A team of scientists at Kyoto University’s Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences (iCeMS) has created a protein-based therapeutic tool  that could change the way we treat diseases caused by harmful or unnecessary cells. The new tool, published in Nature Biomedical Engineering, involves a synthetic protein called Crunch, short for Connector for Removal of Unwanted Cell Habitat. Crunch uses the body’s natural waste removal system to clear out specific target cells, offering hope for improved treatments for cancer, autoimmune diseases, and other diseases where harmful cells cause damage.

Researchers at the Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) interdisciplinary research group of the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART), Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT) research enterprise in Singapore, have developed a powerful tool capable of scanning thousands of biological samples to detect transfer ribonucleic acid (tRNA) modifications — tiny chemical changes to RNA molecules that help control how cells grow, adapt to stress and respond to diseases such as cancer and antibiotic‑resistant infections.

Patients with prostate cancer often face the additional burden of developing secondary primary malignancies (SPMs), which significantly reduce survival outcomes.

Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital and four other institutions have devised a novel method to test for prostate cancer using biomarkers present in urine, funded in part by the National Institutes of Health. This approach could significantly reduce the need for invasive, often painful biopsies, they say.

A new policy review published in The Lancet Oncology and led by Ian Tannock and Madeline Pe, together with an international team of oncologists, statisticians, patients and patient-reported outcomes (PRO) experts from Common Sense Oncology (CSO) and the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC), emphasises the critical role of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) data in the evaluation of treatments for people with advanced cancer. This publication highlights the importance of having standardised responder criteria when evaluating HRQoL in clinical trials to improve patient care and clinical decision-making.

Engineers at Duke University have developed a wireless patch that can non-invasively measure skin and tissue stiffness at depths of up to a couple of inches. Already smaller than a smartwatch, the device could be a gateway into a wide array of medical applications such as the monitoring of wound healing, chronic conditions like skin cancer, fluid management during resuscitation efforts and muscle rehabilitation.

Researchers at MUSC Hollings Cancer Center are developing a promising new drug to combat aggressive head and neck cancers. The drug works by targeting cancer cells’ mitochondria – their energy source – by boosting levels of a fat molecule called C18-ceramide. C18-ceramide triggers the destruction of mitochondria and starves cancer cells. It also blocks fumarate, a key energy molecule, creating a dual attack on cancer metabolism while largely sparing healthy cells.

In mouse models and patient-derived tumors, the drug significantly slowed tumor growth and caused cancer cells to collapse energetically. Because reduced ceramide is a hallmark of many cancers, this approach could one day lead to a new class of targeted therapies that are safer and more effective than chemotherapy or radiation. Although still in preclinical stages, the researchers are optimistic about advancing the drug to clinical trials as a potential lifeline for patients with treatment-resistant cancers.