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Top cancer research stories of 2024
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Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center researchers spent 2024 mining patient data, leveraging artificial intelligence and conducting clinical trials to reveal insights that improve patient care.
By Mayo Clinic staff
Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center physicians and scientists are researching the causes of cancer and its recurrence, innovating new methods to detect cancer as early as possible, and developing new and more effective treatments. Here are some of their top success stories from the past year:
A multicenter, international study suggests that people who have early-stage triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) and high levels of immune cells within their tumors may have a lower risk of recurrence and better survival rates — even without chemotherapy treatment. The study was published in the Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA).
The immune cells, also known as tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), are immune system cells that can move from the bloodstream into a tumor and can recognize and destroy cancer cells.
"This is an important finding because it highlights that the abundance of TILs in breast tissue is a prognostic biomarker in people with early-stage triple-negative breast cancer, even when chemotherapy is not administered," says Roberto Leon-Ferre, M.D., a breast medical oncologist at Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center and first author of the study.
Mayo researchers invented a new class of AI to improve cancer research and treatments
Mayo Clinic researchers recently invented a new class of artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms called hypothesis-driven AI, which is a significant departure from traditional AI models that learn solely from data. In a review published in Cancers, the researchers note that this emerging class of AI offers an innovative way to use massive datasets to help discover the complex causes of diseases such as cancer and improve treatment strategies.
"This fosters a new era in designing targeted and informed AI algorithms to solve scientific questions, better understand diseases, and guide individualized medicine," says senior author and co-inventor Hu Li, Ph.D., a Mayo Clinic Systems biology and AI researcher in the Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics. "It has the potential to uncover insights missed by conventional AI."
Melanoma in darker skin tones: Race and sex play a role, Mayo study finds
Melanoma is often detected later in people with darker skin complexions, and the consequences can be devastating, a Mayo Clinic study reveals. While melanoma may be found less frequently in people with darker complexions than fair ones, this serious form of cancer can affect anyone. The study consisted of 492,597 patients with melanoma. Findings suggests that added vigilance in early screening is particularly needed for Black men, whose cancers are often found at later stages, leading to worse outcomes compared to white patients.
"We compared non-Hispanic Black patients to white patients and saw striking differences in how patients presented with the disease," says surgical oncologist Tina Hieken, M.D., senior author of the study and a researcher at Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center. "We saw more extremity melanoma and more later-stage disease."
New research platform assesses brain cancer mutations during surgery
In a study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Mayo Clinic researchers report on a new surgical platform used during brain cancer surgery that informs critical decision-making about tumor treatment within minutes. The platform uses mass spectrometry, a sensitive technique used to analyze substances in tissue samples, to identify a key gene mutation in brain cancer in real time.
The researchers say that, in addition to enabling real-time diagnosis, the platform allows surgeons to determine a patient's prognosis and perform tumor resection to improve patient outcomes. In the future, the new platform will help surgeons tailor treatment to the molecular features of a tumor.
Mayo Clinic study uncovers genetic cancer risks in 550 patients
Current screening protocols fail to catch a notable number of people carrying genetic mutations associated with hereditary breast and ovarian cancer syndrome and Lynch syndrome, which increase the risk of developing certain cancers. This issue is particularly pronounced among underrepresented minorities.
These research findings, published in JCO Precision Oncology, are based on genetic screenings of more than 44,000 study participants from diverse backgrounds.
Researchers sequenced the exomes, the protein-coding regions of genes where most disease-causing mutations are found. They identified 550 people (1.24% of participants) as carriers of the hereditary mutations. Importantly, half of these people were previously unaware of their hereditary genetic risk, and 40% did not meet existing clinical guidelines for genetic testing.
In a new multicenter, international study led by Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center, researchers found that people with the B-cell precursor subtype of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (BCP-ALL), who also lacked a genetic abnormality known as the Philadelphia chromosome and were in remission with no trace of cancer, showed significantly higher survival rates when blinatumomab was added to their chemotherapy treatment. The randomized study results are published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
"These results are encouraging and establish a new standard of treatment for people with BCP-ALL," says Mark Litzow, M.D., lead study author and a Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center hematologist. "The addition of blinatumomab to chemotherapy reduced the risk of leukemia recurrence and death by nearly 60%."
Detecting pancreatic cancer through changes in body composition and metabolism
Pancreatic cancer is often diagnosed too late for effective treatment. However, research findings from Mayo Clinic represent a promising step toward identifying biological signals or biomarkers that could help in early detection.
Researchers examined medical records of patients with a common type of pancreatic cancer known as pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). They analyzed abdominal CT scans and blood tests taken up to three years before the patients were diagnosed. Using advanced algorithms, the researchers measured changes in body fat, muscle and bone, as well as shifts in blood-based biomarkers like cholesterol and glucose levels.
The findings, published in the journal Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, revealed changes in various physiological and metabolic measurements. The team's early findings suggest that capturing the subtle yet significant body changes that occur as pancreatic cancer develops could be a key strategy in early detection.
A radiopharmaceutical therapy that has successfully extended progression-free survival for patients with neuroendocrine tumors shows early signs of delivering similar benefits to patients with difficult-to-treat meningioma, a type of brain tumor. The nonrandomized phase 2 study's findings were presented at the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) Annual Meeting.
"We've found a therapy with a meaningful signal for effectiveness and safety for people with refractory meningioma, a condition with no standard treatment options," says Kenneth Merrell, M.D., lead researcher of the trial and a radiation oncologist at Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center.
Mayo Clinic announces the results of an innovative treatment approach that may improve overall survival in older patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma while maintaining their quality of life. The phase 2, single-arm study results are published in The Lancet Oncology.
Sujay Vora, M.D., a Mayo Clinic radiation oncologist, led a team of researchers investigating the use of short-course hypofractionated proton beam therapy incorporating advanced imaging techniques in patients over the age of 65 with newly diagnosed grade 4, malignant glioblastoma.
Results showed that 56% of participants were alive after 12 months, and the median overall survival was 13.1 months. "As compared to prior phase 3 studies in an older population having a median survival of only six to nine months, these results are promising," says Dr. Vora.
A new treatment is showing promise for people with high-risk smoldering multiple myeloma (SMM). This precancerous condition can progress to active multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer. High-risk SMM carries a higher likelihood of progression.
Results from a phase 3 clinical trial, published in the New England Journal of Medicine and presented at the American Society of Hematology meeting, demonstrated that daratumumab, a monoclonal antibody that targets CD38, a protein found on the surface of myeloma cells, significantly reduces the risk of progression to active multiple myeloma and improves overall survival compared to active monitoring.
"These results are a major advancement in the treatment of high-risk smoldering multiple myeloma," says S. Vincent Rajkumar, M.D., hematologist, Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center and lead investigator of the trial. "For the first time, we have a treatment option that can significantly delay or prevent the progression to active disease, improving patients' lives and offering them a chance at a longer, healthier future."
Learn more
Learn more about Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center research and clinical trials.
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This article first appeared on the Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center blog.
