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Liver Cancer Program: News

Explore more liver cancer research news in the areas of early detection, diagnosis, prognosis, treatment and population studies and health disparities.

Focus Areas: 

Dr. Wang discusses a new blood test to identify those likely to develop liver cancer

CancerNetwork, July 14, 2020

In this interview with CancerNetwork, Xin Wei Wang, Ph.D., discusses the clinical utility of a new blood test and how it could potentially change liver cancer diagnoses moving forward.  View interview.


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Cartoon depicting a person with a healthy liver, with chronic liver disease, and with liver cancer

A new blood test that may improve liver cancer screening

NCI Press Release, June 11, 2020

LCP scientists have developed a new test that can help identify people who are likely to develop hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the most common form of liver cancer. This method uses a simple blood test to check for the patient’s previous exposure to certain viruses. Read more.

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plate of vegetables

Selective CD4+ T cell loss promotes liver cancer development

CCR Milestones 2017

LCP research identified a novel link between obesity-induced lipid accumulation and selective CD4+ T cell loss, which impairs tumor immunity and enhances liver cancer development. These findings shed light on how metabolic changes promote NAFLD (non-alcoholic fatty liver disease)-related liver cancer. Read more.

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mosaic

A mosaic of liver tumor cells

CCR Milestones 2020

Tumors are complex communities of cells. Cancerous cells intermingle with noncancerous cells, and additional diversity arises as a tumor’s cancer cells divide and acquire new genetic mutations. Now, LCP scientists have discovered that the extent of cellular diversity within a tumor may shape its response to immune checkpoint inhibitors in patients with liver cancer. Read more.


Dr. Budhu discusses potential molecular markers in liver cancer

OncLive, October 11, 2019

In this interview with OncLive, Anuradha S. Budhu, Ph.D., discusses using molecular features as predictive markers in liver cancer. View interview.


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jar with dice

Diversity of liver cancer cells can impede tumors' response to immunotherapy

CCR News, October 3, 2019

Patients whose liver cancers responded well to immune checkpoint inhibitors in clinical trials had tumors with less cellular diversity than cancers that were not responsive to this type of therapy, CCR scientists have discovered in a new Cancer Cell paper. Read more.


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what's next in liver cancer video

What's Next in Liver Cancer Research

October 30, 2018

Drs. Budhu, Greten and McGlynn join Twitter Live to discuss "What’s Next in Liver Cancer Research". 

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Molecular Cluster Exploration graphic

Tumor biology and immune infiltration define primary liver cancer subsets linked to overall survival after immunotherapy

Cell Reports Medicine, May 23, 2023

Primary liver cancer is a rising cause of deaths in the US. Although immunotherapy with immune checkpoint inhibitors induces a potent response in a subset of patients, response rates vary among individuals. Read more.


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Tumor cell community in a hepatocellular carcinoma

Researchers uncover stable molecular networks inside liver tumors

CCR News, December 22, 2022

CCR researchers have uncovered stable molecular networks that cells within liver tumors use to communicate with immune cells in the tumor microenvironments. Read more.


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GPC3 expression in hepatocellular carcinoma

Clinical trial targets cell surface protein GPC3 to treat advanced hepatocellular carcinoma

CCR News, November 30, 2021

Adults diagnosed with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC ) may be eligible to participate in a phase I clinical trial that takes advantage of a cell surface protein, called GPC3, that is found on most HCC tumor cells, and importantly, is absent on normal liver tissue and in other organs. The trial is led by Read more.


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liver cancer cells

Protein that drives aggressive liver cancer identified

CCR News, July 02, 2021

Researchers at CCR studying liver cancer have identified a protein that may drive tumors to evolve and evade therapy. This finding may help answer a major question in cancer research that revolves around what factors cause some tumors to evolve and become more aggressive despite treatment. The finding could also lead to new therapies for patients who do not respond to treatment with immune checkpoint inhibitors, a type of therapy that has shown some promise in only a small subset of patients with this difficult-to-treat cancer.  Read more.


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Bacteria (green) present in the liver of a mouse that has a leaky gut barrier.

New connection between gut microbes and liver cancer uncovered in mice

CCR News, December 15, 2020

Researchers have uncovered a mechanism by which gut microbes can influence the immune response against nearby liver tumors in mice. The results were published on December 15, 2020, in Cancer Discovery and shed light on how certain diseases that weaken the protective lining of the gut barrier may exacerbate a type of liver cancer called cholangiocarcinoma.  Read more.


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Liver cancer cells

Clinical trial to determine whether antibiotics can boost immune response in treating liver cancer

CCR News, May 14, 2019

In this clinical trial, patients with liver cancer will be given antibiotics, along with two drugs, to explore whether manipulating microbes within the gut of a patient can boost their immune system’s response to the disease. Read more.  


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biliary cancer cells

Clinical trial finds combination therapy effective for some biliary cancer patients

CCR News, January 28, 2019

An early-phase clinical trial has established that the immunotherapy agent tremelimumab, combined with microwave ablation therapy, is safe for patients with advanced biliary tract cancer (BTC). Read more.


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microbiome

Liver tumors link to the microbiome

CCR Milestones 2019

LCP scientists show how bacteria that live in the gut can hinder the immune system’s ability to control tumors in the liver. Read more.

Dr. Wang discusses a new blood test to identify those likely to develop liver cancer

CancerNetwork, July 14, 2020

In this interview with CancerNetwork, Xin Wei Wang, Ph.D., discusses the clinical utility of a new blood test and how it could potentially change liver cancer diagnoses moving forward.  View interview.


Image
Cartoon depicting a person with a healthy liver, with chronic liver disease, and with liver cancer

A new blood test that may improve liver cancer screening

NCI Press Release, June 11, 2020

LCP scientists have developed a new test that can help identify people who are likely to develop hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the most common form of liver cancer. This method uses a simple blood test to check for the patient’s previous exposure to certain viruses. Read more.