News by Subject Medicine & Health

Blocking placental growth factor (PlGF), a member of the vascular endothelial growth factor family, inhibits the progression of intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) and enhances the efficacy of chemotherapy in mouse models. This novel approach to targeting the connective tissue microenvironment of ICC, a rare but notoriously treatment-resistant form of liver cancer, could pave the way for combination therapies, including chemotherapy and immune checkpoint blockade.

EPFL scientists have carried out the first comprehensive study of how genes in the liver perform their metabolic functions in both space and time of day. Monitoring almost 5000 genes at the level of the individual cell across a 24-hour period, the researchers have modelled how the circadian clock and liver functions crosstalk throughout the day in sync with the feeding-fasting cycle.

Researchers led by Osaka University have found that liver cancer cells induce autophagy in hepatic stellate cells, causing them to produce a growth factor called GDF15 that promotes tumor growth. GDF15 was more highly expressed in tumor tissue than normal liver tissue, and patients with higher levels of GDF15 had a poorer prognosis. New therapies targeting GDF15 may help prevent the development and proliferation of hepatocellular carcinoma.

A new study finds that tumors in the liver siphon off critical immune cells, rendering immunotherapy ineffective. But coupling immunotherapy with radiotherapy to the liver in mice restored the immune cell function and led to better outcomes.

With the number of people who suffer from organ failures and the growing need for available organs for transplant, finding a new way to provide organs and therapeutic options to transplant patients is a critical need. In a new paper, University of Maryland researchers show for the first time that newly established stem cells from pigs could provide a solution, laying the groundwork for growing transplantable human organs.

The US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommends screening for hepatitis B virus infection in adolescents and adults at increased risk for infection. 

Beta-blockers are used to prevent internal bleeding in patients with liver cirrhosis and portal hypertension. Researchers from MedUni Vienna have now shown that Beta-blockers also have beneficial effects on systemic inflammation and this translates into improved clinical outcomes.

Researchers from the University of Missouri School of Medicine have discovered a treatment combination that significantly reduces tumor growth and extends the life span of mice with liver cancer. This discovery provides a potentially new therapeutic approach to treating one of the leading causes of cancer-related death worldwide.