Posts by tag
pancreatic cancer
Larry Leksell: The story of Elekta
“Tax planning was one major reason for the foundation of Elekta.” Larry Leksell says it with a smile that suggests he enjoys disrupting the mythology people create around founders. Most people expect a grand story of origin. A visionary revelation.…
CancerWorld #117 (July 2026)
We often describe progress in oncology through the language of innovation. New drugs. New technologies. New discoveries. Yet scientific breakthroughs rarely change cancer care on their own. They require people willing to pursue difficult ideas, build institutions, challenge accepted thinking,…
The Ovation and the Asterisk
Five trials, five cancers, and what the ASCO 2026 plenary really promised patients ASCO 2026’s plenary delivered five real advances across five cancers, and a standing ovation that pulled a hall full of oncologists to their feet. The harder question…
Rewriting RAS: A New Targeted Option on the Horizon for Pancreatic Cancer
Metastatic pancreatic cancer remains one of the most treatment-refractory solid tumours in oncology. Despite multiple incremental refinements over the past decade, first-line therapy continues to rely on cytotoxic chemotherapy, most commonly FOLFIRINOX or gemcitabine plus nab-paclitaxel, with limited change in…
CancerWorld #115 (May 2026)
In oncology, progress is measured in survival rates, response curves, and treatment gains. But those numbers rest on a quieter assumption: that health systems can deliver what science makes possible. When they cannot, progress becomes uneven—not in discovery, but in…
CancerWorld #113 (March 2026)
Scientific discovery drives oncology forward, but progress only truly begins when knowledge is turned into action. Every issue of CancerWorld explores the people, ideas, and systems shaping the future of oncology. Scientific breakthroughs remain essential, but their true value emerges…
Rethinking Immunotherapy for Pancreatic Cancer: A Universal Approach
Chimeric antigen receptor natural killer T (CAR-NKT) cell therapy, a novel form of immunotherapy, is emerging as a promising ‘off-the-shelf’ treatment for patients with pancreatic cancer. In a study published in PNAS, November 21, 2025, U.S. investigators report that CAR-NKT cells…
MRI technique can identify pre-malignant pancreatic lesions
Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), a form of MRI, is capable of detecting pre-malignant lesions in both mouse and human pancreatic specimens. The ‘proof of concept’ study, published in Investigative Radiology, 13 December 2024, opens the way to use DTI for…
Young-onset digestive cancers: this is how we improve the quality of care
“I had very severe symptoms. I had jaundice, I had itching – symptoms that could definitely indicate something related to the liver, or quite severe disease – but because of my age I was repeatedly just shoved away.” (Gabriel, eventually…
Liver biopsies can predict when and where pancreatic cancer will metastasise and may guide treatment of early-stage disease
Liver biopsies undertaken at the time of surgery for pancreatic cancer can be used to identify cellular and molecular markers that predict whether early pancreatic cancer will later metastasise to the liver. The study, published in Nature Medicine, June 28,…