Medical Xpress news

Medical Xpress / Unraveling the mystery of why some cancer treatments stop working

Cancer researchers working on immunotherapies have made a big discovery: SLAMF6, a molecule on the surface of immune cells that prevents T cells from effectively attacking tumors—and, in mice, they've found a way to neutralize ...

Feb 12, 2026 in Oncology & Cancer
Medical Xpress / Why visceral fat triggers diabetes: Study points to loss of protective macrophages

Scientists at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine discovered a surprising new way the body can fight insulin resistance and diabetes—by boosting a special type of "good" immune cell in fat tissue.

Feb 12, 2026 in Diabetes
Medical Xpress / Light-based sensor detects early molecular signs of cancer in the blood

Researchers have developed a highly sensitive light-based sensor that can detect extremely low concentrations of cancer biomarkers in the blood. The new technology could one day make it possible to spot early signs of cancer ...

Feb 12, 2026 in Health informatics
Medical Xpress / AI-built maps reveal causal gene regulation across Alzheimer's brain cell types

Researchers led by Min Zhang and Dabao Zhang of the University of California, Irvine's Joe C. Wen School of Population & Public Health have created the most detailed maps to date showing how genes causally regulate one another ...

Feb 12, 2026 in Genetics
Medical Xpress / Newly identified brain circuit and cells link prior experiences to appetite

Our past experiences shape how much we eat and where and what we choose to eat. Using preclinical models, researchers from Mass General Brigham and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard have identified brain cells that translate ...

Feb 12, 2026 in Neuroscience
Medical Xpress / Cholesterol crystals may trigger some liver disease

Cholesterol crystals in the liver may stiffen the organ early in those with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD)—well before scarring develops—according to new research from a team in the Perelman ...

Medical Xpress / Cumulative lead exposure linked to increased Alzheimer's and dementia risk, study finds

As dementia cases continue to rise in the United States, new research from the University of Michigan School of Public Health reveals that older Americans with cumulative lead exposure face a substantially higher risk of ...

Feb 12, 2026 in Neuroscience
Medical Xpress / Nearly half of people facing cataract-related blindness still need surgery

The World Health Organization (WHO) has called on countries to improve their global cataract care, after new findings suggest that millions of people living with cataract still do not have access to simple, sight-restoring ...

Feb 12, 2026 in Ophthalmology
Medical Xpress / Academic pressure at 15 tied to higher depression symptoms through age 22

Pressure to achieve at school at age 15 is linked to depressive symptoms and risk of self-harm, and the association appears to persist into adulthood, finds a study led by University College London (UCL) researchers.

Feb 12, 2026 in Psychology & Psychiatry
Medical Xpress / New characteristics of aggressive prostate cancer identified

For the first time ever, NTNU researchers have identified new characteristics of aggressive prostate cancer. The research lays a foundation for the possibility that aggressive prostate cancer can probably be detected through ...

Feb 12, 2026 in Oncology & Cancer
Medical Xpress / Which childhood abuse survivors are at elevated risk of depression? New study provides important clues

Scientists have identified a pattern of gene activity present in some female survivors of childhood abuse that is associated with an elevated risk of depression.

Feb 12, 2026 in Psychology & Psychiatry
Medical Xpress / Mitochondrial RNA may contribute to improved wound healing in diabetes

Diabetic foot ulcers are slow-healing and increase the risk of infections and amputation. Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have identified a circular RNA in mitochondria, circMTRNR2, that plays an important role in the ...

Feb 12, 2026 in Gerontology & Geriatrics