A trawl through a library of more than 50,000 ‘small molecules’ has identified a potential candidate to inhibit the spread of cancer cells throughout the body. Reported today in the journal Nature Communications, the molecule targets a mechanism of tumour development that had previously been considered ‘undruggable’– in other words, extremely difficult, if not impossible, to target with a drug – and could open the door to further promising new candidates.

Women with breast cancer are 10 per cent more likely to survive for five years or more if they have certain immune cells near their tumour, according to new research.

Scientists at the University of Cambridge have identified a key chemical that can repair the damage to cells which causes a rare but devastating disease involving accelerated ageing. As well as offering a promising new way of treating the condition, known as Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome (HGPS), the discovery could help in the development of drugs against cancer and other genetic diseases and might also suggest ways to alleviate diseases that we associate with normal ageing.

Cancer will affect one in three of us at some point in our lives, so research into this disease is vital. Most cancer patients will see their doctor when the disease is already advanced and harder to treat, according to Professor Ashok Venkitaraman, Director of the Medical Research Council (MRC) Cancer Unit in Cambridge.

New research shows that lack of awareness of the symptoms of mouth and oesophageal cancer means people wait much longer before visiting their GPs than people with symptoms of other cancers. 

Research sheds light on how tumours develop drug resistance

Breast tumour DNA circulating in the bloodstream could be used to measure how well a woman’s cancer is responding to treatment, according to a new study published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Discovery opens up possibilities for a new generation of targeted therapies for cancer.

Women with faults in BRCA genes are more likely to develop breast cancer if they are exposed to chest X-rays before they are 30, according to a study published in the BMJ online today.