Health
New pancreatic cancer treatment ‘wakes up’ immune cells, researchers say
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Scientists have created a new antibody treatment that helps the immune system recognize and attack pancreatic cancer.
Pancreatic cancer cells use a sugary “disguise” to trick the immune system into ignoring them.
Most current cancer immunotherapies target proteins or genes, but this new therapy focuses on the sugars on the cell surface, blocking them so that immune cells can find and attack the cancer, according to researchers from Northwestern University in Chicago.
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“Pancreatic cancer is notoriously good at hiding from the immune system, but we were struck that a single sugar, called sialic acid, can so powerfully fool immune cells,” senior author Mohamed Abdel-Mohsen, associate professor of medicine in the division of infectious diseases at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, told Fox News Digital.
“When tumors sugar-coat themselves with this molecule, it flips an immune ‘off switch’ on certain immune cells, essentially signaling, ‘I’m a normal, healthy cell; don’t attack.’”
Study authors Mohamed Abdel-Mohsen (top) and Pratima Saini (foreground) are pictured in Abdel-Mohsen’s lab. (Northwestern University)
In mice studies, the therapy was shown to be successful in blocking this sugar signal, “waking up” immune cells and slowing cancer’s growth.
In two mouse models, tumors treated with the antibody grew significantly slower than groups that did not receive the treatment, the study showed.
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These findings could pave the way toward testing in human groups, and could potentially be combined with chemotherapy and existing immunotherapies, according to the researchers.
The findings were published in the journal Cancer Research on Nov. 3.
Study senior author Mohamed Abdel-Mohsen is shown in his lab. “This is early-stage, preclinical research, not a treatment today, but it opens a new immune target in pancreatic cancer,” he said. (Northwestern University)
“This is early-stage, preclinical research, not a treatment today, but it opens a new immune target in pancreatic cancer,” said Abdel-Mohson.
Heloisa P. Soares, M.D., Ph.D., medical director of theranostics at Huntsman Cancer Institute and associate professor of internal medicine at the University of Utah, said this research is “encouraging” because it points to a new way of helping the immune system recognize and fight pancreatic cancer.
“Pancreatic cancer is notoriously good at hiding from the immune system.”
“It was surprising to learn that a protein usually responsible for helping cells stick together is also being used by pancreatic cancer as a hidden ‘do-not-attack’ signal,” Soares, who was not involved in the study, told Fox News Digital.
“The striking part was that when this signal was blocked, the immune cells woke back up and started attacking the tumor much more effectively — which suggests a promising new direction for treatment.”
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Pancreatic cancer is one of the most lethal forms of the disease. It’s usually detected at an advanced stage, leaving patients with limited treatment choices and a five-year survival rate of only about 13%, the researchers noted.
Unlike many other cancers, it often doesn’t respond to immunotherapy.
Pancreatic cancer is usually detected at an advanced stage, leaving patients with limited treatment choices and a five-year survival rate of only about 13%. (iStock)
“Pancreatic cancer is often diagnosed late, in part because it remains asymptomatic and is deep in the body,” Dr. Marc Siegel, Fox News senior medical analyst, told Fox News Digital.
“It is also difficult to treat because it doesn’t have many good immune targets and doesn’t mutate that much.”
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The study did have some limitations, the researchers acknowledged — primarily that the tests have only been conducted on animals thus far and there is not yet any human data.
“Animal models cannot capture all the complexity of human pancreatic cancer,” the lead researcher noted. “Tumors also use multiple escape routes, so this strategy will likely be part of a combination approach.”
After human trials, the researchers estimate that it could take about five years before the therapy would be available to patients. (Northwestern University)
The long-term safety and dosing parameters of the therapy are also unknown.
“We need clinical trials to see how effective this is in humans and whether it has a role in cancer treatments for this difficult and deadly cancer — but it is quite promising,” Siegel added.
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The research team is now working with clinicians at Northwestern’s Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center on next steps toward potential human studies, likely in combination with current chemotherapy and immunotherapies, according to Abdel-Mohsen.
“It’s a promising step forward, but not something that will change care overnight.”
“If future studies support it, this approach could be added to the toolbox against pancreatic cancer, likely alongside existing chemo-immunotherapy, not replacing what’s working today,” he told Fox News Digital.
After human trials, the researchers estimate that it could take about five years before the therapy would be available to patients.
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Soares added, “It’s a promising step forward, but not something that will change care overnight. Continued funding and participation in clinical trials are essential to keep this progress moving.”
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The study was supported in part by the National Institutes of Health.
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Eating processed meat like ham, sausage and bacon may be linked to a higher risk of certain types of cancer, according to new research.
While health organizations have already confirmed that processed meat can contribute to colon cancer, this study looked closer at cancers in the upper digestive tract, where the link has historically been less clear.
To understand these connections, researchers from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC), one of the world’s largest long-term nutrition and cancer cohorts, tracked the health and diets of 450,112 people across Europe for an average of 14 years.
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The study group included 131,426 men and 318,686 women, according to the study’s press release.
During the follow-up period, 876 people developed stomach cancer and 215 people developed esophageal adenocarcinoma, which is cancer of the tube connecting the mouth to the stomach.
For female participants, eating both processed meat and white meat was linked to an increased risk of developing the disease. (iStock)
Researchers tracked where the stomach cancers grew, separating them into the upper part of the stomach near the throat and the lower part of the stomach.
The researchers also sorted the tumors into two categories based on how the cancer cells appeared under a microscope: intestinal, which forms more organized structures, and diffuse, in which the cells are more scattered throughout the tissue.
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After adjusting for other lifestyle factors, the researchers found that for every extra 30 grams of processed meat a person ate per day, their overall risk of stomach cancer went up by 9%. Eating that same extra 30 grams a day was also linked to a 13% higher risk of esophageal adenocarcinoma.
A standard single slice of regular deli-sliced ham or lunch meat averages around 28 grams, according to USDA data and nutritional tracking databases.
An extra 20 grams of white meat, such as chicken and turkey, was linked to a 12% higher risk of cancer in the main body of the stomach. (iStock)
An extra 20 grams of white meat, such as chicken or turkey, was linked to a 12% higher risk of cancer in the main body of the stomach, the researchers noted.
The study also revealed differences between men and women. For male participants, only processed meat showed a clear, statistically significant link to a higher risk of stomach cancer. For female participants, however, eating both processed meat and white meat was linked to an increased risk.
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These findings align with global health benchmarks, particularly those established by the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer.
The agency has long classified processed meat as a known human carcinogen, primarily due to its strong, well-documented links to colorectal cancer.
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However, health organizations have also consistently pointed to a potential, yet less definitive, relationship between these meats and cancers of the stomach.
Eating 30 grams of processed meat a day, or the equivalent to one slice of ham, was linked to a 13% higher risk of esophageal adenocarcinoma. (iStock)
Further scientific investigation is needed to confirm the findings and to account for other underlying risk factors, such as certain stomach infections, which could interact with dietary habits.
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A key limitation of the study is its reliance on self-reported diets, which can sometimes lead to inaccuracies in how participants recall their meat consumption over time, the researchers noted.
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The findings were published in the International Journal of Cancer.
Fox News Digital reached out to the researchers requesting comment.
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Yoga is known to boost relaxation, strength and flexibility – and now a new study has found the practice could improve cancer survivors’ quality of life.
A randomized trial led by the University of Rochester Medical Center found that a four-week yoga program significantly reduced insomnia, fatigue, anxiety and mood disturbances after cancer treatment.
The findings were presented last week at the 2026 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting in Chicago.
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The study was conducted across multiple U.S. community cancer care sites, including 410 adult cancer survivors averaging 54 years of age. Around 75% were breast cancer survivors, and none of them had practiced yoga regularly within the prior three months.
A randomized trial led by the University of Rochester Medical Center found that a four-week yoga program significantly reduced insomnia, fatigue, anxiety and mood disturbances in cancer survivors. (iStock)
The participants were randomly assigned to two groups. Half of them received only standard survivorship care without the yoga, while the other half received standard care and were also enrolled in the Yoga for Cancer Survivors (YOCAS) program.
As part of the YOCAS program, the survivors completed two instructor-led 75-minute yoga sessions each week, including 18 Gentle Hatha yoga and Restorative yoga poses, breathing exercises and mindfulness training.
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Based on questionnaires completed by the patients, the survivors in the yoga group experienced “moderate-to-large” reductions in overall mood disturbance, “small-to-medium” reductions in anxiety and “medium-to-large” reductions in fatigue, the study found.
The improvements in mood and fatigue appeared to be linked to yoga’s beneficial effect on sleep quality, according to the researchers.
As part of the YOCAS program, the survivors completed two instructor-led 75-minute yoga sessions each week, including 18 Gentle Hatha yoga and Restorative yoga poses, breathing exercises and mindfulness training. (iStock)
“This indicates that cancer survivors have an option to alleviate these cancer-related side effects at the same time, without adding another drug,” lead investigator Yuri Choi, PhD, of the Wilmot Cancer Institute, University of Rochester Medical Center, in Rochester, New York, told Fox News Digital.
The study did not reveal any major safety concerns or serious adverse events related to the yoga practice.
“This indicates that cancer survivors have an option to alleviate these cancer-related side effects at the same time, without adding another drug.”
The study did have some limitations, chiefly that the findings are preliminary and have not yet been peer-reviewed for a medical publication.
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“The sample in our clinical trial was relatively homogeneous, with most participants being women (96%), breast cancer patients (75%), Caucasian (93%), and having some college or higher education (82%),” noted Choi.
“We are adapting our intervention to reach all cancer patients and survivors, including the creation of a mobile app to reach people in rural communities.”
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The research also excluded patients with metastatic cancer (whose disease had spread to other parts of the body).
The total study was only four weeks, so more research is needed to determine long-term benefits.
If the findings are confirmed by peer-reviewed publications, this could lead to recommendations for structured yoga programs as a non-drug supportive therapy for cancer survivors, the researchers noted. (iStock)
If the findings are confirmed by peer-reviewed publications, this could lead to recommendations for structured yoga programs as a non-drug supportive therapy for cancer survivors, the researchers noted.
Some yoga studios may use different names for Gentle Hatha and Restorative yoga, such as Foundations Yoga or Healing Yoga, Choi noted.
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“Survivors should also look for certified yoga instructors who have experience working with cancer patients/survivors or individuals with other challenging health conditions,” the researcher advised. “They should not be afraid to ask their oncology team for referrals to qualified instructors in their community.”
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Choi also noted that the research did not reveal whether other types of yoga, such as heated-room or rigorous-flow yoga, are safe or beneficial for cancer survivors.
The study was funded by the National Cancer Institute.
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