EurekAlert! Cancer Research - News Releases

News Releases

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 22-Jun-2026 01:15 ET (22-Jun-2026 05:15 GMT/UTC)

ASCO 2026 - Sylvester trial tests virus-immunotherapy combination for neuroendocrine tumors

University of Miami Miller School of Medicine
Reports and Proceedings

Researchers from Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center will present phase 1 trial findings testing whether the tumor-targeting virus SVV-001 can improve immunotherapy in aggressive high-grade neuroendocrine tumors. The first three dose levels showed no severe treatment-related side effects.

Meeting: ASCO Annual Meeting 2026

ASCO 2026: Oral drug proved highly effective against chemotherapy-related low platelets in GI cancer trial

University of Miami Miller School of Medicine
Reports and Proceedings

In a phase 2 trial, avatrombopag—an oral drug approved for thrombocytopenia in liver disease—improved platelet recovery in GI cancer patients on chemotherapy. Treatment goals were met by 65% of patients receiving avatrombopag vs. 17% receiving placebo.

Meeting: ASCO Annual Meeting 2026

City of Hope researchers present advances in targeted therapies, microbiome science and blood cancers at ASCO 2026

City of Hope
Meeting Announcement

City of Hope researchers showcased new advances at ASCO 2026, highlighting progress in targeted therapies, microbiome science and blood cancers, with emerging findings in kidney, liver and prostate cancers underscoring a move toward more personalized, biology-driven treatment approaches.

Mass General Brigham researchers present key findings at ASCO

Mass General Brigham
Meeting Announcement

Researchers from Mass General Brigham Cancer Institute will present research discoveries and outcomes from clinical trials in cancer at the 2026 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting, held May 29 – June 2, in Chicago

ASCO brings together leading experts in clinical oncology to share the latest breakthroughs in cancer research, science and medicine. Presentations from Mass General Brigham Cancer Institute investigators include a study evaluating the outcomes of patients admitted to a dedicated oncology service within a multisite home hospital program; the results of a late-breaking plenary session on prostate cancer; efficacy and safety of a lung cancer drug; the efficacy of an app to support the psychosocial needs of patients with multiple myeloma; the creation of an electronic frailty index to inform risk ahead of CAR-T cell therapy treatments, and more.

Below are a few highlights from this year’s presentations. All times are Central Time (CT).

Meeting: ASCO Annual Meeting 2026

Garvan scientists capture ‘housekeeping’ immune cells attacking live melanoma

Garvan Institute of Medical Research
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Scientists at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research have captured, for the first time, ‘housekeeping’ immune cells actively attacking and engulfing live melanoma cells – a discovery that could change the way we approach treatment for one of Australia’s most common and deadly cancers.

Journal: Journal of Experimental Medicine

Researchers identify drivers of resistance to KRAS inhibitors in colorectal cancer

University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A new preclinical study led by researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and Weill Cornell Medicine has uncovered genetic and cell-state adaptive mechanisms that drive resistance to KRAS inhibitors in patients with KRAS-mutant colorectal cancer. These findings suggest that targeting early inflammatory responses by adding TBK1 blockade with KRAS inhibition may be a promising combination strategy to overcome treatment resistance.

Journal: Cancer Cell

UT MD Anderson names Albert Koong, MD, Ph.D., chief scientific officer

University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
Business Announcement

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center today announced that Albert Koong, M.D., Ph.D., an internationally recognized physician-scientist, has been appointed chief scientific officer (CSO), effective June 1. Koong has served as CSO ad interim since Jan. 1.

Mount Sinai dermatologists and oncologists call for overhaul of widely used cancer side-effect grading system

The Mount Sinai Hospital / Mount Sinai School of Medicine
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Physicians at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai are calling for updates to a widely used system that grades side effects from cancer treatments, warning that current criteria may misclassify the severity of skin-related toxicities and limit consistency across clinical trials.

Journal: JAMA Oncology

DNA repair protein gene gone rogue may unlock new cancer treatments

Penn State
Peer-Reviewed Publication

An overabundance of a common DNA repair protein can mimic the effects of a mutation in the BRCA gene — a genetic flaw linked to hereditary breast and ovarian cancer — even in tumors that test negative for it, according to a new study led by Penn State College of Medicine researchers. The finding raises the possibility of more personalized cancer treatment for patients whose tumors don't carry the genetic mutations doctors typically screen for.

Journal: Nature Communications
Funder: Four Diamonds

Prostate cancer mortality after relabeling low-grade prostate cancer as precancerous

JAMA Network
Peer-Reviewed Publication

About The Study: In this study, dropping the cancer label from grade group (GG)1 prostate disease and redefining GG1 prostate disease as a precancerous lesion led to a net reduction in estimated prostate cancer deaths. Proponents for retaining the cancer label for GG1 prostate disease should argue relabeling would have close to zero effects on screening rates or that other harms outweigh the benefits of reduced prostate cancer mortality.

Journal: JAMA Oncology

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