Cancer Research | Penn Today

How tumor mechanics and tiny messengers could shape the future of cancer research

A literature review co-written by Penn Engineering Ph.D. student Kshitiz Parihar and Ravi Radhakrishnan, professor in bioengineering and chemical biomolecular engineering, highlights the hidden connections between tumor mechanics and extracellular vesicles (EVs), tiny packages of proteins and genetic material secreted by cells. EVs carry cargo like proteins and RNA between cells, influencing how tumors grow, how the immune system responds, and even how cancers spread to other parts of the body.

Penn researchers find killing dormant, ‘sleeper’ breast cancer cells may prevent recurrence

Penn Medicine researchers have discovered a way to test for dormant breast cancer cells in survivors. Angela DeMichele and Lewis Chodosh are quoted.

A mammogram technicial looking at the scans of a mammogram with patient in the background.

Pioneering strategy may keep breast cancer from coming back

A clinical trial led by scientists from the Abramson Cancer Center and the Perelman School of Medicine offers proof-of-concept for a treatment approach to prevent breast cancer recurrence.

2 min. read

Person with head covering looking out a window.

Thriving while surviving: Understanding the social needs of cancer survivors

Penn researchers and their colleagues have investigated how unmet social needs impact the health and well-being of U.S. cancer survivors. Their findings are relevant for other serious chronic illnesses.

3 min. read

Genetic testing reduces risks from chemotherapy for gastrointestinal cancer patients

A new study by Penn Medicine’s Sony Tuteja finds that preemptive genetic testing for those with two specific genes cut chemotherapy side effects in half, as compared to similar patients given standard doses without testing.

Two doctors in white lab coats in a lab.

How discoveries become cures

Public investments in biomedical research have an outsized effect, driving new scientific insights, economic growth, and ultimately treatments and cures.

3 min. read

Genetic mutations in prostate cancer can differ significantly based on race, ethnicity

A study by Kara N. Maxwell of the Perelman School of Medicine finds that prostate cancer tumor biology can differ significantly based on whether a patient is Black or white.

Expert: Antimicrobial resistance is a ‘cancer care crisis’

Yehoda M. Martei of the Perelman School of Medicine says that safely administering cancer treatment fundamentally depends on the availability of antibiotics.

What most American women don’t know when it comes to breast cancer screening

More than half of American women may be confused about when to start regular mammograms to screen for breast cancer, according to a survey from the Annenberg Public Policy Center, with comments by Kathleen Hall Jamieson.

Uterine cancer projected to rise in U.S. by 2050, Black women likely to be hit hardest

Adeiyewunmi (Ade) Osinubi of the Perelman School of Medicine writes about the rise of uterine cancer, especially among African Americans.

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