breast, colorectal, melanoma, and prostate tumors in mice, suggesting that they could eventually be used to treat a broad range of cancers in humans.

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network and NCCN Foundation select five Young Investigator Award recipients from Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, O'Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center at UAB, Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and WashU Medicine, and The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

We report the potential target of  Lentinus edodes-derived β-glucan (LNT) in HeLa cancer cells in this study. Our findings demonstrate that LNT could specifically bind to the deleted in malignant brain tumor 1 (DMBT1), a potential target on HeLa cytomembrane. The primary driving force for this binding were mainly hydrogen bonding, hydrophobic interactions, and van der Waals forces. LNT significantly up-regulated the expression of DMBT1 in HeLa cells and reduced HeLa cell viability in a concentration-dependent manner, suggesting that LNT might target DMBT1 to inhibit cancer cell growth. Furthermore, the potential mechanism by which LNT targeted DMBT1 to inhibit HeLa cell viability was investigated using a DMBT1-knockdown HeLa cell model. The results show that LNT-induced proliferation inhibition and apoptosis were significantly lower in DMBT1-knockdown HeLa cells than in non-knockdown HeLa cells, indicating that DMBT1 played a key tumor suppressor role in HeLa cells. Meanwhile, after DMBT1 knockdown, LNT-induced inhibition of PI3K/Akt pathway activation was attenuated in vitro and in vivo, suggesting that LNT induced inhibition of PI3K/Akt pathway activation and HeLa cell viability were closely associated with DMBT1. Therefore, this study proposed a novel strategy for treating cervical cancer by enhancing DMBT1 expression via LNT.

Recent research shows that tumors in different organs host microbial communities capable of influencing cancer biology, immune responses, and the effectiveness of therapies, highlighting the need to standardize methods for studying intratumoral microbes.

Melanoma is a deadly form of skin cancer that is typically removed surgically. Now, researchers publishing in ACS Nano report they have developed a potential noninvasive treatment for melanoma in the form of a stretchy, heat-activated patch similar to a bandage. When activated, the patch releases copper ions that kill the underlying cancer cells and prevent them from spreading. In tests with mice, the researchers say the patch reduced melanoma lesions without damaging surrounding tissue. 

VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center and its NCI Community Oncology Research Program (NCORP) affiliates played a vital role in a phase III clinical trial that has established a new therapeutic standard for patients with stage III colon cancer with deficient DNA mismatch repair (dMMR).

Researchers from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have developed a first-in-class antibody that targets a protein overexpressed in many cancer types, allowing for the creation of a new radio-theranostic treatment that brings targeted radiation directly to tumor cells.

BUFFALO, NY — April 1, 2026 — A new research perspective was published in Volume 13 of Oncoscience on March 11, 2026, titled “Targeting MD2 in prostate cancer bone metastasis: Mechanistic insights and therapeutic potential.”